Trinity’s Education Programs Receive CAEP Accreditation
President Patricia McGuire announced that Trinity Washington University’s programs in teacher education and school administration received accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). Trinity’s programs were approved under the rigorous, nationally recognized CAEP Teacher Preparation Standards. Learn more about Trinity’s programs in education.
“I am pleased to share this very good news that Trinity has received CAEP accreditation for our programs in teacher education and school administration,” said President McGuire. “Congratulations to all of the faculty, staff and students who participated in the CAEP review process! This was a heroic effort involving a great deal of time in self-study, data analysis and coordination of reports and the team site visit. Special thanks to Associate Provost Dr. Debbie Van Camp who oversaw the process.”
Trinity was one of just 59 universities that earned accreditation for educator preparation programs as part of the fall 2019 review by the CAEP Accreditation Council and announced in November. There are now 281 CAEP-accredited educator preparation programs.
“These providers meet high standards so that their students receive an education that prepares them to succeed in a diverse range of classrooms after they graduate,” said CAEP President Dr. Christopher A. Koch. “Seeking CAEP Accreditation is a significant commitment on the part of an educator preparation provider.”
“Trinity’s dedication to preparing excellent teachers and school administrators dates back to our very first students in 1900,” said President McGuire. “I am so pleased that Trinity continues our long tradition in ensuring the quality and effectiveness of teachers and school leaders whose influence here in the Washington region as well as around the country is so strong.”
President McGuire noted that Trinity’s education programs previously had NCATE accreditation; CAEP is the successor organization to NCATE. She added that, “Trinity received CACREP accreditation last year for our programs in counseling, and also holds specialized accreditation from CCNE for nursing, and ACOTE for occupational therapy. Trinity’s overall institutional accreditation is through Middle States, where we have been a member since 1921.”
CAEP is the sole nationally-recognized accrediting body for educator preparation. Accreditation is based on peer review that serves the dual functions of assuring quality and promoting improvement. CAEP was created by the consolidation of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the Teacher Education Accreditation Council. It is a unified accreditation system intent on raising the performance of all providers focused on educator preparation.
Educator preparation providers seeking accreditation must pass peer review on five standards, which are based on two principles:
- Solid evidence that the provider’s graduates are competent and caring educators, and
- Solid evidence that the provider’s educator staff have the capacity to create a culture of evidence and use it to maintain and enhance the quality of the professional programs they offer.
The CAEP accreditation applies to Trinity’s bachelor’s degrees in education; master of arts in teaching; and master’s in educational administration.
