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Undergraduate Teaching Minors

Undergraduate students who are seeking teacher licensure in art education, English education, English as a Second Language education, mathematics education, science education, social sciences education, or world languages education earn a degree in their content area or related area and a minor in their licensure field. Students earning a baccalaureate degree in mathematics or science seeking licensure to teach math or science in grades 6 – 12 should complete the VolsTeach program while pursuing their baccalaureate. Alternatively, they may pursue a math or science 6 -12 licensure by completing the equivalent of a minor as a prerequisite to a fifth year of professional study.

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The American Sign Language (ASL) minor consists of 18 hours. It is designed to provide students with a background in American Sign Language and Deaf Culture. Although there will be exposure to Deaf Education and Educational Interpreting topics, the minor does not lead to interpreter certification or teacher licensure.

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Deaf Studies Faculty

David Smith, research professor and Deaf studies team lead

Jeffrey Davis, professor

Calvin Farley, senior lecturer

April Haggard, senior lecturer and ASL program coordinator

Megan Wylie Potts, lecturer and educational interpreting program coordinator

Cheryl Shahan, clinical assistant professor

Michael Skyer, assistant professor (not pictured)

Bill Stricklen, senior lecturer

Kimberly Wolbers, professor and SIWI program coordinator

Contact:

April Haggard, senior lecturer and ASL program coordinator

akirby1@utk.edu 865-238-0722

Students seeking licensure to teach art in schools pursue the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a major in studio art or the Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in art in the College of Arts and Sciences and will complete a minor in art education at the undergraduate level.

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Art Education Faculty

Joy G. Bertling, assistant professor and art education team lead

Geri Landry, adjunct lecturer and art education job-embedded practitioner (JEP) coordinator

Contact: 

Joy G. Bertling, assistant professor and art education team lead

jbertling@utk.edu

Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information

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Students interested in becoming elementary school teachers earn a Bachelor of Art or a Bachelor of Science in the College of Arts and Sciences. While completing requirements for the baccalaureate degree, students are encouraged to complete a minor in elementary education.

Elementary Education Faculty

Amy Broemmel, associate professor, elementary and literacy education, and elementary education team co-lead

Jennifer Jordan, clinical associate professor, elementary and literacy education, and elementary education team co-lead

Linda McClanahan, clinical supervisor, elementary education

Amanda Rigell, clinical assistant professor, elementary education

Kelly Wallace, clinical assistant professor, elementary and English education

Contact:

Amy Broemmel, associate professor, elementary and literacy education, and elementary education team co-lead

broemmel@utk.edu

Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information

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Students interested in becoming PreK-12 English as Second Language teachers typically earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Arts and Sciences with a major in English, linguistics, or a world language.

ESL Education Faculty

Clara Lee Brown, associate professor and ESL team lead

James Coda, assistant professor, World Language / ESL education (not pictured)

Contact:

Clara Lee Brown

cbrown26@utk.edu

Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information

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Students interested in becoming secondary school teachers (Grades 6-12) in English earn a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science in the College of Arts and Sciences (e.g., English, history). While completing requirements for the baccalaureate degree, students are encouraged to complete a minor in secondary education.

English Education Faculty

Judson Laughter, associate professor and English education team lead

Stergios Botzakis, professor

Susan Groenke, professor

Kelly Wallace, clinical assistant professor

Contact:

Judson Laughter, associate professor and English education team lead

jud.laughter@utk.edu

Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information

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Students interested in becoming secondary school teachers (Grades 6-12) in social sciences earn a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science in the College of Arts and Sciences (e.g., English, history). While completing requirements for the baccalaureate degree, students are encouraged to complete a minor in secondary education.

Social Sciences Education Faculty

Stewart Waters, associate professor and social science education team lead

Joshua Kenna, associate professor

Contact:

Stewart Waters, associate professor and instructional team lead

kwaters2@utk.edu

Admissions, Tuition and Fees, and Financial Aid Information

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Students interested in becoming secondary school teachers (Grades 6-12) in mathematics or the sciences participate in the VolsTeach program associated with their academic major.

Students pursuing a major in selected programs in the College of Arts and Sciences are eligible to participate in the University’s VolsTeach program (https://volsteach.utk.edu/), which permits students to simultaneously complete a major in mathematics or science and receive secondary education teaching licensure within this 4-year undergraduate degree minor.

VolsTeach STEM Education Faculty

Terri Hopkins, co-coordinator of VolsTeach and clinical associate professor, VolsTeach, STEM education/math

Yolanda Kirkpatrick, co-director of undergraduate studies; co-coordinator of VolsTeach and clinical associate professor, VolsTeach, STEM education/science

Nick Kim, Post-Doctoral Research Associate, Center for Enhancing Education in Mathematics and Science (CEEMS) and VolsTeach Research and Project Coordinator

Contact:

Yolanda Kirkpatrick, co-director of undergraduate studies; co-coordinator of VolsTeach and clinical associate professor, VolsTeach, STEM education/science

Terri Hopkins, co-coordinator of VolsTeach and clinical associate professor, VolsTeach, STEM education/math

Students interested in becoming PreK-12 World Language teachers typically earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in the College of Arts and Sciences with a major in a world language (e.g., French, German, Latin, Spanish). As part of their degree, they should take literature, advanced grammar and composition classes in the language licensure area, and conversation and phonetics classes (for modern languages). While completing requirements for the baccalaureate degree, modern language students must matriculate a study abroad semester (minimum requirement) to be eligible for the Board of Admissions interview and admission to the Teacher Education Program.

Second Language Education and World Language Education Faculty

Judson Laughter, associate professor and team lead

James Coda, assistant professor, World Language /ESL (not pictured)

Contact: Judson Laughter, associate professor and instructional team lead

jud.laughter@utk.edu