Ithaca College Earns National Accreditation of Teacher Education Programs

By Danica Fisher ’05, March 3, 2022

The Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation awards accreditation.

Junior student teaching from IC's Music Education, S.O.A.R. Program, at St. Mary's Elementary School, Cortland. (Photo Credit: Sheryl Sinkow)

The Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP) has awarded a full 7-year accreditation to the teacher education programs at Ithaca College. Ithaca College offers teacher preparation programs in adolescence education (grades 7-12) and elementary/childhood education (grades 1-6), as well as K-12 teacher preparation in the certification areas of art, agriculture, health, physical education, and music.

“Being fully accredited by our national accrediting body is a point of pride for our program and an indication that Ithaca College remains an excellent provider of educator preparation,” said Sara Levy, associate professor and chair of the Department of Education. “We look forward to preparing the next generation of teachers who are dedicated to fostering critical thinking, a commitment to social justice, and creating a more equitable world.”

National accreditation is a rigorous and comprehensive process of self-study and peer review that is evidence-based and focuses on the accountability and continuous improvement of IC’s professional programs. The process also helps strengthen relationships with various stakeholders and is a helpful audit and review of practices to refine and enhance the programs.

“Being fully accredited by our national accrediting body is a point of pride for our program and an indication that Ithaca College remains an excellent provider of educator preparation."

Sara Levy, associate professor and chair of the Department of Education.

“We are pleased to have been recognized with AAQEP accreditation,” said Jeane Copenhaver-Johnson, associate provost for Academic Programs. “Our faculty and staff work collaboratively to prepare future teachers who foster educational equity in the schools they join. It is a pleasure to see our graduates making a profound impact in schools all over the country, sharing their love of learning and justice with young people and embedding themselves within their new communities.”

The AAQEP Accreditation commission issued the decision at its January 14 meeting. The standards that Ithaca College education programs met to achieve the accreditation include:

completers of the program are prepared to work effectively as professional educators and are able to adapt to different contexts and to grow professionally;
the program has the capacity to analyze and provide evidence for sustained actions and revisions on behalf of candidates and it engages with stakeholders in strong local partnerships to strengthen the P-20 education system;
well-developed, evidence-based internal coordination and control structures enable the program to respond to its changing environment with adaptive innovation;
and through both advisory and collegial relationships, faculty foster candidates’ development of professional identity through engagement in associations and related activities.

“Congratulations to Ithaca College and to the All College Teacher Education Committee (ACTEC) members and stakeholders who have achieved their goal of national accreditation by AAQEP,” said AAQEP President and CEO Mark LaCelle-Peterson. “The program made a clear case for quality preparation that is rooted in a deep investment in local partnerships.”