FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Graduate School
Institute for Creation Research
Tel: 214.615.8300
Fax: 214.615.8299
Dallas - On December 14, 2007, THECB Certification Advisory Council met to consider recommendations for the January 2008 board meeting, one of which was the application of the Institute for Creation Research Graduate School (ICRGS) for a certificate of authority to grant degrees in Texas.
ICRGS has been granting degrees since 1981 and currently offers a Masters Degree in Science Education, with a declared minor in Biology, Astro/Geophysics, Geology, or General Science. Prompted by the move of its headquarters from California to the Dallas, TX, area, the Graduate School applied for a Certificate to Grant Degrees in Texas in July 2007. On November 8, a THECB Site Evaluation Team conducted an onsite visit to evaluate the quality of the ICRGS program and its compliance with the standards outlined in Chapter 7, Section 7.9, of Private and Out-of-State Public Degree Granting Institutions Operating in Texas.
The Evaluation Team's observations, report, and resulting recommendation by the Advisory Council to grant the certificate of authority especially emphasized the strength of ICRGS' curriculum. Its report noted that Graduate School faculty members hold terminal degrees from “well-regarded” universities, and although the coursework provides a creationist perspective, the more popular perspectives on science are covered by using current scientific literature and standard college texts.
Using unusually favorable terms, the THECB examiners described course syllabi and student work as being acceptably rigorous, and said the “clearly designed” goals and objectives in each course are appropriate for a credible program and “would be generally comparable to an initial master’s degree in science education from one of the smaller, regional universities in the state.”
The goal of the ICR Graduate School is to provide teachers with the scientific knowledge and teaching skills necessary to actively engage their students and prepare scientifically literate graduates. ICRGS looks forward to partnering with the state of Texas in “closing the gaps” in science and mathematics by focusing on the standards needed to successfully pass the TExES certification science and teaching exams.
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