What if, this summer, you could hone your teaching skills, become a more confident educator, build a network of amazing colleagues from around the world, and return to your school with fresh eyes and new energy?
The Klingenstein Summer Institute for Early Career Teachers (KSI) is a highly-selective, fully-funded fellowship that provides an intensive, graduate-level professional learning experience for teachers with 1-5 years of full-time teaching experience. Participants in this prestigious program explore curriculum, pedagogy, and assessment design in their teaching discipline, informed by current research and practice in three key areas: mind brain education; equity, inclusion, and belonging; and, social-emotional learning - all to better understand and design for how students learn, grow, and thrive.
You'll engage in seminars facilitated by experts on essential topics, such as developing your teaching philosophy, the impact of AI, and cognitive science. You'll work fellow teachers from your academic discipline to examine subject-specific teaching practice and to develop curriculum and tools that you can use immediately. Curriculum groups include Elementary Education, English, History, Modern and Classical Languages, Math, Science, and Experiential Education.
The curriculum of the summer institute is guided by the KSI Competencies, a set of skills and habits that describe what early-career educators need to know and do in order to set themselves and their students up for success. Through out KSI, you'll work to build your capacities the 4 major areas below. Expand each competency to see examples of specific learning outcomes that will enhancing your teaching and leadership practice.
If accepted, you will receive a fully-funded fellowship for the program, which covers all tuition, fees, housing and meals during the program. Upon successful completion of the academic program, you'll earn four graduate-level credits from Teachers College, Columbia University which may be applied to future study, including the Klingenstein Center's Masters Degree Programs in Independent School Leadership. Most essentially, you'll finish the program affirmed, inspired, and equipped to continue to improve as a teacher and advocate for your students.
KSI is intensive residential professional learning program held at The Chauncey Center in Princeton, NJ. Outside of class, you will enjoy delicious meals and relaxing surroundings. Visit the gym or pool, meet up with your study group on the terrace, or visit downtown Princeton with a classmate. When you depart at the end of the program, you'll be a part of a global network of educators who will be a part of your professional learning network for years to come.
Your KSI experience begins with your application via the Teachers College Office of Admissions. Applications are open for KSI 2025. Read the FAQ for details and begin your application:
Applicants must:
Applicants must be able to attend all days of the program and be prepared to fully commit to an immersive, reflective, and intensive two-week graduate experience. Absences are not permitted, though accommodations may be made for students who experience illness during the program.
Participants will be assigned readings and reflective exercises before the start of the program. During the program, participants spend significant time each day in classes and group meetings. Students should also expect work each evening, including supplemental readings, collaborative projects, and a significant amount of reflective writing.
While at KSI, student work in curriculum groups, groups of educators who teach the same subject area. As part of the application process, applicants select one or more curriculum groups. The groups include Elementary Education, History, English, Science, Mathematics, Modern and Classical Languages, and Experiential Education (Outdoor Ed, PE, Place-based Education, Engineering, etc). Applicants who select more than one group will have an option to express an order of preference and explain.
KSI is a two-week intensive residential program. In 2025, KSI be held June 20-July 1 at The Chauncey Center, in Princeton, New Jersey.
The Klingenstein Summer Institute is a non-degree program of Teachers College and applications are made online through the Teachers College Office of Admission. It requires
Applicants with degrees from outside the United States have additional requirements. 1) They must complete a course-by-course evaluation from either World Education Service (WES) or Educational Credential Evaluators (ECE), which may take several weeks. 2) If the language of instruction for their undergraduate degree was not English, an IELTS or TOEFL score will be required.
The application for the Summer 2025 cohort is open and the deadline is February 1.
Once the application opens, go to the tc.edu/apply to begin your application. To get started:
The Klingenstein Summer Institute for Early Career Teachers is an official graduate-level, academic course of Columbia University's Teachers College. All academic work and class meetings are mandatory, and designed to support participants' development as early-career professionals. Upon successful completion of the program, students earn four points of graduate credit from Teachers College. Official transcripts may be requested from the Registrar's Office.
The KSI 2025 application deadline is February 1, 2025.
Notifications of admissions decisions are sent via email during April. Eligible candidates who are not admitted are encouraged to reapply for the following year. Summer Institute admission cannot be deferred.
The Klingenstein Summer Institute for Early Career teachers is a merit-based fellowship. All participants receive a full scholarship that covers the costs of tuition, as well as room, board, and meals. Travel to and from the site where the Institute is held is not included. Your school may choose to support your fellowship by covering your transportation costs when applicable.
Housing and meals at the Chauncey Center are provided as part of the fellowship award. Each participant is assigned a private room with an en suite bathroom.
Yes.
Please see the Teachers College application instructions for international students.
Three letters of recommendation are included in the application. Additional recommendations can be sent via email to klingenstein@tc.columbia.edu.
An interview is not required.