Polk State College has partnered with the Polk County School District to offer two types of EPI accelerated training:
- Newly hired teachers who have a four-year degree and did not major in education.
- Professionals (Non-Teachers) who have a four-year degree and did not major in education and are not currently teaching.
This program will satisfy professional preparation and professional education competence (PEC) for the Florida Professional Certificate. Through the Institute, people with bachelors’ degrees and teaching aspirations can receive teacher certification designed to give them the skills they need to become highly qualified teachers in a fraction of the time required for a traditional education degree. Applicant priority will be given to students interested in teaching high-need subject areas and specializations.
Participants must pass the Florida Teacher Certification Exams (FTCE), which include the Subject Area Exam, Professional Ed Exam, and General Knowledge Exam. Subject area Exam must be passed before beginning field experience.
Participants will receive an EPI Certificate and Reading Competency 2 Endorsement after program completion. If teaching in Polk County, participant will also receive:
- 60 ESOL in-service hours for Curriculum and Materials Development
- 60 ESOL in-service points for Cross Cultural Communication
The Educator Preparation Institute (EPI) program at Polk State College is a combination of face-2-face and Internet classes. The face-2-face classes meet two times a month from 8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. See cohort schedule below. The supplemental Internet components consist of tasks/assignments based on Florida Educator Accomplished Practices (FEAP’s), meaningful Internet discussions related to readings/assignments,educational resources, news/information, FEAP’s quizzes, grades, a dropbox for submitting tasks/assignments, and email.
