Six months (one semester) before the visit, the educator preparation provider (EPP) announces the upcoming accreditation review and invites the public to submit written testimony to the Board of Examiners team, c/o NCATE. EPPs may solicit third-party comment from relevant public audiences, organizations and stakeholders through direct solicitation and announcements in print and/or electronic media.

A sample of a Call for Comments notice is provided below. The statement may be modified by an EPP as appropriate:

The School of Education at XYZ University is hosting an accreditation visit by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) in [date of visit]. Interested parties are invited to submit third-party comments to the visiting team. Please note that comments must address substantive matters related to the quality of professional education programs offered, and should specify the party's relationship to the EPP (i.e., graduate, present or former faculty member, employer of graduates).

We invite you to submit written testimony to:

Board of Examiners
NCATE
2010 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Suite 500
Washington, DC 20036-1023
Or by e-mail to: callforcomments@ncate.org

Correspondence, which must be received by NCATE no later than three months prior to visit, will be submitted to the EPP for response via NCATE’s Accreditation Information Management System (AIMS). NCATE will not upload anonymous comments to the BOE team or EPPs.

For questions, please contact Nate Thomas.