SPONSORED CONTENT: How New Jersey's GPA rule almost ended Ivory Johnson's teaching dream.

When Ivory Johnson graduated from Rowan University in 2019 with a degree in biological sciences, she had high hopes of becoming a teacher.

But with a grade point average just shy of the 3.0 mandatory state requirement, Johnson was shut out from teaching opportunities. So, instead, she returned to Pennsauken High School, her alma mater, and took a job as a secretary in the main office. 

Working in administrative support year after year, she mulled about her future career. She hoped, somehow, that she could still become a teacher one day.

In 2024, a school administrator pulled her aside and told her about the "GPA Reset" built into the Alternate Route for Shortage Areas programs offered by the non-profit New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning (NJCTL).

This article is sponsored content provided by the New Jersey Center for Teaching and Learning (NJCTL).

Candidates who successfully complete the first phase of that program overcome the GPA obstacle. They then must meet all other state requirements, like passing Praxis exams and completing a 50-hour pre-service course, to begin teaching. Completing the program leads to a standard credential and master's degree for teaching in such high-demand areas as physics, chemistry, biology, and mathematics.

At the end of 2024, Johnson enrolled in the NJCTL program, in which she will ultimately earn 34 credits and receive a master's degree in teaching through online, asynchronous coursework. She has since passed the subject-area Praxis exam and received a certificate of eligibility that allows her to teach in any New Jersey school.

In early May, the Pennsauken school board approved hiring her to become a high school biology teacher for the fall. She will be working alongside some of her former teachers, as she relocates from the main office to the science wing.

"I have the certification, which is really exciting, but I still need to finish the NJCTL program to get my master's degree," Johnson said. "Then, I will receive my standard license to teach – no matter what my GPA was when I graduated from Rowan."

Only the NJCTL program made it possible for Johnson to earn the right to teach in any NJ school.  She also noted that NJCTL has considerably lower tuition costs than other NJ graduate schools of education. Costs are four times less, on average, in tuition and fees, and five times less for professionals like Johnson, who benefitted from the 20% discount given to New Jersey Education Association members.

Richard Bonkowski, principal of Pennsauken High School, said the faculty and students are "incredibly proud" to welcome Johnson as a science teacher.

"As a graduate of our school, a dedicated member of our staff who previously served as a secretary, and now an educator earning her certification through the NJCTL alternate route program, Ivory's journey is a true example of perseverance, commitment, and dedication to achieving her goals," Bonkowski said. "Her story is an inspiration to our students and school community, proving that hard work and determination can turn dreams into reality."

The results of the GPA Reset aspect of NJCTL's Alternate Route for Shortage Areas programs speak for themselves. Of the twenty-six teachers produced by those programs and in classrooms today, 16 benefited from a GPA reset. Of the 62 more working through that program, 31 will qualify due to that reset. The approach works.

"New Jersey does not have to choose between quality and quantity in its teaching workforce," said NJCTL Executive Director Robert Goodman. "The GPA Reset shows that both are achievable — and that the only thing standing in the way of more great teachers is the willingness to clear a barrier that was never as meaningful as it seemed."

NJCTL is a non-profit graduate school of education that has been supported by NJEA since being founded by them in 2007. Learn more at NJCTL.org