Rider Earns Prestigious NASP Accreditation

Dr. Stefan Dombrowski

For the first time in its 30-year history, Rider University’s School Psychology program has earned national accreditation from the prestigious National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), becoming one of only four graduate programs in the state of New Jersey to hold such distinctive national accreditation. Dr. Stefan Dombrowski and core School Psychology colleagues, Lisa Marie Angello and Jim Murphy, worked diligently over the past six years to revise the program and compile graduate performance data that demonstrated the program’s alignment with the standards of the NASP, an organization with notoriously stringent accrediting criteria.

NASP approval confers multiple advantages to programs and program graduates, according to its Web site. It provides recognition for programs that meet national standards for the graduate education of professional service providers in school psychology. Program approval is an important indicator of quality training, comprehensive content, and extensive, properly supervised field experiences, as judged by trained national reviewers.

Even before attaining national recognition, the School Psychology program at Rider was considered very strong. This 66-credit program attracts full-time graduate students with academic credentials and Graduate Record Examination scores that would allow entrance into many doctoral level programs in psychology.  

“This puts Rider on the national map, rather than just a regional map,” said Dombrowski, who wrote the 365-page application demonstrating outcomes data on seven key assessments, including the requirement that 80 percent of graduates must pass the national exam in school psychology. “This status certainly takes Rider to the next level academically, and because of the nature of the accreditation process, faculty must keep up with current trends in the field.”

Attaining the highly competitive NASP accreditation is yet another accolade for Rider, placing the University in the national spotlight in the field of school psychology. In addition, NASP approval allows graduates of Rider’s program to apply for National Certification in School Psychology (NCSP), following successful completion of the national school psychology examination. Carol Brown, associate dean of the College of Education, Liberal Arts, and Sciences, is proud of the achievement and what it will do for Rider students. “There is a huge need for people who are well-trained in what we teach in the School Psychology program, especially in the area of special needs,” Brown said. “Any student who goes through our program can go anywhere in the country, apply for certification and be approved because of the recognition of NASP accreditation.”

The NCSP is used by many states to grant certification and licensure to school psychologists, who are then credentialed to work in the schools. These psychologists specialize in the assessment and treatment of children’s educational and mental/behavioral health. National accreditation also enhances students’ prospects for employment, and allows students to be automatically accredited to practice in most states, after passage of the PRAXIS national examination in school psychology. “Because of this national recognition, our graduates are easily able to attain employment in any state. The program meets rigorous national standards, so the national certification is accepted by many states, eliminating the need to go through the individual state application process through various state departments of education or boards of psychology,” Dombrowski explained.

Submitted on February 29, 2008