Opportunity Culture

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Ector County Independent School District

Schools began using Opportunity Culture models in:

2020-21

Learn more about the Opportunity Culture initiative in Ector County ISD by visiting the district website.

Details:

In 2019, Ector County ISD designed their Opportunity Culture plans for implementation in fall 2020 in eight schools. Ector County ISD, along with Midland ISD, designed Opportunity Culture with paid teacher residencies in partnership with the University of Texas Permian Basin (UT Permian Basin).

Both Ector County and Midland ISDs have struggled with an extreme teacher shortage. Combined, the districts began the 2019 school year with 500 teacher vacancies. Their Opportunity Culture design is a model for districts and education preparation providers nationwide to strengthen teacher pipelines collaboratively through paid teacher residencies.

UT Permian Basin and its partner schools are members in the University-School Partnerships for the Renewal of Educator Preparation (US PREP). As a member in US PREP, UT Permian Basin is spending the next three years piloting, scaling and sustaining the Teacher Preparation Quality Objectives, which will result in the training of teachers who are ready to meet the needs of their K–12 students. Taken together with the Opportunity Culture model, candidates will receive compensation during their residency year.

UT Permian Basin is a key partner in the districts’ Opportunity Culture design work and is committed to creating a strong teacher pipeline through residencies.

Scott Muri, Superintendent of Ector County ISD and a member of Chiefs for Change, came to Ector County in spring 2019 after serving as Spring Branch ISD superintendent and implementing Opportunity Culture there.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation provided a grant to support training for the school districts and their university partner to design and implement the Opportunity Culture model. Funding from the Gates Foundation is not used to pay supplements for multi-classroom leaders or other Opportunity Culture roles, but for planning and associated professional development.

Ector County ISD Demographics

When Ector County ISD began designing its Opportunity Culture in 2019, the district had 44 schools serving 33,862 students. Of those students, 77 percent were Hispanic, 16 percent were white, and 55 percent were economically disadvantaged.

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