The Board of Governors of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) has approved changes to teacher education programs offered at 11 of the 14 PASSHE universities.

The changes were made to comply with new guidelines developed by the state Department of Education to enhance the training of early childhood, elementary and middle school teachers. The guidelines establish separate certifications for pre-K through fourth grade and grades 4 through 8; and require all special education teachers also to be certified in grades pre-K through 4, 4-8, or 7-12.

PASSHE universities are moving ahead with program changes now to help ensure students enrolling in teacher education programs will have adequate time to meet the requirements for certification when the new guidelines take effect.

The Board approved program revisions developed at Bloomsburg, California, Clarion, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. Cheyney, East Stroudsburg and Slippery Rock Universities of Pennsylvania are in the final stages of preparing materials for approval.

The revised programs also will have to be approved by the Department of Education before they can be implemented.

The new certification requirements are intended to improve the knowledge, skills and dispositions of all teachers to effectively provide instruction to diverse learners in inclusive classroom settings. Teachers graduating with the new certificates also will have significantly more knowledge in content, teaching technique and human development.

“The faculty and administrators at each of our institutions are to be commended for the incredible work they have done under a tight timeline in redesigning their education programs to better address the needs of Pennsylvania’s children,” said PASSHE Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs Dr. Jim Moran.

The Board of Governors also approved a new Bachelor of Science degree in commercial music technology to be offered by California University of Pennsylvania. The new program is designed to graduate students with backgrounds in music who want to pursue careers in the technological area of the music industry. For more information about the program, please contact the university.

Now in its 25^th year, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth, with more than 112,500 students. The 14 PASSHE universities offer degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. Approximately 405,000 PASSHE alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. PASSHE also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Freeport, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg.