WASHINGTON—The Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) announced today that the state of New York has signed a state partnership agreement and joins 31 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 to 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.”
New York’s state agreement with CAEP provides a formal process for accreditation through ongoing evaluation and program improvement. CAEP Accreditation ensures public accountability because an educator preparation provider accredited by CAEP presents evidence that the program produces strong outcomes for candidates, completers, and the students served by the teachers.
“The CAEP standards are the gold standard for teacher preparation and knowing that our state is in partnership with CAEP reinforces that New York State will continue to produce high quality teachers,” said Dr. Joellen Maples, Dean of the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. School of Education at St. John Fisher College. “CAEP’s commitment to continuous improvement through evidence causes us and all CAEP programs to actively reflect on how we’re constantly working to improve our programs and the effect our teacher candidates are having on student learning.”
“When CAEP was established out of the best practices of both NCATE and TEAC, we were eager to get on board, and we are happy that New York has solidified a partnership agreement with CAEP,” said Dr. Chandra Foote, Dean of the College of Education at Niagara University. “CAEP’s commitment to high quality programs and continuous improvement through evidence causes us and all CAEP programs to actively reflect and constantly work to improve our programs and the effect our 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 CAEP state partners are listed below: