Union University’s School of Education has been rated in the highest possible category on the Tennessee State Board of Education’s report card on the effectiveness of teacher training programs for the third year in a row.

The report card, which was implemented in its current version in 2015, is designed to give educator preparation programs information they can use to improve effectiveness. Union is one of only two schools in Tennessee to have received a score of four three times.

“This gives us a good long-range picture of our students’ success,” said Mandy Cates, director for accreditation and assessment in Union’s School of Education. “This is a lens through which we can track our graduates and see how they are impacting students in the classroom.”

Union was evaluated based on graduates who completed the undergraduate, graduate and Memphis Teacher Residency programs between 2015 and 2018. In addition to its overall score of four, Union scored a four in all three categories of the assessment for the first time.

The three categories are candidate profile, which assesses the percentage of completers who are racially diverse or have endorsements in high-demand areas such as math and science; employment, which assesses the number and retention rate of completers teaching in Tennessee public schools; and provider impact, which includes teacher observation scores and student growth assessments.

“It’s all about continuous improvement,” Cates said. “We scored higher in every category this year, and that tells us that we are continuing to improve how we equip graduates with the knowledge and skills they need.”

The full report card is available at teacherprepreportcard.tn.gov.