The University of Indianapolis’ Center of Excellence in Leadership of Learning recently announced an extension to its state partnership to train special education teachers in Indiana.
The program, called Indiana Special Education Assisted Licensure, or I-SEAL for short, was launched in late 2021, according to a UIndy press release. The release said the program, which is a partnership with the Indiana Department of Education, was created to address a critical shortage of qualified special education teachers in Indiana. According to an Oct. 30 UIndy press release, the program is fully funded by IDOE at no cost to the school or the student. According to the October release, CELL extended the program, bringing the total investment in I-SEAL to $15.5 million and creating space for 450 future teachers.
Executive Director of CELL Carey Dahncke said I-SEAL was launched due to Indiana being out of compliance with federal regulations on the number of special education teachers. He said previous attempts had been made to increase the number of special education teachers in Indiana, but they were not sufficient to address the shortage. I-SEAL was created to be an innovative new approach to meeting this need. In the three years since its initial launch, Dahncke estimated around 1,000 teachers completed the program; he said despite these improved outcomes, the state was still below federal standards. With the renewal of I-SEAL, Dahncke said he hopes to continue producing qualified special education teachers. According to its website, CELL’s mission is “helping educators transform learning, teaching and leadership across all of Indiana’s K-12 schools and universities.”
Associate Professor of Education and Director of Graduate Programs John Somers, who oversees I-SEAL at UIndy, said there are two types of programs within I-SEAL. One, the transition-to-teaching program, is designed for individuals with a bachelor’s degree in another field who decide to become educators mid-career. The other program, Somers said, is designed for people who are already teachers but wish to become special education teachers.
Somers said there are two tests transition-to-teaching participants must pass: One is known as pedagogy, which relates to the skills needed to be a good teacher, while the other is specific to special education. Existing teachers in the other program only need to pass the special education test. Additionally, Somers said, all transition-to-teaching participants must complete student teaching programs, similar to undergraduate education students. Furthermore, grant recipients in the transition-to-teaching program must be active special education teachers, gaining real-world experience while working toward a higher-level license.
Somers distinguished between CELL’s role and that of the School of Education.
CELL, he said, manages the I-SEAL grant in partnership with a state official, while the School of Education teaches the actual courses.
“You have to be accepted by I-SEAL, and then, once you’re accepted, then the student does a formal application to us, just like you [the student] had to do, and then we have to approve their enrollment in our program,” Somers said.
Somers praised the success of I-SEAL, saying over 300 students have started at UIndy, including over 200 completions, and around 900 special education teachers statewide have come through I-SEAL.
