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Education

Unit Leadership and Authority

At CSC, the responsibility for all programs leading to State of Nebraska licensure or related educational certificates falls under the purview of the unit head. As previously detailed, this includes forty-three (43) licensure, endorsement, and related degree programs. The unit plays an integral role in the mission and goals of the college, offering undergraduate and graduate programs both on and off campus. Approximately 25% of all CSC undergraduates seek an education licensure or an endorsement. The unit also accounts for the majority of the total graduate enrollment. Table 6.1 identifies the number and percent of students by program.

The administrative body of the unit includes the Dean, Head of Teacher Education (Department Chair), coordinators of unit programs, Teacher Education Committee, and the Graduate Council. The Teacher Education Committee is comprised of the unit faculty, Special Methods (content area) faculty, two administrative representatives from P-12 schools, and a student representative. Special Methods faculty are those full-time CSC faculty members responsible for providing content knowledge preparation to candidates within their departmental endorsement areas, and pedagogical instruction pertaining to the specific endorsement content area (i.e., EDUC 431: Special Methods A-J). The Teacher Education Committee is governed by a set of By-laws, and serves as only a recommending body to the unit head and the School Dean (Teacher Education By-laws).

The Chair of the Education Department works directly with the State Department of Education to ensure that the curriculum meets the standards leading to State of Nebraska licensure or related educational certificates. The department chair, working in collaboration with the members of the unit and the directors/coordinators of unit programs, assures that the curriculum meets the State of Nebraska requirements outlined in Nebraska Department of Education "Rule 24": Regulations for Certificate Endorsements, Title 92, Nebraska Administrative Code, Chapter 24.

During the academic year, the Teacher Education Committee meets once a month to discuss changes and/or issues regarding requirements or program operation. An equally important function of this committee is to maintain communication between Education Department faculty and those faculty members in other endorsement programs across the campus.

In addition to the Teacher Education Committee, several standing governance committees directly assist the unit head and the Dean with operating a coherent system of planning, delivering, and operating programs. These committees are: Academic Review Committee; Unit Screening Committee; Graduate Council; and the Graduate Initial Review Committee (Faculty Senate By-laws (in document center); Education Unit By-laws).

The NCATE Steering Committee, comprised of representatives from each of the departments offering an endorsement program in which candidates or related service providers are prepared, includes members of the education department faculty, the Dean of the School of Professional and Graduate Studies, and P-12 school administrators. The purpose of this committee is to collaborate and inform faculty on policies and decisions related to NCATE compliance and correspondence.

Serving in a less formal capacity are the Graduate Coordinating Team, the Secondary Block Coordinating Team, and the Elementary Block Coordinating Team. These teams are comprised of faculty members who are teaching within these respective areas. They meet throughout the course of each semester, with the purpose of organizing and coordinating scheduling, professional development sessions, and other activities specific to these programs. These teams provide a means for effective communication, problem solving, and program organization. Teams frequently bring issues to the Teacher Education Committee issues for consideration.

Teacher and professional governance decisions are made through active participation and cooperation from representatives of the department faculty, as well as colleagues from other campus units and P-12 practitioners.

The professional studies governance committees listed in Table 6.2 meet regularly and communicate the results of these meetings to the appropriate department, unit, college or regulatory group. Most meet on a monthly basis during the fall-spring semesters; others meet more often, such as the Elementary and the Secondary Block Coordinating Teams, and the Graduate Coordinating Team, which may meet several times per month, depending on need.

Throughout the academic year the unit provides professional development workshop training opportunities for all faculty to gain additional knowledge and expertise in effective teaching strategies. The Teacher Education Committee provides annual "teacher supervision" training sessions on the appropriate strategies for supervising teacher interns. Table 5.12 lists those formalized training opportunities that were provided for faculty during the 2004-05 academic year.

Leadership provided by the unit is acknowledged across campus by virtue of its sponsorship of campus-wide professional development workshops, trainings, and activities. Unit faculty records of scholarship and professional service are discussed in detail in our response to Standard 5.

Recruiting and admission practices are described clearly in College publications (CSC General Bulletin 2005-07, p. 22-26). The CSC website at http://www.csc.edu/admissions identifies additional Admissions Office publications.

Candidates have access to a full range of student services, including advising, tutorial and counseling services. A listing of academic, placement, and support services are located at http://www.csc.edu/studentserv/