History of TIP

09/21/2026

Recommended citation: Sheehan, C. Z. (2026), Origins of the Minnesota Teacher Induction Program [White Paper]. Minnesota CTE, Lakes Country Service Cooperative. https://mncte.org/tiphistory/

With more than 20 years of experience mentoring new agriculture, food, and natural resources, business and marketing, family and consumer, health/human services, trade and industry, and work-based learning teachers, our CTE Teacher Induction Program (CTE TIP™) and the advanced mentoring programs give teachers the tools to be successful. Lakes Country Service Cooperative and the Minnesota Association for Career and Technical Education (MnACTE) administer CTE TIP, with major support from the Minnesota Service Cooperatives’ CTE Consortium Grant and MDE’s Teacher Mentorship and Retention of Effective Teachers Grant (formerly a PELSB grant), and additional funding from the Minnesota Department of Education and Minnesota State using state Perkins leadership funds. However, the journey of CTE TIP from idea to successful practice was long. The purpose of this study was to explore the history of CTE TIP and any changes along the way which enabled its success.

1998

Efforts to begin a new teacher induction program can be traced as far back as the 1998-1999 school year. The Minnesota Department of Education and University of Minnesota collaborated to hold an event called the “New Teacher Conference,” which would evolve into Minnesota’s Teacher Induction Program. New teachers met on July 26, 1998 at Willmar High School for a program led by Joel Larsen of the Minnesota Department of Education and Dr. Roland Peterson of the University of Minnesota. Pam Koenen spoke as the president of the agriculture teacher’s association (then called MVAIA). Mary Buschette of the UMN led a panel on partnerships and Jim Ertl, Executive Secretary of Minnesota FFA, spoke about FFA and student leadership. Additionally, Dr. Peterson led a session on instructional design and curriculum, and Joel Larsen and Dr. Richard Joerger provided updates for state issues and funding, as well as SAE and program management. The final topics were marketing an agriculture program and continued professional development.

1999

The formal Teacher Induction Program (TIP) began Fall 1999, led by the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota Department of Education. TIP for teachers of agriculture, food and natural resources was successfully operated by Dr. Richard Joerger of the University of Minnesota and Joel Larsen of the Minnesota Department of Education, with funding and support from the Minnesota Department of Education through a $20,000 Perkins grant. While the agriculture program was very successful, early efforts for TIP in CTE areas other than agriculture were largely unsuccessful. In subsequent years, TIP was funded by the Minnesota Leadership Council for Agricultural Education (MAELC) and supported by the Minnesota Association of Agriculture Educators (MAAE).

In an effort to assist entry-level agricultural education teachers during the induction and socialization process, the goals of TIP were to: a) provide teaching and program management resources, b) provide an opportunity to analyze and reflect upon teaching, c) provide psychosocial support, and d) improve teacher effectiveness. Two faculty members at the University of Minnesota in the Division of Agricultural, Food and Environmental Education co-directed TIP, while a graduate student served as the TIP coordinator, responding to entry-level teachers’ immediate needs for desired forms of assistance, and assisting faculty in conducting programmatic inquiry and evaluation related to the induction process.

TIP provided professional and psychosocial assistance for 10-30 entry-level agricultural education teachers per year. Research indicated that teachers who participated in induction programs were more effective teachers, experienced greater job satisfaction, and were more likely to stay in the teaching profession. As a result, the co-directors led a collaborative team of professionals who designed and implemented programming that involved individualized and group interactions to assist entry-level teachers. Annual programming typically involved four professional development seminars, and providing entry-level teachers with a TIP mentor. Depending on the amount of assistance needed or requested, the TIP mentor met with the entry-level teacher from three to six days at the teacher’s school to observe and provide feedback, deliver desired forms of assistance and psychosocial support, and encourage reflective thinking on effective teaching and the induction process.

2006

Based on our research—including a historical analysis, interviews, and artifact analysis—in 2006 there was a substantial effort to expand TIP to serve all of Minnesota CTE. The program for agriculture teachers was very successful, having supported 109 agriculture teachers between 1999 and 2005. Such a program would benefit all CTE teachers. The effort to establish CTE TIP was led by CTE Supervisor Dan Smith and AFNR Specialist Joel Larsen of the Minnesota Department of Education, Dr. Dick Joerger of the University of Minnesota, and the CTE teacher professional organizations (i.e., MnACTE). The project also included Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (note: now known as Minnesota State), specifically CTE teacher preparation programs at these universities. MDE’s vision for the program was to have “a single CTE TIP” as opposed to numerous, fractured programs that did not support one another. MDE’s key elements for CTE TIP were “involvement by higher education representatives, Minnesota Department of Education specialists, teacher professional organizations of the service areas, and the entry-level teachers and their respective school leaders.” MDE committed fiscal resources for conducting the new pilot, specifically for expenses of mentors, and limited funds available to the universities to manage the program activities. In spring 2006, CTE Supervisor Dan Smith and CTE professional organization representatives, with input from MDE CTE content specialists and university personnel, created a framework for operation of CTE TIP, including a statewide directory of all Minnesota CTE teachers.

