About crew
The Center for Reigniting the Educator Workforce (CREW) was established with a single purpose: to address Texas’s most urgent educator workforce challenges, particularly in high-need fields such as special education and bilingual education, as well as in rural communities.
To create smart solutions, we put aspiring educators at the center of our efforts. That means removing barriers – whether financial, structural, or systemic –to create a sustainable and effective apprenticeship pathway that works.
Located at Dallas College, CREW aims to support school systems, higher education institutions, and local workforce board in developing high-quality teacher apprenticeships that break down barriers and enable students to become highly skilled, certified teachers in high-need certification areas across Texas.
The launch of CREW comes at a critical time. Teacher shortages are reaching unprecedented levels across the country, and for the first time in Texas history, the percentage of uncertified new teacher hires has outpaced certified new hires.
Sara
Delano
Sara Delano
Founding Executive
Director
Charvett
Conner
Charvett Conner
Managing Director
Jacqueline
Kennedy
Jacqueline Kennedy
Expert-in-Residence
Christopher
Sloan
Christopher Sloan
Expert-in-Residence
The Tri-Agency Work Group
The Center for Reigniting the Educator Workforce (CREW) was established through the leadership and vision of the Tri-Agency Workgroup—a statewide collaboration between the Texas Education Agency (TEA), Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB), and Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). Together, these three agencies guide efforts to strengthen Texas’ talent pipeline by aligning education, higher education, and workforce priorities.
CREW was created to address the state’s critical shortage of certified educators and to serve as the statewide hub for expanding high-quality teacher apprenticeships. The Tri-Agency sets the strategic direction for initiatives like CREW and the Texas Teacher Apprenticeship Strategy, ensuring they are aligned with state goals for workforce readiness and educator preparation.
The Texas Teacher Apprenticeship Strategy was shaped by input from the Teacher Apprenticeships Advisory Group and has received formal approval from the commissioners of TEA, THECB, and TWC.
