Northern Pennsylvania Regional College Director of Applied Studies and Instructor of Early Childhood Education, Leigh Anne Kraemer-Naser, was selected to present at the 2024 Rural Community College Alliance (RCCA) Annual Conference. Kraemer-Naser will be presenting the development and execution of NPRC’s Paraeducator Pathways Program.
The RCCA is an alliance supporting its member institutions to serve the 89.3 million people who reside in rural America. The organization promotes a more economically, culturally, and civically vibrant rural America through advocacy, convening, leveraging resources, and serving as a clearinghouse for innovative practice, policy, and research. The conference is being held between Wednesday, September 18 and Friday, September 20 at SUNY-Adirondack Community College in Queensberry, New York.
Kraemer-Naser’s presentation will share with attendees about the Paraeducator Pathways Program, which started at the beginning of the Spring 2024 term. Additional students will begin their academic journey at NPRC in both the Fall 2024 and Spring 2025 terms through this program. The opportunity was made possible in partnership and with financial support from the Seneca Highlands Intermediate Unit 9 and public school districts in the IU9 region. This program assists current paraprofessionals in the IU9 service area with earning valuable special education preparedness and eventually a special education bachelor’s degree at a four-year institution. Kraemer-Naser has been an integral part of the development and the continuous improvement of the program. She also hopes the program can be expanded in the coming months to accommodate and support paraprofessionals from across the state of Pennsylvania.
“I’m thankful for Seneca Highlands IU9 Executive Director Brock Benson,” shared Kraemer-Naser. “He was truly the mastermind and began the foundation of this program and opportunity for paraprofessionals. He worked to secure funding and approached NPRC to be the educational provider for this program. We worked hard both at the IU9 and NPRC to get the program ready for the Spring 2024 term, and the first cohort of students are off to a great start.”
In 2023, the IU9 was awarded the Paraeducator Preparation Pathways grant funding through a program from Governor Shapiro. The grant provided 1.5 million dollars for paraeducators to enhance their special education credentials and knowledge. According to the grant, this initiative will create new special education career pathways for paraeducators; increase the number of practicing paraeducators earning certifications, and/or postsecondary credits/degrees; and increase the number of practicing paraeducators pursuing Pre-K-12 special education teacher certification through enrollment in a Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) approved special education Pre-K-12 certification program.
To accommodate the program, NPRC created a new early childhood degree specialization in special education. Students in the Paraeducator Pathways Program are eligible to earn 21 credits of the degree’s required 60 credits through a portfolio project. Students enrolled in the program will also demonstrate the core competencies for the Special Education Paraeducators credential developed by the Council for Exceptional Children; a nationally recognized organization of special educators.
“I’m excited to share about this program with professionals from across the country and how we were able to make this educational pathway possible for paraprofessionals. These learners work full-time as paraprofessionals, balance their personal lives, and manage their coursework at NPRC. Prior to this, the affordability and accessibility of education for these professionals was lacking. It’s been a great way to upskill these paraprofessionals without them having to leave the comfort of their area. This program also will continue to fill the gap of having trained and qualified special educators in Pennsylvania and nationwide. All around, this program is a great investment into people and people’s roots.”
While sharing about the success of NPRC’s own program is important, true achievement from this presentation will be measured in a few different ways according to her. “Success to me is securing increased four-year institution partnerships so NPRC graduates can continue to become a special education teacher. Success would also be achieved if we can secure other funding sources, listen to and implement peers’ feedback to continue improving the program, and even support other institutions of higher learning in developing a program like this of their own. Every time I go to a conference such as this, I always leave with great information about the industry of higher education and how to better support students. This conference will be a great way for NPRC to learn even better practices and share with others about the important work we are continuing to do at NPRC.”
For more information about NPRC’s Paraprofessionals Pathway Program and the early childhood education program, visit the College’s website.
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