Education Certificates and Teacher Licence Renewal Courses
Post-Master’s Certificate in Educational Leadership (minimum of 24 credits)
This certificate program is offered for prospective students who already possess a
master’s degree and wish to pursue the administration and supervision endorsement only.
Admission, continuance, and exit requirements are the same as those for the M.Ed. in
Educational Leadership. (Information is available on pages 79-80 for requirements and
pages 81-82 for required courses.) A minimum of 24 credits must be completed at CGPS,
which may include the internship. The actual number of credits that an individual will
need to complete is typically more than 24 credits and will be determined by his/her
prior course work. Graduate-level professional studies course work for the initial fiveyear
renewable license will not replace instructional leadership courses. If a candidate
has served successfully for one year as a principal or assistant principal at an accredited
public or private school, the internship may be waived. If someone with a master’s degree
would like to complete a second master’s, up to nine credits toward the second degree
can be transferred into the program. (The University of Mary Washington will not confer
two master of education degrees.) In order to waive or transfer courses, there must be
assurance that state-required competencies are met. Courses taken at other institutions
and approved for the certificate must be officially transferred into the program.
Application for the added endorsement is made through the school division’s
personnel office.
Post-Master’s Certificate in Literacy Specialist (minimum of 24 credits)
This certificate program will provide teachers with the knowledge to become leaders
in the area of literacy instruction and will lead to the reading specialist endorsement. It is offered for prospective students who already possess a master’s degree and a valid
Virginia postgraduate professional license. Courses taken at other institutions and
approved for the certificate must be officially transferred into the program.
Application for the added endorsement is made through the school division’s
personnel office.
Admission Requirements
To be considered for the certificate, the applicant must submit the following items to
the Office of Admissions:
• Application for Admission;
• Application for Virginia In-State Tuition Rates (if applicable);
• Nonrefundable application fee;
• Official transcripts indicating completion of a baccalaureate degree and a master’s
degree from a regionally accredited college or university; and
• A copy of a valid Virginia five-year renewable license.
Required Courses (24 credits)
EDLS 541 Linguistic Foundations of Literacy (3 credits)
EDLS 542 Literacy Curriculum and Instruction (3 credits)
EDLS 543 Literacy Curriculum and Instruction II (3 credits)
EDLS 544 Literacy Assessment and Evaluation (3 credits)
EDLS 545 Writing Process and Instruction (3 credits)
EDLS 546 Leadership in Literacy Education (3 credits)
EDLS 547 Literacy and Diverse Student Popultations (3 credits)
EDLS 548 Internship: Applied Literacy Research (3 credits)
A passing score on the Virginia Reading Assessment is required for endorsement.
Graduate Certificate in Gifted Education (12 credits)
A Graduate Certificate in Gifted Education is offered for prospective students
who possess both a bachelor’s degree and a valid Virginia collegiate professional or
postgraduate professional license and who wish to pursue the gifted education add-on
endorsement only. The certificate requires a minimum of 12 credits of graduate course
work. An internship is also required for endorsement. However, if a candidate can
document—to the satisfaction of CGPS faculty and his/her school division personnel
office—a year of successful, full-time teaching of heterogeneously or homogeneously
grouped gifted students under the mentorship of a gifted-endorsed teacher, the three
credits of internship may be waived. Competency in writing—grammar, usage, and mechanics—must also be demonstrated and documented. There must be assurance that
all state-required competencies are met. Courses taken at other institutions and approved
for the certificate must be officially transferred into the program.
Once all course work is
completed, application for the add-on endorsement is made to the Virginia Department
of Education through the school division’s personnel office.
Admission Requirements
To be considered for the certificate, the applicant must submit the following items to
the Office of Admissions:
• Application for Admission;
• Application for Virginia In-State Tuition Rates (if applicable);
• Nonrefundable application fee;
• Official transcript indicating completion of a baccalaureate degree from a
regionally accredited college or university; and
• A copy of a valid Virginia five-year renewable license.
Requirements for the certificate, which can lead to a gifted education endorsement,
include the following:
EDCI 540 Characteristics and Education of Gifted Students (3 credits)
EDCI 541 Identification and Assessment of Gifted Students (3 credits)
EDCI 542 Teaching Gifted Learners (3 credits)
EDCI 543 Differentiated Curriculum for the Gifted (3 credits)
EDCI 551 Field Internship (3 credits) May be waived with appropriate experience.
Competency: An understanding of and proficiency in grammar, usage, and
mechanics and their integration in writing. If competency is not met through prior course
work, TESL 511A Applied Linguistics: Grammar and Meaning is recommended.
