The University of Alabama at Birmingham's School of Education received national accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) on May 1, 2022.

The School of Education was first awarded national accreditation by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) in 1969. Through this new accreditation process, the School of Education continues to signal its effective programs through the peer review process of accreditation.

National accreditation is similar to receiving a seal of approval, indicating that UAB offers quality programs. Maintaining national accreditation signals to stakeholders, including district partners, program completers, the Alabama State Department of Education, and future candidates, that the UAB School of Education's programs are recognized as excellent. 

The CAEP review process requires programs to meet five initial and advanced certification standards that cover quality content knowledge, partnerships, quality of candidates, the impact of the program for completers and community partners, etc. Additionally, the cross-cutting themes of diversity and technology are infused throughout all standards at both certification levels.  

Judith Kornberg, Ph.D., Interim Associate Dean, led UAB's CAEP accreditation efforts During the 2021-2022 academic year. Kornberg assembled a team for support, including Damien Larkin, Ph.D., Director of Assessment Management and Analysis, and Lesley Sheek, Ph.D., Director of Accreditation and Assessment, along with countless faculty, staff, students, and partners who contributed to the efforts. 

Jennifer Ponder, Ph.D., and Jennifer Summerlin, Ph.D., along with Dr. Larkin, guided faculty in the SOE's Department of Curriculum and Instruction and the Department of Human Studies in designing assessment instruments, analyzing processes and data, and writing the required self-study report submitted in April 2021.

"The CAEP efforts brought the School of Education together for a common goal," said Sheek. "Ensuring UAB graduates are excellent educators is our focus, and the review process allowed us to evaluate systems and make improvement plans moving forward. We reflected on what makes UAB a great place to earn an education and saw how well we work together with our community partners."

Stakeholders, partners, completers, faculty, SOE leaders, and current students participated in on-site interviews during the intensive review process. The final CAEP report revealed a high level of satisfaction among current students and completers alike, saying they had learned the "best ways to teach English language learners" and that UAB "completely broadened my mindset and knowledge base."

The UAB School of Education's CAEP accreditation status will last through 2028.