Overview & Conceptual Framework

INSTITUTIONAL REPORT FOR CONTINUING ACCREDITATION

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT PATHWAY

I. OVERVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

I.1 Summarize the institution's mission, historical context, and unique characteristics (e.g., land grant, HBCU or religious). [4,000 characters]

Historical Context

Prior to statehood, Black settlers established the town of Langston, Oklahoma in 1890 & named the town after John Mercer Langston, the first Black Virginian to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives. Although segregation was a way of life during this time, the citizens of Langston were interested in pursuing higher education & appeared before the Oklahoma Industrial School & College Commission in July 1892 to petition for a college. The Morrill Act of 1890 made it possible for the founding of a land grant college, officially establishing the Colored Agricultural & Normal University by House Bill 151 in 1897, serving as the only publicly operated institution dedicated to the higher education of African Americans in Oklahoma Territory. The school opened in a Langston church with an initial budget of $5,000.

The first president, Dr. Inman E. Page (1898-1915), was the son of a former slave who had purchased freedom for himself & his family. Dr. Page expanded the campus to 160 acres & increased enrollment from 41 to 650 students & faculty from 4 to 35. The Enabling Act of 1906 provided for Section 13 of each township to be set aside for the benefit of education supplemented the meager funding from the state legislature. The university received 100,000 acres

located primarily in western Oklahoma.

Thirty-five years later, the name of the university was officially changed to Langston University (LU) & received accreditation from five national associations by 1948. In the 1960s, the integration of African American students in White colleges called into question whether or not the university should remain open. Dr. G. Lamar Harrison, LU's ninth & longest serving President, responded, "Until racial bias is totally eliminated in Oklahoma, a college like Langston University has the peculiar function of maintaining, preserving, & disseminating the cultural heritage of the Negro people."

As the fourteenth president of LU, Dr. Earnest L. Holloway accepted the challenge of implementing the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (OSRHE) plan to "give the university a new image & new thrust, [to] make it a more integral & rational part of the total higher education effort in the state."

In compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, this new urban mission supported the establishment of upper division urban centers in Tulsa & Oklahoma City (OKC) in 1979. In 1987, the OSRHE granted permission to LU to plan its first graduate program. In summer 1989, courses were initiated leading to the Masters of Education degree. The graduate program began offering courses at the OKC & Tulsa Urban Centers in the 1990s.

As one of 117 Historically Black Colleges & Universities, LU is the only HBCU in the state of Oklahoma & the westernmost HBCU in the U.S. The town of Langston, in which LU is located, is the largest of the 12 remaining all-Black towns from the former 23 all-Black towns in Oklahoma Territory. Dr. Kent J. Smith, Jr., currently serves as LU's sixteenth president.

Institutional Mission

Established in 1897, LU was charged with the mission to instruct "both male & female Colored persons in the art of teaching various branches which pertain to a common school education & in such higher education as may be deemed advisable, & in the fundamental laws of the United States in the rights & duties of citizens in the agricultural, mechanical & industrial arts." As a land-grant university, LU has continued this mission & over the past 118 years has made revisions reflective of the leadership & issues of the times. The most recent revision of the mission took place in 2014 & reads, "Grounded in its rich traditions as a historically Black college & university, & a land-grant institution, Langston University offers quality post-secondary education to diverse populations through academic, research, community engagement, extension, & co-curricular experiences that lead to professional competence & degree completion."

I.2 Summarize the professional education unit at your institution, its mission, and its relationship to other units at the institution that are involved in the preparation of professional educators.

