Procedures and Standards for Approval and Accreditation of Professional Education Programs in Missouri

PURPOSE: The State Board of Education is authorized to grant certificates of license to be a professional educator in any of the public schools of the state and establish requirements and qualifications for those certificates. This rule provides procedures and standards for approval and accreditation of educator preparation programs in Missouri. PUBLISHER’S NOTE: The secretary of state has determined that publication of the entire text of the material that is incorporated by reference as a portion of this rule would be unduly cumbersome or expensive. This material as incorporated by reference in this rule shall be maintained by the agency at its headquarters and shall be made available to the public for inspection and copying at no more than the actual cost of reproduction. This note applies only to the reference material. The entire text of the rule is printed here. (1) Missouri Standards for the Preparation of Educators (MoSPE). (A) Educator preparation programs in Missouri shall be approved and accredited according to the Missouri Standards for the Preparation of Educators (MoSPE) (June 2020), hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this rule, as published by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Educator Preparation, PO Box 480, Jefferson City, MO 651020480, and available at its website at https://dese.mo.gov/ educator-quality/educator-preparation/mo-standards-preparation-educators and at https://dese.mo.gov/governmental-affairs/dese-administrative-rules/incorporated-reference-materials. This rule does not incorporate any subsequent amendments or additions. (B) Beginning September 30, 2023, educator preparation programs in Missouri shall be approved and accredited according to the Missouri Standards for the Preparation of Educators (MoSPE) (May 2023), hereby incorporated by reference and made a part of this rule, as published by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Educator Preparation, PO Box 480, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0480, and available at its website at https://dese.mo.gov/educator-quality/educator-preparation/mostandards-preparation-educators and at https://dese.mo.gov/governmental-affairs/dese-administra tive-rules/incorporated-reference-materials. This rule does not incorporate any subsequent amendments or additions. (2) For the purpose of this rule, the official definition for all terms will be those articulated in MoSPE unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. (3) Initial Provider Approval. (A) An educational entity seeking initial approval to offer educator preparation programs and to recommend successful completers of those programs for certification in the state of Missouri shall submit an application portfolio to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (department). Requests to offer initial teacher preparation and advanced educator preparation programs must be submitted separately. Applications portfolios should include the following elements: 1. A completed department-approved application form declaring the level (e.g., initial or advanced) and specific programs the entity is requesting authority to offer. The list of programs should denote the type—traditional or alternative—of each intended program; 2. A letter of authorization to offer postsecondary programming in Missouri or a current certificate to operate from the state department overseeing higher education; 3. An attestation that entity is in full good standing in every state in which it is currently offering educator preparation programs (e.g., not on probation); 4. A description of the administrative structure of the proposed provider to include, at a minimum— A. Individual responsible for all programs offered by the entity (e.g., dean, unit leader); B. Individual responsible for submitting recommendations for certification and who will serve as the primary contact with the department on issues related to certification (e.g., certification officer); C. Individual who will serve as the primary contact with the department on issues related to field experiences (e.g., director of clinical experiences); D. Individual who will serve as the primary contact with the department on issues related to the continuous improvement processes of the entity, including but not limited to the Annual Performance Reports for Educator Preparation Providers (e.g., assessment director); 5. A description of the entity’s plan for supervising clinical experiences, including student teaching in Missouri public schools; 6. A description of the entity’s plan to develop lasting collaborative partnerships with at least some Missouri local educational agencies; 7. Documented evidence of the entity’s history of preparing effective educators. If the applying entity has no previous experience with educator preparation, evidence of success with another professional preparation program that includes some sort of clinical experiences may be submitted; 8. Evidence of appropriate curriculum. For each proposed certification program (e.g., Elementary Education, Mathematics (9-12)), the following documents must be submitted: A. A matrix, submitted on a department-approved form, indicating the course(s) to be used to meet each of the certification requirements; and B. An official university syllabus for each course listed on the matrix; and 9. An attestation, signed by the entity’s chief academic officer, that the institution understands, and agrees to abide by, all statutes and regulations that apply to educator preparation in Missouri, including but not limited to the Missouri Standards for the Preparation of Educators (MoSPE) and the Rules of the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. (B) After review, the department will recommend to the State Board of Education (board) that the application should be approved or denied. The board will determine whether or not the applying entity will be granted the authority to provide educator preparation in Missouri. (C) The authority to provide initial teacher preparation and advanced educator preparation will be granted separately. (D) Approved providers are only authorized to offer programs that have been explicitly approved by the department and, as appropriate, the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development. (E) Should a Missouri-approved educator preparation provider wish to add a specific preparation program in an area of certification not previously approved, the following documents must be submitted to the department: 1. A completed department-provided application form indicating the certification areas the provider would like to add; 2. A matrix, submitted on a department-approved form, indicating the course(s) to be used to meet each of the certification requirements; and 3. An official university syllabus for each course listed on the matrix. (4) Accreditation. (A) Upon receiving initial approval, an educator preparation provider must annually submit data consistent with the rules and regulations promulgated by the board. These and other available data are used by the department to generate annual performance reports. (B) The commissioner shall review the annual performance reports and may request additional information before recommendations are made to the board. (C) Based upon a review of available information, the commissioner shall recommend to the board that an educator preparation provider be accredited, provisionally accredited, or unaccredited. 1. In addition to data provided by annual performance reports, any failure to comply with the rules promulgated by the board, and the guidelines developed by the department to execute those rules, may also inform the commissioner’s recommendation. 2. The commissioner shall not recommend the removal of accreditation of providers not afforded an opportunity for a hearing according to the provisions of Chapter 536, RSMo. (D) Informed by the commissioner’s recommendation, the board will annually make an accreditation determination of accredited, provisionally accredited, or unaccredited, for each educator preparation provider in Missouri, with decisions about initial teacher preparation and advanced educator preparation being made separately. (E) The commissioner may authorize an interim review of an educator preparation program in accordance with the rules and regulations promulgated by the board. As a result of the review, and upon the recommendation of the commissioner, the board may revoke the approval and accreditation thereby removing an educator preparation program’s authorization to recommend candidates for certification. (F) Should the board remove accreditation from any educator preparation provider, the commissioner shall notify the program of the decision and inform the educator preparation provider with reasons for the decision. AUTHORITY: sections 161.092 and 161.099, RSMo 2016, and section 161.097, RSMo Supp. 2024.* Original rule filed Aug. 28, 2012, effective March 30, 2013. Amended: Filed March 20, 2020, effective Oct. 30, 2020. Amended: Filed Feb. 9, 2023, effective Sept. 30, 2023. Amended: Filed March 4, 2025, effective Sept. 30, 2025. *Original authority: 161.092, RSMo 1963, amended 1973, 2002, 2003, 2013, 2014; 161.097, RSMo 1985, amended 2014, 2022; and 161.099, RSMo 1993.