MTSU’s College of Education was one of only 32 total institutions to be recognized by the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation for its quality as an education preparation provider.

Each year, CAEP selects education preparation providers accredited by the council to receive the Frank Murray Leadership Recognition for Continuous Improvement designation, with other winners this year coming from across the U.S., Puerto Rico and Jordan.

Christopher Koch, CAEP president, said the recognition is reserved for those institutions that achieve the gold standard for teacher preparation accreditation from the council with a clean review. 

“We need to focus on the future of teaching by emphasizing the recruitment of qualified teacher candidates, supporting them through their preparation and preparing these teachers to the highest standard possible,” Koch said. “This can be done, and it is being done right here by the Middle Tennessee State University College of Education.”

Chosen from providers that were granted CAEP accreditation the previous year, these institutions also show a commitment to continuous improvement and preparing their students to succeed in a diverse range of classrooms; an advancement of equity and excellence in educator preparation through self-study procedures; and evidence-based reporting (and) use inquiry and assessments to drive improvement, stated the CAEP release.

The CAEP accreditation standards additionally require institutions to focus on how they recruit and emphasize diversity to build a pool of teachers that reflects the students they will be teaching, Koch said. 

Earlier this year, the College of Education opened the Center for Fairness, Justice and Equity, which focuses on preparing staff and students to better serve all students and cultivating an inclusive and diverse college by intentionally recruiting diverse faculty, teacher candidates and educational personnel from a multitude of backgrounds. 

Dr. Rick Vanosdall, interim dean of the College of Education, said the recognition was based upon the efforts of many faculty and staff within the college and colleagues across MTSU’s academic colleges and the university’s school district partners. 

“We are proud of the performance of our students and the faculty and staff who support our students,” Vanosdall said. “This recognition shows that we are among the top educator preparation providers in the nation. Not only have we sought out CAEP accreditation, the gold standard for educator preparation, this recognition provides validation that our students and their families are investing in an education program that is second to none.” 

This national award, along with the COE’s 2018 award from the National Council for Teacher Quality, highlights the college’s outstanding, consistent performance as the No. 1 producer of the most effective teachers in Tennessee as further reflected in the data from the Tennessee Educator Preparation Program Report Card, Vanosdall said. 

“It (also) demonstrates many years of dedication by our staff, faculty, students and our school district partners who are essential in the preparation and development of our teacher candidates.”

To learn more about the MTSU College of Education, visit its website at www.mtsu.edu/education and its Facebook page at www.facebook.com/MTSUEducation. 

To learn more about the Center for Fairness, Justice and Equity, visit the website at www.mtsu.edu/fjecoe. 

— Stephanie Wagner (Stephanie.Wagner@mtsu.edu)