| 09/11/2023 |
JS and AF meet to discuss: this is a time sensitive project, given NYSED submission deadline of 09/29. JS to complete preliminary review of documents and update AF: are there any major red flags that need to be escalated? How far along is the process are we? |
| 09/11/2023 |
JS updates AF following preliminary review: "Hi Alex, I wanted to provide you with an update on my preliminary review of the MAT documents that Steinhardt sent, based on our meeting this morning. Please see below: Summary: Steinhardt is submitting documents to re-register MAT programs in Inclusive Childhood Education and Secondary Education as official "teacher residency" programs, as now required by NYSED. At the same time, they are updating grade-specific certificates in students with disabilities (SWD) to meet new NYSED requirements for SWD certificates to cover all grades.. NYSED has also ruled that teacher certification for Special Education AKA Students with Disabilities will henceforth be for All Grades, effective 2029. AAA's Notes: I have a few straightforward notes/questions on the documents that I have experience reviewing at this point, i.e. course descriptions, side by sides, graduate program requirements, etc. I do not see any major red flags here though, i.e. this can proceed as a “regular” full review, with the caveat that it be prioritized given the impending submission deadline of 09/29. However, regarding the documents that are new to me, i.e. the Supplement to Add a Residency to a Registered Teacher Preparation Program, the Special SWD AG Only Change Application, and the Special SWD Lit AG Multi-Cert Change Application: There is a section in these documents where NYU must attest that certain curricular requirements are being met in these programs - essentially, sections 50-54 in the Regulations. I don’t believe there is enough in the documents sent by Steinhardt to confirm this - some of this may be in the previous registration of these programs, but we may need to ask Steinhardt to confirm as well. The application explicitly states that “this application includes attestations and assurances affirming an institution’s compliance with program registration standards. If an institution is found to be out of compliance with a standard to which it attested compliance, that finding may lead to denial of: (1) registration or re-registration of the program, pursuant to §52.1(l) of the Regulations, and (2) the ability of the institution to utilize attestations in future applications for program registration.” OAPRA will certainly need to confirm compliance on this before submitting, especially given heightened NYSED scrutiny as of late. AAA's Recommendation: JS to prioritize full review of these documents for compliance by the end of this week and discuss with the Director." |
| 09/29/2023 |
AF submits to NYSED |
| 12/01/2023 |
NYSED reaches out w/ feedback: Good Morning Alexandra: Thank you for your submissions. We are nearing the ability to register the requested changes, mentioned below, for Program ID 38032 MAT in Secondary Education and for Program ID 40814 MAT in Inclusive Childhood Education. Before we can finalize registration, we require evidence to support the following requirement for both programs: (II) School-based teacher educators (SBTE) who work with candidates during the residency shall: (1) be certified in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and (2) have at least three years of full-time teaching experience or the equivalent, in an educational setting, in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and (3) be designated by the school or district as a school-based teacher educator; or be rated effective or highly effective in their most recent annual professional performance review or other evaluation conducted pursuant to section 3012-d of the Education Law or other applicable law and regulation; or hold a national board certificate. We did not find evidence of the above criteria being met in either the sample MOU or within the application narratives. Please note that we found sufficient evidence to support the University-Based Teacher Educators (UBTE) requirement, but little information about the SBTE. Please provide evidence to support the program’s ability to comply with this regulatory requirement (ref. CR §52.21). An email reply is sufficient. If you have questions, please do not hesitate to be in touch. I look forward to your reply. |
| 12/04/2023 |
TW reaches out to Steinhardt w/ NYSED feedback: Dear Colleagues, NYSED has completed their review of the proposals for the MAT in Secondary Education and the MAT in Inclusive Childhood Education. Before they can finalize registration, they require evidence to support the following requirement for both programs: (II) School-based teacher educators (SBTE) who work with candidates during the residency shall: (1) be certified in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and (2) have at least three years of full-time teaching experience or the equivalent, in an educational setting, in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and (3) be designated by the school or district as a school-based teacher educator; or be rated effective or highly effective in their most recent annual professional performance review or other evaluation conducted pursuant to section 3012-d of the Education Law or other applicable law and regulation; or hold a national board certificate. NYSED did not find evidence of the above criteria being met in either the sample MOU or within the application narratives. Please note that they found sufficient evidence to support theUniversity-Based Teacher Educators (UBTE) requirement, but little information about the SBTE. Please provide evidence to support the program’s ability to comply with this regulatory requirement (ref. CR §52.21). An email reply is sufficient. A response is requested by December 18, 2023. |
