General Preconditions Established by the Commission

Pursuant to Education Code §44227(a), each program of professional preparation shall adhere to the following requirements of the Commission.

(1) Accreditation and Academic Credit. To be granted initial accreditation or continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation as a program of professional preparation, the program must be proposed and operated by an institution of higher education that

(a) is fully accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges or another of the six regional accrediting bodies, and

California State University, Fresno, is fully accredited by the Western  Association of Colleges and Schools.

(b) grants baccalaureate academic credit or post-baccalaureate academic credit, or both. This provision does not apply to alternative (non-university based) programs, however, such programs must include in their program proposal verification of the entity‘s governing board‘s approval of sponsorship of the program.

California State University, Fresno grants both baccalaureate degrees in over 50 areas and over 40 postbaccalaureate degrees, including a Master‘s Degree in Education.

(2) Responsibility and Authority.  To  be  granted  initial  accreditation  or  continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, the institution or sponsoring agency shall provide the following information:

(a) Identify the position within the entity‘s organizational structure that is responsible for the ongoing oversight of all credential preparation programs offered by the entity (including credential programs offered by the extension division, if any).

The Dean of the Kremen School of Education and Human Development (KSOEHD), who reports directly to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, is the chief academic fiscal and administrative officer in the School.  In this capacity the Dean is responsible for ongoing oversight of all credential preparation programs offered by California State University, Fresno. The Dean also can serve as director of Teacher Education for the university or, in consultation with the Provost, may appoint an individual to serve in this position.

(b)  Provide a description of the reporting relationship between the position described in
(a) and the managers who coordinate each credential program offered by the entity.  If a reporting relationship is indirect, describe levels of authority and responsibility for each credential program.

The Director of Teacher Education, who can also be the Dean of the KSOEHD or who is appointed by the Dean in consultation with the Provost, is delegated full responsibility by the President and by the Provost for administering the laws and policies for all credential programs offered at Fresno State.  Serving in this capacity the director is to serve as liaison with all local, state, national, and international agencies with bearing on the credential programs.  The managers who coordinate each credential program offered by the institution are titled Program Coordinators.  The Program Coordinator is responsible for all academic functions of the program which he/she coordinates.

(3) Personnel Decisions. To be granted initial accreditation or 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 considering differences due to gender or other constitutionally or legally prohibited considerations. These decisions include decisions regarding the admission, retention or graduation of students, and decisions regarding the employment, retention or promotion of employees.

California State University, Fresno makes all personnel decisions without consideration of differences due to gender considerations or other constitutionally or legally prohibited considerations.  These decisions include such areas as admission, retention, or graduation of students, as well as decisions regarding the employment, retention, or promotion of employees.

(4) Demonstration of Need. To  be  granted  initial  accreditation  by  the  Committee  on Accreditation as a program of professional preparation, the program proposal must include a demonstration of need for the program in the region in which it will be operated.  Such a demonstration must include, but need not be limited to, assurance by a sample of school administrators that one or more school districts will, during the foreseeable future, hire or assign additional personnel to serve in the credential category.

Not applicable. All programs have been granted initial program accreditation.  Additionally, the Educational Leadership and Administration Program is one of the largest graduate programs on our campus with anywhere between 100-200 students enrolled.

(5) Practitioners’ Participation in Program Design. To be granted initial accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation as a program of professional preparation, the program proposal must include verification that practitioners in the credential category have participated actively in the design and development of the program‘s philosophical orientation, educational goals, and content emphases.

The program proposal includes verification that practitioners (school superintendents, principals, and other educational leaders) have participated actively in the design and development of the program‘s philosophical orientation, educational goals, and content emphasis.

(6) Commission Assurances. To  be  granted  initial  accreditation  by  the  Committee  on Accreditation as a program of professional preparation, the program proposal must (a) demonstrate that the program will fulfill all applicable standards of program quality and effectiveness that have been adopted by the Commission; and (b) include assurances that (b1) the entity will cooperate in an evaluation of the program by an external team or a monitoring of the program by a Commission staff member within the four years of the initial enrollment of candidates in the program, and (b2) that the program sponsor will respond to all requests for data regarding program enrollments and completions within the time limits specified by the Commission.

