Metropolitan State University is a diverse, urban institution. Over the past 50 years, the university has grown into its current configuration with four campuses. Of nearly 11,000 students, 88 percent of undergraduates are transfer students or have previous degrees. Students of color and American Indian students represent 52 percent of all students, a majority of students at the University are Pell grant eligible, and the average age of students is 30.
Initially started as an alternative institution of higher education in 1971 as a university “without walls”, departments, or traditional grades, today, Metro State offers academic degree programs through the following colleges and schools that house various departments: the College of Liberal Arts (CLA); the College of Sciences (COS); the College of Management (COM); College of Nursing and Health Sciences (CNHS); the College of Community Studies and Public Affairs (CCSPA); the College of Individualized Studies (CIS) and the School of Urban Education (UED).
Metro State is one of seven Minnesota State 4-year institutions of higher education and has campuses across the Twin Cities metro area (St. Paul, Minneapolis, Midway, and Brooklyn Park). It is a comprehensive public institution offering quality, affordable, postsecondary education at the certificate, associate, baccalaureate, and graduate levels. These programs prepare students for immediate entry into the workforce, for the next level of education, for specialized employment opportunities, and for lifelong learning.
Metropolitan State was built on the dreams of its founders, and it continues to transform itself to meet the changing needs of its students and the community.
The Urban Teacher Program at Metropolitan State started in 2001 following a legislation in 2000 that authorized the university to offer a new teacher education program to “meet the needs of Minneapolis, St. Paul and inner-ring suburbs”. The legislation mandated the university to enroll at least 50 percent candidates of color. The School of Urban Education (UED) was formed in 2012-13 as part of a university-wide reorganization. Prior to 2012-13, the Urban Teacher Program was a department within the College of Professional Studies. UED is designed to meet the need of urban schools for diverse teachers who can improve students' educational achievement. Our mission is twofold:
1) To increase the number of well-prepared teachers of color in Minneapolis, St. Paul and inner-ring suburbs so that the urban teaching workforce reflects the ethnically diverse population of students and their communities; and
2) To empower urban teachers with the content knowledge, pedagogical skills, urban field experiences, and professional dispositions needed to improve the educational achievement of historically and currently underserved urban learners and to advocate for their right to receive a high quality education.
UED currently has approximately 300 students taking courses in the following undergraduate and graduate programs, of whom approximately 53 percent are Black, Indigenous or People of Color (BIPOC). The School of Urban Education houses three undergraduate bachelor of science degrees, a minor, and a master’s of science in urban education with various concentrations. UED offers 15 PELSB-approved licensure programs in the following areas:
The School of Urban Education works in collaboration with community colleges throughout the metropolitan area as well as several school districts to provide increased pathways for diverse adults becoming prepared to be effective urban teachers.
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