Education - Milligan University

Every child deserves a quality teacher and caregiver, so Milligan aims to prepare professionals who integrate their Christian faith, social responsibility, and knowledge and skills to contribute to a responsible and caring community. Whether you want to teach in a public or private school, lead youth organizations or child development centers, coach or provide fitness and wellness training, or be an administrator, Milligan’s Area of Education can help you reach your goals

Bachelor’s Degrees

Teachers are required to complete certain state-mandated requirements for teaching certification.* Elementary school teaching credentials are usually general, which means the teacher can teach a wide variety of subjects. Middle and secondary school teachers specialize in a specific subject, such as English, Spanish, mathematics, history, or biology. At Milligan, you can obtain professional licensure to teach at the following levels:

Elementary (K-5)
Elementary (K-5) / English as a Second Language (ESL) (P-12)
Secondary (6-12)
Secondary (6-12) / English as a Second Language (ESL) (P-12)
Specialty Fields (K-12)
Specialty Fields (K-12) / English as a Second Language (ESL) (P-12)

Licensure

For your licensure, you’ll complete teacher education courses such as Intro to Teaching, Technology in Education, Classroom Management, Psychology and Education of Exceptional Students, and Assessment, among others. You’ll also complete supervised field experiences and student teaching in public or private partner schools in nearby communities. These are wonderful opportunities to put your classroom learning into practice and further develop your professional teaching competencies.

*Professional Licensure: This program prepares students for licensure in Tennessee. A determination of eligibility for licensure in other states has not been made. Students and applicants should check specific state requirements before applying to the program and may request contact information for the applicable licensing board from Karen Presnell, Office Manager for Area of Education at kpresnell@milligan.edu.

Recent Licensure Changes

Middle Grades Mathematics (6-8) Endorsement:

Effective October 19, 2018, candidates seeking endorsement in Middle Grades Mathematics 6-8 have the option of choosing between an ETS Praxis Series assessment and a new assessment offered by the National Evaluation Series (NES). The ETS Praxis Series will no longer be accepted after August 31, 2019; however, qualifying scores on assessments taken prior to September 1, 2019, will be accepted for five (5) years from the date the assessment was taken.

Option 1: ETS Praxis Series assessment Middle School Math, test code 165 (qualifying score of 165). *This ETS Praxis Series exam will be replaced by the NES assessment on August 31, 2019.

Option 2: National Evaluation Series (NES) assessment Mathematics (Middle Grades and Early Secondary), test code 105 (qualifying score of 220). This is the only exam the Tennessee Department of Education will accept after August 31, 2019.

For more information about the National Evaluation Series (NES) assessments, visit their website at www.nestest.com.

Mathematics (6-12) Endorsement

Effective October 19, 2018, educators now have the option to choose between an ETS Praxis Series assessment and a new assessment offered by the National Evaluation Series (NES). Candidates may submit qualifying scores on either the ETS Praxis Series assessment Mathematics: Content Knowledge, test code 5161, or the National Evaluation Series (NES) assessment Secondary Mathematics 6-12, test code 304. At this time, there are no plans to discontinue acceptance of the ETS Praxis Series assessment for the Mathematics (6-12) endorsement.

Option 1: ETS Praxis Series assessment Mathematics: Content Knowledge, test code 5161 (qualifying score of 160)

Option 2: National Evaluation Series (NES) assessment Secondary Mathematics (6-12), test code 304 (qualifying score of 220)

Elementary (K-5) Endorsement

Effective August 31, 2019, ETS Praxis Series assessment Elementary Education: Content Knowledge, test code 5018, will be replaced by ETS Praxis Series assessment Elementary Education: Multiple Subjects, test code 5001. Elementary Education: Multiple Subjects has four (4) subtests:

Reading and Language Arts, test code 5002 (qualifying score of 157)
Mathematics, test code 5003 (qualifying score of 157)
Social Studies, test code 5004 (qualifying score of 155)
Science, test code 5005 (qualifying score of 159)

To pass the Elementary Education: Multiple Subjects assessment you must receive a passing score on each subtest. If you wish to take all four subtests (5002, 5003, 5004, and 5005) at the same time, select Elementary Education: Multiple Subjects, test code 5001 when registering. If you wish to take or retake an individual subtest, you may register to take just that subtest.

Professional Learning and Teaching (PLT)

Effective January 1, 2019, the Tennessee Department of Education will no longer accept the PLT exams for licensure. The PLT exams have been replaced by edTPA. edTPA is a subject-specific assessment focused on three tasks: Planning, Instruction, and Assessment. To get more information about edTPA, visit their website at www.edtpa.com.

Instructional Leader License

Effective August 31, 2019, the ETS Praxis Series assessment School Leader Licensure, test code 6011, will be replaced by the ETS Praxis Series assessment School Leader Licensure, test code 6990 (qualifying score of 151)

If you have any questions about testing requirements for a Tennessee teaching license, please:

visit www.ets.org
visit www.tn.gov
or contact Karen Presnell, Certification Officer, at KPresnell@milligan.edu

Graduate Degrees

Master's

Doctorate

What Makes Our Program Unique

Beginning with their first education class, our students are heavily involved in field experience in the schools. Our students gain practical, hands-on experience both in the classroom and in their field experiences. Our students are recognized as caring servant-leaders who desire to make a difference. Committed and caring faculty work with you through each step of the program. And we have fun while learning!

Outstanding Reputation

One of only 9 programs with an “Exceeds Expectations” rating on the State Board of Education Report Card
Second and third-year employment retention rates exceed the state average
Our employed teacher graduates “exceed expectations” on measures related to teacher observations and student-growth scores, scoring well above the state average

For many decades, Milligan has enjoyed a strong partnership with area school systems. The university’s reputation for producing well-prepared, creative, committed teachers is unparalleled. School administrators consistently look to Milligan as a resource for both hiring and training, regularly calling on faculty to lead workshops for in-services and to collaborate on various education issues. Thousands of our graduates are serving as teachers, coaches, counselors, and administrators in schools across the United States.

Quality and CAEP Annual Report Measures

Milligan is accredited by CAEP, the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation, which means your degree from Milligan is instantly recognized throughout the country for its quality. Research has shown that graduates from CAEP institutions significantly outperform those from other institutions on National Teacher Examinations.

The following link provides information on the Education Area’s performance in the following indicators: Impact on P-12 student learning, teacher effectiveness, employer satisfaction and employment milestones, completer satisfaction, graduation rates of candidates, undergraduate retention, ability of program completers to meet licensing requirements, employment and consumer information, and debt repayment. CAEP Annual Report Measures »