Transitions to Teaching – Math and Science Smart! (MASS)

MASS is an accelerated teacher certification programs funded under the No Child Left Behind Act. It is designed to increase the number of fully-qualified and credentialed math and science teachers in sixth to eighth grade and ninth to 12th grade with an ESL certification to work in “high-need” school districts.

MASS is providing pre-service training for math and science teachers with an ESL certification, assisting in placing successful applicants as teacher interns or new teachers with an emergency certification, and providing specialized support and high quality in-service training during the certification process and one year beyond.

Eligibility
You can be eligible to participate, if:

  • You are a recent graduate of an accredited college within the past three years;
  • You are a mid-career successful professional seeking to transition into a teaching career in Texas;
  • As part of your degree, you possess a minimum of 24 advanced hours in math or science, a 2.75 or better grade point average (GPA) in the last 30 hours of coursework;
  • You attained a minimum score of 230 in the Texas Higher Education Assessment (THEA) or 400 on the GRE quantitative and verbal section and 3.5 on the analytical section of the test.
  • You are interested in teaching math or science at a middle school (grades six to eight) or high school (grades eight to 12); and
  • Once accepted into MASS, you will begin a teacher preparation and certification program and, when hired as a first-year teacher of record, will receive a first-year teacher salary.

Commitment
Your commitment will be to:

  • Complete ACP courses and requirements in MASS cooperating teacher preparation insitutions;
  • Be hired as a teacher of record and placed in a sixth to eighth grade or a ninth to 12th grade math or science classroom in a high-need cooperating school district;
  • Work in a high-need school district for three years (year of internship and two additional years); and 
  • Complete ESL supplemental certification.

MASS Certification Program Partners

  • Dallas ISD Alternative Certification Program, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , Dallas ISD, 972-925-6717
  • Houston ISD Alternative Certification Program, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , Houston ISD, 713-802-6850
  • Tarleton Model for Accelerated Teacher Education (TMATE) at Fort Worth ISD, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , Tarleton State University Box, 817-298-3703
  • Our Lady of the Lake University Master of Education with Non-Traditional Teacher Education, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , 210-434-6711

MASS is a project of the Intercultural Development Research Association and is funded by the U.S. Department of Education.

Other Successful IDRA ACPs – Past Experiences

Previous successful transitions to teaching programs include: