Making quality accessible: how Houston teacher pathways are responding to new HB2 funding, part I

This two-part series examines the implementation progress by educator-preparation programs and PK-12 partners of the PREP Allotment in House Bill 2 (2025), Texas’ historic $8.2 billion investment in education, in the Houston education system. Read Part II here.

As an aspiring teacher in Houston, Amber Netek had to choose from a staggering 40 different pathways into the profession.

Not unlike its interwoven system of highways and tall buildings, becoming a teacher in Houston is a deeply complex and crowded labor market. The metro area serves an estimated 1.3 million PK-12 students, and the supply of certified, well-prepared teachers has not kept pace with the demand in a metro area that has experienced rapid population growth over the last decade.

To help Houston meet the demand, dozens of educator-preparation providers (EPPs) now offer different routes into the profession. Alongside longstanding universities and “traditional” teaching programs, the market includes virtual options, residencies, and district-led apprenticeships, and many more that cater to different types of aspiring teachers and their life circumstances.

“I chose to be certified going into a classroom,” said Netek, of her many options. “The way our program lines up to where I've been in multiple districts, multiple classrooms before even entering this enhanced residency I feel like has really prepared me…to have those experiences before ever stepping into my own classroom.”

Netek’s strong preparation experience came from being a full-time undergraduate student at Sam Houston State University. However, that option isn’t always the most accessible or practical option for all those who wish to become teachers in Houston. Many are career-changers, paraprofessionals, parents, or caregivers who must balance their training with full-time work and other commitments.

“I chose to be certified going into a classroom.” -Amber Netek, Teacher-Candidate

At the same time, the cost of options has been variable preparedness. Candidates can enter classrooms with different amounts of coursework, clinical experiences, mentoring, and confidence. Districts then must shoulder the responsibility of managing and supporting teachers who come from a vast range of entry points and stewarding them towards a shared set of knowledge, skills, and expectations.

Texas legislators sought to address those challenges through the passage of House Bill 2 last summer, after earlier investments in teacher quality, instructional standards, and materials. HB2’s PREP Allotment is an unprecedented investment in teacher preparation, with incentives for paid, practice-based pathways; stronger district-EPP partnerships; mentor support and development; and embedding of instructional expectations, particularly in literacy and math. One of the key aims of HB2 is to reduce the state’s rate of newly hired uncertified teachers, which in 2023-24 was 52%.

The PREP Allotment holds real promise for solving multiple challenges. In Houston, however, the policy is entering a system that closely resembles the city’s highway network: sprawling, interconnected, and difficult to reroute quickly. Many programs have spent years building pathways that position them to access HB2 incentives more readily. But they will now be rewarded even more if they opt to construct or redesign pathways and partnerships mapped to policy incentives. 

Early findings are clear: HB2 is beginning to work as intended. In a survey we conducted of nearly 30 EPPs across the state, to be released next month, 100 percent of respondents indicated interest in pursuing PREP-funded pathways, and many are already implementing changes. At the same time, given the state’s fast timeline, only 18 percent said they were “very confident” they will be able to align to requirements on time. Most identified needing technical support and capacity.

This past spring, we spent time with three different programs serving the Greater Houston PK-12 community—a traditional university-based program, a community college, and the region’s largest school district—to understand what’s working, what’s challenging, and what legislators should keep in mind about its largest student-serving region as they plan ahead. In Part II, we take a closer look at those three experiences.

Read more:

Part II: Making quality accessible: how Houston teacher pathways are responding to new HB2 funding