February 10, 2026 — The National Center for Teacher Residencies (NCTR) provides tailored technical assistance to school districts, charter networks, educator preparation programs, state agencies, unions, and the Department of Labor to design, launch, and strengthen teacher residency and registered apprenticeship programs. Grounded in nearly two decades of research and experience with more than 100 high-performing teacher residencies, NCTR developed its research-based Levers to define program quality and guide support. As the teacher residency movement has expanded to more than 440 programs nationwide, NCTR continues to advance the field through program design and launch, mentor development, research and evaluation, ecosystem support, and sustained learning across a national network.
We invite you to read about the expanding consulting services that NCTR offers:
Design Academy: NCTR’s nationally known Design Academy engages all teacher preparation stakeholders (state education and agencies, Department of Labor, institutions of higher education, school districts, teachers unions, and community-based organizations) to collaborate to build and launch a high-quality teacher residency program and/or teacher registered apprenticeship program aligned with NCTR’s Levers, the design elements found in effective teacher residency and apprenticeship programs. This engagement is 5-10 months and includes one-on-one consulting, learning institutes, and a site visit to an effective teacher residency and apprenticeship program in NCTR’s Network.
Network Membership: Teacher residency and apprenticeship programs across the nation are committed members of NCTR’s Network. Network members collaborate and exchange best practices to continuously improve and scale their programs in a community of practice that meets quarterly and engages in two in-person meetings per year via the Site Visit and NCTR’s Symposium. Members receive one-on-one consulting to guide program leaders to achieve their programmatic goals. NCTR has a suite of evaluation tools to support data collection and analysis for Network members to evaluate their own programs and set goals and measure progress towards improvement.
NCTR Tailored Consulting: NCTR offers context-driven consulting packages that directly meets the needs of stakeholders who are focused on improving systems, strategies and practices in the following areas: Policy and Advocacy, Financial Sustainability, Strategic Staffing, Partnership, Recruitment and Selection, Mentor Professional Learning, and On-the-Job Learning Experiences.
Mentor Professional Learning: Based on our two decades of research and learnings from the teacher residency field, NCTR can help support your journey to implement mentor professional learning for your community of educators. Our Mentor Professional Learning practice develops and strengthens mentor teachers’ abilities to build trusting relationships, facilitate on-the-job learning experiences, and provide constructive feedback, ensuring teacher candidates develop the knowledge and skills needed to be effective teachers for their P-12 students. NCTR’s team of consultants coordinates in-person and virtual sessions for mentor teachers to learn, practice, and reflect together on the competencies that strengthen a novice teacher’s practice.
Teacher Preparation Ecosystem Technical Assistance: NCTR collaborates with state education agencies, school districts, charter management organizations, institutions of higher education, and labor organizations to align and improve the teacher preparation ecosystem. NCTR engages cross-state and regional stakeholders to examine, analyze, and foster the conditions, policies, strategies, and practices necessary for improving teacher preparation across the ecosystem. NCTR facilitates the planning, implementation, and refinement of strategies and practices to strengthen today’s educator workforce and inspire tomorrow’s.
If you would like to learn more about any of NCTR’s consulting services, please contact Chief Growth Officer Jill Pitner at jpitner@nctresidencies.org.
Sincerely,
Erica Hines, Chief Program Officer
Jill Pitner, Chief Growth Officer