Accreditation and Performance Data
AAQEP Accreditation
Pace University School of Education is a proud member of the Association for Advancing Quality in Educator Preparation (AAQEP). AAQEP is an accreditation organization for educator preparation programs founded in 2017 to promote the preparation of effective educators by way of innovative, outcomes-focused programs that engage education’s toughest challenges, directly and in context. AAQEP’s comprehensive standards for educator preparation examine and verify an institution’s performance and level of excellence in program practices. Qualifying institutions are awarded AAQEP national accreditation.
Impact On Birth-12 Learning And Development
In support of ongoing, student-learning impact and growth, Pace University School of Education applies multiple measures to assess completer impact. Results from these measures are compiled, analyzed and shared with faculty and staff over the course of the year by way of systematized, informed decision-making cycles. The significant amount of data derived from these analyses includes data from multiple employer sources, completer survey data, alumni survey data, test scores and completion rates of State licensure examinations, GPA data, enrollment data, retention data, and graduation data. Measures of program impact are derived through data-collecting systems designed by the School of Education and data that is shared through its institutional partnerships.
Information resulting from the analysis of these data is formally reviewed at the School of Education’s Data Days, which are faculty-driven meetings that occur twice a year to analyze completer impact data, identify opportunities for improvement and maintain quality assurance levels.
Key partners of the School of Education include the Teacher Education Advisory Board (TEAB), a committee comprised Pace delegates and teachers, principals and district superintendents representing the City of New York. The intent of the TEAB is to collaborate on program review and program quality as it relates to the city’s standards on education, diversity and social justice. Results from the School of Education’s Data Days are also shared with TEAB so that completer impact findings and identified opportunities for improvement can be communicated and leveraged to institutions across the district.
The Program Impact Faculty Working Group, dedicated to the cyclical analysis and quality improvement of program impact, designed the existing alumni surveys (now systematically being deployed), along with designing an employer outreach initiative, and a revised pilot of alumni focus groups as per the Program Impact Working Group’s 2019-2020 targets and goals.
In support of completer-conducted action research, a 2019 initiative by the Program Impact Faculty Working Group piloted the use of the Common 13 with alumni through efforts conducted by the team’s graduate assistant, a student in the EDG 620 Teacher as Researcher course. The student wrote her Master's paper on using the Common 13 Rubric to observe Pace alumni teachers in the field as part of her capstone. The pilot was constructed to validate the rubric, as well as to test out different ways to engage pre-service candidates using the Common 13 rubric whilst engaging with alumni on the impact of student learning.
Additionally, in February 2020 Pace alumni completers were contacted and invited to participate in a survey to share their thoughts on completer program impact. The vast majority of the survey responses confirmed effective completer preparation (85%). Opportunities for continued programmatic improvements are being planned for critical thinking, problem-solving, edTPA support, and fieldwork internships.
Finally, the School of Education is honored to be a significant and long-standing partner of the New York City Department of Education since 1997. The School of Education is currently collaborating with the NYCDOE on three separate and distinct New York City teacher partnership programs: Teaching Fellows, The Teaching Collaborative, and the Coalition for NYC Teacher Preparation. The collective goal of these teacher preparation programs is to support completer impact by strengthening the most difficult-to-staff schools and communities across the five boroughs of New York City that have been marginalized by race, ethnicity, language, and other systemic inequalities.
Indicators Of Teaching Effectiveness
Activities on P-12 student perception surveys include a study that was conducted in Fall 2020 on the classroom fieldwork experiences and an innovative tutoring program developed jointly by the Ossining School District and Pace School of Education. Of the 26 Undergraduate fieldwork students surveyed, 77% of them worked with classroom teachers and Ossining students remotely and 58% responded that they would be willing to tutor Ossining students next semester. The teacher completers provided valuable feedback and recommendations on best practices and opportunities for improvement, demonstrating the professional knowledge, skills, and dispositions learned as part of their preparation programs at Pace.
As a means of continuous improvement, the Dispositions Working Group conducted online reliability training for the entire faculty on Dispositions Assessment in January 2019. As a follow up to the training, a policy was developed as a set of guiding principles for monitoring candidate quality, and for monitoring progression throughout a students’ coursework and practicum.