All applicable standards of program quality and effectiveness have been reviewed and incorporated into the program design.  The Educational Leadership and Administration Program welcomes an evaluation and any reviews of particular aspects of the program and pledges full cooperation at all times.

(7) Requests for Data. To be granted continuing accreditation by the  Committee  on Accreditation as a program of professional preparation, the entity must respond to all requests of the Commission for data regarding  program enrollments and completions within the time limits specified by the Commission.

The Kremen School of Education and Human Development and the Educational Leadership and Administration Program have cooperated  in the past and will continue to fully cooperate and respond to all requests of the Commission for data regarding program enrollments and completions within the time limits specified by the Commission
 
General Preconditions Established by State Law

(8) Instructor Participation. Each instructor who regularly teaches one or more courses relating to instructional methods in a program of professional preparation for teaching credentials, including Specialist Credentials, or one or more courses in administrative methods in an Administrative Services Credential Program, shall actively participate in public elementary or secondary schools and classrooms at least once  every three academic years. Reference: Education Code Section 44227.5 (a) and (b).

All full-time and part-time faculty who teach a professional methods   course or administrative methods document that they have actively participated in a public school and classrooms within the past three years. All instructors in the Educational Leadership and Administration Program are extremely active in the local public schools as indicated in several sections of this program proposal.

Following are the names of all full and part-time instructors and their roles and/or activities related to the public schools that they participate in on a regular basis.

Instructor Participation

Name of Instructor	Full or Part Time	Role/Activities
Sharon Brown-Welty, Ph.D.	Full	Leadership coach, Member Hanford Elementary District Alternative Governance Board
Virginia Boris, Ed.D.	Full	Co-Director CVELI, Leadership coach, Professional development consultant
Walt Buster, Ed.D.	Full	Director of CVELI, Leadership coach
Linda Hauser, Ph.D.	Full	Leadership coach, Curriculum developer/Facilitator for district/university networks, Professional development consultant
Ken Magdaleno, Ed.D.	Full	Leadership coach, Director CALSA mentoring program
Ron Unruh, Ph.D.	Full	Program evaluator for numerous current educ. projects
Donald Wise, Ph.D.	Full	Leadership coach, Member Hanford Elementary and Sanger Unified Alternative Governance Board
Terry Allen, Ph.D.	Part	Former principal, Educational consultant
Phil Black, Ed.D.	Part	Director of Research of Visalia Unified
James Bushman, Ed.D.	Part	Headmaster of University High School
Elaine Cash, M.A.	Part	Leadership coach, Educational consultant
Michael J Giovannetti, Ed.D.	Part	Former superintendent, Director Renaissance Group for teacher preparation
Don Goodyear, Ph.D.	Part	Former college president, Educational consultant
Corey Greenlaw, Ed.D.	Part	Director of Evaluation of county schools
Kim Mecum, M.A.	Part	Director of Human Resources Fresno Unified
Debbie Parra, Ed.D.	Part	Director of Instruction K-6 Clovis Unified
Cheryl Rogers, Ed.D.	Part	Assistant Superintendent, Clovis Unified
Julie Severns, Ed.D.	Part	Director of Leadership Development Fresno Unified
Tracy Smith, Ed.D.	Part	Elementary Principal Clovis Unified
Dennis R Wiechmann, Ed.D.	Part	Director of Alternative Education, Sanger Unified

 
(9) California Basic Educational Skills Test.  In each program of professional preparation, applicants for program admission shall be required to meet the Basic Skills Requirement. The entity shall  use  the  test results to ensure that, upon admission,  each candidate receives appropriate academic assistance necessary to pass the examination.  Reference: Education Code Sections 44252(f) and 44225(n).

For Internship Programs: In each internship program of professional preparation candidates who are admitted shall be required to meet the Basic Skills Requirement prior to assuming intern administrative responsibilities.  Reference: Education Code Section 44252(b).

The Kremen School of Education and Human Development requires all credential applicants to take the CBEST prior to admission to a program.  Basic Credential programs require a minimum passing score (41) in both the Reading and Writing subtests. All parts of the CBEST must be passed as a condition for enrollment in final student teaching.

