Math for America Fellowship Program of Study

Math for America Fellows who choose NYU’s Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development will enroll in the Fast Track M.A. Program in Mathematics Education, a program emphasizing immersion in schools and communities and development of strong content knowledge. This Masters Program in Mathematics Education leads to eligibility for New York State initial teacher certification for grades 7-12. Staffed by full-time and part-time educators with a wide range of classroom experience, scholarly publications, and longtime involvement with professional associations, the program emphasizes content mastery in mathematics, a clear understanding of current instructional materials and pedagogical methods, and teaching methods that provoke critical thought and inquiry-based learning.

The pivotal experience of the program is two semesters of student teaching at the secondary and middle school levels, where M.A. students -- mentored by their cooperating teachers and NYU field supervisors -- are given responsibility for teaching in the New York City public schools. NYU Math for America Fellows, where possible, undertake their student teaching in NYU’s two dozen “host schools” located in partner neighborhoods on the Lower East Side and East Harlem. Student teachers at these host schools work closely with a cadre of NYU student teachers from mathematics and other disciplines, principals, supervising teachers, health care professionals, and faculty liaisons to become fully immersed in the life of the school. The neighborhood connection helps aspiring teachers take account of the lives of youth outside school and of the important role played in education by families and community-based organizations.

MfA’s partnership with NYU is unique among the three universities in that it involves a three-way financial partnership. Funds to support the Math for America Fellowship at NYU Steinhardt are provided in part through the NYU Gateway Math Education Program, a U.S. Department of Education teacher recruitment initiative. Fellows attending NYU become part of the Gateway Math Education Program and are required to teach following completion of their master’s degree for one year in a secondary school in which at least 50% of the student population is eligible for free lunch. Fellows sign an agreement to complete this service obligation as a part of their Math for America Fellowship. In addition, Math for America Fellows at NYU may participate in a special series of on-campus Gateway Math Education Colloquia, which provide Fellows with special opportunities to meet with and hear from locally and nationally renowned mathematics educators to further deepen their understanding and practice of mathematics and education.