The University of Missouri-Rolla’s Teacher Education Program will continue to prepare students to become professional educators, thanks to a recent decision by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE).

The state department voted to recertify UMR’s program through October 2010 in eight areas: biology, chemistry, English, math, physics, social sciences (history, psychology and economics), as well as the add-on certification areas of elementary and middle school.

The department’s decision was based on a site visit in March 2005. Dr. Mike Lucas, director of DESE’s educator preparation department, and a six-person team from other higher education institutions spent five days at UMR evaluating the programs. The effort was made with the cooperation of UMR’s eight departments, administrators, support staff and teacher education.

DESE also noted that UMR has the highest test scores in the state on the CBASE and Praxis test.

“I attended the meeting in Jefferson City and the state board was very complimentary of our program,” says Dr. Eva Lee Lasater, coordinator of UMR’s teacher education program. “It was a nice report, but more important that we continue the high quality program to prepare pre-service teachers for the elementary and secondary education.

“The cooperation of the public schools within a 30-mile radius of the campus are a supportive part of our success too. Our students are out to the schools observing during their freshman year and culminate their degree and certification by spending the last semester in the schools for student teaching.”

For more information about UMR’s teacher certification program, contact Lasater at (573) 341-4692.