What is the program?

• The Pathways Program is a part-time 55 credit hour graduate-level initial teacher licensure program designed to fill critical shortages in Early Intervention/Early Childhood Special Education, birth through age 8.
• We recruit and support educational assistants who are bilingual/bicultural, or monolingual/monocultural who wish to gain competencies in working with young children with special needs and their families who represent diverse backgrounds.
• Pathways' coursework infuses issues of cultural and linguistic diversity throughout the curriculum.
• After completion of the Pathways program and initial licensure, students may elect to complete the 12 credit-hour Master's core to receive a Master of Science or Arts.
• Students may elect a full-time option.

Who is eligible to apply?

To be eligible you must:

• Be employed either part-time or full-time as an instructional assistant by an agency that serves children with special needs, ages birth to five years, or be spnsored by such an agency.
• Be eligible for admission at the graduate level to PSU:
• • Hold a Bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university
  • Have a cumulative undergraduate GPA of at least 2.75
• Be eligible for admission to the Special Education Program (see website for criteria)
• Have passed either the Praxis Pre-Professional Skills Test (PPST) or the California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST)
• Completed required prerequisite course Psychology 311 (Human Development Across the Life Span or its equivalent)

Be bilingual and/or bicultural:

• Bilingual - oral and written proficiency at the near native level as evidenced through interview and essay
• Bicultural - ability to relate in a socially acceptable manner with members of a cultural group other than your own

OR

• Monolingual/monocultural and have the desire to gain competencies in working with culturally and linguistically diverse young children with special needs and their families who represent diverse backgrounds
  
• Have written endorsement from your employer or sponsoring agency

Is there financial assistance available for Pathways students?

Yes. Pathways students will be awarded tuition stipends towards completion of their initial licensure in Early Intervention/Special Education. These funds are offered through the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. In return, participants will be expected to be employed as a full-time special educator for two years within the first five years after completion of licensure or repay all or part of the assistance as required by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.