The 42-credit Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) in Agricultural Education leads to New York State Initial and Professional certification and is designed to be completed in two to three years of part-time study. The program provides students an accessible and flexible route to gaining teacher certification in the area of PreK-12 Agriculture via two possible certification pathways: Residency or Transitional B. The M.A.T. in Agricultural Education is offered in a blended learning format that combines online courses, synchronous sessions, and clinical experience through immersion in New York State schools. The curriculum provides a strong foundation in pedagogy linked to content, including preparation in child and adolescent development, multicultural education, use of learning technologies, assessment of learning, as well as agriculture-specific courses. This program also features extensive mentoring by program faculty.

The Pathways to Certification

The Clinically-Rich Residency pathway allows students to attend part-time for one year while gaining the academic background and practical field experience that prepares them to enter a year-long residency placement. After completing the first year of the program (18 credits and 100 hours of field experience), residents begin a year-long placement with a certified agricultural educator. As the school year progresses, residents incrementally assume more responsibility for the classroom, building to an immersion and lead instructional responsibility for the critic teacher’s classes for eight weeks during the spring term. Students who successfully complete their coursework, meet performance expectations in their residency placement, and complete the appropriate certification requirements are eligible for the New York State Initial certificate in Agricultural Education (and Professional certification with 3 years of teaching experience).

The Transitional-B pathway is a part-time option for working adults who want to become certified teachers of record while completing their degree. Transitional B certification is a full New York State teaching certification that allows qualified students to seek employment as teachers of record after just one year in the program. During the second and third year of the Transitional B certification pathway, students may continue their coursework while working as a full or part-time teacher in a New York State school. In this setting, students will be mentored by faculty members and networked with other Transitional B certification teachers across the state. Students who successfully complete their coursework, meet performance expectations in their clinical experience, and complete the appropriate certification requirements are eligible for the New York State Initial certificate in Agricultural Education (and Professional certification with 3 years of teaching experience).

Requesting Transfer Credit

After admission, students should discuss the possibility of transfer credit with their academic advisor. To request transfer credit, students complete the Transfer Credit Request Form available through the Quicklinks box of the Graduate Student Center on MySUNYEmpire.

Program Delivery and Tuition Rate

This master’s program is delivered through online courses with some face-to-face meetings required. These face-to-face meetings are attached to specific courses and are held regionally throughout New York state. This program is billed at the non-MBA rate.

Mandatory Professional Licensure Disclosure

New York State takes pride in the high quality of its licensed and certified professionals.  For the protection of its citizens, each license and certificate has requirements that individuals must meet in order to be licensed or certified in New York State.  SUNY’s academic programs leading to licensure or certification are carefully designed to meet and exceed these State requirements. This is a role SUNY plays in protecting the public.  Other states frequently have their own requirements, so if your goal is to practice in another state, this disclosure will help you check to see what that state requires.  The full details regarding this disclosure related to the applicable SUNY Empire degree programs may be found here. 

Admission Requirements

Admission to this program is selective. This program enrolls new students in the fall term only. To be admitted to the program, the candidate must hold a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution and meet prerequisites in the following areas:

1. Content area preparation – you must:
   • meet New York State certification requirements by having 30 credits in the content area;
2. Academic excellence – you must:
   • have a cumulative 3.0 GPA or the equivalent; ​
   • demonstrate the academic skills necessary to meet the academic and professional demands of the program;
   • demonstrate the capacity to develop skills in using learning technologies.

Application decisions are based on:

• undergraduate and graduate transcripts that document the required GPA, and content area preparation;
• an application essay by the candidate that demonstrates the writing and critical-thinking skills needed for success in a demanding graduate program, as well as the strong potential to make a successful transition into teaching as a profession; and
• the candidate’s employment and volunteer/community service history.

An applicant who meets all other admissions requirements and has no more than 6 credits of content area course deficiencies may be admitted to the program. The student must make up the deficiencies by the end of the second term in the program.

 

Application

Please see the Graduate Admission section of this catalog for a complete listing of materials required to complete a graduate application.

Program Tracks

There are two tracks within the M.A.T. Agricultural Education program:

• Transitional B certification
• Clinically-Rich Residency 

Both tracks offer an assortment of enrollment sequences. The enrollment sequence will depend on the required clinical coursework that aligns with a student's chosen track. Regardless of the track chosen, all sequence types contain the same first-year coursework.

Please Note: The clinical supervision courses (i.e., Mentored Teaching, Intensified Mentored Teaching or Residency Seminar courses) in both tracks must be completed with a B or better. If the course grade results in less than a B, students may repeat the course in accordance with the Graduate Evaluation and Grading Policy found in the Policies and Procedures section of this catalog.

Transitional B Certification Track

Transitional B Certification Enrollment Sequence

In the first year, students enroll on a part-time basis, completing 15 credits of graduate coursework and 50 hours of field experience (15 of which must be in Special Education). Upon successful completion of the first year of courses, meeting New York State Education Department requirements and obtaining a qualifying teaching position, students may apply for a Transitional B Teaching Certificate. While employed as a teacher of record, degree candidates complete 15 credits in year two of the program and 12 credits in year three. Students are responsible for obtaining their Transitional B teaching position and are not placed into clinical settings by the program. During this period, a mentor teacher in the school setting, program faculty and program field supervisors provide instructional support. Successful completion of years two and three of the program, including the capstone, result in the award of the M.A.T. degree. Program completers are eligible for New York State Initial teaching certification (and Professional certification with three years of teaching experience).