Objective 1: Provide programming to address the professional needs of entry-level CTE teachers in agriculture, business/marketing, health science technology, and trade/industrial fields.
– Initial Strategy: Complement induction programming being delivered by local school districts with programming that addresses the unique needs of entry-level CTE teachers.
– Key Supporting Strategies and Activities: (a) determine the nature of the common and unique professional needs of CTE teachers, focusing on instruction and management relating to career and technical education student organizations, classrooms, laboratories, and supervised occupational and work-based learning.

Objective 2: Expand our knowledge about the needs of early-career CTE teachers and about induction and mentoring of these teachers through on-going inquiry.
– Initial Strategy: Conduct on-going systematic inquiry that builds upon and expands induction and mentoring research conducted by previous and contemporary researchers.
– Key Supporting Strategies and Activities: (a) examine the professional needs and difficulties of CTE teachers, (b) explore the experiences and needs of mentors, program coordinators, and other program partners, (c) examine the influence of induction programming upon teacher effectiveness, attrition, and pace of development as professional teachers, (d) explore the availability and nature of programming of other teacher support, assistance, and evaluation systems, and (e) engage in other related research in partnership with other scholars in the Department of Education, University of Minnesota, and MnSCU (note: now known as Minnesota State).

Objective 3: Strengthen the retention rate of effective entry-level career and technical education teachers.
– Initial Strategy: Monitor and attend to the psychological, technical, pedagogical, and socialization needs of the teachers. Initiate strategies known to improve teacher effectiveness.
– Key Supporting Strategies and Activities: (a) provide technical (pedagogical, content pedagogy, subject matter) assistance to the early career teachers, (b) increase access to quality curricular and instructional materials, (c) optimize the socialization experience into the CTE teaching profession with an emphasis on early participation in professional teacher organizations related to the content, (d) optimize teacher satisfaction through induction programming and an informed learning community for early career teachers, (e) become engaged in a personalized process of professional development that meets personal, school, and professional goals, (f) enhance annual induction programming using information from formative and summative program evaluations, (g) initiate strategies to engage early career teachers in systematic formative and summative assessments of their teaching performance, (h) assist early career teachers to develop individual learning plans that are based upon the Minnesota Board of Teaching Standards of Effective Practice (note: now known as PELSB), and (i) maintain records of information about the early career teachers (e.g., school size, student enrollment).

On May 8, 2006, MDE sent a letter from MDE CTE Supervisor Dan Smith and Dr. Joerger of the University of Minnesota to leaders and teachers in CTE across Minnesota, including all Perkins leaders and teacher professional organization leaders (i.e., MnACTE) inviting them to the new CTE TIP project during the 2006-2007 school year. Questions for the program were to be addressed to CTE staff at MDE, including Joel Larsen (AFNR), Jean Kyle (B&M), Mike Mitchell (HSE), and Jim Mecklenburg (T&I). Note: The FCS position at MDE was vacant for more than a decade in the 2000s and 2010s. General questions about the program were directed to Dr. Joerger at the University of Minnesota.

The Teacher Kick-off Seminar was held August 9-10, 2006 at Century College in White Bear Lake. MDE led the professional development seminar during 1.5 days of programming focused on (a) managing student behavior, (b) understanding the program approval process, (c) managing a program and creating effective community partnerships, (d) locating program resources, (e) using student organizations for leadership development, (f) effective content-specific instructional strategies, (g) integrating and reinforcing academics in CTE, and (h) using work-based learning opportunities. The program cost $35 to participate (about $50 based on 2024 rates).

There is limited evidence of the program continuing beyond 2007. TIP for teachers of agriculture, food, and natural resources, which had existed prior to the 2006 CTE TIP pilot, continued in 2007-2008 and beyond, led at various times by Dr. Brad Greiman, Dr. Amy Smith, and Dr. Lavyne Rada.

2021

In 2021, there was another attempt to create TIP for all CTE teachers. In 2021, CTE leaders across various organizations became deeply concerned about teacher supply and demand, and teacher recruitment and retention. The state CTE teacher professional organization (MnACTE) established a partnership between the nine Minnesota Service Cooperatives—specifically Lakes Country Service Cooperative (LCSC), the University of Minnesota (UMN), and the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) to launch CTE TIP. The project was led by Dr. Lavyne Rada-MnACTE and UMN, Dr. Zane Sheehan-MDE, Troy Haugen-LCSC, and Shelli Sowles-MDE. Dustin Steelbook-LCSC joined the CTE TIP leadership team in 2023 to provide support for teachers who hold the Work-Based Learning (WBL) endorsement.

The third attempt at CTE TIP took a different approach than prior efforts, providing the program to teachers at no cost, and leveraging partnerships across dozens of organizations. PELSB and project partners funded the pilot project in FY22 for 26 teachers. The following year, FY23, the project grew to a planned 150 teachers with $290,145 in grant and matching funding. In 2023-2024, year three, the project grew again with more than $332,380 in grants and partner support, allowing for up to 180 participants.

2026

In April 2026, the MDE Career and Technical Education staff ended their partnership with the project, stating they no longer focus on teacher professional development and teacher recruitment and retention efforts. MDE overall remains a partner, specifically through its Educator Workforce and Development Center, via state funding and strategic planning. CTE TIP and the advanced content-specific program like WBL TIP, medical TIP, etc. continued to be funded by MDE and the CTE Consortium Grant, as well as agriculture TIP by UMN and MAELC.