UA TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAM MOST DISTINGUISHED IN THE NATION

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. - The teacher education program in the University of Arkansas’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction was selected for the 2001 Distinguished Program in Teacher Education Award by the Association of Teacher Educators Feb. 20 at its annual meeting in New Orleans.

"This is probably the highest honor that the College of Education and Health Professions has ever received," said Sharon B. Hunt, interim dean of the college.

The ATE award is a highly competitive and prestigious honor in the field of education. Hunt said the award recognized "the remarkable dedication, hard work and creativity"of the curriculum and instruction faculty in developing and implementing the Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) program.

"We're delighted to see our teacher education program being certified through this peer review process as being the best in the nation," said UA Provost Bob Smith. "The College of Education and Health Professions has shown that it is nationally competitive in the highest sense of that phrase."

"The faculty, staff and students are to be congratulated for this tremendous achievement, which will help bring us one step closer to realizing the University's goal of emerging as a top 50 public research university," he said.

The Association of Teacher Educators established the award for the Distinguished Program in Teacher Education to stimulate innovation and quality teacher preparation. The award honors outstanding teacher education programs that exemplify collaboration between local schools and institutes of higher education in program development and administration.

In addition to the University of Arkansas, ATE selected two other finalists for the award, Texas A&M University and Eastern Washington University, from the 30 portfolio applications submitted by the universities. During the ATE annual meeting, each finalist made a 50-minute presentation and displayed addition information in a booth in the exhibit area. The University of Arkansas was selected as the top program by a panel of education professionals, and the honor was announced on the last evening of the annual meeting.

The UA presence at the ATE meeting was especially lively. Representatives of all aspects of the UA teacher education program were in attendance—faculty, administrators, undergraduate students, MAT interns, alumni, and staff from the collaborating schools.

"The Department of Curriculum and Instruction has done so much for the state to promote quality teacher preparation," said Betsy Orr, COEHP associate dean. "Dr. Priscilla Griffith, department head, and the faculty have taken the lead in the state to make teacher education accessible for everyone."

The fifth-year MAT program is the teacher certification program of the College of Education and Health Professions. Students seeking their MAT degree must first complete a core of education classes and receive a Bachelor of Science degree in their subject area of interest. MAT students spend their entire fifth year working with children in public schools as interns under the direct supervision of their university liaisons and the public school teachers.

COEHP partners with Phillips Community College of the University of Arkansas in Helena to deliver Teach for Arkansas, an innovative teacher education program that prepares students to teach in the Arkansas Delta. Delivered by compressed video distance education, the Teach for Arkansas program facilitates completion of the MAT by Delta residents committed to teaching in their home area.

ATE was founded in 1920 and is the only national, individual membership organization devoted solely to the improvement of teacher education for both school and campus-based teacher educators. ATE members represent over 650 colleges and universities, 500 major school systems, and the majority of the state departments of education. In addition, ATE has two voting seats on the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and representation on the ERIC Clearinghouse on Teacher Education.