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Training New ESL Program Specialists: Real-World Experience and Mentorship in Action
By Amanda Ritchie
To meet the growing needs for ESL instructors, the AIU offers a hybrid ESL Program Specialist certification.
“We actually offer an incentive program for teachers who are taking our certification courses through the AIU,” said Kelly Noyes, Ed.D., director of the AIU’s Educational Support Services Department. “If they work for us as an everyday or long-term sub—as they take and pass each course, we reimburse 50% of the cost to them.”
This incentive program gives educators experience teaching in the ESL classroom, a certification at half the cost, and the potential to be hired into a full-time position at the AIU after they are certified.
Allison Hlopick earned her ESL certification through the AIU’s incentive program in January. After 14 years as a classroom teacher, she decided to pursue a new path as an educational specialist. “I love working in small groups and creating individualized instruction and materials,” she said.
Becoming an ESL instructor is an add on certification in Pennsylvania. Educators who hold a Pennsylvania Instructional I or Instructional II certificate are eligible to complete the Program Specialist ESL certificate. Live classes are held via Zoom, taught by ESL professionals currently working in the field, and supervised by Noyes. There are six three-credit courses, each of which requires 10 hours of field experience.
While completing her certification, Hlopick gained hands-on experience as a long-term substitute in the AIU’s K-12 ESL Program. She collaborated with her mentor, AIU ESL teacher Bethany Irwin, and with the ESL department in her children’s school district to complete additional field service hours. “It was a lot of work, but I completed it within a year while earning income and valuable experience in the field I was training for,” she said.
Now one of 34 certified ESL teachers at the AIU, Hlopick reflects on her journey: “This is the most supportive environment I’ve had in teaching. I really appreciate my supervisors and coworkers.”
To learn more about the certification and incentive programs, contact Kelly Noyes at kelly.noyes@aiu3.net.
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