University General Education Requirements
Chairperson: Concetta Williams
The Department of English, Foreign Languages, and Interdisciplinary Programs offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in English with options in Literature, Secondary Teaching, and Writing. The department also offers minor sequences in English and Writing for students majoring in other fields.
Students in the Literature and Writing Options may prepare for a variety of careers including at least the following: creative writing, editing, advertising, business, law, and librarianship. Completion of the Secondary Teaching Option in English qualifies students for an Illinois Professional Educator License (PEL) with an endorsement for teaching English Language Arts for grades 9-12 and a middle grade endorsement in Language Arts for grades 6-8, provided that the program was completed and the middle grade endorsement was issued by January 31, 2018.
On February 1, 2018, Middle School-New Middle Grades (5-8) educator preparation programs became effective. Students in current grades 6-12 programs will now only receive endorsements for grades 9-12 instead of for the previous 6-8 grade and 9-12 grade ranges.
Licensure requires the successful completion of the Illinois Licensure English Language Arts Content Area Test and edTPA. The Secondary Teaching Program is accredited by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and meets Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) standards in English Language Arts education. The department maintains an updated copy of its assessment report in SCI 320.