TEH Section 9: Professionalism and Academic Expectations
Professionalism and Academic Expectations
Professionalism and Academic Expectations
Professionalism
Your professionalism is critical for your success as a teacher candidate and soon-to-be licensed teacher. Examples of professionalism may include: skills, competencies, knowledge, your presence and how you present and carry yourself. In this section, criteria will include expectations of when you are in schools and other field sites, dress attire, and overall professional and ethical conduct.
Professional and Ethical Conduct
Throughout your teacher education program, you are expected to consistently demonstrate appropriate professional and ethical conduct. To gauge the appropriateness of your conduct, we assess teacher dispositions a minimum of three times throughout the program to help guide your development (see Full Disposition Assessment in Appendix B). These dispositions are expectations that are specific for pre-service teachers. However, alignment with the State Board of Education’s , will also be expected of you when you are in field experiences. The first six principles also apply to teacher candidates when they are working with school districts. These 6 principles are outlined below, along with some specific actions that would be considered unprofessional and/or unethical conduct in relation to the first 2 principles:
- Educators behave in a professional manner, realizing that one’s actions reflect directly on the status and substance of the profession.
- Disparaging a colleague, peer, or other personnel while working in a professional setting (e.g., teaching, coaching, supervising or conferencing) on the basis of race or ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, political or religious affiliation, physical characteristics, age, disability or English language proficiency.
- Using technology to intentionally host or post improper or inappropriate material that could reasonably be accessed by the school community.
- Educators maintain a professional relationship with all students at all times, both in and outside the classroom.
- Committing any act of sexual abuse of a student or minor or engaging in inappropriate sexual conduct with a student or minor.
- Committing an act of cruelty to children or an act of child endangerment (e.g., physical abuse, mental injury, or emotional abuse).
- Soliciting, encouraging, engaging or consummating an inappropriate relationship with a student or minor.
- Disparaging a student on the basis of race or ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, national origin, sexual orientation, political or religious affiliation, physical characteristics, academic or athletic performance, disability or English language proficiency.
- Using inappropriate language, gestures or signs at any school-related activity such as racial slurs, biased, lewd or lascivious expressions.
- Provoking an altercation between students or provoking or engaging in a physical altercation with students, that is not for the purpose of ensuring the health, safety and welfare of students.
- Failing to provide appropriate supervision of students, within the scope of the educator’s official capacity, which risks the health, safety, and welfare of students or others in the school community.
- Knowingly contributing to or knowingly failing to intervene in the harassment, intimidation or bullying of a student.
- Using technology to promote inappropriate communications with students.
- Educators accurately report information required by the local board of education or governing board, state education agency, federal agency or state or federal law.
- Educators adhere to federal, state, and local laws and statutes regarding criminal activity.
- Educators comply with state and federal laws related to maintaining confidentiality information.
- Educators serve as positive role models and do not use, possess or unlawfully distribute illegal or unauthorized drugs.
In addition to the dispositions and principles listed above, there are other ways that you need to demonstrate an appropriate professional and ethical conduct. For example, it is important to not engage in plagiarism when creating unit and lesson plans. Cite references and resources when ideas and content are being used.
Collectively, these expectations are for pre-service and in-service teachers; however, these also include coaches and extracurricular leaders. For those of you holding such a position or role, The Office of Professional Conduct has created ‘’ for appropriate professional behavior and social media use.
Expectations in Schools and Other Field Sites
All individuals associated with 51±¬ÁÏ and in particular, teacher education, are guests in the schools and other sites we use for our field experiences. As a guest, you must follow the guidelines and policies at the school/site in which you are attending, which may include a dress code, time of arrival/departure, social media, due dates for unit and lesson plans, etc. It is your responsibility to learn about the field sites’ expectations. It is important to note each time you walk into a field experience site, you are representing 51±¬ÁÏ and your teacher education program. How you demonstrate your professionalism matters.
In addition to the field sites’ expectations, KSU teacher education programs also expect you to comply with the following:
- Dress appropriately and professionally (see dress attire section below).
- Arrive at least 15 minutes before the start of school or your expected time to teach.
- Sign in at the front office and receive a visitor’s pass each time you are in a field site.
- Provide the front office your Pre-service Teacher Permit. Have them make a copy and retain your original.
- Introduce yourself to the administrative staff, administrators and other support staff, especially if you are student teaching or at the site for an extended period. The administration and staff should know who you are.
- Be prepared for your teaching lessons, which includes having unit and/or lesson plans completed by the due date, all copies made, materials gathered, classroom space is set-up and ready for each lesson.
- Communicate professionally and effectively with your mentor teacher, university supervisor, other schoolteachers and potentially parents and families. It is your responsibility to ask your mentor teacher the best modes of communication – email, text, phone call and to which number(s) and during which times (e.g., before 10pm and after 6am). If you will not be able to be at the school or will be late, you are to communicate with your mentor teacher and university supervisor immediately.