| 12/21/2023 |
Lindsay responds to NYSED feedback: Jesse, Titilayo, It seems I may have neglected to forward these documents to you following NYSED's latest request about the qualifications of School-based Teacher Educators. Please see below and attached. If you could forward these documents to NYSED today or tomorrow, I'd appreciate it. Apparently NYC Schools and the Department of Labor are waiting for a response on our application from NYSED |
| 12/21/2023 |
JS reviews documents, reaches out to AF and TW: Hi all, Lindsay sent me a GChat message in addition to this email, so I wanted to make sure I reviewed the docs she sent against the NYSED feedback - Lindsay informed me that "The City is waiting for NYSED (actually the Dept of Labor) to release the award and since we are on their application as partners they want to know our timeline." Below is the initial NYSED feedback - the bullet points underneath are language I've located in the teacher mentor selection criteria document sent by Lindsay where the feedback concerns are addressed by NYU: NYSED MATs feedback: (II) School-based teacher educators (SBTE) who work with candidates during the residency shall: (1) be certified in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: “Teaching Mentors must be certified/teaching in the same content area for which the resident is pursuing certification” (2) have at least three years of full-time teaching experience or the equivalent, in an educational setting, in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: must have “At least 3 years of full-time teaching experience” (3) be designated by the school or district as a school-based teacher educator; or be rated effective or highly effective in their most recent annual professional performance review or other evaluation conducted pursuant to section 3012-d of the Education Law or other applicable law and regulation; or hold a national board certificate Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: “Proficient” or “Distinguished” Overall Performance Rating on last evaluation,” and “Recommended by principal” I did let Lindsay know that it is typically the Director who corresponds with NYSED, but I'm happy to reach out if need be. |
| 12/21/2023 |
JS reaches out to AF and TW with additional update via G Chat from Linsday: Hi all, update from Lindsay I just received on this: "Given that we are past the deadline, Frank and I are wondering if you would be willing to call over to the provost office and ask them to give a call to the state about this? We really don’t want to be left unable to run a residency, and unable to participate in the empire fellowship as a result, because of this delay." Alex, would you be able to send my feedback response to NYSED? |
| 12/21/2023 |
AF responds to JS: Jesse, Is Lindsay asking us to call the state or just to submit these documents. I am confused by the difference between the gchat and what you are asking me to do. Has Titilayo reviewed these documents? |
| 12/21/2023 |
JS responds: She is just asking to submit the docs to the state. My response has not been reviewed - I can let Lindsay know we will send the response when we return on the 3rd as well. |
| 12/21/2023 |
AF responds: Please forward me the NYSED email chain so that I may respond. I am looping Amy in for FYI |
| 12/22/2023 |
AF reaches out to NYSED (Sarah Everleth) w/ NYU responds to feedback: Dear Sarah, Thank you for reaching out with your request for feedback. My sincerest apologies for the delay! I have attached to this email the NYU Teacher Mentor Qualification criteria, which is used for both of the programs in question. Below we have excerpted the portions of that document that demonstrate NYU's compliance with the NYSED MAT standards outlined in your last email. Please let us know if we can provide any additional information to help support these program's speedy approval. Best wishes, Alexandra Forrester Director of Strategy, Academic Assessment and Accreditation Office of Academic Program Review & Assessment New York University ____ NYU Responses to NYSED Request: (II) School-based teacher educators (SBTE) who work with candidates during the residency shall: (1) be certified in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and NYU Response: Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: “Teaching Mentors must be certified/teaching in the same content area for which the resident is pursuing certification” (2) have at least three years of full-time teaching experience or the equivalent, in an educational setting, in the subject area of certification sought by the teacher candidate or in a related area; and NYU Response: Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: must have “At least 3 years of full-time teaching experience.” (3) be designated by the school or district as a school-based teacher educator; or be rated effective or highly effective in their most recent annual professional performance review or other evaluation conducted pursuant to section 3012-d of the Education Law or other applicable law and regulation; or hold a national board certificate NYU Response: Requirement stated in NYU TR Selection Criteria: “Proficient” or “Distinguished” Overall Performance Rating on last evaluation,” and “Recommended by principal” |
