Education Secretary applauds ESU’s Teachers College 

While calling on America’s teacher preparation programs to do a better job of getting educators ready for the classroom, U. S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan noted a few institutions are doing the right thing already. In a speech at Columbia University Thursday, Oct. 22, one of the programs Duncan cited as a shining example was The Teachers College at Emporia State University.

“At Emporia State University in Emporia, Kansas, home of the National Teachers Hall of Fame, the Teachers College is the crown jewel of the school,” Duncan said. “Roughly 80 percent of students are supervised by full-time education faculty instead of adjuncts—and all elementary education professors are in the public schools every day. Senior year is a 100 percent field-based program in Emporia's public schools, where student teachers do everything from assisting with grading to sitting in on parent-teacher conferences.”

“I’m very pleased that he recognized the good program at ESU and other institutions,” said Dr. J. Phillip Bennett, dean of The Teachers College at ESU.  “Also, I liked that he pointed out how a number of institutions were improving their programs. I do agree with his main two goals of ‘raising the bar’ and ‘closing the gap,’ and a considerable amount of money is being provided to accomplish that,” said Bennett.

“I don't think the ingredients of a good teacher preparation are much of a mystery anymore,” Duncan said in his speech. “Our best programs are coherent, up-to-date, research-based, and provide students with subject mastery. They have a strong and substantial field-based program in local public schools that drives much of the course work in classroom management and student learning and prepares students to teach diverse pupils in high-needs settings. And these programs have a shared vision of what constitutes good teaching and best practices—including a single-minded focus on improving student learning and using data to inform instruction.”

Duncan has toured education programs in more than 30 states since becoming Secretary of Education nine months ago. “There are many other first-rate teacher preparation programs—Stanford, the University of Washington, and Michigan, just to name a few. But I want to be clear that it doesn't take an elite university and a big endowment to create a good teacher education program,” Duncan said in his speech Thursday.             

Continuing the legacy of excellence in teacher education

“It’s important to understand that ESU has received a variety of awards and recognition as a model teacher and educational administrator program over the years,” said Dr. Ken Weaver, associate dean.

The Teachers College at ESU was one of four programs singled out for accolades as an Exemplary Model Teacher Education program in a 2006 report by Columbia’s former president Arthur Levine, “Educating School Teachers.” ESU is also identified as one of 10 schools of education in the nation “blazing the trail to better practices” in Edutopia, published by the George Lucas Foundation.

The American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE) presented Emporia State University with the 2008 Best Practice Award for Collaboration with Community Colleges for the partnership between Emporia State and Butler Community College.

The International Reading Association awarded its 2009 Certificate of Distinction to the Elementary Education Reading Program.

Currently, one in every six classroom teachers in Kansas holds a degree and/or licensure endorsement from ESU. In addition, 40% of the pre-K – 12 school counselors and approximately 40% of the elementary and secondary school building principals have completed their degree and/or licensure endorsement at ESU. After three years in the profession, retention rates of teachers prepared by ESU is 93% compared to national rates of 30% to 50%.

Last Updated November 5, 2009>