The Educator Preparation Program at Huston-Tillotson University is framed within a social justice perspective that enhances educator candidate’s ability to apply research-based pedagogy in a wide range of educational settings. To fulfill this mission, the educator candidates engage in field-based experiences with diverse pop ulations through collegial relationships, reciprocal dialogue, and authentic practices. HT educator candidates emerge as professionals with the competence and com mitment to participate in and contribute to a complex and changing society. This program is committed to ethics and excellence in teaching, research, and service.

The Huston-Tillotson University Educator Preparation Program offers teacher preparation designed to meet the needs of undergraduates in Interdisciplinary Studies or Academic Specializations. Meeting the new standards approved by the State Board for Educator Certification, September 2002, the Program offers 12 certification areas.

General Program Requirements

The Educator Preparation program prepares certification-seeking professionals for educational, societal, and technological teaching needs through a holistic curriculum. Integrating field-based experiences through the theoretical/pedagogical course delivery is a hallmark of the Huston-Tillotson University program. Particular attention is given to effective decision-making and best-practices for tomorrow’s classrooms. Program goals provide students a nurturing learning environment in which they may explore:

• Extensive supervised field-based and laboratory experiences that empower teachers with the knowledge, skills, abilities, and attitudes necessary to guide and instruct the diverse needs of all learners.
• Opportunities to learn professional practices, legal responsibilities, and the organizational structure of the education profession that produces teachers who are at the forefront of educational innovation and are a valued member of an educational team.
• Instructional activities that develop levels of expertise beyond the required standards for educator testing and certification.

Requirements for Undergraduates Seeking Teacher Certification

As the State of Texas mandates specific academic requirements for persons seeking teacher certification, students should plan lower-division coursework schedules carefully. In order to obtain adequate counsel from Educator Preparation faculty, students interested in attaining a teacher certification are encouraged to declare as a major early in their University sequence. However, declaring a major is not synonymous with admittance into the Educator Preparation program. Students desiring certification through the Educator Preparation program MUST comply with the program’s three-step admission process.