SUNY Plattsburgh Teacher Education Programs Earn Full Accreditation

SUNY Plattsburgh’s teacher education programs have been accredited for a full seven-year term by the Association for Advancing Quality in Education Preparation.

The AAQEP  gave the college’s program, including bachelor, master’s and certificates of advanced study, top scores and noted the programs meet all of its accreditation standards.

“The Commission evaluated the program’s evidence for each AAQEP standard and determined that all four standards are met,” the association stated in its report. Standards are:

• Performance
• Professional competence and grown
• Quality program practices
• Program engagement in system improvement

“The programs’ (faculty and staff) are prepared to work effectively as professional educators and are able to adapt to different contests and to grow professionally. The program has the capacity to analyze and provide evidence for sustained actions and revisions on behalf of (students), and it engages with stakeholders and partners to strengthen the P-20 education system,” the association reported.

“SUNY Plattsburgh’s education preparation program continues its significant role of providing teachers and school leaders for New York’s North Country and is expanding its reach across the state and region,” they said. “Through its work with P-12 partners, the program’s tiered communication patterns ensure its ability to address local school needs. Commitment to continuous improvement extends beyond the program itself to expanding the knowledge of partners and community members.”

“Our AAQEP accreditation is an accountability measure that assures prospective students, teacher candidates and P-12 school districts that our graduates possess the knowledge, skills and abilities necessary to enter the teaching profession and the capacity to engage in reflective practices for professional growth,” said Dr. Denise Simard, dean, School of Education, Health and Human Services.

Dr. Yong Yu, department chair and associate professor of the college’s undergraduate teacher education program, said the report from the AAQEP reflects her program as well as that of her colleagues Dr. Maureen Squires, chair and associate professor of the MST program, Dr. Heidi Schnackenberg, professor and chair of the MS in education program, and Dr. Kerri Zappala-Piemme, associate professor and chair of the educational leadership and CAS programs, and their commitment to improvement.

“As part of our culture, we have been collecting and reflecting on data consistently to improve the quality of the preparation of teachers and education leaders,” Yu said. “The actual preparation for AAQEP accreditation started in fall 2019 when we began to work closely with our current accreditation body, have regular discussions among faculty members, write and submit the proposal.”

Being accredited for the full seven years without conditions “affirmed the practice of the education programs; the readiness, professional competence and growth of candidates; and our collaboration with and contributions to the pre-K-12 and the local communities,” Yu said.

“We are proud of having been able to offer quality education programs to prepare effective teachers and education leaders,” she said. “But accreditation is never the end. Instead, it is a checkpoint of the recursive practice of education preparation. We have already started planning to incorporate feedback from our accreditation review team to improve our programs.”