A strong educator pipeline that can prepare, recruit, and retain
high-quality and diverse educators is essential for improving student success.

But too many Colorado districts currently experience
teacher shortages and high turnover.

To address this challenge, CDE and the Region 12 Comprehensive Center are launching an online “community of practice” initiative in 2022 for
K-20 peer teams to engage in collaborative analysis, discussion, planning, and action to strengthen their ongoing efforts to improve educator preparation, recruitment, hiring, diversity, and retention.

What is a Community of Practice?

A community of practice (CoP) is a group of people who share a common concern or interest in a topic and who meet frequently to discuss the issue, learn from one another and from subject-matter experts, and create and implement actions to address their goals. CoPs share best practices and create new knowledge to advance professional expertise and practice. A key part of the process is to meet regularly for group conversation, learning, and reflection.

What will participants do in the Educator Workforce CoP?

Participants will meet online once a month from January to June for a 90-minute, facilitated meeting (with additional inter-session supports). Small-group, cross-organization teams will be formed by geographic regions or contexts, to allow participants to work together on local challenges and goals. Over the course of the CoP, all participants will:

• Analyze local educator workforce data and identify shared challenges and opportunities. Teams will have free access to a new online, interactive tool that provides relevant data at district, county, and statewide levels.

• Engage in collaborative peer conversation and learning from subject-matter experts.

• Design and implement region-specific action plans based on local needs and goals, focusing on policies and practices that are data-driven, equity-focused, and built for sustainability.