We examined the current movement toward excellence in special education from the standpoint that diagnostic assessment of prospective candidates for teacher education programs will develop a more rigorous and highly selective pool of future teachers. The recently adopted needs-based teacher training model in the State of Colorado was described, along with the implications for selecting preservice teachers, including special education teachers, at the undergraduate level. The project identified the difference between education and non-education majors on college entrance examinations, the relationship between extant admission criteria and student teaching performance, and the relationship between prospective admission criteria and student teaching performance. Implications and recommendations for revisions in procedures for admission, retention, and graduation from initial teacher education programs are presented for consideration.
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