Portland Public Schools

Coach to Classroom Pathway Program

The Coach to Classroom Pathway Program launched in SY 2021/2022 as a partnership between our department, the department of Athletics, and Warner Pacific University.  It aims to support current PPS coaches to earn their teaching licenses in return for at least five years of service as teachers in PPS classrooms.

The Coach to Classroom program also supports the district goal to diversify our workforce and specifically seeks to bring more Black male teachers into PPS classrooms. The teaching profession is overwhelmingly white and female. Research shows that when students of color have even just ONE teacher of color over their K-12 experience, their academic outcomes and school experiences improve. The Coach to Classroom program prioritizes growing our own coaches - many of whom are Black men - who already have relationships with our students and communities into PPS teachers.

In addition to priority hiring upon completion of licensure, Coach to Classroom participants get to learn with a cohort of their peers, get to attend PPS-specific electives for credit but no cost, and get support in preparation for licensure exams.

Applications are open each year in Winter

Applicants must apply to the BSED or MAT program at Warner Pacific in addition to completing a PPS Application - found on the Internal Jobs board, listing 21583, “PPS Coach to Teacher Program.”

For more information, see this FAQ page, or reach out to Emily Donaldson Walsh (ewalsh@pps.net) in PLL or Diallo Lewis (dlewis@pps.net) in Athletics.