- Engage and build rapport with the students. Demonstrate that you want to be a teacher and enjoy being at the field site working with the students.
- Discuss with your mentor teacher the timeframe of when you will observe, when you will begin teaching (e.g., to a small group, one class period) and their expectations of you during each phase of your experience at the school. Even when observing, it is important to still engage and interact with the students when appropriate (e.g., one-on-one assistance during work time, asking students questions about their work, etc.).
- Take initiative. It is important to learn as much from your mentor teacher as possible, but it is also important to bring new ideas to the teacher and students – whether that be for a teaching lesson, classroom design and organization, resources available to students, etc.
- Your departure time is established by the school at your field experience or no earlier than 15 minutes after the end of the school day. Prior to leaving, make sure all materials and equipment are put away and you have discussed the next observation/teaching day with your mentor teacher.
- Respond positively to constructive collaboration with your mentor teacher and supervisor and demonstrate a commitment to professional development. Practice active listening to demonstrate that you understand what is being asked of you. Ask for clarification respectfully without a defensive tone.
Professional Dress Attire
In this section we provide suggestions regarding your professional dress attire since how you dress will leave an impression on the teachers, administration, students, and staff. Yet, we also know that how you dress varies based on your identity and does not indicate your potential and effectiveness as a teacher. As previously stated, we are guests in the schools and other field sites so we recommend adhering to their dress code if and when possible. We understand that certain dress policies may not be inclusive of all identities. If this impacts you, please contact the Assistant Director of Clinical Experiences (rbrow156@kent.edu) or Director of Educator Preparation (etesta@kent.edu). With this in mind, we aim to promote belonging and well-being and recommend the following:
- Professional clothes may include: dress pants, dress shirts, khakis, suits, skirts, dresses, button-down or polo shirts, sweaters, etc. (*physical education teacher candidates may wear athletic attire).
- Unless necessary to accommodate for a disability, casual clothing, such as jeans, hoodie sweatshirts, t-shirts, or clothes with tears or holes in them, should not be worn. For assistance accessing professional dress, please visit the KSU Career Closet.
- No revelation of undergarments or exposure to private body parts, including when bending forward or raising arms above the head.
- Acceptability of hair, facial hair, and hair coverings that is appropriate to your cultural and/or religious identity.
- If tattoos are allowed to be revealed, imagery that is considered patently offensive, discriminatory, or obscene must be concealed.
- Fragrances should be kept to a minimum to be sensitive to individuals with environmental sensitivities.
Social Media and Personal Communication
Forms of social media, such as X, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, etc. are pervasively being used by adults, teenagers, and some children of a younger age. Although social media has some benefits, we must be cautious in how we are using such mediums to communicate publicly with others. In this section, guidelines will be provided for faculty, staff, and teacher candidates to consider when using personal and/or professional social media forums.
Personal Social Media Accounts
As future teaching professionals, it is important for you to have a professional image – both in person and on social media and the Internet. As you enter a teacher education program, we highly recommend you engage in the following:
- Google yourself. Learn what ‘comes up’ when you are Googled. Most school districts will Google you before they accept whether you can come to their school for a field experience/student teaching. Other audiences with whom you might not be aware are teachers, parents, and even students. In the very near future, you will be looking to be employed as a licensed teacher and do not want unprofessional social media use to be the reason why you do not get hired.
- Remove all images and posts that may be misconstrued or considered ‘unprofessional.’ For example, pictures of you drinking alcohol, use or bad language, posts that are harmful to a group of individuals, etc.
- Research which images and posts that you are tagged in or somehow connected with your ‘friends’ or ‘followers,’ because even if you did not post or tweet the image/comment, but someone else did and linked you to it, you will still be identified with that image/comment.
- Censor your posts/tweets/comments so that they are not discriminatory, obscene, or patently offensive.
- Do not use social media while in the schools or other field experience sites, unless you are asked to do so as part of your educational duties (e.g., to promote school events).
- As a future professional that will serve the public, we suggest you conduct yourselves with integrity in all situations. You never know who could be taking pictures or video of your behavior that may be exposed to KSU, a school district, or other prospective employers.
Social Media and Personal Communication Related to Students
In your teacher education programs, you will learn about the importance of getting to know your students and building rapport with them. This, of course, takes time and an ethic of care. It is important to remember that you want to be friendly with your students, but to not become friends, especially for those of you who will only be a few years older than your students. We have outlined behaviors and actions that should not occur when working with students:
- Do not become ‘friends’ or accept ‘following’ requests from students on any social media or video gaming networks.
- Do not post pictures of students on your personal social media. If a school uses social media and you have received permission to post/tweet on their social media site, then that is acceptable.
- Never give out a personal phone number or email to students.
