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Â鶹ƵµÀ Announces Sprint Degree Partnership with Great Falls College & Public Schools

November 30, 2023

Â鶹ƵµÀ was recently awarded nearly $400,000 dollars by the Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education (OCHE) to implement a Sprint Degree in partnership with Great Falls College (GFC) and Great Falls Public Schools (GFPS). 

The newly designed program will maintain all the courses currently required for a BS: Elementary Education but will compact the traditionally 4-year program into a 9-semester sequence, which includes summers. Students will be able to take their general education courses through GFC/Â鶹ƵµÀ and will complete their teaching program through Â鶹ƵµÀ.  

The cohort will be housed at , which will be the site for the new . Through this innovative school, Â鶹ƵµÀ students will be able to work as paraprofessionals at the school where they will also take their Â鶹ƵµÀ classes, which will be taught by K-6 classroom teachers who will serve as Â鶹ƵµÀ adjunct instructors. This unique model will allow Â鶹ƵµÀ students to see connections between their coursework and real classrooms, as they gain valuable experience in the field.  

Students in the program will spend their third and final year participating in the , which Â鶹ƵµÀ has participated in for the last two years. This culminating experience will provide students with an immersive, full-year experience in a single classroom. It is the hope of the Sprint Degree program that students will be well prepared for their own classrooms after spending three years learning about and practicing their skills in elementary classrooms. 

For more information about scholarship support and the Sprint Degree program, contact Marni Napierala ([email protected]), and for information about the CORE School, contact Jackie Mainwaring ([email protected]). Information about Â鶹ƵµÀ Western’s elementary education degree program can be found by visiting .