College of Education passes state accreditation review with flying colors

LA GRANDE, Oregon – Eastern Oregon University has been educating students to become teachers since the school first opened its doors in 1929.

 

Today that legacy continues within EOU’s College of Education, which prepares more than 150 students to become teachers each year. In the spring of 2006 the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission of Oregon conducted an accreditation review of EOU’s teacher education programs.

 

Although it is an intensive process, the review is vital to the continuing livelihood of the College of Education. The commission is responsible for approving teacher preparation programs at colleges and universities. In order for students to receive their teaching license in the state of Oregon they must have a degree from an accredited institution.

 

After a thorough investigation of the report compiled by EOU education faculty, the commission granted full approval of EOU’s programs. The College of Education received the news just before the start of fall term.

 

“It was a huge task and really took a team effort,” said Carol Lauritzen, EOU professor of education and coordinator of the accreditation review.

 

“The process really showed the level of collegiality and teamwork within the College of Education,” she said.

 

The College of Education serves students on campus and across the state through four sites located in Pendleton, Gresham, Coos Bay and Ontario, as well as through an extended campus graduate program.

 

The Teacher Standards and Practices Commission of Oregon conducts the accreditation review once every seven years. Lauritzen, who has been teaching at EOU for nearly 20 years, said that the requirements are much more demanding now than they have been in the past.  EOU successfully passed every rule.

 

“We have long been confident that our teacher education program was of the highest quality in the state of Oregon and in the northwest region because of the rate at which our graduates are hired and the reports of satisfaction we receive from principals and superintendents in the region,” said Michael Jaeger, dean of the College of Education.

 

“The accreditation review corroborates our own internal assessment that because we admit the finest candidates, because we challenge them with a rigorous curriculum, and because we support them with the finest faculty and staff, that they are the best teachers out there,” Jaeger said.

 

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