Professional Preparation and Partnerships

Mission

Welcome to the Office of Professional Preparation and Partnerships in The College of Education and Human Development (COEHD). The COEHD is committed to preparing culturally efficacious educators and professionals, who are knowledgeable, community-based, and professional. We invite you to review the COEHD’s Culturally Efficacious Agents of Change Conceptual Framework, which demonstrates our pledge to diversity, as well as educational and social justice. 

Office of Professional Preparation and Partnerships Goals: To increase candidate diversity and success as well as provide oversight of our accredited programs. These two goals are aligned with UTSA’s Bold Destination One of becoming a Model for Student Success with the COEHD’s Mission, Vision, and Core Values.

UTSA COEHD ranks third statewide in the production of Latino teachers. Recognitions include NCTQ and Discover Early Childhood Education.

About Professional Preparation and Partnerships

At UTSA, we are committed to our school district partners throughout the San Antonio area. Our teacher candidates have the opportunity to develop their skills, gain experience, and even make mistakes while learning from experienced professionals.  Our teacher candidates develop networks and are exposed to potential employers so that when they enter the classroom, they are ready from the first day.  Our highly recruited teacher candidates are employed in school districts across the State of Texas and beyond. 

The Texas Education Agency reports that our five-year teacher retention rate is above the state average. Our diverse teacher candidates are well-prepared to work with diverse students, including English Learners and special populations; and are prepared to integrate technology into their practices.
Our Certification Center sees each student as an individual with a unique set of goals. Our mission is to help students realize their goals in a timely manner by providing accurate information and the necessary support to fulfill UTSA degree requirements and State Board for Educator Certification (SBEC) teacher certification requirements. Students are encouraged to initiate and maintain contact with an academic advisor in the Education Center in order to stay informed of certification and graduation requirements. 

 

Pride Points

  • State Board of Education/Texas Education Agency recognition as Innovative Educator Preparation Program (1 of 2 programs recognized)
  • Texas Education Agency recognition as a Vetted Residency Program (1 of 15 programs)
  • National Council for Teacher Quality recognized our representative diverse teacher production and early literacy.​
  • Discover Early Childhood Education acknowledged that we are among the Top 65 best colleges in producing EC-Elementary and a diverse pool of teachers. ​

 

Professional Preparation

The OPPP supports students pursuing certification and licensure by overseeing accredited programs, and by creating and sustaining partnerships with school districts, community and business entities, hospitals, and other industries. 

If you are interested in pursuing a degree or certificate that leads to certification and/or licensure, please follow these links:

 

Educator Preparation (Certification) and Licensure Programs Offered

 

Educator Certification

  • Undergraduate (60+ Hours) (initial)
  • Bilingual & ESL specialists

Accelerated Certification (Post-Bac)

  • Completed Baccalaureate in another field (computer science, Math, English, etc.)
  • Secondary (7-12 Grade) (computer science, Math, English Language Arts, etc.
  • All level (Art, Music, PE, special Ed.)

Graduate & Professional

  • Master's Degree with Teacher Certification
  • School Counselor, Reading Specialist, Principal, Superintendent
  • Master's degree + Bilingual and ESL Generalists

Advanced Professional

  • Certification & Licensure
  • Behavior Analyst, Professional Counselor, School Psychologist, Dietetics

Partnerships

The OPPP supports UTSA’s Bold Futures Initiative and COEHD’s partnership initiatives for optimizing opportunities, transforming lives, and creating endless possibilities for learners, faculty, staff, and community alike. The OPPP ensures that our students and graduates have the appropriate preparation and field practice experiences for attaining their respective certification and/or licensure as well as that our graduates achieve their career/employment goals. Developing and sustaining educational partnerships with school districts, community and business entities, clinics, hospitals, and others are key in supporting the preparation of our students. 

Accreditation

In addition to UTSA’s Southern Association Accreditation of Colleges and Schools (SACS), the COEHD is proud to have several national and/or state-accredited programs that demonstrate that we are meeting, or exceeding standards required for certification and/or licensure. In selecting your program of study leading to certification and/or licensure, we want you to feel confident that you will meet the required standards. Figure 1 provides an overview of the various accreditations (or verified sequences) that are offered in COEHD: 

Accreditations

Department

Level
Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) Counseling Graduate
Educator Preparation Program (Texas Education Agency and Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board)

Educational Leadership and Policy Studies 

Bicultural-Bilingual Studies

Counseling

Interdisciplinary Learning and Teaching

 Undergraduate / Graduate
National Association for Early Childhood (NAEYC) ILT: Early Childhood and Elementary Education Graduate
National Association of School Psychology (NASP) Educational Psychology Graduate

  

OTHER CREDENTIALING (Verified/Recognized Programs)

Department

Level
Association for Behavior Analysis International (BCBA; Verified Course Sequence) Educational Psychology (ABA certificate) Graduate
Association for Behavior Analysis International (BCBA; Verified Course Sequence) Educational Psychology (Behavior Analysis) Graduate
International Literacy Association National Recognition with Distinction ILT: Reading Specialist Graduate
Urban School Leaders Collaborative Educational Leadership and Policy Studies Graduate

 

Office of Professional Preparation and Partnerships

UTSA Main Campus
MB 3.310
210-458-5818

College of Education and Human Development
Main Building | One UTSA Circle | San Antonio, TX 78249
Phone: 210-458-4370 | education@utsa.edu