The educational reform movement, with its heavy emphasis on restructuring and collaboration, has brought into the open a serious credibility gap between teachers and the role that schools of education and the education professorate have played in educational development and leadership. Many teachers believe that professors do not understand, or have lost touch with, the realities of public school education and have no accurate concept of what goes on in the classroom. Using a traditional elementary education program as an example, this paper describes the collaborative mentorship program, a professional approach to teacher education designed to establish credibility between and among teachers and professors due to the level and depth of collaboration involved. The approach offers the following: (1) more relevant and less redundant methods courses; (2) more field experiences; (3) no additional semester hours in the program; (4) no additional financial expenditures; (5) no additional faculty positions; (6) real and meaningful collaboration with public schools; and (7) leadership in educational philosophy and practice. The collaborative mentorship program almost completely eliminates the need for regular faculty to supervise student teachers. The approach allows all to work from their strengths, and it allows for greater flexibility for student placement. Overall the mentorship program is considered a true collaborative approach that benefits everyone. Contains 14 references. (LL)