Change in Phone and Office Walk-In Hours
Beginning Friday, July 18th, PELSB phones will be closed Mondays and Fridays. Additionally, the PELSB office will be closed to walk-in visitors on Mondays and Fridays.
The Educator Preparation Program Application System (EPPAS) is the online reporting system used by teacher preparation providers in Minnesota.
All teacher preparation providers need to designate an Identified Official with Authority (IOwA). The IOwA has the responsibility of giving users within the unit access to PELSB's website systems, including EPPAS.
PELSB suggests preparation providers designate an IOwA who has knowledge of the entire unit to ensure the IOwA can knowledgeably provide authorization to appropriate users. Additionally, PELSB recommends each preparation provider designate only one individual as the unit's IOwA.
Steps to Set up and Renew an IOwA Each Year:
The Title II website provides technical assistance and resources for Title II (Sections 207 and 208) of the Higher Education Act.
The Higher Education Opportunity Act (Public Law 110-315) (HEOA) was enacted on August 14, 2008, and reauthorizes the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (the HEA). Click here to access Sections 205 through 208 of Title II of the HEA. For information on Title II (Teacher Quality) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), please visit www.ed.gov/programs/teacherqual/index.html.
Please direct any Title II related questions or comments to:
Toll-Free Hotline: (866) 214-2038
Email: title2@rti.org
For technical assistance, please refer to this resource.
See this handout for more information about student teachers serving as substitutes.
Apprenticeship Webinar Series: Visit the recordings to learn about registered apprenticeship and the benefits of growing and sustaining an innovative workforce. As a strategy to meet your need for skilled workers while increasing engagement and retention, registered apprenticeship offers a time-tested employee training system that can be customized to meet the needs of any business. There is no cost to attend.
Teacher Apprenticeships District Focus
AACTE edTPA support: http://edtpa.aacte.org/
Pearson edTPA support:https://www.edtpa.com/
Effective July 19, 2024, the Board adopted teacher performance assessment now includes Task 1 and Task 3 of the edTPA. Teacher preparation providers may continue to require the completion of Task 2, but the Board does not require that programs do so any longer. With this action, Task 1 and Task 3 of the edTPA are still required for initial licensure program completers, and programs may continue to require Task 2 if they find it benefits candidates and/or programs. Additionally, teacher preparation programs are not required to report on candidate scores or pass rates for Task 2 for any future submissions for program or unit approval. This action is the culmination of years of work with the Teacher Assessment and Accountability Workgroups with the rationale that there are other ways to gain information gathered by Task 2 (survey data, student teaching evaluations, potentially other assessments, etc.).
There are many implications of the removal of Task 2 for teacher preparation programs. Pearson is providing updated guidance of how candidates can submit for institutions that choose not to require Task 2, including identifying that they have no intention of submitting Task 2 evidence within their Context for Learning and under the "About School Where you are Teaching" section, prompt 4, candidates should type and highlight "I am a Minnesota candidates who is not submitting Task 2.." Pearson has created artifacts that can be used for Task 2 - "Task 2 Part A Video Placeholder link" and "Task 2 Part B Instruction Commentary Placeholder link." Some candidates may still be required to submit video evidence for Task 3 if the assessment or feedback to the learner is demonstrative or related to learning objectives that are performance-based or if submitting for Physical Education (note instructions if unable to submit video evidence for any reason). The submission cost to Pearson will be the same for those submitting all three tasks for scoring as those submitting for only Task 1 and 3 scores. Candidates who do not submit for Task 2 evidence will receive a "Z" condition code for Rubrics 6-10 and an "Incomplete" for the Task 2 total. The Total edTPA score will also be "Incomplete." Programs will want to advise candidates who may want to pursue licensure in other states of the potential licensure implications of not completing Task 2.
Programs do not need to provide a list of candidates who are not intending to submit Task 2 evidence to Pearson.
In the fall of 2024, the Board granted approval for discretionary variance requests from multiple teacher preparation providers to use the Candidate Preservice Assessment of Student Teaching (CPAST) in place of the edTPA as a teacher performance assessment for initial licensure programs with the condition that preparation providers meet reporting requirements.
The following teacher preparation providers have been granted approval to use the CPAST in place of the edTPA, as of June 2025:
As part of these Board actions, PELSB set the following definitions:
As outlined in a collaborative effort between PELSB and participating teacher preparation providers, the reporting requirements for participating units will be as follows:
| Report | Timing | Content |
| Data Summary Report | Annually, starting as soon as Spring 2026 (for TPPs using the CPAST in Spring 2025) |
Unit average score by task Unit pass rate by task |
| Unit Report Self-Studys | Submit in self-study or self-study addendum when scheduled |
Rubric A and Rubric C data for Standard 2(3) Rubric D for Unit 2(5) Rubric H for 2(8) |
| Unit Report on Continuous Improvement 8705.1500-MN Rules Part | Submit as scheduled |
Include identification of unit (and program) strengths and areas of improvement, including by not limited to C(2) data and analysis of candidate scores in teacher performance assessments:
|
| PERCA | Submit as scheduled |
Submit CPAST data with average final scores and pass rates by program. Depending on your submission timeline, you may submit edTPA and CPAST data. Note: Stay tuned for additional information and possible Board action (negating this data submission). |
| End of pilot data by rubric | Due July 1, 2027 |
Midterm and final average scores, unit data and disaggregated data by program:
Unit and program pass rates
|
The Ohio State's handbook for the CPAST advises that if a candidate has two different student teaching experiences within the same semester, the mid-term should be used for the first student teaching and the final for the second (even if they are for different licensurea areas). "This way you will show growth appropriately and it maintains validity and reliability." While the edTPA rubrics are program-specific, the CPAST rubrics are not. Candidates seeking more than one professional license may take the mid-term aligned to one licensure area and the final aligned to another licensure area.
Use look-fors document to support candidates
Consider using pre-CPAST instrument
Consider how your programs will create final scoring for candidates in two different placements (who score higher in one placement than the other)
Collaborate across teacher preparation providers to develop cooperating teacher training videos
If preparation providers wish to seek a discretionary variance to use the CPAST instead of the edTPA and join this pilot, please contact michelle.sandler@state.mn.us. Additionally, programs will need to reach out to Ohio State University and sign an MOU with them.
See this document for TEEEC Pathway 4 Guidance.
