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Council for the Accreditation of Educator Programs (CAEP)

Ensuring Excellence in Educator Preparation: The Role of CAEP

The Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) is the national accrediting body for educator preparation programs in the United States.

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CAEP’s primary purpose is to ensure that colleges and universities preparing future teachers and education professionals meet rigorous, evidence-based standards of quality. Through accreditation, CAEP promotes excellence in educator preparation by requiring programs to demonstrate effectiveness in candidate knowledge, skills, and professional dispositions, as well as their ability to positively impact student learning.

By holding educator preparation programs accountable to high standards, CAEP helps maintain public trust in the teaching profession and supports continuous improvement in teacher education. Its accreditation process not only assures that programs produce qualified, competent educators but also encourages innovation and responsiveness to the needs of schools, students, and communities. Ultimately, CAEP serves to strengthen the overall quality of education by ensuring that those entering the profession are well-prepared to help all learners succeed.

Measure 1: Completer Effectiveness (R4.1)

Maine does not provide statewide data on PK-12 student learning outcomes. Consequently, UMF uses case studies to assess program completers’ impacts on student learning. All case study participants are UMF graduates who completed their preparation program within the last three years and are currently teaching in Maine schools. Participation is voluntarily, without any form of compensation. During the 2024-25 academic year, eleven teachers participated fully in the case study and included completers from the Special Education (1), Secondary Education (1), World Language Education (3), and Elementary Education (6) programs.

2024-25 Case Study Summary

Areas where UMF’s preparation was impactful:

Measure 2: Satisfaction of Employers and Stakeholder Engagement (R4.2, R5.3)

The Teacher Education Unit’s (TEU) biennial Employer Survey seeks input regarding the scope and effectiveness of candidate preparation for the profession. UMF’s conceptual framework (Caring Teacher – Competent Educator – Collaborative Professional Leader, or C3TEP) provides a scaffold for survey questions and is aligned with Maine’s 11 Common Core Teaching Standards (CCTS).
Employer Survey Summary C3TEP Maine CCTS List
From the last three instances of the Employer Survey (2020, 2022, and 2024):
  • An average of 91% of employer respondents indicated they were Very Satisfied or Satisfied with recent UMF graduates’ overall ability to carry out assigned responsibilities. 
  • An average of 95% of respondents indicated they were Very Satisfied or Satisfied with recent UMF graduates’ overall preparation to be caring teachers (CAEP R1.1; CCTS 1-3). 
  • An average of 87% of respondents indicated they were Very Satisfied or Satisfied with recent UMF graduates’ overall preparation to be competent educators (CAEP R1.2 and R1.3; CCTS 4-8, 11). 
  • An average of 89% of respondents indicated they were Very Satisfied or Satisfied with recent UMF graduates’ overall preparation to be collaborative professional leaders (CAEP R1.4; CCTS 9 and 10).
Written responses from the 2024 Employer Survey indicate that recent program completers demonstrate strengths in:
  • Curriculum and instruction
  • Supporting students’ needs
  • Carrying out their professional responsibilities
  • Lesson planning aligned with standards
  • Establishing positive classroom environments with differentiated instruction to meet all students’ needs
  • Establishing effective collaborative relationships with colleagues

Stakeholder Engagement

Stakeholder engagement with critical partners ensures that UMF’s education programs address regional and state needs, provide co-constructed and mutually beneficial clinical experiences for its students in Maine’s classrooms, and inform the TEU’s efforts to continuously improve.

Education Advisory Council (EAC)

The EAC is composed of regional educators, administrators, non-profit leaders, and TEU administrators and faculty. Twice yearly meetings provide a venue to discuss current issues impacting local schools, uncover emerging preparation needs, and share professional development opportunities.


Partners for Practical Experiences

Through formalized memoranda of understanding, the TEU maintains a vast network of school settings to provide its Education majors valuable clinical experiences throughout their programs. From 2021-24 the TEU worked with 161 PK-12 schools in 75 districts within 14 of Maine’s 16 counties. Early Childhood majors interned in 36 early childhood settings including Head Start, private childcare centers across the state, and at UMF’s early childhood lab school. In 2024-25 alone, 224 UMF students worked with 210 cooperating teachers in 79 practical settings in 40 districts throughout Maine.

