The National Educational Leadership Preparation (NELP) standards form the foundational objectives for ATU’s Educational Leadership program. In addition to the successful completion of all approved coursework, adding the “Building Level Administrator” endorsement (Code 276) to your Arkansas Educator’s License requires the creation of a Professional Portfolio that demonstrates the candidate’s proficiency in each of these standards.
For students pursuing the “M.Ed. in Educational Leadership,” these Professional Portfolios are presented to and approved by a faculty portfolio review committee during the student’s final semester.*
In order to prepare for this exit requirement, you will be creating a comprehensive collection of materials (a.k.a. – artifacts) throughout this program. The links below are provide to help you understand the expectations for this comprehensive project and how to effectively and efficiently plan ahead. Details regarding submission of these materials will be provided at the beginning of your final term.
Portfolio Requirements – This document outlines all expectations for the Professional Portfolio. It explains the rationale for the Portfolio and describes both the expected content and the required format in detail. Please note that you may finalize Standard 8 even if the final stage of your Internship has not yet been completed.
Artifact (sample) – This document provides a visual sample of how each component of the Professional Portfolio should look. This example is based on Standard 6, often one of the most difficult Standards to describe and document.
Reflections (sample) – This document provides a visual sample of how the eight-part Reflections file should look. If desired, it can also serve as a template for this file.
Should you have any questions about this (or any other) program requirement, please don’t hesitate to contact the EDLD Program Director for clarification.
*Professional Portfolios are not required for students in the “endorsement only” (certificate) program.