UTeach Partners with UT Permian Basin to Foster STEM Teacher Pipeline

October 5, 2021

by Vivian Abagiu

West Texas students have new STEM opportunities on the horizon and the region itself will see its STEM teacher workforce grow thanks to a new partnership between a proven program, UTeach, and The University of Texas Permian Basin.

Using the innovative UTeach model, UTeach Permian Basin will recruit and prepare a qualified STEM educator workforce that will ultimately strengthen K-12 STEM education overall in the area. Many industries—including oil and gas, cornerstones of the Permian Basin economy—rely on a well-trained STEM workforce.

“Proficiency in STEM subjects is crucial to advancing economic opportunity and success in the workforce, particularly in our industry, and we recognize we are facing a shortage of teachers to nurture a passion for these subjects in our students. The UTeach program strengthens the regional pipeline of STEM teachers while providing a sustainable program model for other institutions of higher learning across the region,” said Tracee Bentley, president and CEO of the Permian Strategic Partnership.

UTeach programs across the nation prepare qualified STEM teachers according to the UTeach model, which was originally developed at The University of Texas at Austin. The program has the potential to significantly increase the number of STEM teachers produced each year.

“We are excited to add UT Permian Basin to the growing national network of UTeach programs at 49 universities across the U.S. and to the expansion of the national recognized UTeach program into West Texas,” said Kimberly Hughes, UTeach Institute Director. “This program will address a critical need to provide excellent STEM teachers for the students in the Permian Basin.”

UTeach Permian Basin has been made possible thanks to a $1.9 million investment from the Permian Strategic Partnership.

Read more:

News from the Institute

Press About UTeach

Blog