| 12/22/2023 |
AF reaches out to NYSED w/ follow up concerns: Hi Sarah, I have just left you a voicemail to try and touch base on this, but I wanted to follow up to give you some context on a time sensitive situation we are facing related to receiving approvals for these MAT programs. We were unaware until yesterday that NYC DOE's eligibility for US Department of Labor funding is being held up waiting for NYSED's recertification of our NYU programs, as we are listed as an institutional partner on the NYC DOE's application for an Empire grant for teacher residency programs. We've just learned that the Department of Labor is waiting for NYU's approval from NYSED in order to make the award announcement, and we are concerned that further delay may jeopardize this application for funding for both the NYC DOE and for NYU. Any support that you can provide to help us receive approval as quickly as possible would be greatly appreciated and please let us know if there is anything at all that we can do to help. Thank you and happy holidays! |
| 12/22/2023 |
AF summarizes concerns for Diana and Amy: Hi Amy and Diana, I have touched base with you both and am following up via email with a progress summary at Amy's request. As a quick summary, Steinhardt has missed a NYC DOE/US Department of Labor Deadline due to an internal mistake around submitting a response to NYSED on their MAT recertification (NOTE: they have not missed any NYSED deadlines, and these NYC DOE and US DOL deadlines are outside of our knowledge and purview). Here is Steinhardt's summary of the impact: We are listed as an institutional partner on the NYC DOE's application for an Empire grant for teacher residency programs. We've just learned that the Department of Labor is waiting for NYU's approval from NYSED in order to make the award announcement, and we are concerned that further delay may jeopardize this application for funding for both the NYC DOE and for NYU. Obviously, this is highly sensitive due to NYC DOE and US DOL involvement, in addition to NYSED involvement. With Amy's approval, I have both called and emailed the NYSED reviewer (see below) but I have not heard back. There is added difficulty due to the holiday season. Please let me know if it makes sense for me to pursue additional avenues today (EX: contacting govnt affairs, trying to get a different NYSED OCUE Ed representative or manager on the phone, etc) or if we should leave things. Thank you!! |
| 12/22/2023 |
Diana responds: Thank you for the update, Alex, and all you are doing to help Steinhardt with this. I'm adding Kyle Kimball and Steve Heuer. Kyle, Steve any advice about this delicate situation (see below)? Not sure there is much we can do at this point until January, given the timing, but appreciate your advice nonetheless, for any action NYU could take now and/or first thing in January. |
| 12/22/2023 |
Steven Heuer responds: Hello Diana -- I am happy to try to help. Our state consultant, Manatt, has had some success over the years helping push the SED on approvals. Although, as you know, that agency does not move very quickly... This long email chain is confusing. Are you able to send me a paragraph or two that I can use to put together an email to Manatt with the details, including exactly what we are asking SED to do/approve? Not sure if anything can be done until after the New Year, but I can try. |
| 12/22/2023 |
JS summarizes proposals for Steven, per AF's request: On 09/29/2023, OAPRA submitted two Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) proposals to NYSED from Steinhardt: an MAT in Inclusive Childhood Education, and an MAT in Secondary Education. The first objective was to re-register both programs as “Teacher Residency” programs, as newly required by NYSED. Second, to update grade-specific certificates in students with disabilities (SWD) to meet new NYSED requirements for SWD certificates to cover all grades. NOTE: there was a NYC DOE deadline of 09/29/2023 to submit these changes. On 12/01, NYSED responded to NYU with feedback on the proposals, requesting NYU to provide evidence of qualifications for school-based educators, which NYU responded to on 12/22 when we were made aware that we had missed a NYC DOE/US Department of Labor Deadline. NYU is listed as an institutional partner on the NYC DOE's application for an Empire grant for teacher residency programs and the Department of Labor is waiting for NYU's approval from NYSED in order to make the award announcement. We are concerned that further delay may jeopardize this application for funding for both the NYC DOE and for NYU. OAPRA subsequently reached out to NYSED on 12/22 to alert them of the time-sensitive nature involved in completing their review of NYU’s submissions. NYSED OCUE Associate in Higher Education Sarah Eveleth has kindly responded and let us know that she is working quickly to finalize the registration. |
| 12/22/2023 |
Sarah Everleth (NYSED) responds to AF: Thank you for reaching out. Apologies for missing your call. I will prioritize the processing of the registration, as requested. Please stay tuned! |
| 12/27/2023 |
NYSED approves proposal |
| 01/03/2024 |
JS notifies Steinhardt of approval |