Completer/Exit Survey: Led by the Program Impact Faculty Working Group, a completer/exit survey was distributed to teachers prepared by the School of Education in Spring 2019. Seventy-five percent (75%) of the survey results revealed strong satisfaction levels on readiness to enter the workforce upon completion of their studies. Areas that were ranked with particularly high marks (i.e. Strongly Agree) include relevancy of instruction as it pertains to their fieldwork, mentoring they received from their clinical supervisor and overall quality of their practicum. The School of Education has embarked on a multi-phased initiative to continue to improve edTPA preparation.
GPA Data: School of Education completers graduated with a 3.83 average GPA across all of its programs in 2019. GPA graduation scores in the Trans B Special Education Generalist program and in the Early Childhood Development program ranked particularly high at 3.82 and 3.94 respectively. These culminating grade point averages demonstrate a high level of quality in teacher preparedness and readiness to enter the workforce.
Results Of Employer Surveys, And Including Retention And Employment Milestones
Employer Information - NYC School Principals Survey: The New York City Department of Education shared the results of their 2018-2019 School Principals Survey, outlining the NYC employer's perspective on the impact and quality of Pace University’s Teaching Fellows cohorts. Survey results were conducted by cohort and ranked using a rating of 1 to 5, five being the highest score possible.
Employer survey results revealed significantly high rankings in the Classroom Environment domain, specifically in the areas of managing student behavior and managing classroom procedures, which came in at a cumulative 4.05 out of 5. The lowest rankings for Pace completers were in the area of using questions and discussion techniques in the classroom, which achieved an average survey result of 3.69 out of 5. At the January Data Day, faculty identified this as an area for curriculum mapping to strengthen pre-service preparation. It was discussed that critical thinking and assessment would be targeted as opportunities for improvement in Y2020-2021.
Employer Information - Ossining School District: The Ossining School District continues to be a strong employer of Pace University graduates. In January 2020, the School of Education was contacted by the Superintendent of the Ossining School District, to proactively request and secure new teacher completers that are graduating in May, for immediate employment. Additionally, a career fair was jointly organized by the Ossining School District and the School of Education. Held on February 24, Y2020 upcoming teacher completers were given the opportunity to meet Superintendent in person and to discuss upcoming opportunities for employment in Spring 2020.
Results Of Completer Surveys
Blue Course Evaluations
At the end of each semester, students are given the opportunity to share satisfaction levels and provide feedback on the quality of their courses, instructors and instructor-led learning. For the 2018-2019 academic year, student rankings averaged 4.52 out of 5 across all programs, with particularly high ranking scores on fairness of assessments, critical and creative thought, instructor level of expertise, and high-quality program standards.
Alumni Survey
Led by the Program Impact Faculty Working Group, Pace alumni completers were contacted in February 2020 and invited to submit a survey on their program experience for the purposes of gaging teacher preparation effectiveness. While the vast majority of the responses confirmed effective completer preparation (85%), programmatic changes are being planned to improve critical thinking and problem-solving, edTPA support, and fieldwork internships.
Graduation Rates From Programs
Retention Rates: Retention rates for 2018 increased 10.6% from the previous year for the School of Education’s Pleasantville campus, and is currently at 94%. The New York City campus retention rate for 2018 is 72%, also up 4.1% from the previous year.
As a means of supporting retention, the School of Education employs a course called University 101 for all freshmen, which has been established to introduce students to various learning resources in and outside of the university. The course also serves as a platform for student discussions on wellness, counseling services, drug and alcohol abuse, and sexual assault. In the Fall of 2019, students from the School of Education’s University 101 course at the Pleasantville campus enjoyed two field trips: A visit to the Roosevelt School in Ossining, and a trip to the Jacob Burns Media Arts Lab. The purpose of these field trips was to introduce the students to these learning environments (school and media literacy) as part of their K-12 teacher preparation. On the New York City campus, Pace High School students visited the campus and attended several University 101 sessions to learn about student life, SOE academic programs and courses. Through a blended, inclusionary community model, a strong student rapport was developed as a result of the many experiences, discussions, and projects that were shared.