Grant-Funded Initiatives

TEU faculty developed multiple grant-funded initiatives which allow UMF to deepen its relationships with local districts and expand partnerships with others around the region. These include:

-New Teacher Academy – training and supporting mentor networks in various school districts to improve new teacher retention
-Learn and Develop (LEAD) Program for Early Childhood Professionals – expanding and diversifying Maine’s early educator workforce
-Early Childhood Education Apprenticeship Program – supporting the city of Portland’s application for an apprenticeship grant and providing coursework as an educational sponsor starting in Fall 2025.

Inclusive Schools Initiative

The Maine Department of Education and UMF are partnering to recruit a cohort of Maine public schools to serve as Inclusive Education Model sites to address shortage areas in special education, build leadership and staff capacity in the field, increase equity, access, and achievement through data-driven decision making, and emphasize inclusive, collaborative delivery of services to the state’s most-marginalized students.

Measure 3: Candidate Competency at Completion (R3.3)

While each program’s requirements vary based on the needs of their field, all candidates must meet a core set of criteria to qualify for program completion and recommendation for state licensure:

-High academic achievement, overall, and in required program coursework
-Evidence of proficiency with aspects of pedagogy and all CAEP/CCTS standards, and
-Satisfactory demonstration of critical dispositions

Valid and reliable TEU-designed assessments provide a data-driven overview of a candidate’s readiness to lead a classroom effectively. Collectively, these rigorous requirements ensure that every graduate meets CAEP and state standards for professional excellence.

High Academic Achievement: Minimum grade requirements in required professional and concentration area coursework ensures that completers demonstrate their understanding of the essential pedagogical content knowledge and content area knowledge that will allow them to be successful in the classroom. UMF Education program completers must have an overall GPA of 2.75 to graduate, a higher standard than any other EPP in the state. The average cumulative GPA for all TEU graduates in 2024-25 was 3.66, with no individual program having a mean cGPA below 3.49.

Proficiency with Standards and Pedagogy: Student teachers demonstrate their pedagogical knowledge and skills, proficiency with CAEP and CCTS standards, and understanding of the professional expectations of the field through the following TEU-designed assessments.

  • Classroom observations such as the Classroom Management Observation Checklist (CAEP R1.1; CCTS 1-3) and the Essential Areas of Teaching instrument (CAEP R1.1 and R1.3; CCTS 1-3, 6-8, 11) measure candidates’ pedagogical and management skills and strategies.
  • Assignments such as the TEU Lesson Plan (CAEP R1.3; CCTS 6-8), the Teacher Work Sample (CAEP R1.3; CCTS 6-8), and the Contextual Factors Analysis (R1.1; CCTS 1-3) demonstrate candidates’ pedagogical and content area knowledge as well as their ability to plan for their diverse students’ needs.
  • Development and presentation of a digital Student Teaching Portfolio allows candidates to creatively document their student teaching experiences and catalogue evidence of their proficiency with all standards.
  • Satisfactory outcomes on the Teacher Candidate and Professional Expectations assessment (CAEP R1.4; CCTS 9 & 10) provides evidence of candidates’ understanding and application of professional and critical dispositions.

Candidates must successfully complete all assignments associated with student teaching to be considered for program completion. Portfolios are evaluated by their assigned field supervisor as well as a second field supervisor who serves as a cross-rater. Once both evaluators determine the candidate has demonstrated proficiency with all 11 CCTS standards, the Director of Field Services submits a final overall evaluation of the Portfolio indicating the candidate has met all requirements for licensure.

Measure 4: Ability of Completers to be Hired

Candidates who complete a UMF Education program meet all state requirements for certification. In other words, 100% of 2024-25 University of Maine at Farmington initial teacher certification program completers met all State of Maine certification requirements upon graduation and qualified for licensure.
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Other College Information

  • College Factual 
  • College Navigator
  • College Scorecard
  • Teaching Salaries in Maine
  • Bureau of Labor Statistics Teacher Salaries

Contact Us

University of Maine at Farmington
111 South Street,
Farmington, Maine USA 04938
207-778-7050
Lawrence Ronco
Lawrence Ronco

Director of Teacher Education Accreditation

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