{"id":7,"date":"2025-10-28T15:45:29","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T19:45:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/adam-institute\/?page_id=7"},"modified":"2026-03-09T08:57:37","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T12:57:37","slug":"programs-and-impact","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.clarku.edu\/adam-institute\/programs-and-impact\/","title":{"rendered":"Programs and Impact"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Learning in community<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Adam Institute is a broad-based learning community of teachers, faculty, and public school as well as University students, embedded locally in and across neighborhood partner schools. This learning community is home to various programs, in particular the Main South school partnership and the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program. All are widely recognized.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Accolades<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Master of Arts in Teaching Program: Approval with distinction<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Our Master of Arts in Teaching program has been granted \u201capproval with distinction\u201d by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

View Master of Arts in Teaching Program<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Additional programs and initiatives<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Our Book: \u2018Partnership and Powerful Teacher Education\u2019<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Published in 2019 and written with voices of university faculty, school educators, program graduates, and students from partner schools, our collaborative book, \u201cPartnership and Powerful Teacher Education: Growth and Challenge in an Urban Neighborhood Program,\u201d offers an in-depth portrait and valuable reference for the development of clinical or school-embedded partnerships in teacher preparation by drawing on the decades-long partnership between a university and set of schools in an urban neighborhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the midst of a national movement toward partnership-based clinical teacher education, this book explains and illustrates the roles, commitments, and collaborative practices that have evolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The book is edited by Adam Institute Director Thomas DelPrete.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more about our book on ClarkNow<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Critical praise for our book<\/summary>\n

“A very thought provoking account of the continuing development over more than twenty-five years of one of the most interesting school-university partnerships in teacher education in the U.S. that is focused in an urban neighborhood in Worcester, MA. This book, written by both school and university teacher educators, deals with both the successes and challenges of doing this difficult work and is essential reading for those who are interested in creating a new more democratic future for university teacher education.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ken Zeichner
Boeing Professor of Teacher Education Emeritus, University of Washington<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn this incredible book we all take a long and fascinating journey in coming to understand how the building of community between higher education, schools, and students in an urban neighborhood develops. In my fifty years in education, this story is the first I have ever read that documents\u2026how a true partnership in an urban community gets built over time. This is a must read for all who care about the important possibilities of what it takes to educate great teachers who represent their communities and their students in a genuine partnership.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ann Lieberman, Senior Scholar, Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education, emerita professor from Teachers College, Columbia University, author of Teaching, Learning, and Living: Joining Practice and Research (Routledge)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis highly masterful book, informed by a quarter century of experience and reflection, paints a picture of the craft and complexity of developing high quality teachers while galvanizing a university, an urban school system and a disadvantaged neighborhood to make common cause for children. The authors, who speak from their experience on the front lines of urban education, provide very useful guidance not only on refining the practice of teaching and teacher development but on using the vehicle of partnership to enrich teaching and learning for all involved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul Reville, Francis Keppel Professor, Harvard Graduate School of Education; Founding Director of the Education Redesign Lab; former, Massachusetts Secretary of Education<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2018Partnership and Powerful Teacher Education\u2019 provides a vision of university and partner schools working in community to deepen and strengthen learning for local students and for teachers. Educators, policy makers, school administrators, and teachers, as well as community leaders, interested in working in partnership will find this work not only motivating, but also refreshingly practical.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karen Hammerness, Director of Educational Research and Evaluation, The American Museum of Natural History, co-editor of \u201cInspiring Teaching: Preparing Teachers to Succeed in Mission-Driven Schools\u201d<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<\/div>

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Summer Cubs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The \u201csummer slide\u201d is a challenge for educators. When students leave school in the spring and return in the fall having lost ground in both reading and math, teachers must adjust their curriculum and re-teach the previous year\u2019s work in order to get students ready for the new academic year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer CUBS (Comprehension and Understanding Bring Success) provides engaging learning experiences for students at one of our partner schools, Woodland Academy, aimed at helping them maintain academic progress they have made through the school year. The Adam Institute and the Worcester Area Mission Society collaborate with the school to make the program possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about Summer CUBS<\/summary>\n

