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Kentucky State University’s School of Education recently received reaccreditation from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education through 2020.

Accreditation signifies that the School of Education has met the most rigorous standards for preparing teachers. The last visit was in 2006. NCATE requires that all educator preparation programs undergo national peer review every seven years.  However, this visit had special significance as the School of Education not only received accreditation, but it was the first time in history the education preparation  unit received a “perfect” visit, meaning all of the national standards were met with no areas for improvement.

Dr. Sylvia Mason, interim chair of the School of Education, says, “The accreditation process is long and tedious. We start preparing at least three years out for the offsite and onsite visit.  The visit took place last November, but it takes about a year to receive your final letter. The university’s faculty, staff, administration, students and P-12 partners all participated in the process. It is not just the School of Education, it really is a ‘community’ preparing teachers.”

KSU’s School of Education prepares teachers within its conceptual framework, “Teachers as Liberators through Education,” to enter P-12 schools.  The mission of the school is to use education as a tool for making a positive impact on P-12 children’s student learning outcomes. The Educator Preparation Program prepares about 48 percent of the minority teachers in Kentucky.  The School of Education has nine full-time faculty and more than 50 classroom teachers, central office personnel and administrators who serve as clinical supervisors and mentors in P-12 schools.

Mason says, “Our rigorous program is second to none and NCATE just affirmed that.  When I received the letter from NCATE indicating all standards were met with no areas for improvement, I was overjoyed and relieved. As an HBCU (historically black college/university), this is as good as it gets.”

Founded in 1954, NCATE is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a specialized accrediting body for schools, colleges and departments of education. NCATE and the Teacher Education Accreditation Council have consolidated and are now transitioning into the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation.

More information about the School of Education and a copy of the letter from the commission can be found at http://education.kysu.edu/

For more information about NCATE, visit www.ncate.org.