New Delhi – Chargé d’Affaires Ambassador Kathleen Stephens hosted a reception today for the second cohort of 57 Indian teacher educators who will be traveling to the U.S. in September 2014 for a three-month residency at Arizona State University (ASU) under the India Support for Teacher Education Program (In-STEP).  

Addressing the event, Ambassador Stephens said, “We hope that all of you – some of the brightest teacher educators in India – will be able to bring back new knowledge, skills, and approaches and become even stronger leaders in your states in the field of education.” 

Supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Government of India Ministry of Human Resource Development, the $4.3 million In-STEP initiative offers a three-month, customized training for 110 Indian teacher educators at ASU’s Mary Lou Fulton Teachers College.  ASU’s training imparts innovative, state-of-the-art teaching methodologies and tools that are applicable and relevant in the Indian context, enabling the teacher educators to offer high quality training to Indian teachers upon their return.  The first cohort of 53 teacher educators completed their training at ASU in the fall of 2013.

Ambassador Stephens also shared her own experience as a teacher and a teacher educator before she joined the Foreign Service.  Ambassador Stephens lived in Korea for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer where she taught English at Yesan Middle School and traveled throughout South Chungcheongnam Province conducting demonstration classes and teacher training workshops in dozens of middle schools and high schools.