New Jersey Tutoring Corps’ Ashley Bencan Joins National Panel On ‘Unlocking Apprenticeship Opportunities For Tutors’ At Arizona State University And Next Education Workforce’s 2026 Strategic School Staffing Summit
[New Jersey - February 3, 2026] New Jersey Tutoring Corps’ (NJTC) Ashley Bencan will headline a virtual panel on ‘Unlocking Apprenticeship Opportunities For Tutors’ with other national education policymakers at Arizona State University and Next Education Workforce’s 2026 Strategic School Staffing Summit on Wednesday, February 4th at 1:15 pm EST.
The Strategic School Staffing Summit is an annual event bringing together hundreds of stakeholders from across the education ecosystem to share ideas, strategies, practices, and conditions that enable a more diverse, team-based education workforce. In addition to Ms. Bencan’s panel, the two-day conference will include sessions on research, policy, practice, and showcase exemplars in education and teacher development. For more information, please click HERE and HERE.
Last year, the United States Department of Labor (USDOL) formally approved the inclusion of "Tutor" to the list of occupations allowed to participate in the federal Registered Apprentice Pathway (RAP) and named NJTC as the first Tutor Apprenticeship Program in the nation. Under Ms. Bencan’s leadership, NJTC has since built the first federally approved infrastructure in the country that enables tutor apprentices to pursue careers in education and ultimately help New Jersey address current teaching shortages and meet future teaching demands. Participants of the groundbreaking apprentice program have the opportunity to earn college credit, receive on-the-job training, build mentorships, and receive additional support and assistance as the tutors continue their quest to become certified teachers.
In addition, since the USDOL announcement, NJTC has served with the Partnership for Student Success, the National Student Support Accelerator, and the The Pathways Alliance, in leading a working group that is developing National Guideline Standards (NGS) for registered tutor apprenticeship programs that will ultimately establish a series of best practices needed to ensure registered tutoring apprenticeship programs can scale seamlessly throughout the country.
“Thanks to the vision, leadership, dedication, and advocacy of Ashley Bencan, New Jersey has become the driving force in building nationally registered tutor apprenticeship programs and addressing our country’s teacher shortage,” stated NJTC CEO Katherine Bassett. “Ashley’s knowledge of policy opportunities and deep passion for educator workforce development have helped to develop innovative solutions for expanding tutoring and helping our very best tutors enter the profession as teachers. Her work is already making a real difference in the Garden State and we are proud that this valuable and deserved national spotlight on her work will be part of the Strategic School Staffing Summit conversation. Ashley is helping break the status quo in New Jersey, and we know her insights and the best practices shared during this session will help drive needed change and innovation nationally.”
ABOUT NEW JERSEY TUTORING CORPS
Now in its third year of service, NJTC was first established as a needed corrective response to the state's dramatic learning gaps exacerbated by the pandemic. NJTC has since dramatically scaled from initially serving 500 New Jersey scholars in its first year to over 16,500 scholars in 247 locations, creating 740 jobs for residents and becoming the focal point for implementing tutoring in schools and community organizations across New Jersey, serving as the leading proponent for tutoring in Trenton, and working closely in advocating and operationalizing tutoring at the public school level.
Initially, NJTC was created through an innovative public/private partnership, that united support from statewide anchor institutions such as the Overdeck Family Foundation, The Tepper Foundation, the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund, the New Jersey Children's Foundation, the Prudential Foundation, The Carlson Family Foundation, the Debra and Kenneth Caplan Foundation and the investment from the State, through the continued support of Senate Majority Leader Ruiz, and Senate Education Committee Chair Gopal.
Throughout the school year, NJTC co-designs tutoring programs with schools, districts, and community partners, ensuring that its research-based, evidence-rich program meets each partner's needs. NJTC follows the recommendations of the Annenberg Institute and the National Student Support Accelerator for effective high-impact tutoring. Specifically, staff members provide responsive, personalized, hands-on instruction aligned to New Jersey state standards. Partners co-design each implementation. Tutors are often embedded throughout classrooms during the school day and receive support from instructional coaches and site coordinators. Tutors serve scholars in 30 to 60-minute embedded sessions during the school day, after school, or in summer programs two to three times per week. The program provides a 1:1 to 1:3 tutor-to-scholar ratio for each tutoring session, held two to three times per week for 30 to 60 minutes, with the same tutor working with the same scholars throughout a program cycle.