The Colorado Department of Education (CDE) is now accepting applications for the 2026-2027 Educator Recruitment and Retention (ERR) program, which offers up to $7,500 in financial assistance to help aspiring educators cover the cost of educator preparation program tuition and fees.
The ERR program supports individuals pursuing teaching careers in shortage areas who commit to serving in those positions for at least three years.
Applications opened on July 1 and will close on September 30. Applicants should coordinate with their educator preparation programs when applying.
“Every Colorado student deserves access to a high-quality teacher, regardless of where they live,” said Education Commissioner Dr. Susana Córdova. “These scholarships help remove financial barriers for aspiring educators while strengthening the pipeline of talented teachers, particularly in communities that have faced persistent staffing challenges.”
Created through Senate Bill 21-185, the Educator Recruitment and Retention program provides critical support to help address the state’s ongoing educator shortage areas, including special education, early childhood education, secondary mathematics, science and other high-need fields.
Shortage areas can be found at the CDE website.
CDE Chief Talent Officer Dr. Margarita Tovar said, “Our educator workforce is one of Colorado’s greatest strengths. Programs like this help ensure talented future teachers can pursue the profession and provide additional support to districts working to attract and retain excellent educators. That investment benefits students, schools and entire communities.”
Applicants can meet eligibility criteria for the program by first being enrolled in a Colorado-approved traditional or alternative educator preparation program (or institute of higher education for applicants pursuing a CTE credential) and meeting one of the criteria below:
- Have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited college or university and have secured employment as an alternative teacher or temporary educator eligibility educator in a shortage area; or
- Are currently employed as a paraprofessional in a school district, charter school or BOCES; or
- Have secured a position as a CTE instructor in a rural or small rural district and meet state CTE requirements.
All employment referenced above must be in a Colorado public school.
The department has received promising feedback from ERR grant recipients.
A dashboard (available here) provides information on the types of teaching positions and locations that have been supported by the ERR Program.
More than 81percent of the 824 recipients from the first two cohorts (2021-2022 and 2022-2023) are still working in a Colorado public school.
More than half say they would not have become teachers without the program.
Ninety-seven percent report that the financial assistance has had or will have a positive impact on their careers.
Eligibility details and application materials are available on the department’s website. Applicants with questions may contact educator_recruitment@cde.state.co.us for more information.