The Council forthe Accreditation of Educator Preparation and

(State Authority/Authorities for State Educator Preparation Providers) Partnership Agreement

The purpose of the Council for the Accreditation of Education Preparation (CAEP) State Partnership program is to save states and education preparation providers (EPP) time and expense by eliminating duplication of effort and paperwork in conducting state approval and CAEP accreditation reviews of education preparation providers while meeting the standards established by the State and CAEP. The agreement describes the partnership and delineates the processes and policies for national accreditation and state approval of educator preparation providers.

SELECT THE OPTION OF EACH FEATURE FOR THE CAEP~STATE PARTNERSHIP

Feature I: Members of the CAEP~ STATE PARTNERSHIP

  1. Two-way Partnership

CAEP and the state teacher education agency with authority for approving educator education providers (i.e., department of education, independent standards board or higher education commission) will design and oversee the Partnership Agreement.

  1. Three-way Partnership

A partnership among CAEP and two or more of the state agencies with authority for approving educator education providers (e.g., department of education, independent standards board or the state higher education commission) will design and oversee the Partnership.

Conditions:

  1. The appropriate information at the end of the document must be submitted with the Agreement.
  2. The Agreement must be signed by the CAEP President and the Chief Executive Officer of thestate educator preparation authority/authorities.

Feature II: CAEP~ State Partnership Team Composition

  1. CAEP Team

The CAEP Team will be composed of all CAEP reviewers.

Conditions

  1. CAEP visiting team membersmust have successfully completed CAEP training.
  1. Joint Team

The joint team includes both CAEP visiting team members and members appointed by the state.

Conditions

  1. The number of CAEP members exceeds the number of state members by at least one.
  2. Both CAEP and state members must have successfully completed CAEP visiting team members’ training or state training similar to CAEP training.
  3. The visit will be led by CAEP and State co-chairs.
  1. Concurrent Teams

State and CAEP teams operate independently, but conduct their visits at the same time, share information and tasks as appropriate. The state team reviews and makes decisions about state standards; the CAEP team reviews and makes decisions about CAEP standards.

Conditions

  1. CAEP team members are appointed by CAEP and must have successfully completed CAEP visiting team members’ training.

Conditions for All Accreditation Teams:

  1. Each type of team may include a state consultant onsite or via a conference call or electronic connection.
  2. The role of the state consultant shall be determined by the state.
  3. The number of review team members for a CAEP Team or a Joint CAEP~State team will be based on the accreditation pathway and the size and complexity of the EPP’s program.
  4. A P-12 practitioner shall be a member of each CAEP team.
  5. The state teachers’ association may appoint an observer for the onsite review at the association’s expense.
  6. The onsite team activities will be conducted according to CAEP Policy.
  7. Findings by the CAEP Team will be shared with the state partnership member(s).
  8. The state must provide evidence to assure educator preparation providers and the public that state reviewers, consultants and observersare impartial and objective, avoid conflicts of interest, and promote equity and high ethical standards in the accreditation system.

Feature III: CAEP Program Review Options

The State may select one or more of the Program Review Options

  1. CAEP Program Review with National Recognition

The EPP submits program reportforms for each CAEP program area and level (i.e. Undergraduate Secondary Biology, Reading Specialist Masters, etc.)

Conditions

  1. The report must describe evidence of candidates' performance on a set of key assessments that demonstrates meeting Specialty Professional Association (SPA) standards.
  2. Program reports are submitted at the mid-cycle of the overall accreditation cycle (3 years in advance of the accreditation visit for most states).
  3. The SPA review teams are trained by both the SPAs and CAEP.
  4. CAEP SPAs determine whether the program report is "Nationally Recognized," "Recognized with Conditions," or "Further Development Required/Recognized with Probation/Not Nationally Recognized." This is the only option that can lead to National Recognition by CAEP/SPAs.
  1. CAEP Program Review with Feedback

Program report forms will be completed with links to information found in the Inquiry Brief(IB)or Institutional Reports (IR) documents for three clusters of programs - secondary content area programs, cross-grade programs, and other school personnel programs. The state will select the program standards.

Conditions

  1. Submission of the program reports will be at the same time as the IB or IR (roughly 8-12 months in advance of the visit).
  2. Program clusters will be reviewed by trained CAEP reviewersidentified by the state, National Education Association (NEA)/American Federation of Teachers (AFT), National Boards for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), American Association of Colleges of Teacher Education (AACTE)/Association of Teacher Educators (ATE), or other sources.
  3. This process applies state-selected standards and provides feedback helpful to educator preparation providers (EPP), states and accreditation teams. It does not lead to recommendations or decisions on each program for purposes of CAEP accreditation.
  4. Providers may voluntarily submit programs for SPA National Recognition through CAEP.
  1. State Program Review

The state conducts program reviews for purposes of CAEP accreditation if the state’s content standards are the same as or sufficiently aligned with CAEP content standards and the program review process is the same as or sufficiently similar to that of CAEP’s national program review process. CAEP and statestaff will work together to ensure the close alignment of both the program standards and review process with the SPA standards and review process. Providers may voluntarily submit programs for SPA National Recognition.

