Founder & Executive Director
Vista College Prep
OneTeacher, founded in Phoenix, AZ by Erin Tobin, is built on the belief that having an excellent teacher in front of students each day is one of the most critical components of closing the achievement gap that exists in the US. Tobin’s experiences as a teacher and the leader of a teacher preparation program inspired her to found OneTeacher, the mission of which is to connect inspiring educators with Title I schools that fit their passion, drive and qualifications. When educators are well-matched with their schools and administrators, they’re much more likely to be successful (and happy!), which typically creates better outcomes for students. This, coupled with the severe teacher shortage in Arizona, has made OneTeacher an invaluable resource for low-income schools in the Phoenix metro area.
Vista College Prep, a high performing network of Title I charter schools in Phoenix, is one such school and OneTeacher’s longest-running partner. Julia Meyerson, Founder and Executive Director of Vista College Prep (VCP), shares OneTeacher’s belief in the incredible power teachers have to influence to futures of all students, but especially low-income students. VCP’s Hadley campus was recognized by the US Department of Education as a 2018 National Blue Ribbon School, and the team’s ability to hire, train, and retain the highest quality teachers is one key to the school’s immense success. However, Meyerson notes, “when there’s a shortage of highly qualified teachers, it increases the amount of resources needed to get people hired–resources that could be put elsewhere.”
In VCP’s early years, having an external partner like OneTeacher that was 100% focused on hiring quality educators was a key piece of the school’s strategy. As the school’s needs have evolved and the network has grown to include an internal Director of Talent, OneTeacher remains a key partner. OneTeacher helps expand the breadth and scope ofVCP’s search for dedicated, mission-aligned educators. “Because of our teacher shortage, we need to be as exhaustive as possible. By working with OneTeacher, we have a wider reach, and that’s critical,” said Meyerson.
Two of the teachers recently hired through OneTeacher at VCP have an exceptional fit with the school and have therefore been successful. Says Meyerson of these two superstar teachers, “both are extremely reflective individuals, constantly working to improve their craft and committed deeply to the student population we serve. We’re really fortunate that one came with experience from a high performing set of schools that have natural alignment with Vista College Prep–that’s a rarity to find. The other is a perfect first year teacher–humble, gritty, eager to improve, and constantly puts kids first.”
These amazing connections, facilitated by OneTeacher, are the result of a strategic partnership between the team at OneTeacher and the administrators at VCP, as well as a strong understanding of what type of teachers would be a good fit at VCP. “To have a partner that is deeply focused on the particular mission and vision of your school to the point where they can accurately predict candidates who would have alignment and be hired,” is one of the biggest reasons Meyerson loves working with OneTeacher. Although taking on an additional cost in any educational setting is not a decision to be made lightly, the team at VCP decided that the ultimate reward of finding so many well-matched educators is well worth it.
With over 30 teachers and administrators hired through OneTeacher to date, the partnership between Vista College Prep and OneTeacher continues to thrive. Let the OneTeacher team support your school or district in hiring qualified, mission-aligned educators as well! Contact us to get started today.