Professional Education Unit

The Teacher Education Unit (TEU) is the professional education unit at LU & maintains all educator preparation programs through the Teacher Education

Council (TEC), a committee comprised of representatives of all teacher education programs at the university & co-chaired by the Dean & the Director of Teacher Education, Certification, & Field Experiences. The TEU is housed in the School of Educational & Behavioral Sciences (SoEBS). The Director is the co-chair of the TEC & reports directly to the Dean, as the head of the unit. The TEC meets to address program issues & to create & deliver appropriate processes & procedures to improve areas of need & compliment areas of strength. Plans are underway to expand TEC membership to include schools, state agencies, & TEU candidates. The TEC is in the process of developing a constitution & bylaws and formalizing policies & procedures to govern its operation. Following, the completion & approval of the constitution and bylaws, faculty from outside the TEU, alum, & candidates will be invited & encouraged to serve on the TEC.

The TEU is approved by the Office of Educational Quality & Accountability (OEQA) to offer programs for initial & advanced certification & accredited through the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education through fall 2015. The unit offers courses at varying times & in varying formats including day & evening courses, face-to-face, blended or hybrid, & online courses. The delivery method for each course is based on course content & location to meet the needs of LU's traditional & non-traditional candidates. The programs offered on each campus are approved by the OSRHE in an effort to meet the needs of the varying populations in each location. The Langston campus offers all TEU initial programs, the Tulsa campus offers initial Elementary & Special Education programs, & the OKC campus offers the M.Ed. program in Educational Leadership.

I.3 Summarize programs offered at initial and advanced preparation levels (including offcampus, distance learning, and alternate route programs), status of state approval, national recognition, and if applicable, findings of other national accreditation associations related to the preparation of education professionals.

The TEU offers ten initial certification programs & one advanced certification program. The initial programs are Early Childhood Education (certifying candidates to teach PK to 3rd grade), Elementary Education (1-8), Special Education Mild to Moderate (PK-12), English/Language Arts (ELA 6-12), Math (6-12), Health & Physical Education (HPE PK-12), Instrumental Music (PK-12), Vocal Music (PK-12), Science (Biology/Chemistry 6-12); the advanced program is Educational Leadership (Principal Elementary, Middle Level, Secondary). Seven of the nine programs were recognized by their respective Specialty Professional Association (SPA) as of spring 2014. The Instrumental & Vocal Music programs, without a national SPA, will submit program reviews at the state level in spring 2015. Of the seven programs that submitted for review at the national level, Early Childhood Education, Elementary Education, Special Education, & Science Education (Biology/Chemistry) were Nationally Recognized (NR); HPE & Math Education were NR with Conditions; & ELA was NR with Probation. HPE & Math Education will resubmit their program reviews in response to conditions & ELA will submit a new program review in spring 2015. The advanced program, Educational Leadership, was NR with Conditions & will submit a new program review in spring 2015.

Prior to its voluntary moratorium in 2013, the LU Educational Leadership program was offered in partnership with CaseNEX, LLC, to provide a fully online Master's program leading to a M.Ed. & principal certification. CaseNEX is a professional development organization that provides school districts & university partners with collaborative online learning to satisfy professional development requirements, earn graduate credits, & complete Master's Degree programs.

1.4 Summarize the basic tenets of the conceptual framework, institutional standards, and candidate proficiencies related to expected knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions.

Conceptual Framework

The LU TEU's Conceptual Framework (CF) underwent a review in 2013 to ensure alignment with the 2011 InTASC standards & current state competencies (adopted June 2014). During fall 2013 the CF Committee undertook the task of updating the CF. After several solicitations for feedback & multiple revisions to the graphic & language, the CF was updated & approved by the TEC in spring 2014. The CF guides faculty instruction & candidate teaching/learning. The CF represents the unit's vision of Teacher as Decision Maker & the unit's mission "to improve teaching & learning in a diverse, rapidly changing, & increasingly technological society by preparing & supporting candidates in constructing knowledge, increasing capabilities, & developing sensitivity & responsiveness to the needs of children, families, & communities in urban centers & rural environments." The CF communicates the TEU's philosophy regarding the roles of teachers, the importance of content & strategies in teaching diverse students; the purposes & practices of assessment; & the strategies for creating & sustaining positive learning environments.

