Hello!!! Thank you so much for taking the time to read this. My name is Brooklyn King and I am a Senior English major, Secondary Education minor from Capitol Heights, MD at Howard University. I am writing this petition in hopes of assisting all of HU School of Education current students and students that may come in the future. We need your help to push the School of Education leadership team to immediately reverse the graduation requirement of passing ANY Praxis exams to graduate from Howard University. Please keep reading for more details.

All SOE Elementary Education majors and Secondary Education minors are subject to an extensive catalog of classes and a series of licensure exams (that STUDENTS PAY FOR OUT OF POCKET). As a Secondary Education minor, I was told very early by SOE advisors to ensure that my major courses were complete before my senior year to take an unpaid, 9-12 credit Student Teaching course (EDUC 450). This course is from 8:30-3:30 Monday-Friday, with an additional Wednesday meeting from 5:10-7:30 pm. With hours like these, how are students supposed to support themselves financially if the prime working hours and days are gone? Newsflash: WE CANNOT! However, we continue to push on because it is required. But with this burden in mind, this is where the Praxis exam being a graduation requirement comes in.

• SOE Education Majors/Minors have to take a minimum of 3 Praxis Exams to graduate. These are the exams that were once required by Washington, D.C.'s Office of the State Superintendent of Education (OSSE). But recently we learned, THEY NO LONGER ARE REQUIRED. Some of these exams Secondary Education minors must take to even be admitted into a SOE course. They are the following + their prices:
  • Praxis CORE: $90 (required to take and pass to be let into our 2nd minor course EDUC 212)
  • Praxis II (Content): $130 (registration required to be admitted into EDUC 450 and to must pass to graduate)
  • Praxis Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT): $156 (must pass in order graduate and pass the class EDUC 450)

That is $376 worth of exams that are not covered by tuition. SOE leadership and professors also do not provide any support in passing, studying, prepping, or paying for these exams. If students cannot afford to pay/register for an exam or fail an exam, they run the risk of not graduating on time. Due to this, several students have effectively dropped the major/minor. But most importantly, many students HAVE NOT GRADUATED ON TIME. SOE leadership's reasoning for these exams in the past has been because "they want to set students up for teaching licensure." But as said before: THESE EXAMS ARE NO LONGER REQUIRED FOR LICENSURE.

1. According to OSSE's website, "Teacher certification applicants who do not have a 3.0 or higher GPA for the bachelor's degree must present a passing required score for any combination of the basic skills reading, writing, and mathematics exams listed below." Essentially, any person with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 and a Bachelor's degree does not need the Praxis Core exam for the Washington, D.C. teaching license. Additionally, SAT scores are accepted in place of the Praxis Core scores. 
2. On the topic of Subject Content and Pedagogy exams (Praxis II and Praxis PLT) OSSE's website also says, "Requires a 3.0 Bachelor's degree GPA OR passing basic skills exam score AND the following exam combination required for the subject area being sought." This means that any person with a 3.0 GPA and Bachelor's degree DOES NOT need the Praxis II or Praxis PLT to obtain a teaching license in Washington, D.C.

Link to this OSSE Educator Credentialing Exams Document: https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/publication/attachments/Educator%20Credentialing%20Exams%20Flyer_%208%202023.pdf

With this added stress looming over SOE students to pass these exams with 0 support, we have been left with no choice but to ask for YOUR help. We demand that Howard University's School of Education's Dean, Assistant Dean, chairpersons, and faculty, and staff HEAR TO THE SOE STUDENTS. We are all aware that there is an EXTREME teacher shortage nationwide. Our HBCU cannot be the reason why Black students cannot give their love for children and education due to not graduating. Please help us by signing our petition and spreading the word to ANYBODY you know.

Thank you so much for reading and your support!