Districts across Wisconsin and the nation are losing teachers faster than they can replace them. Burnout, weak workplace culture, and lack of support are driving unprecedented turnover—destabilizing schools, disrupting learning, and increasing recruitment costs.

At the same time, schools struggle to recruit diverse, community-rooted educators, while certification systems remain slow, confusing, and misaligned with real workforce needs.

Urban Learning Collaborative addresses these challenges at the system level—partnering with districts and states to build resilient educator workforces where teachers thrive, belong, and stay.

Teacher certification is not just a credentialing process — it is the front door to a district’s long-term workforce strategy. Urban Learning Collaborative’s certification and licensure programs are intentionally designed to strengthen recruitment, improve early-career support, and dramatically increase teacher retention.

By combining accelerated alternative pathways, embedded mentorship, and equity-centered preparation, ULC helps districts build sustainable, diverse, and classroom-ready teacher pipelines that don’t just fill vacancies, but develop educators who stay, grow, and lead.

• Initial Certification (K-9)

• Bilingual-Bicultural Endorsement

• Add-On License Pathways

• WI Reading and Language Arts Statutory License Stipulation

Ann Ogren, ULC 2018 Alumni