Great River Teacher Corps Scholarship

In 2017, the College of Education and Human Services recognized the teacher shortage crisis both in the state of Illinois as well as nationally. In an effort to bring young people in the teaching career and to better serve out region, the Great River Teacher Corp (GRTC) was developed to provide scholarship assistance to those wishing to teach in rural schools while also providing them with specialized place-based learning so they are better prepared professionals upon graduation. The GRTC was modelled after similar teacher corps developed by the Rural Schools Collaborative in Missouri, Arkansas, Oklahoma and North Carolina.

CRITERIA & ELIGIBILITY:
• Enrolled in a teacher education course of student or declare pre-teacher education
• Must have interest in becoming a rural teacher upon graduation in the twenty-two county Great River Teacher Corps (GRTC) service region, which included the following counties: Adams, Brown, Calhoun, Cass, Fulton, Greene, Hancock, Henderson, Henry, Knox, Mason, McDonough, Mercer, Morgan, Peoria, Pike, Rock Island, Schuyler, Scott, Stark, Tazewell and Warren counties
• Submit a one-page essay on the value of Illinois rural and small school and express their vision for becoming an educator

Program Commitments:
Entry Member
o $1,500 scholarship
o Open to all students interested in a career in rural education
o Attend all annual GRTC group events
Intermediate Member
o $2,500 scholarship
o Must be a riding sophomore or above
o Accepted all prior commitments
o Volunteer at Future Teacher Day
o Sign a contract agreeing to teach in a rural or small school for at least three years upon graduation
Advanced Member
o $3,500 scholarship
o Must be a rising junior or above
o Accept all intermediate member commitments
o Must be admitted into the WIU Teacher Preparation Program (TEP)
o Register for an Illinois Substitute Teaching license (application fees cover by the Seymour Center for Rural Education)
Rural Teaching Fellow
o $4,500 scholarship
o Must be a rising senior or above
o Accept all intermediate member and advance member commitments
o Complete student teaching at a rural or small school
o Design a place-based project with students during the student teaching semester and present it at the end-of-year