The Center for Urban Education’s activities promote the enhancement of educational outcomes for students in urban schools.  The Center’s projects currently include the following:

• Urban Teacher Enhancement Program (UTEP). UTEP is a teacher preparation program designed for those interested in urban teaching.  It has been developed and implemented in collaboration with local partner districts.  Students participating in UTEP receive tuition support for teacher education coursework.  Other unique features of UTEP include coursework infused with competencies related to urban teaching, coursework co-taught by university faculty and master teachers from the partner districts, enhanced field placements, and mentorship from master teachers in the participating school districts.
• Communities and Schools Together (CAST). CAST is a comprehensive plan to support the involvement of families and communities in the education of urban students. The core activities of CAST include: research on current national and local trends in parent involvement and home-school relations; training of education professionals who work closely with urban parents and families; and serving as a coordinating entity to bring together families, educators, community representatives and agencies.
• Collaborative Action Research Program (CARP). This is a small grant program jointly supported by the Center for Urban Education and the Center for Aging.  The program is designed to support field-based investigations of intergenerational activities that show promise for enhancing the academic achievement of urban students and the well-being of participating older adults.
• Cultivating Leaders for Inclusive Diverse Environments (CLIDE).  CLIDE provides tuition support to Ed.S. students in the Leadership Program who are interested in administrative positions in Special Education.
• Project for Urban Teacher Education Research (PUTER).  This project is designed to contribute to the knowledge base related to preparing urban teachers.  The project is currently investigating critical competencies in urban teaching; teacher education practices effective in developing these competencies; and the relationship of these competencies to P-12 student learning outcomes.