Northern Michigan University’s Educator Preparation Program has gained reaccreditation for seven years from the Michigan Department of Education (MDE). Northern will continue to recommend those who complete the program for state certification.

The MDE identified several strengths of NMU’s program. These include use of peer-reviewed research to test the program claims in relation to national and state standards; procedures that reflect deeply rooted clinical partnerships with PK12 schools, intermediate school districts, math and science centers and non-profit agencies; and the use of data to develop grants and strategies to address shortages for hard-to-fill positions in rural school settings. 

A focus for the NMU program over the next several years will be to recruit and support of diverse teacher candidates. The goal coincides with the university's strategic plan.

 “The success of our program is deeply rooted in the quality of the students and professional educators populating every K12 school used to develop our teacher candidates,” said Joe Lubig, associate dean of NMU’s School of Education, Leadership and Public Service. “Over its 118-year history, our program has been able to evolve and advance because our alumni, students, staff, K12 partners and faculty have given us actionable, meaningful feedback. All of our stakeholders realize that working with children is complex. They realize that the better NMU is as a teacher preparation program, the better our children will be as contributing, happy and engaged members of society.”

NMU was one of four Michigan institutions that partnered with the Michigan Department of Education to pilot new national standards. After its onsite and offsite review of data and performance measures against those standards, the MDE approved NMU's reaccreditation. The university’s next required accreditation site visit must occur by Dec. 31, 2024.

For more information, contact Lubig at 227-1880 or jlubig@nmu.edu.