Graduation Rates: Graduation figures for this year show an 88% graduation rate for Graduate degree completers for AY2018-2019. Several programs, including Bilingual Education, Childhood and Special Needs, Educational Leadership, Educational Technology Studies, Inclusive Adolescent Education, Integrated Instruction on Literacy and Technology, Literacy, School District Business Leader, and Special Education for Adolescents with Disabilities reflect a 100% graduation rate. Undergraduate degree graduations this year reflect an average 85% graduation rate across both campuses, (94% for the Pleasantville campus, and 72% for the New York City campus).
Graduation Data: There were 261 students that graduated Pace School of Education in 2019 across both of its campuses. New York City graduate-level graduates are by far the largest cohort of the overall graduating class, accounting for 76% of all graduates for the 2018-2019 academic year.
- Pace University Facts and Figures / Census Reports
- Pace University Office of Planning, Assessment, and Institutional Research (OPAIR)
Enrollment Figures by campus (Data source Census Reports):
Ability Of Completers To Meet Licensing (Certification) And Any Additional State Requirements
edTPA: Findings show that, despite the decreasing trend and nationwide shortage of teachers, the number of Pace completer edTPA exam applications has been steadily increasing at a 6% rate since 2017. A total of 254 Pace completers took the New York State edTPA in 2019, registering a pass rate of 79%.
Further analysis has revealed that the areas of assessment and critical thinking are areas of opportunity for improvement. As a result, programs have been tasked with additional review and mapping how these areas are taught throughout the curriculum.
Select edTPA rubric and score analysis:
Analyzing these trends have led to programmatic changes across several edTPA fronts: Prior to Pace University’s move to distance learning (as a result of the COVID-19 crisis), workshops for Teaching Fellows had been held to provide an introduction and overview of the edTPA. Also this year, in-class visitations were conducted to answer questions and encourage a systematic approach to completing the assessment. Seminars for traditional candidates on both campuses were meeting weekly to provide support.
In collaboration with St. John’s University School of Education, progress is being made in the development of online modules for integration into required courses for the Teaching Fellows cohort. These modules include PowerPoint presentations and videos that are intended to walk candidates through the end-to-end process of completing the edTPA. The plan is to have these new, edTPA modules completed by summer and integrated into their corresponding courses for use by Fall 2020.
Ability Of Completers To Be Hired In Education Positions For Which They Are Prepared
Employer Survey from the Mid-Hudson School Study Council (MHSSC): Pace teachers are highly sought-after in lower New York State. The Mid-Hudson School Study Council, another key partner of the School of Education, is a coalition of school board members, administrators, teachers, pupils, and laypersons in educational planning whose focus is to bring about improvement in education for the school districts in Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester counties of New York State.
Every year, the Mid-Hudson School Study Council sends out a survey to all of the school principals in each of these counties. An analysis, led by the Program Impact Faculty Working Group at the January Data Day, revealed that Pace teachers rank higher than the combined county average in 25 of the 30 core criteria defined, which includes Teacher Preparedness, Teacher Quality and Collaboration. The criteria for Use of Data ranked exceptionally high with a ranking of 4 out of 4, a significantly higher indicator than the combined county average of 3.58.
Pace University Career Services Data and Findings: Pace University’s Career Services Department conducted an employment review of 2018-2019 teacher completers, which revealed that 86% of Bachelor degree completers are either employed or continuing their education (12 out of 14 students). Master degree completers, totaling 219 teachers, show that 98% of these teachers are currently employed. There are three certificate-only completers, all of which are currently employed. All of the employed Pace completers are employed in the five boroughs of New York City with the exception of two teachers, who are employed in Montgomery County in Upstate New York. The largest concentration of these new teachers are employed in Manhattan (29%), Brooklyn (22%) and the Bronx (21%).
Student Loan Default Rates And Other Consumer Information
Enrollment Rates: In AY2018-2019, the total number of new distinct students enrolled was 417, down 7% from the previous year’s enrollment count of 446. Over the past four years, a trend of progressively lower enrollment has been observed, averaging a decline of approximately 3% since 2015. As a result of this observation, an analysis of the School’s existing program offerings is currently underway, together with an initiative for faculty to investigate and explore new programs and courses to offer that students would find appealing and valuable.
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Contact Information
Erika Altolaguirre
Assessment and Planning
Email: ealtolaguirre@pace.edu