CEC Program Review and National Recognition
About the Program Review and National Recognition Process
Special educator preparation programs may seek National Recognition from the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) as part of the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) Accreditation Process.
Programs in states requiring specialized professional association (SPA) program review with National Recognition or programs that choose to participate in SPA review will submit their SPA report at least three years in advance of their CAEP site visit and in consultation with CAEP staff.
The program will submit evidence using CEC’s program report templates (or shells) for each content area and degree level. The evidence will describe candidates’ performance on a set of key assessments that demonstrate meeting the CEC's Standards.
Check Out the Newest Programs Who Earned National Recognition from CEC (Spring 2024)
CEC Program Review and National Recognition is available in the following areas for programs who pursue the SPA Program Review Option during their CAEP Accreditation process:
- 2024 Initial Practice Based Professional Preparation Standards for Gifted Educators
- Advanced Professional Preparation Standards
- Initial Gifted Educator Preparation Standards
- Preparation for Advanced Gifted Education Roles
- 2020 Initial Practice-Based Professional Preparation Standards for Special Educators (Initial K-12 Standards)
- Initial Practice-Based Professional Preparation Standards for Early Interventionists/Early Childhood Special Educators (EI/ECSE)
- Administrator of Special Education Professional Leadership Standards
Partnership with CAEP
For our program recognition work, we partner with the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP). Both the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) and CAEP view the foundation of a strong profession as a shared body of specialized knowledge and skill based on research and public confidence that professionals are prepared to practice.
For Programs
Resources for programs pursuing national recognition.
Volunteer Reviewers
Resources for volunteer program reviewers.
Gifted Preparation Program Recognition
In March 2018, CEC, in collaboration with The Association for the Gifted (TAG), became the Specialized Professional Association (SPA) of record for gifted educator preparation programs, which will allow teacher preparation programs to continue to seek National Recognition through the CAEP accreditation process.
A revised set of Initial Practice-Based Professional Preparation Standards for Gifted Educators has been approved in 2024. For programs submitting reports through the CAEP SPA Review with National Recognition process, the revised 2024 standards will replace the 2013 Initial Gifted Standards through a phase in period applicable to program reports submitted through Fall 2027. Fall 2027 will be the last opportunity for programs to submit initial reports using the 2013 Initial Gifted Standards. Response to conditions must use the same set of standards as the initial report.
To learn more about high-quality gifted education preparation, check out CEC’s 2013 Initial, newly revised in 2024 Initial and Advanced Gifted Education Professional Standards.
2013 Initial Gifted Education Professional Standards