For Administrative Services Credentials and Internship Programs, applicants must provide evidence of having passed all parts of the CBEST as a condition of admission.

Students are informed about the requirement through orientations, program applications, and statements in the catalog. Compliance is verified by the Admissions Technician and/or Program Coordinator.

Students who fail to pass all sections of the CBEST have a variety of options available to them for assistance. These options include: academic advising from faculty; student study groups; CBEST preparation manuals and/or classes available Fresno State and surrounding community college sites; and the use of the Office of Services for Disabled Students for testing, instruction and technical support for qualifying students.

(10) Certificate of Clearance.  An entity that operates a program of professional preparation shall not allow a candidate to assume daily student teaching responsibilities or participate in field experience until  a  candidate obtains a Certificate of Clearance from the Commission which verifies the candidate‘s personal identification.  Reference: Education Code Section 44320(d)

For Internship Programs: The Certificate of Clearance must be obtained prior to assuming intern administrative responsibilities.

All basic credential applicants to the KSOEHD are required to verify that they have made application for a Character Identification Clearance as a condition of admission. Proof of a valid Certificate of Clearance or a current credential issued by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing must be verified prior to commencement of field experience responsibilities for any program. Compliance is verified by the Admissions Technician and/or Program Coordinator.

Specific Preconditions Established by the Commission for the
Preliminary Administrative Services Credential

Each program of professional preparation that leads to the issuance of a Preliminary Administrative Services Credential shall adhere continually to the following requirements of California State laws.

(11) Prerequisite Degree and Credential.  An entity that operates a program for the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential shall determine, prior to recommending a candidate for the credential, that the candidate possesses a baccalaureate degree and a valid teaching credential; or a services credential with a specialization in pupil personnel services, library services, health services, or clinical rehabilitative services; or a designated subjects credential and a baccalaureate degree. Statutory basis: Education Code Section 44270(a)(1).

For Internship Programs: An entity that operates a program of preparation for the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential with an Internship shall require each candidate who is admitted into an Internship Program to possess the appropriate prerequisite credential prior to assuming internship administrative responsibilities.  Statutory basis: Education Code Section 44270(a)(1).

Students admitted to Fresno State must qualify for admission to the credential program.   The Graduate Admission requirement for admission states:  " ... a student shall:  (1) have completed a four year course of study and hold an acceptable baccalaureate degree from an institution accredited by a regional accrediting association...".

Applicants for the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential and the Administrative Intern Credential must provide a copy of a basic Teaching Credential as part of the admission process.

(12) Experience Requirement. An entity that operates a program for the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential shall determine, prior to recommending a candidate for the credential, that the candidate has verified experience of a minimum of three years of successful, full-time classroom teaching in public or private schools; or three years of experience appropriate to the services credentials listed in (11) above; or three years of experience with a designated subjects credential.  Statutory basis: Education Code Section 44270(a)(2).

For Internship Programs: An entity that operates a program of preparation for the Preliminary Administrative Services Credential with an Internship shall determine that each candidate who is admitted into an Internship Program has verified experience of a minimum of three years of successful full-time teaching or services as described above prior to assuming internship administrative responsibilities.  Statutory basis: Education Code Section 44270(a)(2).

Preliminary Administrative Credential Program requirement #2 outlined in the general catalog of California State University,  Fresno,  states  that  the candidate must:  ―Verify three years of successful full-time teaching experience or three years of pupil personnel experience in public schools, or in private schools of equivalent status. This is verified by the Admissions Technician and the Program Coordinator as part of the credential application process.‖
 
Admission requirement #4 to become an Administrative Intern indicates that the candidate must provide evidence of three years successful teaching experience. This requirement is verified by the Internship Agreement signed by the intern and the employing district. Additionally, this requirement is verified by the Admissions Technician and the Program Coordinator as part of the credential application process. (Please see Appendix 3, Administrative Fieldwork and Internship Agreement)
 
Preconditions Established in State Law for Internship Programs

For initial and continuing accreditation by the Committee on Accreditation, participating districts and universities must adhere to the following requirements of state law:

Bachelor’s Degree Requirement. Candidates admitted to internship  programs must hold baccalaureate degrees or higher from a regionally  accredited institution of higher education. Reference:  Education Code Section 44453.

