The editorial is the opinion of the editorial board of The Daily Eastern News.

Eastern is doing something right with its teaching school. Ninety-seven percent of Eastern students who graduated in the 1999-2000 school year wanting to be teachers passed their teacher certification exams.

Of the 662 Eastern teacher education graduates who completed the exams, 643 passed.

Many schools looking for qualified teachers turn to Eastern graduates. The test scores show Eastern students are capable and highly qualified. It’s to Eastern’s credit that so many students passed the exams and became teachers.

“Hundreds of communities across the state have hired Eastern’s graduates to teach,” said Liz Hitch, dean of the College of Education and Professional Studies. “They know, from the classroom results that they see, that Eastern has provided the kind of program graduates needed in order to be exemplary teachers.”

Eastern is the second largest producer of teachers in the state. Of the six primary state universities in Illinois, Eastern is second only to Illinois State University, which has about 8,000 more students.

It’s not surprising that Eastern students did well on their tests and are in demand in the workforce. Eastern has a history of being known as a top-notch teacher’s school. When the university was originally founded as Eastern Illinois State Normal School, it was a teacher’s college.

Even today, more than half of Eastern’s students are in the education program. The university also has numerous programs for teachers. The Minority Teacher Identification and Enrichment Project has established and maintained a statewide network of Minority Teacher Education Associations working at the community colleges and their feeder schools and high schools.

A new teacher mentoring and induction program was established to make sure Eastern graduates are well prepared. Also, to increase the accessibility to teacher education programs and courses, a collaborative effort between Eastern Illinois University and Illinois State University was started.

With all of the problems that seem to surround Eastern, and all the complaints people have, it is good to see such a high percentage of students are doing well. People should not be ashamed to attend this university; they should not be scared away by the construction and the fact that the university has been promising a food court for so long.

Years from now, it won’t matter where you ate. When students go out to get a job, employers are going to look at the academic values of their candidates. Eastern has proved it does a good job, and the education department should be commended for its excellence in producing high-caliber students.