Attendance Policy
As a teacher candidate, you are expected to attend all classes and field experiences. If an emergency occurs or you are ill, you need to contact your mentor teacher, instructor and/or university supervisor immediately. It will be up to your instructor/coordinator to determine if the absence is deemed ‘excused.’ Unexcused absences, in accordance to the course syllabus, can lower your course grade or disallow you from completing the required number of hours in your field experience. If you do not complete the field experience in its entirety and at a passing level, you may have to retake the course.
Excessive absences while student teaching may result in a) having to make up the number of days to meet the state requirement in the current placement, b) receiving an In Progress (IP) to complete the requirements later or c) removal from the placement and failure of student teaching.
Student Code of Conduct or Statement of Students’ Responsibilities
College can be one of the most exciting, yet one of the most demanding experiences of your life. This is particularly true for students with teacher education majors or minors at 51±¬ÁÏ. Because of State licensing standards and accreditation guidelines, our students are subject to rigorous admissions criteria, coursework, and professional requirements. Our programs are complex and multi-faceted. Although numerous faculty and staff are prepared to assist you with your program of study, you are responsible for meeting all requirements and deadlines. Specifically, you are accountable for:
- Knowing and satisfying degree requirements
- Meeting regularly with your professional academic advisor and faculty advisor
- Meeting the required deadlines
For more information, refer to the
Professional Warning and Not Permitted to Continue
Professional Education Warning
While GPA is just one facet of understanding your preparedness of the classroom, it is one that provides some insight into your acquisition of both the content and pedagogical knowledge that is necessary to successfully conduct a classroom. As a student in a teacher licensure program, you are required to have a minimum 2.75 GPA to progress in your program and ultimately graduate. If your cumulative GPA drops below a 2.75, for the first time you will be placed on Professional Education Warning (PEW). You will have 2 semesters to bring your cumulative GPA up to a 2.75 and must receive a term GPA of a 2.75 for every semester after being placed on Professional Education Warning. Unfortunately, if you fail to meet this requirement, you will be Not Permitted to Continue (NPC) in your major and will be required to change major. You may opt to declare EHSG until you are able to raise your cumulative GPA up to a 2.75 or may choose to declare another major in EHHS or in another college.
As a student in a teacher preparation program in the College of Education, Health and Human Services, you are required to maintain a cumulative 2.75 grade point average to progress in your program and to be eligible to student teach or complete final practicum. If your cumulative GPA falls below a 2.75, then you are placed on Professional Education Warning in accordance with the professional education warning policy stated in the Undergraduate Catalog. To remain in the program, you must meet the following TWO conditions:
- For next semester and every semester thereafter, a term grade point average of 2.75 or above must be achieved.
- A 2.75 cumulative grade point average must be achieved within two semesters of receiving the professional education warning.
If you do not meet one of the two conditions listed above, you will be designated as "Not Permitted to Continue" in your declared program. Please note, if you are declared in a non-degree program and do not meet either of the conditions listed above, then you would no longer be considered degree-seeking and may not be eligible to receive financial aid. See below for more information. We ask that if you are on professional education warning to maintain regular contact with your advisor in the Vacca Office of Student Services, 304 White Hall. An appeal of this decision is directed to the Interim Associate Dean of the College of Education, Health and Human Services.
Not Permitted to Continue
Undergraduate students not progressing academically in their selected academic program will be deemed Not Permitted to Continue based on criteria established by their program area. The criteria set forth by each program area can be found under the program section of the University Catalog. Students enrolled in a program that has Not Permitted to Continue criteria will be notified upon entrance to the program. Prior to being deemed Not Permitted to Continue, students will receive a minimum of one warning and will be required to work with an advisor in their academic unit to develop a plan for continuation. The plan will include all actions necessary to continue in current program, the opportunity to declare a different program, a timeline of when actions should occur, and next steps if actions are not followed. Students who have received a warning the previous term will be reviewed during end-of-term processing to determine their status regarding continuation in their current program. Students deemed ineligible to continue in their current program and who have not identified and declared a different program within two weeks after grades post will be required to change their major outside of a teacher education major.
Students may change their major to EHHS General which is intended for students who are exploring majors within the college or trying to raise their GPA to meet requirements of their intended major. The EHHS General major is not a degree granting major and university requires that all students are in a degree granting major by the time they have accumulated 45 KSU earned hours. Please note students declared in a non-degree program are no longer considered degree-seeking and may not be eligible to receive financial aid. Once a cumulative grade point average has been raised to a minimum 2.75, a student may change their major back to their intended major. Students are expected to maintain regular contact with their advisor in the Vacca Office of Student Services, 304 White Hall and take advantage of available resources, such as the Academic Success Center and the Counseling Center, amongst others. An appeal of this decision is directed to the Interim Associate Dean of the College of Education, Health and Human Services.
Academic Complaints
The University policy and procedure is established to provide an appropriate framework and method to resolve student complaints of an academic nature.
Last updated July 23, 2025