WINTER 2001

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Thoughtful, knowledgeable, and effective educators for a diverse society

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NCATE Accreditation Granted

Having demonstrated its commitment to producing quality teachers for the nation's children, Western Washington University's Woodring College of Education has received re-accreditation from the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE).

According to NCATE officials, Woodring College is one of 46 schools or colleges of education that received either initial or continuing accreditation by its Unit Accreditation Board in the most recent round of decisions. Nationwide, NCATE accredits 516 institutions; these institutions produce two-thirds of the nation's new teacher graduates.

During the exit meeting, Phil Chinn, chair of the visiting accreditation team, indicated to Woodring representatives and President Karen Morse that, in his many years of serving on NCATE review teams, he has rarely seen an institution receive a review as positive as the one Woodring received. "Woodring College displayed an outstanding picture on educational excellence," said Chinn.

"It was an extremely positive report," said Dean Marvin Klein. "We are obviously pleased at this kind of affirmation of our convictions about our quality."

The following were cited as positive attributes of Woodring programs:

• Woodring's relationship with departments, programs, and departments outside the college. Teacher education faculty being housed in these departments increases the strength of the academic component and knowledge of subject matter.
• Woodring's outreach efforts, particularly the off-campus programs in Everett, Bremerton, and Seattle.
• Use of technology in curriculum delivery and faculty mastery of technological methods. Woodring's full technical support unit within the college is not typical of schools of education.
• The balance between research and teaching, which is more likely to be found in a larger state university than in the typical regional university.  

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