The Billiken Teacher Corps of Saint Louis University is a unique service-learning opportunity for faith-driven college graduates to have a transformative impact in under-resourced Catholic schools in the St. Louis area.
Billiken Teacher Corps (BTC) Fellows live the Jesuit Mission of being men and women for and with others. For two years, the fellows live in an intentional faith community while teaching full time and earning their Master of Arts in Teaching degree with full tuition remission.
Three Pillars
Saint Louis University's unique Billiken Teacher Corps (BTC) program prepares faith-driven college graduates to:
Serve
- Be the difference. Teach full time and make an impact in the lives of students while gaining leadership skills as coaches, club moderators, or campus ministers in Catholic schools.
Learn
- Be supported as a new teacher. Earn a Master of Arts in Teaching with full tuition remission and receive mentoring from experts with a passion for education.
Grow
- Be your authentic self. Live in an intentional faith community with your peers, cultivate your faith, and grow as a person.
Email us at angela.moret@slu.edu to request more information.
Benefits of the Billiken Teacher Corps Program
BTC fellows pursuing this immersive and holistic program benefit from:
- Full tuition remission
- Low-cost housing in a supportive faith-based community
- Monthly stipends
- Opportunity for federal loan deferment
Applying to the Billiken Teacher Corps Program
The BTC seeks qualified applicants who embody the words of the Jesuit Leader Pedro
Arrupe, S.J.:
“Join us if you possess broad shoulders, a free spirit, an open and prudent mind,
and a heart bigger than the world. Join us if you have a sense of humor and you know
how to share a joke … and if, on certain occasions, you are also able to laugh at
yourself.”
- Priority application deadline is November 15.
- Regular application deadline is January 25.
- Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until the cohort is filled.
Please email Angela Moret at angela.moret@slu.edu to indicate your interest in the Billiken Teacher Corps before applying.
Billiken Teacher Corps Application Checklist
All items will be submitted via the graduate admission application portal:
- Graduate school application - choose the "Masters of Arts in Teaching (Billiken Teacher Corps)” option from the drop-down menu when you are given the program options.
- Official transcript(s) from all previously attended institutions
- Resume
- Four letters of recommendation: (1) professor, (2) supervisor, (3) spiritual mentor (chaplain, campus minister, priest, rector, spiritual director, etc.), and (4) friend or roommate.
- Professional Goal Statement: Please upload a response to the following prompts. Answer them as separate essays, but combine them into one document. Each essay should not exceed 350 words. Please use concrete examples from your life to support your responses. Upload this document when prompted to upload your Professional Goal Statement.
- How does being a Catholic school teacher in the Billiken Teacher Corps fit into your life story? What is your "why" that drives you to become a teacher of a particular content area and to become a teacher of students of a particular grade range?
- Describe your beliefs about the key factors that affect students' success as learners and your beliefs about the key characteristics of effective teachers. What are the major influences on those beliefs?
- Explain what is behind your desire to live in an intentional faith community. What excites you about community and what do you foresee your limitations to be?
- Name and explain how one person or experience has shaped your spiritual life and practices.
- Additional questions in the application portal regarding preferences for teaching placement.
In addition to the items above, you must send a 90-second introductory video about who you are and what inspired you to apply to: billikenteachercorps@slu.edu.
Questions? Email Angela Moret: angela.moret@slu.edu