
History of the College of Education
The College of Education and Human Services traces its roots back to the 1920’s when
six courses were offered by the Department of Education in the College of Arts and
Sciences at Seton Hall College.
In 1924 Seton Hall obtained State approval for a secondary level teacher preparation
program, and, by 1937, the fledgling education department offered an additional preparation
program in physical education. During and immediately following World War II, the
department offered elementary as well as secondary and physical education programs,
and awarded graduate level degrees along with the baccalaureate. The influx of veterans
at this time provided new opportunities for the Department of Education to develop
its curriculum and expand its influence in the area of teacher preparation within
the State of New Jersey.
By 1950, Seton Hall organized into a university consisting of the College of Arts
and Sciences and the Schools of Business, Nursing and Education. Although the School
existed as a distinct academic unit on campus, it never lost contact with its liberal
arts roots and maintained collegial and curricular relationships with the College
of Arts and Sciences.
During the 1950’s and 1960’s, the School of Education continued to experience growth
in its enrollments and expansion of its curriculum. These decades saw the School
become the largest academic unit on the South Orange campus. Faculty and administrative
offices which at that time were housed in Bayley Hall, were moved to McQuaid Hall
in order to provide more space and better working conditions.
At this time, the School expanded its role in a number of ways. It instituted the
Educational Services Center which provided services to surrounding communities in
the areas of reading, writing, mathematics, study skills and counseling. At its height,
the Center serviced several hundred clients each year, reached out to both urban and
suburban communities and provided low cost or no cost instruction to many students.
Other initiatives were taken. The School operated a Veteran’s Administration counseling
program which provided various services to veterans, and the School received a major
grant to train rehabilitation counselors for positions in government and private institutions.
From the mid-70’s to the mid-80’s the School of Education, along with other teacher
training institutions throughout the country, experienced a drop in enrollments as
prospective teachers turned to other careers because of lack of job opportunities
and less than desirable salaries. Rather than viewing this period as a time for retrenchment
and retreat, the School saw this as an opportunity to restructure itself in ways that
would enhance its mission to prepare educators and other human services personnel.
The departments of Elementary Education, Secondary Education, Health and Physical
Education, General Professional Education, and Counseling and Special Services were
reorganized into the departments of Educational Studies and Counseling Psychology.
The Department of Administration and Supervision retained its original structure.
This placed all of the teacher preparation programs in one department, Educational
Studies, where each maintained its distinction as a program while being able to work
more closely in regard to common concerns, issues, needs, problems, resources, standards
and curriculum development.
The School of Education changed its name to the College of Education and Human Services
(CEHS). This signaled a number of important developments. First, there now existed
a formal commitment to the education of both school and non-school personnel. Second,
the College believed that professionals in both school and non-school careers could
benefit from being in close proximity during their educational experiences. Third,
the College recognized that the development of an effective teacher required a broad-based,
liberal arts education. Fourth, there was a commitment to providing services for
the University and for surrounding communities.
During the early 1980’s, the College of Education and Human Services inaugurated doctoral
level programs. Ph.D.’s were available in the areas of Counseling Psychology, Child/Clinical
Psychology and Marriage and Family Counseling. The Ed.D. was available in Administration
and Supervision. The College hoped to offer other advanced degrees sometime before
the turn of the century.
As the 1990’s approached, the College experienced an increase in enrollment, both
at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Additional faculty and staff were hired
to accommodate the increase, and plans existed to acquire additional personnel as
needed.
The beginning of the 1990’s also saw the College fielding nationally recognized grant
programs in the areas of Bilingual/Bicultural Education and Law Related Education.
By 1990, the College had extended its outreach programs in order to provide in-service
training for many teachers throughout the State of New Jersey. This enabled the College
to establish more effective liaisons with schools and to develop a mutually beneficial
relationship in the sharing of knowledge and experience.
The late 1980’s and early 1990’s was also a time when the College of Education and
Human Services became more involved with technology and education. In 1985, the College
received a grant to implement a computer-assisted reading and study skills program
which serviced students in Arts and Sciences, Nursing, the Educational Opportunity
Program, Business and Education. This involved the establishment of a computer laboratory
in McQuaid Hall as well as individual stations at other locations around the campus.
