School Of Education Programs Receiving National Recognition

           

MONTICELLO, AR — The elementary education and middle childhood education programs at the University of Arkansas at Monticello have been ranked among the nation’s best by a national review agency, according to Dr. Peggy Doss, dean of the UAM School of Education.
            The National Council on Teacher Quality’s review of the best undergraduate elementary and secondary teacher preparation programs in the nation rated UAM’s elementary education program 14th nationally out of 394 programs in the NCTQ rankings while the middle childhood education program was ranked 27th in a field of 406 secondary education programs.
            “We are always pleased when our programs are recognized by any of the various organizations that monitor and review teacher preparation at the higher education level,” said Doss. “But we like to believe a better measure of our effectiveness is the success of ourgraduates.”
            Since 2009, UAM graduates have been honored as Arkansas’s Teacher of the Year (Kim Wilson of Monticello High School in 2012), Arkansas Administrator of the Year (Tony Thurman of Cabot), and Arkansas Superintendent of the Year (Thurman in 2015).
            During that time, 100 percent of UAM education graduates have passed the PRAXIS examination for teacher licensure.

            Other notable accomplishments for the past six years include:
            • selection as one of three STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) schools to pilot the Next Generation Science Exemplar System program;
            • receipt of a No Child Left Behind (NCLB) grant to facilitate a summer institute for geometry;
            • receipt of an NCLB grant for $57,632 to be used by the STEM Center to provide professional development to promote teaching Common Core standards;
            • receipt of $3,178,850 in grants since 2005; $364,750 in 2014;
            • hosted a STEM Leadership for Girls Conference;
            • three faculty members named to leadership positions of state and national organizations (Dr. Jeff Longing,president of the Arkansas Association of Teacher Educators; Dr. Alayne Zimmerly, past president of the Africa Reads project; Debbie Givhan, member of the Arkansas Department of Education’s Special Education Task Force).
            UAM’s School of Education currently offers seven undergraduate degrees, four online graduate degrees, two online graduate endorsements and three minors, all accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).
            The undergraduate degrees are:
            • the bachelor of arts in K-6 elementary education;
            • the bachelor of arts in middle childhood;
            • the bachelor of science in teaching and learning;
            • the bachelor of arts in K-12 health and physical education;
            • the bachelor of arts in health and physical education;
            • the bachelor of science in health and physical education;
            • and the bachelor of science in exercise science.
            The four online graduate degrees are:
            • the master of physical education and coaching;
            • the master of education in education leadership: K-12;
            • the master of education;
            • and the master of arts in teaching;
            The two online graduate endorsements are district administrator and K-12 special education. Minors are offered in teaching and learning, coaching, and physical education.
            For more information, contact the UAM School of Education at (870) 460-1062.