Professional Education Graduate Courses

Offered through The Connecting Link

Valparaiso University's Graduate School and Department of Education in conjunction with The Connecting Link (TCL) offer a series of courses that teachers in Indiana or Kentucky may take for license renewal to expand their teaching skills or for their personal enrichment.  TCL is an educational training company that offers coursework for an educator's professional development.  These courses are typically offered at various sites throughout the state of Indiana, or online in Indiana and Kentucky.  All such courses, as well as the instructors who teach them, have been reviewed and approved by the Department of Education at Valparaiso University.

Students enrolled in these courses may earn Valparaiso graduate credits for coursework that is successfully completed.  Students will be classified as Professional Educators when they enroll in TCL coursework.

Transcripts are available approximately six to eight weeks after the completion of your course. Please wait a minimum of six weeks before requesting your transcript. If you would like a letter of completion with your final grade you may call TCL to request one.

In addition to TCL forms, they must complete a short Valparaiso University application form, submit a statement from a school administrator that verifies their current teacher status, and submit a copy of their current teaching license.  Tuition, fees and other registration materials are collected by TCL course instructors at their first class meetings.  Upon successful completion of a TCL course, the student is issued a grade report from the Registrar's Office when they want official verification that they have taken a TCL course for the purpose of license renewal of to apply for salary increases in their employing school agencies.  Before enrolling in a course, teachers (particularly secondary educators) should consult the Licensure Adviser at Valparaiso University or another university closer to their residence, to ascertain that a particular TCL course will be acceptable for use in the license renewal process.  Not all courses are appropriate for license renewal in all content areas at the secondary level.

NOTE: TCL credits may not be used to renew emergency/limited licenses, as such teachers must be enrolled in a specified program of study at a local university to earn a regular teaching license if they are teaching on a limited license.

Also, teachers in states other than Indiana and Kentucky should check with a licensing adviser in that state to determine if TCL credits will count for license renewal.  The Valparaiso University licensure adviser cannot approve TCL courses for license renewal in state other than Indiana.

For questions regarding licensing applicability, please email the licensing adviser, Dr. Del Gillispie, at TCL.Education@valpo.edu. To view courses and other information, visit the Connecting Link Web Site.

Use of TCL Credits at Valparaiso University

TCL graduate credits may be used to renew currently held teaching licenses as long as the TCL courses taken are relevant to the particular license being renewed. Currently, TCL professional education graduate courses may not be applied to any graduate degree programs in Education at Valparaiso University, and Valparaiso University does not guarantee that credits offered through TCL will be accepted as transfer credits in graduate degree or licensure program at other universities. However, these courses may be used toward some non-education master degree programs at Valparaiso University, including the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies degree and the Master of Arts in English Studies & Communication. If a teacher wishes to use TCL credits in a degree or licensure program offered at another university before enrolling in the TCL course to ensure its acceptability for the desired purpose.  Educators in the state of Indiana are periodically sent TCL materials, including the application form.  Further information on procedures for enrolling in Valparaiso University professional education graduate coursework through TCL is available from the Graduate School Office or call at 1-800-821-7685.