Conditions

  1. The report to the state must describe evidence of candidates' performance on a set of key assessments that are sufficiently aligned with Specialty Professional Association (SPA) standards and assessments.
  2. The state program review team must be trained to evaluate the EPP’s programs.
  3. The state will determine whether the status of the program based on state evaluation of the EPP’s program report and make it available to the CAEP team during the onsite visit.
  1. State Program Review with Authority for Recommending National Recognition

The state conducts program reviews for purposes of CAEP accreditation if the state’s content standards are the same as or sufficiently aligned with CAEP content standards and the program review process is the same as or sufficiently similar to that of CAEP’s national program review process. CAEP and state staff will work together to ensure the compatibility of both the program standards and review process.

Conditions:

  1. The report to the state must describe evidence of candidates' performance on a set of key assessments that are sufficiently aligned with Specialty Professional Association (SPA) standards and assessments.
  2. The state program review team must be trained to evaluate the EPP’s programs.
  3. The state will determine whether the status of the program based on state evaluation of the EPP’s program report and make it available to the CAEP team during the onsite visit.
  4. Special conditions apply to partnerships in which states conduct program reviews and also seek authority to recommend programs for national recognition.(T.B.D.)
  5. Each SPA has the final decision whether to accept the state’s recommendation for program national recognition based onthe state’s standards and program review process.

Feature IV: On-going Responsibilities

  1. The educator preparation provider will submit annual reports to CAEP in the format prescribed by CAEP.
  2. Educator preparation providers must maintain regional accreditation or institutional accreditation by the US Department (ED) or the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) recognized agency in order to continue their CAEP accreditation.
  3. The state will provide to CAEP its policy leading to a “Change in State Status.” The state will notify CAEP within thirty days of action taken when a CAEP accredited educator preparation provider has had a “Change in State Status” as a result of a decision on specialized professional program status by the state authority for educator preparation.
  4. The State and CAEP will define the process for developing and revising the Partnership Agreement as well as the roles, responsibilities and timelines for conducting the Partnership review. This process will include input and involvement from a broad spectrum of education stakeholders (P-12 educators, educator preparation providers, subject matter specialists and policy makers).

Feature V: General Terms

  1. CAEP will collaborate with the state to plan, design and implement a range of training opportunities for reviewers depending on the Feature Options selected by the state among other state circumstances.
  2. The state authority/authorities for educator preparation will receive copies of all pertinent accreditation and specialized program area approval documents and reports.
  3. Responses to the final reports by the educator preparation provider and/or the state will follow procedures and timelines established in CAEP policy.
  4. Final accreditations are posted on CAEP’s website. CAEP sends the CEO of the educator education provider and designated state teacher education contact a letter with the official accreditation decision. Additionally, CAEP provides written notice of all accreditation decisions to the U.S. Department of education, the appropriate state licensing or authorizing agency, all accrediting agencies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation and the public (via the CAEP website).
  5. The partnership agreement shall be for an initial period of five years (dates) and may be modified by the two parties during that time, if deemed to be necessary. The intention of the agreement is to have an ongoing partnership between CAEP and the State authority for teacher preparation providers.
  6. The state will offer educator preparation providers a choice of the following three accreditation options: Continuous Improvement, Inquiry Brief, and Transformation Initiative.
  7. The State will include all appropriate education stakeholders including educators from P-12 schools in the design, development and implementation of the approval and accreditation reviews.
  8. The state willwork with associations that represent P-12 educators (NEA, AFT, NBPTS), education preparation providers, and education administratorsto establish credit toward continuing education units or professional developmentrequirements at the local district levelin return for the state's P-12 educators professional contributions to the work of CAEP -- as visiting team members or program reviewers.
  9. The terms of this agreement have been reached by mutual consent and have been read and understood by the persons whose signatures appear below. The parties agree to comply with the terms and conditions of the plan as set forth herein.

______

James G. Cibulka, President

Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation

DATE:

______

State Authority for Educator Preparation Providers

DATE:

Member Information for Two-Way Partnership

(CAEP, State Department of Education, Board of Teaching, Higher Education Commission)

1. State agency with authority for educator preparation providers

Name of Agency: Oregon Teacher Standards and Practices Commission

Address: 250 Division St. NE

City: Salem

State: OR Zip code: 97301

Agency web address: Oregon.gov/TSPC

2. Chief executive officer with authority for educator preparation providers

Name: Victoria Bianes Chamberlain

Title: Executive Director

Phone: ext.

(503) 378-6813

Fax:

(503) 378-3758

E-mail:

3. Designated CAEP state contact

Name: Keith Menk

Title: Director of Program Approval

Phone:ext.

(503) 378-3757

Fax:

(503 ) 378-3758

E-mail:

4. Person completing the CAEP state partnership proposal

Name: Keith Menk

Title: Director of Program Approval

Phone:Ext.

(503 )378 -3757

Fax:

( 503) 378-3758

E-mail:

Member Information for Three-Way Partnerships

(CAEP, State Department of Education, Board of Teaching, Higher Education Commission)

1. State agency with authority for educator preparation providers

Name of agency:

Address:

City:

State:Zip code:

Agency web address:

2. Chief executive officer with authority for educator preparation providers

Name:

Title:

Phone: Ext.

( ) -

Fax:

( ) -

E-mail

3. State higher education commission

Name

Address:

City:

State:Zip code:

4. State higher education commission executive officer

Name:

Title:

Phone: Ext.

( ) -

Fax:

( ) -

E-mail:

5. Designated CAEP state contact

Name:

Title:

Phone:Ext.

( ) -

Fax:

( ) -

E-mail:

6. Person completing the CAEP state partnership proposal

Name:

Title:

Phone:Ext.

( ) -

Fax:

( ) -

E-mail:

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Data Classification Level: 1-Published3.12a