Center for Educator Workforce Development Supports Teacher Apprenticeships at Historic Program Signing Ceremony

Photo caption: Partners include Division of Apprenticeship Standards, Commission on Teacher Credentialing, Tulare COE, Santa Clara COE, Hanford Joint Union High School District, Statewide Residency Technical Assistance Center, Fresno State University, Morgan Hill Unified High School District, and others. 

A signing ceremony on June 2, 2026, at Sierra Pacific High School in Hanford, celebrated the state’s first two pilot Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAPs) developed by Santa Clara County Office of Education and Tulare County Office of Education.

Teacher apprenticeships provide a debt-free, earn-and-learn approach that includes paid employment, structured on-the-job training, progressive wages, and formal registration through the state’s apprenticeship system while meeting the Commission on Teacher Credentialing requirements.

“The apprenticeship model fits within California’s existing teacher preparation pathways, and recent state investments, including teacher residency grants and the $10,000 Student Teacher Stipend Program, to address the need for paid training and for staffing more of California’s classrooms with well-prepared, qualified teachers,” said Commission Chief Deputy Director Adam Ebrahim.

“Our Center for Educator Workforce Development is proud to support the growth of registered apprenticeships in teaching through statewide coordination, technical assistance, and local implementation support in partnership with the Division of Apprenticeship Standards, the Statewide Residency Technical Assistance Center, and Education First.”

The two pilot programs include Tulare County/Hanford Joint Union High School District Apprenticeship for single subject and special education K-12 teachers, and Santa Clara County Educator Apprenticeship for K-12 special education teacher and special education teaching assistant.

For more information on developing, launching and sustaining RAPs in PK12 teaching in California, visit the Earning by Learning toolkit developed by Education First.