Annual Institutional Title II Report Card

2013–2014 Title II Report Card

Teacher Education Mission

The mission of Teacher Education at Bradley University is to prepare teachers who will be effective leaders, advocates, and life-long learners. We believe that teaching and learning are dynamic, interactive, life-long processes based on empowering interactions among learners.

Teacher Preparation Programs

Bradley University offers 18 baccalaureate programs leading to state teacher certification and graduate-level certification programs in Educational Administration and School Counseling.

Student Characteristics

Most undergraduates (95 percent) are of traditional college age; 95.7 percent attend full-time, and 87.0 percent are Illinois residents. Seventeen percent of all students are minority students. The average ACT score for the fall 2013 freshmen was 25.5. Undergraduate enrollment is 4,825. Graduate enrollment is 605. Total enrollment is 5,430.

Admissions Requirements

Admission to Teacher Education Program: Candidates must have earned a minimum grade point average of 2.5 overall, 2.5 in education courses, and a 2.5 in their content major or concentration. Candidates must have earned grades of not less than a C in COM 103, ENG 101, and a mathematics course that meets university general education requirements. They must have completed a prescribed group of education courses for each major with the appropriate GPA and no Ds, passed the Illinois Certification Test of Academic Proficiency (TAP) – or successfully achieved the ACT/SAT minimum score required by the Illinois State Board of Education to qualify for a TAP waiver, demonstrated appropriate pre-professional behaviors and dispositions, been cleared on a check of criminal history, and received a satisfactory vote of the faculty at advancement to degree candidacy.

Admission to Student Teaching: Candidates must have maintained a minimum grade point average of 2.5 overall, 2.5 in education courses, and a 2.5 in their content major or concentration. They must have been advanced to candidacy, passed the Illinois Licensure Test in their content area, and been cleared on the State Police fingerprint check.

Accreditation

Bradley University is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools; the College of Education and Health Sciences is accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE); and all teacher preparation programs are approved by the Illinois State Board of Education. Individual teacher preparation programs are accredited by one of the following: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), Association for Childhood Education International (ACEI), National Council for the Social Studies (NCSS), National Science Teachers Association (NSTA), National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM), and Council for Exceptional Children (CEC).

Best Practices

  • Practicum experiences in the schools begin the freshman year and continue each year of the program, increasing in responsibility.
  • Each candidate will have clinical experiences in the full range of his or her certification and in a diverse setting.
  • The university has Professional Development School partners at each level from early childhood through high school.

Notable Features and Accomplishments

  • In August 2013, the Department of Teacher Education received notification from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) that the mathematics education program has received national recognition from the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics; also, NCATE notified us that the early childhood education program has received national recognition from the National Association for the Education of Young Children.

  • At their September 2013 meeting, the Illinois State Board of Education approved State Superintendent of Education Christopher Koch’s recommendation to appoint Dean Cantu, Chair, Department of Teacher Education, to the Illinois State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board (SEPLB). Dr. Cantu will serve as one of two board members representing private colleges and universities in Illinois on the SEPLB.

  • In January 2014, the Department of Teacher Education received notification from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education that the elementary education program has received national recognition from the Association for Childhood Education International.

  • In addition, the Department of Teacher Education received notification from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education that the special education program has received national recognition from the Council for Exceptional Children.

  • In March 2014, the J. Willliam Fulbright Commission for Educational Exchange announced that Derek Cantu, history secondary education major, has been named a Fulbright Student Fellow. He will spend 10 months as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in the Slovak Republic during academic year 2014-2015.

  • Dr. Cecile Arquette is currently on sabbatical leave this spring semester, from March - July 2014, as a result of being named a Fulbright Scholar in which she is currently teaching English to pre-service English teachers at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Chile.

  • The Department of Teacher Education was notified in Spring 2014 by the Illinois State Board of Education that the Illinois State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board (SEPLB) approved all teacher education programs at Bradley University, as follows: Early Childhood Education; Early Childhood/Elementary Education; Elementary Education; English Language Arts; Family and Consumer Sciences; Foreign Language – German, French and Spanish; Learning Behavior Specialist (LBS I); Mathematics; Music; Science – Biology, Chemistry, and Physics; Social Science – History; and Visual Arts.

 

This is the official catalog for the 2015-2016 academic year. This catalog serves as a contract between a student and Bradley University. Should changes in a program of study become necessary prior to the next academic year every effort will be made to keep students advised of any such changes via the Dean of the College or Chair of the Department concerned, the Registrar's Office, u.Achieve degree audit system, and the Schedule of Classes. It is the responsibility of each student to be aware of the current program and graduation requirements for particular degree programs.