If she thinks she wants to stay on New York, I would highly recommend zeroing in on your state schools. Especially the smaller ones known for education and doing a deep dive into the education major at each school. Almost all of her time after sophomore year will be focused on teacher prep and student teaching. How the student will get opportunities to be in classrooms is the most crucial part of teacher preparation. Our local state school’s School of Education is (physically) connected to a public school that is used as a lab so students get to observe teachers/classrooms from day 1. They also have simulators so students could run parent meetings, be part of IEP meetings, or engage in high stakes discussions through AR to increase their confidence when they are put into classrooms.
I was a teacher/admin and sat on many hiring committees. We thought very highly of our local non flagships state schools that were known for education. It was a known product, we were familiar with the schools they were placed in for student teaching, and we could often just pick up the phone and talk to principals and professors when we wanted a better picture of a candidate.
When my own D22 went into education, she only considered our local state school with an excellent education program. It was autoadmit and she refused to look anywhere else. I will admit, I pushed hard for her to look other places because I wanted her to have the kind of social experience I had in college, but she was steadfast that she was only applying to this one school. Turns it, she was right and going to school with kids that were ethnically and financially diverse, often working their way through college while also helping to support their families, was one of the biggest factors in how she now views education. She also student taught in both highly resourced, high test score, award winning schools and high needs schools with large EL learner and DFS involvement. She now understands how race and economics affect education in a way she would not have had she attended some of the schools I wanted her to look at.
So I don’t know much about the smaller SUNYs or other small schools in the NE offering Math Education as a major. But if your student still wants a taste of the big flagship experience, she could consider the schools that participate in National Student Exchange. NSE is an exchange program with ~200 participating schools across North America. Students can do up to a year of exchange at any of the participating partners, paying no more in tuition than they are paying at their home institution. By report, credits transfer automatically. A number of flagships participate including UMass Amherst, U Minnesota, Alabama, University of Montana, U New Mexico, U of Hawaii, U of Georgia. Also some interesting private schools participate including CC favorite St. Olaf (which has terrific math and math education prep.)
Because her interest is in Math education, I would look closely at the college’s approach to preparing their young teachers-to-be in this area. There have been changes in how math is taught over the years. I’d want her to be in a school which is up to date with the latest research and best practices. And I certainly wouldn’t want her to be the only future math educator in the department. I’d want a school of education with a robust program in this regard.
With regard to teacher preparation in Math Education at the secondary level, I would begin my search among SUNY colleges at Geneseo, Buffalo State, and Stony Brook. Among the New England colleges which offer discounts to NY State residents, I would begin with UMass Boston.
You’ve gotten a lot of good advice here, and I’m not sure how much I can add other than to reinforce it. My perspective: I used to teach high school (I taught in CT), and even after I moved into higher ed and academia, I have worked with teaching candidates for most of my career (secondary ed, social studies). A few of the most important points to consider:
If your D knows where she wants to teach, she should go to college in that state, or at least in a state with reciprocity for education. The job search will be more seamless that way, and it will be very difficult to get hired in a state where the requirements for certification are so extensive and specific that she would have to take lots of extra classes to get a license. (Case in point: I did my teacher ed coursework in Michigan, which had reciprocity with CT, where I got my first job – all I had to do was take an extra standardized test when I got there, no problem. When I moved to Wisconsin after a few years to go back to grad school, I thought I might sub to make a little extra money. I qualified for a sub license, but I found out that to get a full-time teaching license, I would have had to have taken several semesters of extra classes, and this was with a BA in my content area, an MA in education with certification, four years of full-time teaching, and tenure in another state).
The schools you think are the most prestigious or best-known are not necessarily the best ones for teacher training. When I was working in Illinois, my university (Illinois State University) had a much better job placement record for teachers than U of I. Now that I’m in Colorado, the university where I work (Metropolitan State University of Denver) is far more trusted and recognized locally as a teacher ed program than schools you’ve heard of, like DU and CU Boulder. So you should be looking at universities that have strong relationships with local school districts – that’s where students often get their first jobs.
I second above advice to spend as much time in the classroom as possible. Look at programs that offer more opportunities to do that before student teaching (and in field placements, your D should spend more time than required). Look for volunteer opportunities, or opportunities to develop a skill or interest while working with kids (volunteering in athletic, arts, or other enrichment programs for example). This will not only boost her resume, but it will also help her be sure about pursuing teaching.
I do not agree that the best field placements are in the best-funded districts. My student teaching placement (which was for the full academic year – the first semester was more like a part-time internship, and the second semester was the student teaching semester) was in a fragile school in a fragile community. I had had a pretty sheltered and privileged educational background up to that point, and I learned a lot about how school works for most people. I’m grateful for that experience, and it prepared me well for my first job, which was in an alternative program for students who’d been removed from mainstream high school. Trial by fire is not a bad thing!
Make sure that the education program allows for enough study in the content area. The balance between ed courses and content courses is not always the same, but the ed courses don’t do much good without a really strong background in content. So a robust math major is just as important as all of the ed classes she’ll have to take.
One of my kids went to SUNY Cortland and currently works in a very specialized education field. She has several friends who graduated with her who are currently HS math teachers in very competitive districts. SUNY Cortland is very strong in education.
That being said, it is also a school with a big sports culture. My daughter was active in HS sports and played for fun at Cortland, as did many of her friends.
I want to add that my daughter’s friends who graduated Cortland with her as HS math teachers started teaching immediately and completed their masters part time at night.
All of the SUNY schools are strong in education, and I would really focus on fit. The smaller schools really do have their own “personality.”
The non-SUNY schools on your list will not come in at your price point, imo. Not sure about Marist. Does the 32,000 cap on tuition include room and board?
I also want to add that in today’s job market, if she can add a special education cert to her resume it would make her more marketable.
Former SUNY educated NYer here. I know many SUNY teachers, including most of my family. If she wants to teach in NY (which is great because they have a union and amazing benefits) then go to a SUNY. No need to spend a dime more for a teaching degree when everyone takes the same accreditation exam. I’m a SUNY Oswego grad - they have an excellent education program (they were originally a “Teacher’s College”). Most of my college friends were education majors and went on to have careers in NY.
Geneseo is also great. What about New Paltz and Albany?
I think it would be really tough to hit the $30K budget at some of the other schools on your list.
Wow- they cut their costs again - so if they get the $10K merit, they’d be under $30K (Hartwick) - assuming no price hike next year.
2026-27 tuition and fees will be $23,500 per year and room and board will be $16,500 per year, while still offering up to $10,000 in annual scholarship opportunities.
But do know that Hartwick has junk rated bonds - so I’m not saying there are long term viability issues but I’d give them a closer look. It’s CAA1 (at least in 2024) and BB- by S&P.
So I’m not saying they won’t be there - but they are obviously making moves to stave off disaster - and I’d at least keep an eye on that or question them about their long term sustainability. I don’t want to be down about them - but I would have concern given the amount of closures we’ve seen although reading the research, it seems like they have time before they get there. But CAA1 is not good. And it looks like they are burning through the endowment, so clearly are offering the new prices under costs.
Thank you for this advice! When you say the smaller schools have their own personality, what do you mean? How would you describe each of their personalities? I’m trying to figure out which would be the best fit.
I believe the Marist cap includes room and board as well as tuition!
We visited the smaller SUNY schools years ago and found them each to have their own vibe. Some are sportier, others appear quieter, one may have several popular sports while others seem to focus on hockey, etc.