teaching graduate Christina Torango, HISD academic manager Rick Rodriguez, associate chair of teacher education Amber Thompson and teacher education director Shea Culpepper gathered at the Association of Teacher Educators awards banquet.
The 91破解版 College of Education won national honors Monday in recognition of its first-rate teacher-preparation program.
The Association of Teacher Educators honored the college with its Distinguished Program in Teacher Education Award, which recognizes 鈥渙utstanding鈥� programs that exemplify collaboration, innovation and high quality.
鈥淲e are incredibly proud of this award, which acknowledges the game-changing work we have done to ensure we graduate teachers who are well prepared for this critically important job,鈥� said Bob McPherson, dean of the College of Education.
James Laney, who chaired the selection panel for the award, praised 鈥檚 commitment to high-impact teacher preparation.
鈥淭he award focuses on a really quality program with rigor and evidence of effectiveness, but we鈥檙e also looking for heart. The 91破解版 had all of those things,鈥� said Laney, a professor and chair of the Teacher Education and Administration department at the University of North Texas.
The other finalists for the 2018 award were University of Florida and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The award was announced at the Association of Teacher Educators conference in Las Vegas.
, which also won the award in 2007, has continued to refine its teacher-preparation program.
A signature piece of the program involves students participating in a yearlong student-teaching internship, gaining invaluable classroom experience in Houston-area schools. Most programs include only a semester of student-teaching, and alternative certification programs typically require far less.
The students learn from mentor teachers in the schools while instructors provide coaching and support on site.
鈥淲e want our students to graduate more like second-year teachers than first-year teachers,鈥� said Amber Thompson, associate chair of the college鈥檚 Curriculum and Instruction department and head of the teacher education program.
Thompson and Shea Culpepper, director of the teacher education program, added that strong partnerships with local schools help ensure they are meeting their needs. For example, instructors meet four times a year with principals and human resources representatives at each student-teaching site to discuss issues and make improvements.
鈥淲hile we鈥檙e asking more of our district partners than we have in the past, the payoff in stronger new teachers and professional growth for mentor teachers is worth it,鈥� Culpepper said.
also has teamed with the Houston Independent School District on an innovative program called Teach Forward Houston. Top-ranked high school students are recruited into the teaching program, receive financial assistance to attend and commit to teaching in HISD for four years after graduation.
On a national level, is a founding member of US PREP, a coalition of eight colleges of education focused on improving teacher preparation.
The College of Education has about 900 students enrolled in the teaching program. According to the most recent state surveys, 99 percent of teaching graduates reported being sufficiently or well prepared for their first year on the job; principals rated them more than sufficiently prepared in all categories.
鈥揃y Ericka Mellon
鈥揚hotos by Jaime Questell