CNM’s New Fast-Track Teacher Education Degree Addresses State’s Large Teacher Gap

Carol Garcia has been an educational assistant (EA) for the past 20 years here in Albuquerque. She loves education and wanted to be a teacher but thought a teaching license was out of her reach financially and in terms of time. Then she came across CNM’s new Fast-Track Teacher Education Degree and realized she could finally pursue her dream.

“It felt like a pure miracle when I found out about the program,” says Carol, who’s 53. “I remember I was on bus duty when I got the email and I immediately told all my coworkers standing there with me. Two of them are now in the program with me!”  

Launched last year and funded by the Thornburg Foundation, students complete the accelerated program at CNM in 16 months and walk away with an Associate of Arts with a concentration in elementary and special education. 

Because many of the students are EAs like Carol, all the classes take place in the evenings so students can keep their jobs and continue to accrue time towards retirement. After graduating from CNM, students then get help transferring to either UNM, New Mexico Highlands, or Western New Mexico University where they complete their bachelor’s and receive their teaching license. If students attend full time, they can be done with everything in three and a half years.

Erin Radcliffe, the program manager in CNM’s School of Communication, Humanities & Social Sciences, says the program was first created after CNM looked at New Mexico’s 2019 numbers and saw there were over 300 teacher vacancies in the central New Mexico area and more than 1,000 teacher vacancies statewide. While the program is open to anyone, CNM decided to recruit EAs, as well as students in dual credit and a program called Educators Rising, because these groups already have valuable classroom experience and understand the needs of New Mexico’s kids.

“EAs have a tremendous amount of insight into what it takes to be an effective teacher and they’re also well connected to the communities of kids and parents they work with,” Erin says. “We heard anecdotally that it can sometimes take EAs 10 years to find the time to get their license so we wanted to find a way to help.”

Carol is part of the program’s first cohort and she’ll graduate from CNM this fall. The next cohort also starts this fall and still has room for interested students. 

After she graduates, Carol plans to transfer to Western New Mexico University. Then it’s onto her teaching career. She says she’s always loved watching students learn and is excited to start leading a class of her own.

"It’s incredible to see the light bulbs go off in their little minds, whether they’re in Pre-K or in 5th grade,” she says. “I know these kids are our future and will take care of us, which is why I want them to have the best in life. I’m so excited and really feel like the CNM program was a godsend.”