NCTR Strategic Plan 2025-2030

Bold. Actionable. Transformative.

NCTR is honored to introduce our 2025-2030 Strategic Plan that builds upon our transformative moment in our journey to revolutionize educator preparation. This strategic plan embodies our resolute commitment to our vision: Ensuring students from historically undersupported communities have access to effective educators.

Our mission is clear—to transform educator preparation by advancing the teacher residency movement. By preparing, supporting, and retaining more effective educators who represent and value the communities they serve, we aim to create lasting, meaningful change.

Mission

Our mission is to transform educator preparation

by advancing the teacher residency movement to prepare, support, and retain more effective educators who represent and value the communities they serve.

Core Values


Collaboration


Grounded in our commitment to inclusivity and recognizing the richness that diverse perspectives bring, we are purposeful in identifying who to involve in the decision-making processes. We intentionally focus on considering whose voice has been excluded and how to invite them to actively collaborate with us. We endeavor to actively seek to understand and honor the assets, knowledge, and expertise of our internal and external partners when finding ways to work together. We build relationships within our organization and with our partners by seeking connections, having brave and open conversations, and creating spaces to show up authentically to promote a shared sense of belonging.


Data Guided


We center the human experience in data collection and analysis.
We seek out and find value in all forms of data and knowledge from teacher residency programs and other relevant programs.
We use continuous improvement cycles to inform our work.
We share our impact as well as the impact of partners and others to advance teacher preparation and the field of education.
This is how we define our data-guided work.


Justice


We recognize and respect all aspects of identity including but not limited to race. We work to see that all people are treated equitably and we acknowledge, mitigate, and repair harms when they occur. Furthermore, we are intentional about engaging those who face and experience oppression in our design and decision-making processes, recognizing that their insights are crucial for meaningful systems change. We carefully consider their local context, lived experiences, and the potential impact on their community in our collaborative efforts. By setting a standard where equity is centered in our work, we support the broader transformation of systems that perpetuate inequity.


Continuous Learning


We intentionally revisit and expand our thinking by valuing, respecting, and centering the knowledge and experiences of individuals from historically undersupported communities. We expect ourselves to continue to learn from the education field, other teacher preparation programs, partners, and our colleagues. We are practitioners who are intentionally curious and value learning as catalysts for systemic change and improvement.

The Purpose, Process & Priorities

The Purpose

The NCTR Strategic Plan does not change our commitment to our mission nor vision, but rather creates a clear, focused direction for the organization’s future. The strategic plan provides clarity with actionable objectives and priorities and supports ongoing feedback and continuous improvement to support our organizational culture of collaboration, transparency, and accountability.

Chandler Davenport is a 2020 graduate of Project Inspire’s teacher residency program. This picture was taken during her teacher residency at The Howard School.

The Process

Felipe Gomez is a teacher resident at Boston Teacher Residency. This photo was taken at Dudley Street Neighborhood Charter School.

The NCTR strategic planning process was far from a one-size-fits-all endeavor; instead, it evolved as a collaborative effort among NCTR’s CEO and the Board of Directors, the internal Leadership Team, NCTR staff, and an external facilitator. Throughout the yearlong journey, NCTR leadership monitored and evaluated progress and made necessary adjustments to the process to ensure it focused the organization on the mission and vision.

This collaboration not only ensures the continuity of the NCTR mission but also sets the stage for NCTR’s leadership in the determination to bring it to fruition with accountability, coherence, and relevance as well as in the transformation of teacher preparation nationwide.

The Priorities

The NCTR Strategic Plan 2025-2030 centers around five key priorities:

  • Building capacity to transform educator preparation

  • Increasing public and private support for teacher residency programs

  • Researching, enhancing, and sharing the impact of teacher residency programs

  • Cultivating partnerships to increase reach and impact

  • Ensuring efficient organizational operations

By aligning strategic priorities with core operations, NCTR aims to achieve its mission of preparing, supporting, and retaining effective educators who represent and value the communities they serve. NCTR looks forward to documenting and upholding the collective effort of staff, partners, and other constituents as they achieve their shared goals during the coming years.

Acknowledgements

NCTR extends its sincere gratitude to Stephanie Hirsh of Hirsh Holdings, LLC for guiding the strategic planning process and authoring this comprehensive report. Thanks go also to Joyce Pollard, editor, and David McCoy, designer, for their substantive contributions during the production of this document. The NCTR 2025–2030 Strategic Plan represents commitment and collaboration among the entire staff, NCTR Board members, educator preparation professionals, as well as NCTR Network members and community partners. By expressing their vested interests in the success of this process and final product, these dedicated professionals position NCTR for future growth and increased impact.

NCTR in Action

Teacher residency programs are having an impact on student achievement and teacher retention, improving outcomes for children in hard-to-staff and underserved schools.

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