The Catholic Educator Formation and Credential Program — a robust Catholic alternative to state teacher licensure — is now expanding to serve Catholic educators on the West Coast.
The Credential Program is launching a brand new cohort, the Western Regional Cohort, which will serve Catholic educators located in California, Oregon, and Washington. Based in the Archdiocese of Portland in Oregon, the inaugural Western Regional Cohort of the CEFC program will commence July 6-10, 2025, at Our Lady of Peace Retreat House in Beaverton, OR.
“The Archdiocese of Portland recognizes the need to provide our Catholic school teachers with a formation and preparation that truly honors their worth and dignity as Catholic educators and prepares their hearts and minds to support the distinctive aims of Catholic education,” said Elias Moo, Director of Catholic Education for the Archdiocese of Portland. “The Catholic Educator Formation and Credential Program is an answer to our prayers! We couldn’t be more grateful and excited to partner with ICLE in the launch of the Western Regional Cohort and to be able to bring the benefit of this formation to Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Portland.”
About the Catholic Educator Formation and Credential Program
In the absence of an educator credential program based entirely in the Catholic intellectual tradition, many Catholic schools and superintendents have required state teacher licenses even though most are not required by law to do so. This ICLE credential program was created to fill the gap.
The Catholic Educator Formation and Credential Program is a robust alternative to state teacher licensure: an 18-month credential program that prepares educators to infuse a deeply Catholic philosophy and practice of education into their teaching. The credential earned by teachers in ICLE’s Catholic Educator Formation and Credential (CEFC) program is designed to be portable and recognized by dioceses across the nation in lieu of state licensure. Upon successful completion of the CEFC program, graduates are eligible to receive up to twelve hours of graduate credit from seven different Catholic higher education institutions.
To date, the CEFC program has served 299 Catholic educators in 59 dioceses across 26 different states.
“We are thrilled to expand the CEFC program by launching a new Western Regional Cohort,” said Dr. Ryan Messmore, Director of the Credential Program. “The Archdiocese of Portland is emerging as a leader in the renewal of Catholic education, and we are honored to work with them in forming teachers.”
Catholic educators located on the West Coast can learn more and apply for the Western Regional Cohort of the Credential Program HERE.
Catholic educators based in other U.S. locations can learn more and apply to the Credential Program’s National Cohort HERE — only a few seats remain in the 2025-2026 cohort.