Graduate Certificate in Instructional Technology Leadership (18 credits)
This certificate is for teachers and other licensed school personnel who want to increase the use of technology in classrooms, have been assigned technology leadership roles in their school or district, or who possess a master’s degree in education and want to focus on technology integration. This program is offered to prospective students who possess both a bachelor’s degree and a valid Virginia collegiate professional or postgraduate professional license and who wish to pursue further study in technologies that can be used in instruction. Courses taken at other institutions and approved for the certificate must be officially transferred into the program.
Admission Requirements
To be considered for the certificate, the applicant must submit the following items to
the Office of Admissions:
• Application for Admission;
• Application for Virginia In-State Rates (if applicable);
• Nonrefundable application fee; and
• Official transcript indicating completion of a baccalaureate degree from a
regionally accredited college or university.
Required Courses (15 credits)
ITEC 501 Instructional Technologies (3 credits)
ITEC 510 Foundations and Theories of Instructional Technology (3 credits)
ITEC 521 Information Literacy in the Digital Age (3 credits)
ITEC 530 Instructional Design (3 credits)
ITEC 545 Leadership in Educational Technology (3 credits)
Elective Courses (choose one)
ITEC 520 Assessment and Evaluation in Instructional Technology (3 credits)
ITEC 531 Emerging and Assistive Technologies (3 credits)
ITEC 546 Administration and Management of Technology Initiatives in Education
(3 credits)
Graduate Certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language (18 credits)
The Graduate Certificate in Teaching English as a Second Language is offered
to prospective students who possess a bachelor’s degree and six credits of modern
foreign language. For teachers who possess a valid Virginia PreK-12 teaching license,
the certificate will lead to an additional endorsement in English as a second language
(ESL). The courses also apply toward an add-on license for adult ESL. In addition, the
certificate is an internationally recognized credential for teaching English in a variety of
instructional settings overseas. Courses taken at other institutions and approved for the
certificate must be officially transferred into the program.
Application for the added endorsement is made through the school division’s
personnel office.
Admission Requirements
To be considered for the certificate, the applicant must submit the following items to
the Office of Admissions:
• Application for Admission;
• Application for Virginia In-State Tuition Rates (if applicable);
• Nonrefundable application fee; and
• Official transcript indicating completion of a baccalaureate degree from a
regionally accredited college or university.
Official transcripts showing completion of six credits of foreign language are required
prior to the awarding of the certificate. If a student’s primary language is not English, all
six credits must be in English.
Required Courses (12 credits)
EDCI 515 Literacy and Language Across the Curriculum (3 credits)
TESL 500 Introduction to English Linguistics (3 credits)
TESL 514 Cross-Cultural Education (3 credits)
TESL 530 Second Language Teaching Methods (3 credits)
Elective Courses (choose two)
TESL 502A Sociolinguistics and Cross-Cultural Communication (3 credits)
TESL 510 Applied English Phonetics and Phonology (3 credits)
TESL 511A Applied Linguistics: Grammar and Meaning (3 credits)
TESL 512 Second Language Acquisition (3 credits)
TESL 513 Special Studies in Linguistics and Language Learning (3 credits)
National Board Certification Support Courses
The College of Graduate and Professional Studies offers the following support
courses, at the request of local school divisions, for teachers seeking National Board
Certification.
PDST 571B The Reflective Practitioner (3 credits)
PDST 571C Applied Leadership in Teaching and Learning (3 credits)
These courses are designed as extensive professional development experiences
and support for teachers pursuing National Board Certification. Participants will
be mentored in effectively demonstrating their commitment to students and their
learning, their knowledge of the subjects they teach and their expertise in teaching those
subjects to students, along with their ability to manage and monitor student learning,
to systematically reflect on their classroom practice, and to maintain involvement as
members of learning communities. Topics will include the five core propositions of the
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), national subject matter
standards, research-based practice, using technology, understanding how students
learn, developing support, and time management. The courses will emphasize analytic and reflective writing, critical reading and research, writing to prompts, analyzing
student work samples, and documenting teaching accomplishments (e.g., videotaping
instruction). Participants will be able to mentor and lead other teachers in professional
development and National Board Certification.
Teacher License Renewal Courses
A variety of teacher license renewal courses are offered in weekend and evening formats throughout the year. For specific courses, dates and times, consult the current CGPS Professional Development for Educators schedule on the CGPS web site, http://www.umw.edu/cgps/, or call (540) 286-8000.