The TEU's philosophy is founded on the belief that effective, responsive teachers have a positive impact on the lives of children. As part of that belief, the TEU is committed to the practices of social responsibility through education as a means to build a better world, especially for underserved populations in Oklahoma, the nation, & the world. To this end, the TEU believes:

• teachers must demonstrate a respect for diversity, engage in ethical behaviors, establish challenging but achievable goals, embed instruction in quality curriculum, & be respectful of the teaching/learning context.

• instruction must be based on the integration & innovation of teaching, learning, & technology beyond the boundaries of individual disciplines, founded on current scientifically based research, & supportive of all students.

• assessment of educators & learners through on-going assessment practices is necessary to inform practices, promote personal & professional growth, monitor progress & support change.

• the classroom & school environment hold great opportunities for developing leaders who engage in professional development opportunities & service to have a direct & positive impact on the lives of children.

The purpose of the SoEBS TEU is to provide candidates with a strong academic background based on teaching & learning theories; content-specific, pedagogical knowledge; & opportunities to become informed, active members in learning environments that are developmentally, academically, & culturally responsive to the needs of children in urban & rural communities, thereby producing teachers who are informed to make wise classroom decisions & can meet the needs of 21st century, diverse learners. The goals of the TEU are to enable educators to translate their acquired knowledge & understanding of theory, research, pedagogy, & policy into effective curriculum plans, classroom management skills, & positive instructional decisions that are responsive to the needs of all P-12 students. The knowledge base, research, wisdom of practice, & educational policies that drive the work of the TEU are founded on the work of George Counts. George Counts, a leading progressive educator in the 1930s, suggested that the purpose of school is to prepare individuals to live as members of society by equipping individuals with the skills necessary to participate in the social life of their community & to change the nature of the social order as needed or desired. Candidate proficiencies (knowledge, skills, & professional dispositions) are highlighted in the CF graphic & detailed in clear, descriptive statements utilizing the acronym DECISION. This acronym was selected to communicate to teacher candidates, faculty, community members, & other stakeholders what it means to be a Langston graduate who is a decision maker.

A Teacher as Decision Maker is a teacher who...

D demonstrates respect for diversity (race, ethnicity, culture, socioeconomic status, gender, abilities, opinions, ideals, perspectives, etc.) & engages in ethical behaviors by maintaining high standards of conduct & character, upholding the honor of the teaching profession

E establishes educational goals (for self & learners) with the belief that all children can learn & assesses children's progress on a continual basis using multiple forms of assessment in a variety of forms based on state, national, & professional standards

C has a foundation of professional, pedagogical, & content knowledge upon which to make instructional decisions & evaluate teaching/learning contexts, utilizing information to maximize opportunities for all children, & creating supportive environments

I is innovative in the use of technology & instructional strategies utilizing current research on best practices to enhance teaching & learning for children at different developmental stages, with different learning styles, & from diverse backgrounds

S demonstrates social responsibility through service for underserved populations in Oklahoma, the nation, & the world

I integrates teaching & learning beyond the boundaries of disciplines & outside the classroom by planning diverse & sequenced experiences & engaging in reflective practice to make adjustments responsibly based on self-evaluations & feedback

O seeks opportunities for leadership & engages in on-going professional development

N creates supportive networks of collegiality & collaboration among educators, learners, & families while serving as a mentor for students, peers, & others to promote personal & professional growth

Initial & advanced candidates, in alignment with the CF, are expected to exhibit the dispositions embedded in the values of LU: Integrity/Character, Professionalism, Classroom Competence, & Dedication/Loyalty.

I.5 Exhibits

I.5.a Pages from catalogs and other printed documents describing general education, specialty/content studies, and professional studies

1.5.a POS SPED, ELE, & HPER

1.5.a POS M.Ed.

1.5.a LU General Education Requirements

1.5.a State General Education Requirements for Teacher Education