Touro University and Teach NYS, a project of the Orthodox Union that advocates for government funding and resources for yeshivahs and Jewish day schools, recently announced that it will provide STEM teachers access to Master in Education degrees at a reduced cost, qualifying them for government funding through STEM reimbursement program. Teachers at Teach NYS member schools can now enroll in four Master in Education programs at Touro for 54% off the regular tuition cost.
This program mirrors similar Teach NYS partnerships with State University of New York (SUNY) Empire and Gratz College, which provide teachers at member schools access to Masters in Education programs at a final cost of under $10,000 each, representing a savings of up to 40% in tuition depending on teachers’ chosen institution.
“Building on past success, we created this partnership for those schools who told us they wanted their teachers to get Masters in Education at Touro and take more advantage of NYS’s STEM teacher salary reimbursement program. So, we made it a reality,” says Adam Katz, associate director of government programs for Teach NYS. “We’re happy to partner with this respected institution to provide another simple, affordable path for our schools to increase their government funding, while at the same time, elevating their quality of education.”
As with SUNY Empire and Gratz College, each STEM teacher who completes the Touro Master in Education program will enable their employing nonpublic school to qualify for a partial salary reimbursement from the state. Employing schools will finance these degrees for their teachers with a one-time investment of $13,000 per degree. In return, the school will collect around $25,000 annually in salary reimbursements for each teacher—enhancing the quality of education for students while bringing in additional revenue.
“Every opportunity to provide meaningful and high-quality education and training to our teachers is our highest priority at Touro,” says Rabbi Dr. Jeffrey Lichtman, director of Graduate Jewish Education and Special Education. “This exciting new partnership with Teach NYS allows us to do just that, ultimately helping us to provide the children of our community with the very best trained teachers.”
Touro’s application deadline for the upcoming school year is late July.
See: teachcoalition.org/mastersprograms for more information.
