Please see the most up-to-date information regarding Relay New York's COVID-19 response for current students below. If you have questions please contact us at support@relay.edu.
Certification Changes
Emergency COVID 19 Certificates
Due to COVID-19, many candidates may not be able to complete the certification requirements. The Emergency COVID-19 certificate is available for candidates seeking a Transitional B certificate, Initial certificate, or a Supplementary certificate. Candidates must apply on the TEACH website for the Initial or Supplementary certificate they are in pursuit of and the emergency COVID-19 Certificate extension sought on or before September 1, 2020. There is no fee for the Emergency COVID-19 certificate and the certificate is valid for up to one year.
Emergency COVID-19 Certificate Eligibility Requirement: Candidates must have completed all requirements (e.g., workshops) for the certificate sought, other than the exam requirement(s) (e.g., CST, edTPA), on or before September 1, 2020.
For example, if you are seeking an Initial Adolescent 7-12 Mathematics certificate, you must have already completed the DASA, Child Abuse, and School Violence workshops, as well as completed your fingerprinting and paid for your certificate on TEACH, to be eligible for the Emergency COVID-19 certificate.
Testing Center Updates
Some testing centers have reopened in some areas in NYS. You can elect to take required certification exams (including the ATS-W) now by reviewing testing center guidance and registering here. That said, Relay and the NY State Department of Education are aware that many New York City-based Pearson VUE owned test centers remain closed. We recognize that some candidates may not feel comfortable or safe testing at a test center, or that there may be limited availability at test centers near you. If you are unable to test before September 1, 2020, we recommend that you take advantage of the Emergency COVID-19 certificate by the September 1, 2020 deadline. If you have already registered, need to reschedule, or cancel your exam, see this Support Center article.
Current Instruction and Assessment
Online Instruction:
Relay New York has pivoted to online instruction in response to the evolving COVID-19 outbreak and to ensure student learning is not interrupted. All coursework and Relay events are currently online until further notice.
Pass/Fail Grade Option:
Relay NY will offer the option for all enrolled students to take any coursework Pass/Fail for the spring 2020 term. We are providing this option to those who would benefit from alleviating the stress associated with earning a specific course grade, as there might be other pressing priorities such as acclimating to online teaching, caring for one’s self or family members, and many other responsibilities that have developed as a result of COVID-19. The Registrar’s Office will send guidance to all enrolled students to describe how to request a Pass/Fail grade instead of a letter grade for all who prefer that option.
It is important to note that our minimum cumulative 2.7 GPA requirement for graduation will remain unchanged for the Class of 2020. This means that taking coursework Pass/Fail for some students may not be the right option if you hope to graduate on time. Any student in the Class of 2020 with a cumulative GPA lower than 2.7, should consult directly with their adviser before opting into taking a course(s) Pass/Fail. By opting into a course as Pass/Fail, your final Pass/Fail grade will not impact your term or cumulative GPA; however, a Fail in any course will require you to retake the course in order to complete your program of study and graduate. All Pass/Fail requests must be submitted by June 15, 2020, no later than 11:59 PM. Please look out for communication from the Registrar’s Office, and connect with your adviser if you have questions about this process or would like support in making this decision.
Course Adjustments:
Teachers enrolled in SGA-315: Masters Defense II in the spring of 2020 will not be required to collect four rounds of data, and are not required to reach a specific achievement floor (or ambitious goal) as a program requirement for graduation. Additionally, teachers enrolled in TEL-526: Intervention Intensive II & Special Education Capstone will not be required to collect the end of year data. These requirements are being waived as the teaching assignments of our students have changed dramatically over the past month. The changes due to COVID-19 are far out of the locus of control of our student body, who we know are working hard to meet the new demand of their roles and support their students in these new contexts. While the academic achievement of our PK-12 students will always remain our primary mission in each of our teacher preparation programs, we recognize that our roles as educators must be responsive to this crisis, which limits our ability to collect and analyze data as we had planned.
Capstone:
We have made the difficult decision to cancel the oral presentation component of the program capstone for CO2020 MAT students in all majors and programs. The oral presentation is grounded in teachers’ presenting the student achievement data that they have collected, analyzed, and responded to over an entire year. Because of our current reality, teachers will not be able to collect a year’s worth of data and thus would not be eligible to present a meaningful defense. Furthermore, the written component of the capstone has been adapted to include deeper reflection and analysis of student and teacher growth and observations of student learning. Faculty will be sharing details of the revised prompts for the paper in the coming weeks if they haven’t done so already. We believe this adaptation to the program completion requirements will allow teachers to focus on the act of reflection and effectively prioritize given their current needs.
Assessment Adjustments:
Since our program assessments are based on teachers’ clinical experience, we made significant changes to our assessment requirements. Our faculty teams are working to adjust assessment details to ensure they are flexible enough to meet the new and evolving realities of teachers in New York while ensuring they meet the competencies of our teacher preparation requirements. Your adviser will be the best point of contact with specific questions about course assessment requirements. Please reach out to your adviser with questions about your assessments.