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Department of Education Receives Accreditation
released: 02/19/04
Studies show that teacher quality is the most important factor in student achievement. But how do we know that our student's teachers enter the classroom ready to help them learn? Professional accreditation is one way to ensure the public that schools of education are graduating well-qualified teachers ready for today's classrooms.

West Virginia Wesleyan's Department of Education has proven its commitment to producing quality teachers for our nation's youth by achieving accreditation under the performance-oriented standards of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), the organization responsible for professional accreditation of teacher education.

"The Department of Education of West Virginia Wesleyan College has been NCATE accredited since 1993," remarked Associate Professor of Education Dr. Sharon Smith. "We are very proud to offer a nationally recognized program of high standards and to continue with this national distinction. Such recognition will help to ensure a quality program that will produce well-prepared teachers for the 21st century. We are sincerely appreciative to all of those who helped us during the accreditation process - faculty, staff, students, alumni, public school personnel, and friends. It was truly a collaborative effort."

Following Wesleyan's official notification from the NCATE Unit Accreditation Board, the Education Department was contacted by NCATE officials with a request to place their Board of Examiners (BOE) report on the NCATE website. "Each semester NCATE highlights strong BOE Reports on its website and we found that the BOE Report written for West Virginia Wesleyan College's was very good," remarked Antoinette Mitchell, Associate Vice President of Accreditation.

The report was so well received by the NCATE that they it was posted on their website as an exemplar.

Dr. Smith also stated that the Education Department was invited by NCATE to present their Comprehensive Assessment System during the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) annual convention. Dr. Smith, along with Dr. Thomas Williams, professor of education participated in the Chicago based conference from February 6-10. The conference presentation "highlighted institutions that placed strong assessment systems that yield data helpful for improving programs."

NCATE accredits over 562 institutions which produce two-thirds of the nation's new teacher graduates each year. Over 100 institutions are candidates or pre-candidates for accreditation. NCATE-accredited schools must meet rigorous standards set by the profession and members of the public. Teacher candidates must have in-depth knowledge of the subject matter that they plan to teach as well as the necessary skills to convey it so that students may learn. The college or university must carefully assess these skills to determine that candidates may graduate. The institution must have partnerships with schools that enable candidates to develop the skills necessary to learn. Candidates must be prepared to understand and work with diverse student populations. College and university faculty must model effective teaching practices. And the school, college, or department of education must have the resources, including information technology resources, necessary to prepare candidates to meet new standards.

Meeting NCATE accreditation standards also helps institutions prepare new teachers for more rigorous licensing standards in many states. NCATE accreditation standards incorporate the model state licensing principles developed by a task force of the Council of Chief State School Officers.

The U. S. Department of Education recognizes NCATE as a professional accrediting body for schools, departments, and colleges of education. On-site visits, document reviews, and accreditation decisions are all carried out by professionals from the education community, including teachers, school specialists, and teacher educators, as well as members of the public and education policy makers.

For more information about West Virginia Wesleyan's teacher education program, please visit their website at http://www.wvwc.edu/aca/edu/edufront.htm. More information about the NCATE is available at www.ncate.org.