Per section 12 above, this requirement is verified by the Admissions Technician and the Program Coordinator as part of the credential application process.

Supervision of Interns.  In an internship program, the participating institutions shall provide supervision of all interns. No intern‘s salary may be reduced by more than 1/8 of its total to pay for supervision, and the salary of the intern shall not be less than the minimum base salary paid to a regularly certificated person.   If the intern salary is reduced, no more than eight interns may be advised by one district support person.  (Reference: Education Code Section 44462.)  Institutions will describe the procedures used in assigning supervisors and, where applicable, the system used to pay for supervision.

The Educational Leadership and Administration Program does not require a reduction of salary of administrative interns.  Supervisors are assigned by the district office of each district and in most cases are the principal or vice-principal of the school in which the administrative intern is
in an administrative position.  The university works with the district to ensure that the supervisor selected has adequate successful experience as an administrator and is cognizant of the demands for intensive support and collaboration during the internship experience.  As noted in the response to question 8 regarding instructor participation, the Educational Leadership and Administration Program assigns intern supervision to faculty members who have had successful experience as an administrator and also have current experience working with administrators in the local school district.  Please see Appendix 3 for the Administrative Fieldwork and Internship Agreement signed by each district and the Educational Leadership and Administration Program. Further information is available in the Candidate Portfolio for Administrative Field Experience/ Administrative Internship and Signature Assignments guide (Appendix 2).

Assignment and Authorization.  To receive approval, the participating institution authorizes the candidates in an internship program to assume the functions that are authorized by the regular standard credential.  (Reference: Education Code Section 44454.)  The institution stipulates that the interns‘ services meet the instructional or service needs of the participating district(s). (Reference: Education Code Section 44458.)

The Educational Leadership and Administration Program utilizes the  agreement mentioned above and also requires the participating school district to prepare and sign two documents: The Administrative Intern Agreement and the Administrative Intern 6-point letter, which may be found in Appendix 4 and Appendix 5. The purpose of these two documents is to further clarify the requirements and responsibilities of the participating school district, the Educational Leadership and Administration Program, and the administrative intern.

Participating Districts. Participating districts are public school districts or county office of education.  Submissions for approval must identify the specific districts involved and the specific credential involved. (Reference: Education Code Section 44321 and 44452.)

Please see the response immediately above referencing two documents which identify the district and the specific credential involved (Appendix 4 and Appendix 5).
 
Specific Preconditions Established by the Commission for Internship Programs

For initial and continuing accreditation, participating districts and universities must adhere to the following requirements established by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing.

Non-Displacement of Certificated Employees. The institution and participating districts must certify that interns do not displace certificated employees in participating districts.

Please see the response immediately above referencing two documents which identify the district and the specific credential involved (Appendix 4 and Appendix 5).

Justification of Internship Program.  Where an institution submits a program for initial and continuing accreditation, it must explain why the internship is being implemented.  Programs that are developed to meet employment shortages must include a statement from the participating district(s) about the availability of qualified certificated persons holding the credential.  The exclusive representative of certificated employees in the credential area (when applicable) is encouraged to submit a written  statement to the Committee on Accreditation agreeing or disagreeing with the justification that is submitted.

The Central Valley of California has many school districts that at one time or another experience shortages of qualified credentialed personnel to take administrative positions.  In 2007, for example, the Educational Leadership and Administration Program had over 30 administrative interns working as administrators throughout the Central Valley while the requirements for the Preliminary Administrative Credential Requirements were being completed.  At present, this number has lowered, partially due to the fact that the Educational Leadership and Administration Program has prepared over 500 educators who hold either the Certificate of Eligibility or the Preliminary or Clear Administrative Services Credential.  Another reason is that school districts in difficult economic times are hiring as few administrators as possible and/or current administrators are not retiring at the normal rate.   In any case, the need remains for large numbers of administrative interns to fill the needs of the over 100 school districts that are served by the Educational Leadership and Administration Program of Fresno State.

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