BECCA
Bilingual Early Childhood Certification Assistance Program
An Alternative Route to Teacher Certification
If you are looking for the BTTT (K-8) program,
click here.
Eligibility
The BECCA Program is seeking applications from individuals with bachelor's degrees who are committed to bilingual education and who wish to complete a rigorous early childhood teacher preparation program.
To be eligible, applicants must:
- Wish to work with preschool age children
- Be committed to working with and advocating on behalf of English language learners
- Possess at least a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited institution in any field
- Have a minimum undergraduate GPA of at least 2.75 on a 4.0 scale (preferred)
- Be fluent in English and Spanish (or another target language as needed)
- Have the ability to pass state certification exams (i.e. Basic Skills Test, Target Language Proficiency Test, etc.) *
- Be capable of meeting the requirements for admission into the Northern Illinois University Graduate School **
- Be willing to teach in a state funded early childhood program in Lake or McHenry county for at least three years
- Be a U.S. Citizen or legal Permanent Resident
- Holders of Type 29 certificates that were issued prior to July 31, 2004 are not eligible.
* Test results for the Basic Skills and Target Language Proficiency tests are not required to apply, but all applicants are encouraged to take these tests as soon as possible. If a selected applicant is unable to pass these tests in a timely fashion, he/she will not be allowed to continue in the program.
** No applicant should complete the requirements for admission to the NIU Graduate School , including taking the GRE/MAT or TOEFL (if applicable), until he/she has been notified of acceptance and has attended the mandatory program orientation.
Phone: 312-814-3519 | Fax: 312-814-2282 | amorenon@isbe.net
ISBE, English Language Learning, 100 W. Randolph, Suite 14-300, Chicago, IL 60601
