UI makes list of 'Best Value' for colleges of education

The University of Iowa has some of the highest quality and most affordable teacher preparation programs in the state.

The University of Iowa College of Education teacher preparation programs in both elementary and secondary education made the “Best Value” colleges of education list in the state of Iowa, according to a Sept. 30 announcement from the National Council on Teacher Quality.

This is the first time that a national education policy organization has conducted a comprehensive measure of quality that also factors in affordability, average teacher salary in each state, and the ability to prepare future teachers for the realities of the classroom.

“This is another recognition and affirmation of the high quality of our teacher preparation programs,” says UI College of Education Dean Nick Colangelo.

The UI was one of only four higher education institutions in Iowa to receive the distinction of “Best Value” college for teacher preparation. Iowa State University, Coe College, and Faith Baptist Bible College and Theological Seminary also made the list.

“Best Value” ratings factor both quality and affordability.

UI teacher preparation programs are among the state’s top five “best value” schools.

The UI College of Education has 3,950 elementary and secondary education alumni teaching in 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties.

Learn more about the UI’s College of Education by viewing its annual report.

Based on an A–F grading scale and standardizing measures to allow comparison (such as salaries adjusted for equivalent purchasing power), a total of 416 programs received a grade of A or B across 35 states. NCTQ has listed the top five “Best Value” schools in each state, although not all states had five schools and several had none. Schools and programs included in the “Best Value” analysis range from undergraduate to graduate and those that specialize in elementary or secondary preparedness.

View the entire list of the NCTQ Top 5 “Best Value” education schools and programs in each state with scores of “A” or “B.”

“While there are an unlimited number of guides to help people buy products, from the right car to the right refrigerator, when it comes to picking the best college of education, one of the most important decisions one can make, people are left to fend for themselves,” says Kate Walsh, president of the National Council on Teacher Quality. “We are pleased to empower future teachers so they can focus on student growth rather than worry about gaps in their own training or if they’ll be able to pay back a mountain of debt.”

NCTQ also recently launched a new free search tool, Path to Teach, allowing any member of the public to quickly find meaningful, reliable information about the quality of more than 1,100 schools of education that prepare more than 200,000 new teachers every year.

In 2014–15, the UI College of Education enrolled 457 undergraduate teacher education students, 65 percent of whom were from Iowa.

In that same time period, 183 students completed coursework for initial teaching licensure. Among them were 80 elementary education students and 103 secondary education students.

According to 2014–15 data available from the Iowa Department of Education, the UI College of Education has 3,950 elementary and secondary education alumni teaching in 98 of Iowa’s 99 counties.