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
Fall		Credits
EDUC 6005	US Schools in Social Context	3
EDUC 6137	Child and Adolescent Development	3
	Credits	6
Spring
EDUC 6127	Teaching and Learning: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 6015	Exceptionalities: Individualizing Learning	3
	Credits	6
Summer
EDUC 6045	Teaching Diverse Learners	3
EDUC 6132	Content Area Study: Agricultural Education	3
	Credits	6
Second Year
Fall
EDUC 6122	Teaching and Curriculum: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 7045	Mentored Teaching I	3
	Credits	6
Spring
EDUC 7010	Educational Evaluation	3
EDUC 7050	Mentored Teaching II	3
	Credits	6
Third Year
Fall
EDUC 6125	Literacy	3
EDUC 7055	Mentored Teaching III	3
	Credits	6
Spring
EDUC 6130	Literacy Across the Curriculum	3
EDUC 7060	Mentored Teaching Capstone	3
	Credits	6
	Total Credits	42

Intensified Mentored Teaching Track for Transitional B Certification Enrollment Sequence

The one-year Intensified Mentored Teaching track allows students to complete a year of Mentored Teaching as the teacher of record while on Transitional B certification. In order to pursue this pathway, the student must secure a full time (1.0 FTE) teaching position in their content area for the entire school year (September-June). The intensified track features a 6-credit course, Intensified Mentored Teaching 1 (IMT1), during the first semester of classroom teaching. This 6-credit course will include eight observations by faculty members and additional mentoring and support through both online and face-to-face components of the course. Intensified Mentored Teaching 2 (IMT2) is a 3-credit course, taken during the second semester of classroom teaching, and includes seven observations by faculty mentors. The pedagogical impact of an intensified year of mentored teaching strongly supports students’ initial teaching experiences, enabling the faculty to offer increased support to students during this critical first year as a teacher of record. Program completers are eligible for New York State Initial teaching certification (and Professional certification with three years of teaching experience).

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
Fall		Credits
EDUC 6005	US Schools in Social Context	3
EDUC 6137	Child and Adolescent Development	3
	Credits	6
Spring
EDUC 6127	Teaching and Learning: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 6015	Exceptionalities: Individualizing Learning	3
	Credits	6
Summer
EDUC 6045	Teaching Diverse Learners	3
EDUC 6132	Content Area Study: Agricultural Education	3
	Credits	6
Second Year
Fall
EDUC 6122	Teaching and Curriculum: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 6125	Literacy	3
EDUC 7026	Intensified Mentored Teaching I: Agricultural Education	6
	Credits	12
Spring
EDUC 6130	Literacy Across the Curriculum	3
EDUC 7010	Educational Evaluation	3
EDUC 7031	Intensified Mentored Teaching II: Agricultural Education	3
	Credits	9
Summer
EDUC 7060	Mentored Teaching Capstone	3
	Credits	3
	Total Credits	42

Residency Track

Clinically-Rich Residency Enrollment Sequence

The Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) Clinically-Rich Residency Program uses a blended model of delivery, with online, face-to-face and clinically-based instructional modes. After completing the first year of the program, students begin a year-long placement in a 7-12 classroom with a critic teacher certified in the resident’s content area. Residents will assume more responsibility incrementally for the classroom, culminating in the complete assumption of the critic teacher’s classes for eight weeks during the spring term.

During the year-long residency, students will complete additional coursework that links theory to classroom practice. Residents receive intensive mentoring by faculty members and field supervisors. The program concludes with the capstone project within the program. Program completers are eligible for New York State Initial teaching certification (and Professional certification with three years of teaching experience.)

Plan of Study Grid

First Year
Fall		Credits
EDUC 6005	US Schools in Social Context	3
EDUC 6137	Child and Adolescent Development	3
	Credits	6
Spring
EDUC 6127	Teaching and Learning: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 6015	Exceptionalities: Individualizing Learning	3
	Credits	6
Summer
EDUC 6045	Teaching Diverse Learners	3
EDUC 6132	Content Area Study: Agricultural Education	3
	Credits	6
Second Year
Fall
EDUC 6122	Teaching and Curriculum: Agricultural Education	3
EDUC 6125	Literacy	3
EDUC 7005	MAT Residency Seminar I	6
	Credits	12
Spring
EDUC 7010	Educational Evaluation	3
EDUC 6130	Literacy Across the Curriculum	3
EDUC 7015	MAT Residency Seminar II	3
	Credits	9
Summer
EDUC 7020	Residency Capstone	3
	Credits	3
	Total Credits	42

Upon successful completion of the program, the teacher candidate will be able to:

• Demonstrate how his/ her teaching practice reflects equity, democracy, and diversity and how lessons are meaningful or relevant to students;
• Integrate content-specific language and differing viewpoints and methods of inquiry grounded in appropriate NYS Standards in teaching practice;
• Demonstrate clear, theory-based approaches to instruction in the content area;
• Demonstrate multiple means of differentiated instruction for diverse learners;
• Articulate effective approaches to assessment in instructional decision-making and the capacity to reflect on and improve practice;
• Demonstrate the use of technology to improve practice and assessment, and to meet the needs of diverse learners;
• Articulate issues of accessibility in technology use; and
• Demonstrate growth and reflection related to his/her teaching practice.