AACTE Board of Directors Resolution on CAEP

By Julie Underwood

On February 26, the AACTE Board of Directors unanimously passed the following resolution regarding the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP):

“The Board of Directors of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) reiterates its support for a single, unified professional accreditation system for educator preparation programs.  Further, AACTE is committed to the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). However, the AACTE Board also reiterates its ongoing, significant concern about the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) and asserts that there is a ‘crisis of confidence’ with respect to CAEP. Specific concerns are related to the accreditation standards, process for accreditation, costs associated with accreditation, the capacity of CAEP to implement the accreditation system and the representativeness of the CAEP governance structure.”

AACTE Board Member Candice McQueen Named Tenn. Education Commissioner

By Jerrica Thurman

AACTE congratulates its Board of Directors member Candice McQueen on being named the next Tennessee education commissioner by Governor Bill Haslam last week. McQueen is currently senior vice president and dean of the College of Education at Lipscomb University. She will assume her new role January 20, 2015.

As the Tennessee commissioner of education, McQueen will oversee all of the work of the Tennessee Department of Education. She will lead the implementation of statewide assessments, the evaluation of curricula across Tennessee, and the execution of education initiatives of the governor as a member of the cabinet. McQueen has also accepted the challenge to oversee education standards that could mirror Common Core standards or Tennessee-specific standards, and she is tasked with creating and implementing a new state standardized test, “TNReady.” The commissioner has a role in creating the test and ensuring it aligns with what’s taught in the classroom.

AACTE Board Election Results

By Lucy Berrier

Congratulations to the future members of AACTE’s Board of Directors! In an online election that ended November 28, AACTE members chose several of their colleagues to serve a 3-year term beginning March 1, 2015:

Arlinda Eaton, Kennesaw State University (TECSCU)

Pamela Carroll, Oklahoma State University (At-Large)

Dianne Mark, Coastal Carolina University (At-Large)

Jennie Whitcomb, University of Colorado at Boulder (At-Large)

In Memoriam: John I. Goodlad

By Kristin McCabe

John I. Goodlad, a giant in 20th-century education and former elected president of AACTE, died November 29 in Seattle. He was 94.

After 8 years of teaching in his native Canada — in the challenging conditions of a one-room schoolhouse and, later, a juvenile detention center — Goodlad completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University of British Columbia and then came to the United States for doctoral work at the University of Chicago. By age 29, he was head of teacher education at Emory University (GA). He briefly returned to the University of Chicago before moving in 1960 to the University of California Los Angeles, where he spent 24 years, the last 16 as education dean.

Vote by Nov. 28 in the AACTE Board Election

By Lucy Berrier

The annual election for the AACTE Board of Directors opens today and runs through November 28. Four seats will be decided via online voting: one representing the Teacher Education Council of State Colleges and Universities (TECSCU) and three at-large seats.

All AACTE Institutional and Chief Representatives are eligible to vote for all four open seats. The slate of candidates is as follows:

Preview of Competitive State Elections

By Aaron Goldstein

With Election Day just around the corner, below are some gubernatorial races, state education chief contests, and education ballot initiatives to watch. Remember, like politics, education is local. Check out the tables below to see what’s at play in your state.

Be sure to vote November 4!

Gubernatorial Races to Watch

* Rating according to Larry Sabato’s Crystal Ball.

AACTE’s Diverse Membership

By Julie Underwood

As a board member and officer of AACTE, I have grown to appreciate the complexity of the organization. A remarkable variety of institutions opt to unite around common interests under this “big tent” association.

Of course, you may think about AACTE membership from your own institutional perspective. Members of the Association of Independent Liberal Arts Colleges for Teacher Education (AILACTE) may view AACTE as their organization, just as members of the Council of Academic Deans from Research Education Institutions (CADREI) may view us from their perspective. Certainly, members of the Teacher Education Council of State Colleges and Universities (TECSCU), where the largest number of new educators are taught, think of AACTE from their perspective. In fact, the Board of Directors is designed to reflect the various institutional types within AACTE, with designated seats for AILACTE, CADREI, and TECSCU representatives as well as for the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities and historically Black institutions. In reality, AACTE represents the entire array of U.S. teacher preparation institutions.

AACTE Board Approves CAEP Technical Assistance, Discontinues Resolutions

By Lucy Berrier

The AACTE Board of Directors met September 11-12 in Atlanta, Georgia. The meeting agenda, led by Chair Julie Underwood (University of Wisconsin Madison), dealt with topics from the Innovation Exchange and membership engagement to the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), as well as information around the organization’s operations and federal and state policy updates.

