Innovator Vol. 36 No. 1 - Winter 06: The M Difference
Return to contents “Making the transition from corporation to classroom is no small challenge. The School of Education’s innovative Master of Arts with Certification (MAC) program expedites the process.”
Tony Moskus always knew he wanted to be a teacher. Even as a kid back in elementary school, he’d find himself thinking, “if I were teaching this class …”
But teaching jobs were scarce when he went to college, so he steered toward his second goal, which was to work his way up the ranks of a large corporation. As a business analyst for Electronic Data Systems, he did exactly that, earning steady promotions on the track to upper level management.
But something was missing. “If I’m going to work this hard,” he decided, “it has to mean more than making money for a big company.”
Making the transition from corporation to classroom is no small challenge. The School of Education’s innovative Master of Arts with Certification (MAC) program expedites the process. The MAC program concentrates field placement and coursework into one intensive 12-month experience. 
Launched in 1991, the MAC program was at first geared to recent graduates and career changers seeking to teach at the secondary level. Based on its success, the program was expanded to include elementary level certification a few years later. Both Secondary MAC and Elementary MAC run from late June through the following June. “Amazingly intense, wall-to-wall learning,” is how Moskus describes the experience. “It really prepares you for what you will face in the classroom.”
Charles W. Peters, Clinical Professor and Secondary MAC Coordinator, receives 120 to 150 applications each year, split about equally between recent graduates and second career people. The latter group covers a wide range, from physicians to attorneys to engineers.
“The five things we look at are commitment and passion for teaching; undergraduate grades; GRE (Graduate Record Exam) scores; recommendations; and life experience,” he reports.
To meet state requirements, secondary teachers must have two majors, or a major plus a minor, within two of five areas: social studies, English, foreign language, mathematics, and science. Many applicants take a year or two fulfilling pre-requisites before they are admitted to the program, often taking advantage of the increasingly available on-line course options. Peters and Pat Kenney, Secondary MAC Assistant Coordinator, spend considerable time counseling applicants about ways to channel their experience and interests into future teaching opportunities.
“For example, someone with an engineering degree may have enough credits to fulfill a physics major and math minor, and is well positioned to teach high school science. But we also encounter the person with a PhD in theology who could qualify as a Latin teacher, yet wants to teach math. The second person will need additional math courses in addition to our theory and practice content.” Peters and Kenney try to monitor where the needs are, not only in Michigan but also across the country. MAC graduates find jobs. “We get highly dedicated, enthusiastic students,” Peters says. “It is exciting to work with the kinds of people who are attracted to this program.”
“As he began taking courses, it looked like a very long road to earning a second bachelor’s degree in education. Then he discovered the MAC program, and his teaching goal moved immediately within reach.”
Each MAC program accepts approximately 50 students each year; these are split into cohorts of 25 students who take most of their classes together. This structure promotes a unique sense of community that both faculty and students cite as a key strength of the program. “We’re just like a family,” says Rhonda Jordan, Elementary MAC ’05. “Each of us brings our unique personalities and experiences to our cohort, which makes learning within our cohort rich and colorful.”
“Your absolute best support group is your family and friends, but next to that is your cohort. They take the same classes, work in the same schools, and share the same heavy workload,” says Professor Stu Rankin, Elementary MAC (or ELMAC) Coordinator.
The cohorts are organized to include students of a wide variety of ages, backgrounds and interests. Similarly, the field placements are chosen to expose MAC participants to youth of various racial, ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds, with emphasis on some of the poorer school districts. Rankin, who coordinates the Elementary MAC cohort assigned to Detroit schools, explains the rationale: “You often hear educators saying, ‘We believe all children can learn.’ But they do not necessarily believe they themselves can teach all children. We want our graduates to be convinced that they can teach anyone who comes to them. And we think the best way to believe that you can teach anybody is to actually have done it!”
Steve Kotre, Secondary MAC ’03, was attracted to this philosophy, because it seemed to him that low-income urban school settings offered him the greatest opportunity to make a difference. He had experienced this one-on-one as a mentor in the county-sponsored Big Brother program.
Kotre drifted into engineering because math came easily to him. Since graduating from Michigan in 1989, he had worked at Ford Motor Co., most recently as part of the team designing Ford’s new hybrid electrical vehicle.
But if Tony Moskus had come to a career crossroads, his friend Steve had reached an impasse. “The positive aspects of working on this new technology were far outweighed by the frustration of dealing with a bureaucracy,” he stated.
“We get highly dedicated, enthusiastic students, it is exciting to work with the kinds of people who are attracted to this program.”
Kotre’s revelation moment came during a family vacation. He found himself especially enjoying the company of his friends’ young children, and they responded to him easily. “It finally dawned on me how natural it felt to be engaging with kids,” he noticed. “Why wasn’t I doing something to influence children or shape their futures? I was certain this had to happen.”
As he began taking courses, it looked like a very long road to earning a second bachelor’s degree in education. Then he discovered the MAC program, and his teaching goal moved immediately within reach.
“I chose elementary level because I wanted as much exposure as possible to a targeted group of kids,” Kotre concludes. “I think that’s where I can have the most impact.”
Having significant experience with young children is essential to being accepted in ELMAC, says Clinical Assistant Professor Cathy Reischl, who co-coordinates the program.
“We start with the assumption that all children can learn, and it’s the teacher’s responsibility to make this happen” Reischl explains. “It’s the job of the teacher to establish the conditions that ensure growth.
“We look for applicants who understand cultural differences, and want to engage children deeply in subject matter. They should show an interest in social issues, including the role that school plays in our society.”
Over the past year, Reischl has been working with Diane Larsen-Freeman, Professor of Education and Director of the English Language Institute. Through their efforts, the Elementary MAC program now offers an ESL (English as a Second Language) endorsement. Roughly half of ELMAC students earn the extra 18 credits to qualify as ESL teachers in the increasing number of school districts with multi-lingual children.
“I believe our emphasis on under-served populations is a big part of what distinguishes us among other teacher certification programs,” Reischl says. “When interns are learning to teach in settings that include multi-lingual students, they pay more attention to one of their primary tools, which is language. Therefore, they teach all kids more effectively.
The MAC coordinators also credit the contribution of the cooperating teachers, many of whom take on a U-M intern year after year. “They are tireless mentors. The MAC students are deeply involved in the classroom – not just observing, but co-planning and co-teaching,” Reischl notes.
Despite its intensity, the Master of Arts with Certification (MAC) program has practically no drop-outs. One reason is that the participants have already sacrificed a year’s income in addition to tuition costs. But while MAC graduates have an excellent placement record, the payoff is not instant. As a fifth grade teacher, Tony Moskus brings home less than half what he earned at EDS, and he and his wife now have three sons to support.
Yet he would recommend the MAC program to anyone. “Be ready to work harder than you have ever worked in your life,” he advises. “The faculty is outstanding, and the structure and content of the work specifically prepares you for what life will be like as a teacher. I was offered the job three days before it started, but I was able to draw upon everything I’d learned in the MAC program and put it straight to work.”
Moskus believes that his preparation for becoming a teacher has also made him a better parent. “I can hear Cathy Reischl’s voice in my head: ‘It’s a way of teaching children to think, so that they solve problems on their own, with your guidance.’ I’m not sure I’d have come to this realization on my own.”
Reischl reflects, “it is incredibly rewarding to be part of such significant growth in the lives of adults, knowing that many have changed their lives to pursue a dream; knowing that they will impact the lives of a generation of children.”
“It is a privilege to work with such enthusiastic, dedicated people,” adds Peters. “These are the educational leaders of tomorrow.”
-by Pat Materka
This article originally appeared Winter 2006 edition of Innovator.
