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College of Arts and Sciences

Department of Educator Preparation

Background

Huston-Tillotson University is a historically black university affiliated with The United Methodist Church and the United Church of Christ. The mission of the University is to provide its increasingly diverse student body with an exemplary education that is grounded in the liberal arts and sciences, balanced with professional development, and directed to public service and leadership. The University prepares students with the integrity and civility to thrive in a diverse society, fosters spiritual development, preserves and promotes interest in the accomplishments and experiences of the University’s historic constituents and evolving populations, and creates and sustains supportive relationships which advance the Huston-Tillotson University community.

Huston-Tillotson University is the oldest institution of higher education in Austin. Tillotson Collegiate and Normal Institute opened on January 17, 1881 and Samuel Huston College opened in the fall of 1900. Huston-Tillotson College was formed when Tillotson College and Samuel Huston College merged in 1952. Huston-Tillotson University awards four year degrees in business, education, the humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, science, and technology. A multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, and multi-faith institution, the University welcomes students of all ages, races, and religions.

 

HTU EPP Mission

 The Huston-Tillotson University Educator Preparation Program prepares candidates for meaningful careers in the field of education. Building upon a solid liberal arts foundation framed within a social justice perspective, the HTU-EPP mission is to assists candidates in developing knowledge, skills, and dispositions necessary to become effective, caring data driven teachers in an ever-changing and diverse society. Candidates are prepared to become effective educators who are technology focused, reflective and lifelong learners that are actively (re)defining their professional teaching identity coupled with engagement in active advocates for students, parents and communities.

 

Description of Our Traditional Program

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 standards approved by the State of Texas Board for Educator Certification, the Program offers 12 unique certification areas.

For prospective teachers with at least a Bachelor’s degree (BA or BS), our Alternative Teacher Certification Program is also available.

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. Educator candidates engage in field-based experiences with diverse populations through collegial relationships, reciprocal dialogue, and authentic practices. HT educator candidates emerge as professionals with the competence and commitment to participate in and contribute to a complex and changing society. This program is committed to ethics and excellence in teaching, research, and service.

 

General Program Requirements

  • Cumulative GPA of at least 2.5
  • Demonstrated competency in reading, writing, and math. (See “Application Checklist” )
  • 60 college credit hours with 12 hours in subject-specific content (15 if seeking math and/or science certification) with a C or better
  • 3 professional recommendations
  • All candidates are required to submit a criminal background report from the Texas Department of Public Safety.  Click here for more information: State of Texas Department of Safety. Applicants whose background checks are unacceptable will not be admitted to the EPP.  As per the Texas Department of Public Safety, you have the right to request a copy of your PCHE.  The employing school district and TEA may also conduct criminal background checks. 
  • In cases where candidates do not have a GPA of 2.5, the office of HT EPP may require applicants to pass a PACT as a requirement for admission.

 

Bilingual applicants and applicants with foreign transcripts will be required to demonstrate language proficiency in English by passing the Test of Proficiency in the English Language or one of the following: (A) completion of an undergraduate or graduate degree at an accredited institution of higher education in the United States; or (B) verification of minimum scaled scores on the Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test (TOEFL iBT) of 24 for speaking, 22 for listening, 22 for reading, and 21 for writing; or (C) if an undergraduate or graduate degree was earned at an institution of higher education in a country outside of the United States listed in the figure provided in this subparagraph. Figure: 19 TAC §230.11(b)(5)(C).  Applicants are required to submit TOEFL scores that meet the minimum program requirements below unless they have earned a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited U.S. institution.

 

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 Texas teacher certification are encouraged to declare a major early in their University sequence. However, declaring a major is not synonymous with admittance into the Educator Preparation program. 

 

 

Degrees Offered

In compliance with state requirements, the degree awarded for candidates completing the Educator Preparation Program is:

  • BA in Education with a concentration in EC-6, Special Education or Technology Applications
  • BA/BS in a specific academic major – English, Mathematics, Science, History, Kinesiology, or Music with an Education minor.

Every educator candidate must complete a bachelor’s degree with an academic or education major as well as the Professional Development sequence of educator preparation courses.  Candidates who fulfill degree requirements are designated Program Completers and recommended for Texas Teacher Certification.

Applications

EPP Application  2024-2025

 

Adult Degree Program

 EPP Application 2024-2025

 

 

Program Admission:

March 15 (Fall admission)

November 15 (Spring admission)

Clinical Teaching Applications:

March 15 (Fall semester)

November 15 (Spring semester)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did you know that there continues to be an increasing demand for new teachers? Due to the dramatic increase in enrollments and high attrition rates as an aging teacher workforce becomes eligible for retirement, Texas often breaks its own records in annual hiring.  As demographics change in Texas, there is also an increasing need to attract minority teachers. The Texas Education Agency has identified teacher shortages in the following areas: Bilingual Education/English as a Second Language; Foreign Languages; Mathematics (STEM); Science; and Special Education. The Texas Workforce Commission anticipates elementary school teaching positions will add the second-highest number of jobs among all occupations in the state–That’s nearly 68,000 new jobs!

EPP Customer Information regarding our EPP can be found on the TEA Consumer information website:

 TEA Consumer Information Website

 

To register complaints regarding this EPP, students should follow the steps detailed on the “TEA Rules and Policies” page located to your left or you can click here:  HTU Register a Complaint Steps