Four new “alternative certification” courses will be discussed and voted on at Thursday’s Council on Academic Affairs meeting.

The proposed courses, EDU 4551, 4552, 4553 and 4570, will provide an avenue for current teachers without certification to attain certification.

CAA Chair Nancy Marlow said the vote is a continuation from last week’s meeting in which the CAA approved creating two classes, EDU 4550 and EDU 4560, to be part of education degrees.

Marlow also said the classes would be a positive for teachers without certification.

James Kestner, coordinator of the College of Educational and Professional Studies, said the new classes would be a means of addressing the growing shortage of teachers in the state.

Kestner’s proposal for the alternative certification classes states the courses are designed to “enhance the reputation of EIU as an outstanding institution for teacher preparation.”

The CAA plans to act on two other items today as well.

A revised program in health studies, a community health option for majors, will be voted on, and a new math course titled “Teaching Mathematics in Grades PreK-6” will be taken up by the CAA.

The CAA meets at 2 p.m. Thursdays in the Arcola-Tuscola Room of the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.