Troops to Teachers

Troops to Teachers is a program designed to assist eligible military personnel to transition to a new career or second career as public school teachers in targeted schools.  Participants are provided with counseling and assistance regarding certification requirements, routes to state certification, and registration assistance.

ELIGIBILITY FOR REFERRAL AND PLACEMENT ASSISTANCE:
Those eligible for elementary and secondary teacher Referral and Placement Assistance Services must meet the following criteria:

• Military personnel who have retired.
• Active duty personnel who separate with six or more years of service on or after October 1, 1990
• Current members of the National Guard or Selected Reserve with six or more years of creditable service toward retirement.
• The last period of service must be honorable (without qualifications).
• Must hold a Baccalaureate or advanced degree from an accredited institution at the time of registration for academic teacher referral, OR
• Must have the equivalent of one year of college with six years of work experience in a vocational or technical field or meet state requirements for vocational/technical teacher referral.

ELIGIBILITY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
A self-determination guide may be found at www.proudtoserveagain.com.  The basics of Reserve Component eligibility are as follows:
RC-1 – Retired from the National Guard or Selected Reserve.
RC-2 – Currently serving in the National Guard or Selected Reserve with 10 or more years of creditable service toward retirement and commit to serving an additional three years, or until eligible for retirement.
RC-3 – Separated from the National Guard or Selected Reserve due to a physical disability on or after January 8, 2002.  Must register within four years after separation.
RC-4 – Individuals transitioning from active duty and have served six years on active duty immediately before separation, and commit to three years with a National Guard or Selected Reserve unit.  Must register with four years after separation.

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
Financial assistance may be provided to eligible individuals as stipends up to $5,000 to help pay for teacher certification costs or as bonuses of $10,000 to teach in schools serving a high percentage of students from schools in accordance with current legislation.

STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE:
Becoming a teacher with the assistance of Troops to Teachers needs to be viewed as three distinct processes occurring at the same time:  TTT Registration, Teacher Certification, and Finding a Job.  To access the Troops to Teachers Step-by-Step Guide click here.

REGISTRATION:
To access the Troops to Teachers Registration Packet click here.

PA TEACHER CERTIFICATION:
To obtain information about teacher certification in Pennsylvania click here.

CONTACT INFORMATION:
Coordinator
Troops to Teachers
PA Department of Education
333 Market Street
Harrisburg, PA  17126-0333
Toll Free:  1-866-242-3295
Phone:  (717) 787-2414
Fax:  (717) 772-3622
E-mail:  ra-troopstoteachers@state.pa.us

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Delaware and New Jersey:  http://www.nj.gov/education/tttnj/
Maryland:  http://www.tttmaryland.org/home.html
New York:  http://www.highered.nysed.gov/tcert/career/ttt.html
West Virginia:  http://wvde.state.wv.us/troopstoteachers/