Colleges Council To Explore Creating Alternative to NCATE

The executive board of the Council of Independent Colleges has authorized its staff to examine the possibility of creating an alternative system of teacher-education accreditation.

The council, which represents about 320 small liberal-arts colleges, made the decision two weeks ago based on the recommendation of a task force of college presidents formed last year.

Next, the C.I.C. will try to find some partners in the venture, in particular the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. AASCU, whose roughly 375 member institutions train more than half of the nation's teachers, has expressed concerns about the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher...