College of Education earns accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP)
The College of Education at Georgia Southern University has earned accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). The college is one of only four educator preparation programs in Georgia with that distinction. Accreditation was granted without any of the Areas for Improvement or Stipulations that programs must often address to maintain accreditation.
“I am proud of the staff, students and instructors in the College of Education.” says Sharon Subreenduth, Ph.D., Dean of the College of Education. “We are chasing excellence as we equip our teachers. Earning CAEP Accreditation with no Areas for Improvement validates all our hard work.”
The College of Education sought accreditation from CAEP because they had previously been accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE). In 2013, NCATE merged with another accreditation body to become CAEP, so the College of Education needed CAEP accreditation to take the place of their NCATE distinction.
Accreditation from CAEP requires documentation demonstrating adherence to their five standards and two days of interviews by evaluators. Representatives from CAEP say they’re looking for, “Solid evidence that the provider’s graduates are competent and caring educators, and solid evidence that the provider’s educator staff have the capacity to create a culture of evidence and use it to maintain and enhance the quality of the professional programs they offer.”
Yasar Bodur, Ph.D., Professor and Interim Associate Dean for the Office of Curriculum, Instruction and Initial Educator Preparation, attributes the College of Education’s success in obtaining CAEP accreditation to their ability to demonstrate Standard 5, Quality Assurance System and Continuous Improvement. He says, “When we have the right stakeholders participating, valid data for continuous improvement, and documented, systematic plans, the other standards can be met.” For example, he notes the college’s annual Data Day when units across the College of Education make time for reviewing key assessment data and crafting plans for improvement.
Lydia Cross, Assessment Coordinator for the College of Education, compared the CAEP accreditation interviews with others that she has facilitated. She appreciated that the CAEP interviews were completed in a virtual format rather than during an on-site visit. She says, “The rigor and intensity of the visit was the same, but we weren’t having to facilitate the transportation, food and housing of the site team.”
The College of Education submitted their first documentation for CAEP accreditation in July of 2021. The CAEP site team conducted their interviews in April of 2022, and made final determinations for accreditation in October of 2022. The College of Education was notified of the results on November 18, 2022.
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