Rural Teacher Corps Spotlight: The Colorado Center for Rural Education Strengthens Colorado's Rural Teacher Workforce

The Colorado Center for Rural Education (CCRE), housed at the University of Northern Colorado, plays a vital role in building and sustaining a strong educator workforce in rural communities across the state. Through partnerships with higher education institutions and alternative educator preparation programs, The CCRE works to recruit, prepare, place, and support outstanding rural teachers.

Established in 2016 with support from the Colorado Legislature, the CCRE was created to address the growing need for well-prepared educators in rural classrooms. Its mission is both clear and far-reaching: to ensure every rural classroom in Colorado is led by a skilled and supported teacher-leader. In its mission, the CCRE works to strengthen teacher pathways, identify and support rural teaching scholars, facilitate a rural teacher leaders program, develop a professional network for rural educators, and cultivate rural education advocacy, scholarship, and grant writing.

The CCRE serves a diverse and essential group of professionals committed to the success of rural schools, including current and prospective educators such as teachers, administrators, and special service providers working in Colorado’s rural and small rural school districts. The CCRE’s mission is made possible through the strong support and collaboration of key educational organizations across the state. CCRE joined Rural Schools Collaborative as a hub in 2025. Dr. Robert Fulton, Director, serves as the hub contact for RSC’s Colorado Hub.

The CCRE’s partner organizations include the Colorado Association of School Boards, Colorado Association of School Executives, Colorado Association of School Personnel Administrators, Colorado BOCES Association, the Colorado Council of Deans of Education, and the Colorado Department of Education through the Commissioner's Rural Education Council. Additional support comes from the Colorado Education Association, Colorado Institutions of Higher Education, the Colorado Rural Alliance, the Colorado Rural Education Collaborative, and superintendent groups representing Northern, Southern, and Western Slope regions of the state. Together, these organizations form a powerful network dedicated to advancing rural education and supporting the educators who serve Colorado’s rural communities.

In addition, the CCRE joins sixteen other programs in the Rural Educator Ecosystem: Community of Learners, designed to strengthen rural teacher pipelines through local partnerships and place-based strategies, the initiative brings together rural education leaders, teacher preparation programs, and philanthropic partners in a shared effort to support rural schools. The Community of Learners is supported by generous grants from ECMC Foundation and Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies.

Since its inception, the CCRE has awarded over $5 million in stipends to support the recruitment and retention of rural educators. These stipends benefit student teachers, in-service educators, and special services providers such as school counselors, psychologists, speech-language pathologists, occupational therapists, and others who are essential to student success. The impact of this financial support is significant. Between 2017 and 2023, 91% of in-service educators and 86% of pre-service teachers who received stipends from the CCRE remained in rural classrooms, compared to a statewide rural retention rate of 81%. This data demonstrates that intentional support strategies help keep educators in the communities that need them most.

While financial support is important, the CCRE’s work extends far beyond stipends. A key piece of its long-term strategy is early outreach. The Colorado Teacher Cadets program, launched in 2011 as a “grow-your-own” initiative, now operates in over 20 districts. It introduces high school students to the teaching profession and encourages them to consider careers in education, particularly in the rural communities where they already have deep roots. This early exposure helps build a sustainable pipeline of future educators.

Recruitment also happens within the current school workforce. The CCRE hosts weekly virtual open houses for paraprofessionals and alternative licensure candidates, offering accessible opportunities for individuals already serving in schools to pursue certification and advance their careers in education. These efforts help ensure that the people who already know and understand rural communities have clear pathways into teaching roles.

To further support educators throughout their careers, the CCRE offers a broad range of outreach and engagement efforts. These include bimonthly webinars, active social media presence, educator recruitment fairs, conferences for aspiring teachers, newsletters, site visits, research publications, and grant writing support. By combining early outreach with sustained professional engagement, the CCRE is building a strong and resilient educator workforce for rural Colorado.

The effectiveness of this comprehensive approach is backed by research. Dr. Robert Fulton, Director of CCRE, co-authored an article in the Journal of Educational Research and Innovation titled “The Colorado Center for Rural Education: Mitigating the Teacher Shortage in Colorado.” The article highlights how CCRE’s efforts are contributing to a rise in the number of student teachers, alternative licensure candidates, and advanced-credential educators choosing to serve in rural districts.

The CCRE demonstrates how thoughtful, comprehensive strategies can make a lasting difference in rural educator recruitment and retention. Through early outreach, financial and professional support, and strong statewide partnerships, the CCRE is helping to build a more stable and resilient educator workforce for Colorado’s rural communities.

This spotlight series highlights Rural Teacher Corps. Rural Teacher Corps are intentional efforts to recruit, prepare, and retain rural teacher-leaders. These 20+ programs work together to tackle the rural teacher shortage. Learn more about the Colorado Center for Rural Education and the Rural Teacher Corps Learning Network here.