Grow Your Own: An Umbrella Term for Very Different Localized Teacher Pipeline Programs

Abstract

“Grow Your Own” (GYO) programs have emerged as a new approach to expanding teacher supply, addressing localized shortages, and diversifying the profession. However, little is known about the scale and design of GYO programs, which recruit and support individuals from the local community to become teachers. We conduct a quantitative content analysis of 94 GYO initiatives and find that “GYO” is an umbrella term used to describe teacher pipeline programs with very different purposes, participants, and program features. Although nearly all GYO initiatives aim to increase local supply, far fewer offer programming aligned with reducing shortages in hard-to-staff subjects and schools, increasing diversity, and improving effectiveness. We propose a new classification scheme to facilitate more precise discussions of GYO programs.