Dr. Alicia Cotabish, assistant professor of Teaching and Learning in the College of Education, has been appointed to a 3-year term on the highly selective Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) Standards Committee. The Nominating Committee reviewed over 300 applications, granting only 25 applicants this unprecedented opportunity to truly shape CAEP as the new accrediting body for education preparation.
CAEP’s mission is to advance excellence in educator preparation through evidence-based accreditation that assures quality and supports continuous improvement to strengthen P-12 student learning. More than 900 educator preparation providers participate in the CAEP accreditation system. Educator preparation providers include traditional institutions of higher education, as well as alternative pathways such as residency programs.
Dr. Cotabish also serves as 2013-2015 President of the Arkansas Association of Gifted Education Administrators (AAGEA) and as the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) Specialized Professional Association (SPA) representative for CAEP. Beginning in the fall of 2015, CAEP will have a new process in place along with revised national standards for the elementary level. Dr. Cotabish along with Susan Johnsen (Baylor University), Jennifer Jolly (Louisiana State University), and Ann Robinson (University of Arkansas at Little Rock) will be authoring a companion NAGC CAEP SPA book to guide universities through NAGC/CEC SPA accreditation. Sample assessments, accreditation criteria, and best practices will be included. The College of Education is honored to have our distinguished faculty shape the national landscape in CAEP Spa Accreditation and in the field of gifted education.