Summer CUBS runs for 18 days from late June through mid-July. We start at 8 a.m. and end at 2 p.m., aligning with typical school day hours. We incorporate daily learning experiences in literacy, math, science, art, and outdoor play. Students interact with Worcester Public School teachers, University faculty, Master of Arts in Teaching students and a cadre of volunteer mentors who encourage new learning while also having fun!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Each elementary MAT spends one week working intensely with a veteran Worcester Public School teacher, a graduate of the MAT program, who will also co-teach their teaching math course in the fall semester. The MATs benefit from modeled instruction, time working with small groups of children, and coaching as they prepare their own lessons for small groups of students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Our data indicates that the CUBS program is achieving its primary goal. Over the past two years, 80% of our students have either maintained or gained on their reading comprehension test scores between the end of school in May and when they start again in the fall. Principal Patty Padilla actively seeks out students to apply and enroll in this free of charge program each spring. As the program continues to emerge, we use feedback from the teachers, MATs, mentors, and Woodland staff to fine-tune the CUBS experience.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Teacher Rounds Program<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Teacher Rounds are a signature collaborative learning practice in the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program and in partner schools. Drawing on the concept of a \u201cround\u201d in medical practice, Teacher Rounds bring together small groups\u2014for example, MAT students, teachers and education faculty\u2014for focused observation, inquiry, and reflection in classrooms. Teacher Rounds aim to share and make teaching practice transparent, cultivate habits of reflection and inquiry, develop mutual understanding of student learning and teaching, and build learning communities grounded in the work that teachers and students do every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn more: The Rounds Model of Professional Development (PDF)<\/a>, by Thomas Del Prete (See also Del Prete, T. 2013. Teacher Rounds: A guide to collaborative learning in and from practice<\/em><\/a>. CA: Corwin).<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n

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Adam Teacher Fellow Program<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Adam Teacher Fellow Program supports a partner-school teacher full- or part-time to contribute to the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) Program and the development of the community of practice within his or her own school or across schools. Teacher Fellows embody the Adam commitment to the development of teacher expertise and leadership.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Testimonies from Adam Teacher Fellows<\/summary>\n

\u201cIt was a great privilege to be an Adam Teacher Fellow. To be able to continue to teach students while also helping train new teachers was an ideal opportunity for me. Being able to reflect on my teaching alongside new teachers was not only enjoyable, but informative for both them and me. I know I learned a great deal and am very grateful I was able to participate in such a valuable experience.\u201d<\/em>
\u2014 Kate Shepard, Mathematics Teacher, Claremont Academy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cServing in the role of teaching fellow has meant the opportunity to nurture new teachers and join in their learning, allowing me to reflect on ways to challenge and improve my own practice. It has meant connecting with other Main South teachers and Clark professors, and maintaining ties with student teachers who have moved on to other districts, creating a dynamic community that offers resources and inspiration. It has meant support to maintain faith in the work that I believe in.\u201d<\/em>
\u2014 Leann Ledoux, English teacher, South High School<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cFor me, the best part of this job is being able to work with new and experienced teachers, being a part of both the high school and graduate school worlds, and having the opportunity to become a part of other schools and work with new groups of students, all while remaining a part of my own school and continuing to teach my own students, which is very important to me. I\u2019m constantly thinking and working with people (kids and adults), and I feel at home in an increasing number of places.\u201d<\/em>
\u2014 Kyle Pahigian, Mathematics Teacher, University Park Campus School<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cBeing an Adam Teacher Fellow at Clark was a remarkable experience for me. During that time I was able to work firsthand with students in their process of becoming teachers\u2026and [be part of] a partnership which focuses on a well-balanced, yet extremely challenging program. At the grand finale, e-folios were evidence of the incredible year of every student and a testimony to the requirements and success of the program.\u201d<\/em>
\u2014 Anne Marie Morrissey, Spanish teacher<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/details>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Professional Learning Communities<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Adam Institute develops and supports professional learning communities within and across its Worcester partner school network. These professional learning communities share a common goal of fostering powerful and equitable teaching and learning. The Adam Institute\u2019s local partner school professional learning community plays an integral role in supporting the Master of Arts in Teaching program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learning Teams and Collaborative Practices Supported by the Adam Institute<\/summary>\n