Accreditation

To set and apply high standards for the preparation, certification, and continued licensing of Georgia public educators.

The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) was created by the Georgia General Assembly as of July 1, 1991, to assume full responsibility for the certification, preparation, and conduct of certified, licensed, or permitted personnel employed in the public schools of the State of Georgia. The Commission is also responsible for the development and administration of teacher certification testing. The Commission handles the investigation, advisement, monitoring, and due process of cases associated with educator discipline. In 1999, the Georgia Teaching Force Center was placed in the Georgia Professional Standards Commission for administration purposes. The Teaching Force Center is one component of the Georgia P-16 Council’s Title II Plan for having a qualified teacher in every classroom in Georgia by 2006.

The Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators® (GACE®) is Georgia’s state-approved educator certification assessment program. The purpose of the GACE assessments is to help the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) ensure that candidates have the knowledge and skills needed to perform the job of an educator in Georgia’s public schools. These computer-delivered assessments have been developed by the GaPSC and Educational Testing Service (ETS).

All GACE assessments are aligned with the state standards for the P–12 curriculum and with state and national content standards. Each GACE test was developed with diverse representation of Georgia educators from across the state, including the participation of committees of Georgia educators, educator preparation faculty, and other content and assessment specialists, including individuals from school systems, local schools, institutions of higher education (public and private), and other stakeholders. In other words, each GACE assessment was developed by Georgia educators to measure competency on what is taught in Georgia’s P–12 classrooms.