PROGRAM PRECONDITIONS

(b) School districts or other non-regionally accredited entities: The Superintendent or CEO of the district or entity shall submit a signed letter noting district leadership's continued support for the program.
 

Once a candidate is accepted and enrolls in an educator preparation program, the approved program sponsor must offer the approved program, meeting the adopted standards, until the candidate:

• completes the program;
• withdraws from the program;
• is dropped from the program based on established criteria; or
• is admitted to another approved program to complete the requirements with minimal disruption for authorization.

In the event the program closes, a teach-out plan, which includes individual transition plans for each candidate as well as a plan for candidates and graduates to access their student records, would need to be developed.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the entity shall provide the following information:

1. Identify the position within the organizational structure that is responsible for ongoing oversight of all educator preparation programs offered by the entity (including educator preparation programs offered by an extension division, if any).
2. Provide a description of the reporting relationship between the position described in (a) and the individual(s) who coordinate each educator preparation program offered by the entity. If a reporting relationship is indirect, describe the levels of authority and responsibility for each educator preparation program. Include an organizational chart for the institution as well as the division(s) within the institution responsible for the oversight of educator preparation programs; include any parent organization, outside organization(s), or partner(s) who will be involved in the oversight of the educator preparation unit and/or responsible for any aspect of program delivery.
3. Provide policies to ensure that duties regarding credential recommendations are provided solely by persons who are current employees of the Commission-approved institution.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, a program of professional preparation must be proposed and operated by an entity that makes all personnel decisions without unlawful discrimination. These decisions include decisions regarding the admission, retention, or graduation of students, and decisions regarding the employment, retention, or promotion of employees.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the program sponsor must: (a) assure that the sponsor will fulfill all of the applicable standards of program quality and effectiveness that have been adopted by the Commission, (b) assure that all candidates participating in public school-based field activities hold a Certificate of Clearance from the Commission, (c) assure that the approved program sponsor will cooperate in an evaluation of the program by an external team or a monitoring of the program by a Commission staff member, and (d) assure that the approved program sponsor will participate fully in the Commission’s accreditation system, including the timely submission of documents required for accreditation.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the entity must identify a qualified officer responsible for reporting and responding to all requests from the Commission for data, including, but not limited to, program enrollments, program completers, examination results, including performance assessments, and state and federal reporting within the time limits specified by the Commission. Institutional contact information must be updated annually.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the entity must positively affirm the veracity of all statements and documentation submitted to the Commission.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the approved program sponsor must have a clearly delineated grievance process for candidates and applicants. The grievance process information must be accessible to all candidates and applicants, and the institution must be prepared to provide documentation that candidates have been informed of the grievance process and that the process has been followed.
 
Note: While the Commission does not dictate a specific process for candidates to grieve actions and decisions related to the admission, progress, and completion of their program, the Commission may find it necessary to comment on an institution’s grievance process if it appears to unfairly disadvantage the candidate. Examples include requiring the candidate to grieve to the very same individuals for whom the grievance is directed.
 

All faculty and instructional personnel employed by colleges and universities who regularly teach one or more courses in an educator preparation program leading to a credential shall actively participate in the public school system at least once every three academic years, appropriate to their credential area. Faculty who are not in the Department, School, or College of Education are exempt from this requirement. Reference: Education Code Section 44227.5 (a) and (b).
 
This precondition applies only to colleges and universities. Local Education Agencies do not need to address this precondition.
 

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the approved program sponsor must provide easily accessible and accurate information to the public, prospective educators, and enrolled candidates about the requirements for admission and successful completion for all its educator preparation programs.

To be granted continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the sponsor must demonstrate that it will maintain and retain student records in accordance with the institution’s record retention policy.

Institutions will provide verification that: (a) Candidates and graduates will have access to and be provided with transcripts and/or other documents for the purpose of verifying academic units and program completion. (b) All candidate records will be maintained at the main institutional site or central location (paper or digital copies). (c) Records will be kept securely in locked cabinets or on a secure server located in a room not accessible by the public.

Institutions must disclose information regarding any outside organizations that will be providing any direct educational services as all or part of the educator preparation programs sponsored by the institution and identify the type of services the outside organization will provide.
 
Please note: This precondition relates to direct educational services to candidates. It is not necessary to include entities that may provide other important services but are not directly related to the program offerings such as coursework, curriculum or fieldwork. Examples of these other services that do not need to be identified under the disclosure precondition include portfolio or student data systems such as Task Stream or Live Text or other similar technology, assessment companies, and others.