President/CEO Sharon P. Robinson reported on the operations of the organization, highlighting the Innovation Exchange, growth in membership, a successful 2014 Annual Meeting, and a strong first application cycle for the Research Fellowship.

Meet the Chair: Julie Underwood

By Kristin McCabe

AACTE’s Board of Directors is headed this year by Julie Underwood, dean of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Underwood is a nationally recognized authority on school law and has coauthored several books on the topic. Her background includes work in higher education and at the National School Boards Association, where she served as associate executive director and general counsel from 1998 to 2005.

Diez Reflects as Sun Sets on Alverno Tenure, Rises on SSSF

By Kristin McCabe

Alverno’s Mary Diez (right) with her SSSF vice presidents

It’s hard to believe, but it’s true: After 38 years, Mary Diez is leaving Alverno July 1.

Diez, professor and former dean of the School of Education at Alverno College (WI), was elected last month to a 4-year term as president of the School Sisters of St. Francis (SSSF), an international congregation with 850 sisters in the United States, Europe, India, and Latin America. This full-time commitment will take her to all of those places, although she plans to retain her campus residence at the college where she has lived for nearly 4 decades.

Taking her leadership skills off campus is hardly new for Diez, whether as a consultant in the Milwaukee community, member of standards boards, convener of assessment institutes, champion of dispositions work, or president of AACTE—among countless other roles she has held around the country and internationally. Despite having so much on her plate, Diez generously responded to my questions this week about her career to date and future plans.

Membership Committee Chair: Service Brings Broad Perspective on Profession

By Lucy Berrier

The Call for Nominations to serve on AACTE’s Board of Directors and standing committees is open at submit.aacte.org until May 9, 2014. One of the seven standing committees is the Committee on Membership Development and Capacity Building, focused on membership recruitment and retention, including the development of supporting programs and services. I asked the committee’s chair, Patricia Heydet-Kirsch, director of Assessment of Program Evaluation at Florida Atlantic University, to share why she was drawn to serve and what experiences she has gained.

What caused you to want to serve on AACTE’s Committee on Membership Development and Capacity Building?

I was interested in serving on AACTE’s Committee on Membership Development and Capacity Building to understand the broader perspective of AACTE’s impact.

Voting on the Bylaw Changes Has Now Ended

By Lucy Berrier

Thank you for voting on the changes to the AACTE bylaws during this month’s online vote. The proposed changes to both bylaws passed, with over 90% of respondents supporting the changes.

The first set of changes applies to Article II, Section 2, which now reads as follows:

Q&A With AACTE Board Member Grant Hayes

By Lucy Berrier

With AACTE’s annual Call for Nominations under way, I asked a current Board of Directors member to share why he serves on the Board and what skills have proved particularly valuable. Grant Hayes, executive associate dean and professor in the College of Education and Human Performance, University of Central Florida, graciously accepted my request. The Call for Nominations is open at submit.aacte.org from now until May 9, 2014. If you have any questions, please contact me at lberrier@aacte.org.

What caused you to want to serve on AACTE’s Board of Directors?

Serving on the Board provides me the chance to make a difference and to give back to the profession by assisting to achieve AACTE’s goals and mission. It also affords me the opportunity to be part of a leadership team of one of the most dynamic professional associations in education.

AACTE Board of Directors Meets, Elects New Officers

By Lucy Berrier

The AACTE Board of Directors met February 28 immediately prior to the Annual Meeting in Indianapolis. The meeting agenda, led by outgoing Chair Fayneese Miller (University of Vermont), ranged from Innovation Exchange projects and state chapter relations to the awards program and various governance issues, including election of a new Executive Committee.

Effective March 1, the new Executive Committee of the Board includes Chair Julie Underwood (University of Wisconsin-Madison), Past Chair Fayneese Miller, and Secretary Tim Wall (Northwest Missouri State University) along with the newly elected Chair-Elect Mark Ginsberg (George Mason University) and at-large representatives Jane Bray (Old Dominion University, with a 2-year term) and Dwight Watson (University of Northern Iowa, with a 1-year term).

Call for Nominations: Serve Your Association!

By Lucy Berrier

Do you know an individual­­ with broad or deep experience in the field of educator preparation? Do you think someone’s guidance would benefit the educator preparation community nationally? Nominate that person (or yourself!) by May 9 to serve an important role in the governance of AACTE.

AACTE is currently accepting nominations for the AACTE Board of Directors and standing committees, which are the committees on: