Alliance for Catholic Education
ACE TEACHING FELLOWS
THE BEST IS YET
TO COME
WHO WE ARE & WHAT WE BELIEVE The University of Notre Dame’s Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE) comprises an array of programs and services designed to close the achievement gap, enliven the spiritual growth, and address the challenges facing today’s Catholic schools and school children. The cornerstone of our work in ACE is forming talent – that is, supporting aspiring teachers and leaders with the aptitude, imagination, and zeal to help strengthen and transform Catholic schools and empower marginalized children. ACE Teaching Fellows represents the beginning of that formation, developing recent college graduates from all academic backgrounds as they teach in some of the country’s most under-resourced schools while earning a cost-free Master of Education degree from Notre Dame. Our innovative instructional model integrates graduate coursework, student teaching experience, and instruction and supervision from expert faculty across all grade levels and subject areas—all in the context of peer community living and continual spiritual growth and formation.
WHAT WE DO Every year, scores of children fail to reach their full potential because they lack access to a quality education. In ACE Teaching Fellows, we believe Catholic schools and their teachers are vital to the solution, as they serve children and families to close the opportunity gap in a faith-based educational setting.
Teaching Fellows annually serve: 13,500+ students 120+ Catholic schools 30+ communities
Nothing is more important for the future of our nation and our Church than the quality of our schools—and nothing is more important for the quality of our schools than the formation of the next generation of teachers and school leaders who are willing to do whatever it takes to help unlock the full potential of every child in their care.
WHERE WE ARE
ACE Teaching Fellows Communities
WHO WE LOOK FOR Teaching Fellows have come from virtually every undergraduate academic major and more than 200 colleges and universities worldwide. Our most successful teachers are talented college graduates with a combination of the following: ►► Zeal
for serving at-risk children as an instructional leader in a Catholic school
►► Hunger for being
formed as a professional educator in an intensive graduate fellowship
►► Conviction
that all children can learn—and the commitment to do whatever it takes to empower them to do so
►► Vision
for forging systemic change in marginalized communities
►► Desire
for spiritual growth and a willingness to share their faith with their students
►► Growth
mindset and an ability to maintain perspective
HOW WE’RE DIFFERENT ►► ¾
of our graduates are still involved in education in their current careers, and over half still teach in a K-12 or college classroom
►► Teaching
Fellows live in community to provide professional and spiritual growth
►► ACE Teaching
Fellows cohorts are small enough to have individual attention on placement and formation of teachers, but big enough to have specialized classes for every subject area and developmental level
WHAT TEACHING FELLOWS RECEIVE Professionally Graduate level fellowship at the University of Notre Dame Subject-specific M.Ed. coursework and in-person supervision led by a faculty team of practitioners and research experts ►► Access to Notre Dame and ACE alumni networks and post-graduate support ►► Eligibility for teacher licensure ►► Opportunities for coaching and mentoring outside the classroom ►► ►►
Communally and Spiritually ►► Communal living with other Teaching Fellows ►► Ample opportunity for spiritual development,
including program retreats, liturgies, and spiritual direction
Financially ►► Cost-free Master’s from the University of Notre Dame ►► Living stipend and affordable housing in placement city with
other Teaching Fellows
►► Eligibility for student loan deferment ►► Potential eligibility for a Segal Americorps
Education award (current value $5,730) ►► Cost-free summer housing and meals at Notre Dame ►► Educational and financial benefits worth over $100,000
WHAT ACE GRADUATES DO Following their 2 years in ACE Teaching Fellows, graduates have gone on to lead and serve in some of the nation’s most competitive Ph.D., JD, and MD programs; high performing schools and school systems; and prominent ventures in engineering, finance, and other organizations in the non-profit and the for-profit sectors. Post-graduate paths of our nearly 2,000 graduates have included: K-12 Teaching & Educational Leadership
University Teaching and Research
13 (Arch)diocesan Superintendents 59 (Arch)dioceses where ACErs now teach & lead Cristo Rey Network Democracy Prep Education Pioneers Fulbright Scholars Program Jubilee Schools Khan Academy KIPP Academies NativityMiguel Schools Notre Dame ACE Academies Partnership NYC Seton Partners
Harvard University North Carolina State University Stanford University Texas A&M University University of California-Berkeley University of Georgia University of Michigan University of Notre Dame University of Oxford University of Texas-Austin University of Wisconsin-Madison
Graduate Studies Boston College Lynch School of Education Georgetown Law School Harvard Graduate School of Education Harvard Kennedy School of Government Harvard Law School Michigan State University School of Education Mitchell Scholarship Program Ohio State University College of Education Stanford Graduate School of Education Stanford Law School University of California-Berkeley College of Letters & Science University of Chicago Law School University of Chicago Medical School University of Michigan School of Education University of Oregon School of Education University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education University of Texas-Austin Law School University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Education Vanderbilt Peabody College of Education
Finance & Business Deloitte & Touche Eli Lily Ernst & Young Morgan Stanley Target STEM Boeing Dell Epic Google Smithsonian Museum
ACE graduates have had a 50% acceptance rate to the Fulbright Scholarship Program ACE grads serve in more than 1/3 of the nation’s (Arch)dioceses
PROGRAM TIMELINE Summer 1
Teaching Fellows grow through graduate coursework at Notre Dame and student teaching experience in the surrounding community. Academic Year 1
Teaching Fellows serve as full-time teachers with the support and guidance of mentors in their schools as well as Notre Dame faculty and staff. Summer 2
Teaching Fellows build on their first summer of coursework and year of teaching with courses further exploring
Contact us:
ace.nd.edu/teach 574.631.7052 Michael Comuniello Recruiting Coordinator mcomunie@nd.edu Bridgette McDermott Associate Recruiting Coordinator bmcdermo@nd.edu
THE BEST IS YET
TO COME
adolescent development, diverse learners, assessment, and more. Academic Year 2
Teaching Fellows return to their same classrooms to further develop in their practice and build upon their coursework. End of Academic Year 2
Teaching Fellows graduate with the leadership, organizational, and communication skills to drive systemic change within and outside the classroom, as well as access to ACE and Notre Dame’s alumni networks and career services.
APPLICATION CALENDAR Early September || Application Available January 23 || Application Deadline March 14 || Notification Letters March 27 || Commitment Deadline April 13-15 || April Retreat June 1 || First Day of ACE Summer