In 1999, a federally funded PT3 grant and an aggressive University computing plan
enabled the College to assume a leadership role in technology. At the same time, the
College successfully developed and offered two on-line programs: an M.A. in Administration
and Supervision and an M.A. in Counseling.
In 1997, the College changed its residence from McQuaid Hall to the third and fourth
floors of Kozlowski. This move provided its faculty with newer and more spacious offices
as well as access to modern classrooms suitable for integrating technology with teaching.
During the late 1990’s and through the turn of the century, the College developed
several unique programs such as the Catholic School Leadership and EPICS programs,
and the Executive Ed.D. and Executive Masters programs. The College’s first Professional
Development School relationship was initiated with the Cranford school district in
1999. By 2002, the College had achieved APA accreditation for its Counseling Psychology
doctoral program, COAMFTE accreditation for its Marriage and Family Ed.S. program,
and was aggressively pursuing NCATE accreditation for its school-based programs.
During the 2002-2003 academic year, the College submitted its conceptual framework
and other preconditions, including program review documents, to NCATE and its affiliated
learned societies. Additionally, the first doctoral hooding ceremony was held in
May 2003 and the Institute for Educational Leadership, Renewal and Research was developed.
In the academic year 2003-2004, the College received candidacy status from NCATE,
submitted rejoinders to professional associations, and finalized plans for a Fall,
2004 site visit. During the same time, the College was the first institution in the
State to respond to the new State teaching licensure codes. The faculty developed
an integrated elementary and special education program that was approved by the State
and hailed as a model for other institutions to emulate. The College’s Institute for
Education Leadership, Renewal and Research was successful in securing funding from
a number of agencies. The Superintendent’s Study Council had a very successful year
with a membership of over 100 superintendents who participated in the council’s slate
of workshops and programs. Two new programs were launched in late Spring of 2004:
the Newark “Grow Your Own” school leadership program and the graduate certification
program for teachers. Additionally, the College’s first affiliations with alternate
route programs were underway, marked by collaborative agreements with the Newark “Teach
for America” program, the Morris-Union Jointure Commission and the Montclair alternate
route program. The Department of Professional Psychology and Family Therapy successfully
launched its restructured Master’s programs, participated in the National Multicultural
tour and started developing plans for a Multidisciplinary Center for Infant and Child
Development.
The academic year 2004-2005 was notable for advances in accreditation. An initial
NCATE site visit was hosted in October, and the College was granted NCATE provisional
accreditation in April. The College implemented its assessment plan, and, in collaboration
with IT, developed a sophisticated e-folio system for recording, organizing, summarizing
and aggregating student data in reference to professional standards and the College’s
conceptual framework. The College also launched a redesigned school counseling program
and began working on achieving CACREP accreditation for its M.A. level counseling
programs. In 2005-2006, the College was successful in removing the provision attached
to its accreditation and became fully nationally accredited by NCATE for the first
time since 1995. Additionally the College posted its highest enrollment in over 20
years with about 28,000 credit hours produced. During 2006-2007, the College once
again posted a record enrollment with about 28,700 produced over the academic year.
The College hosted an APA re-accreditation site visit for its Counseling Psychology
Ph.D. program, and began preparing SPA reports for an impending NCATE re-accreditation
site visit in 2009.
During 2007-2008, the College’s APA accreditation was renewed, record enrollments
were again achieved for the fourth year in a row, a successful accreditation site
visit was hosted for the Masters and Ed.S. Marriage and Family programs, and work
continued on the College’s NCATE reaccreditation effort. Additionally, the College
became active in international initiatives by establishing a Center for Global Education
and by developing a partnership with the Harbin Institute of Technology, one of China’s
top nine institutions of higher education. The College also became involved in helping
the Newton Street School in Newark respond to the requirements of the federal No Child
Left Behind legislation. Faculty continued to distinguish themselves in the areas
of teaching, scholarship and service, and contributed significantly to the University’s
reputation in the aforementioned areas.