WASHINGTON—The Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) announced today that the state of Hawaii has signed a state partnership agreement and joins 33 other states and the District of Columbia committed to the rigorous CAEP educator preparation standards. The CAEP standards, recently updated to strengthen the emphasis on technology, equity, and diversity, and streamline language, were designed by deans, higher education faculty members, teachers, and K-12 administrators from throughout the country.
“States partnering with CAEP establish and enhance the public’s confidence that future teachers and educational leaders from teacher preparation programs meet challenging standards and are prepared to lead K-12 schools and classrooms successfully,” said CAEP President Dr. Christopher A. Koch. “CAEP Standards and processes were developed and agreed upon by professionals in the field. The rigor embedded in these standards focuses on ensuring high-quality strategies are part of successfully preparing caring and competent teachers ready to serve in the diverse classrooms in the United States.”
Hawaii’s state agreement with CAEP provides a formal process for accreditation through ongoing evaluation and program improvement. CAEP Accreditation ensures public accountability because an accredited educator preparation provider presents evidence that the program produces strong outcomes for candidates, completers, and the students served by the teachers.
“Hawaii has a very diverse population and the flexibility in the CAEP standards allows for programs to tailor practice to meet the needs of our unique population,” Felicia Villalobos, Interim Executive Director of the Hawaii Teachers Standards Board. “Partnering with CAEP allows us to support our EPPs that choose to use the CAEP standards and the internal continuous improvement that comes with CAEP accreditation.”
“Participation in CAEP and its accreditation process has made iteach a more effective and impactful educator preparation program,” said Diann Huber, iteach Hawaii. “CAEP’s annual reporting system causes not only iteach, but all accreditation programs to actively reflect on how the EPP is constantly working to improve its program and the effect its teacher candidates are having on student learning.”
Accreditation is a nongovernmental activity based on peer review that serves the dual functions of assuring quality and promoting improvement. It is a uniform accreditation system intent on raising the performance of all providers focused on educator preparation. Approximately 700 educator preparation providers participate in the CAEP Accreditation system.
CAEP is recognized by the Council of Higher Education Accreditation, providing states and consumers quality assurance. It is the only national accreditor with a governing body that includes professionals who prepare teachers, state licensing authorities, those who hire teachers, and teachers themselves. CAEP has more than 750 trained volunteers.
The 33 states (and District of Columbia) that partner with CAEP are listed below: