5048-S.E AMH BERG HARJ 258

ESSB 5048 - H AMD TO H AMD (H-2540.1/17) 370

By Representative Bergquist

WITHDRAWN 03/30/2017

    On page 149, after line 22, insert the following:

    "(e) Within amounts appropriated in this subsection (4) the professional educator standards board must develop and implement, by April 1, 2018, a professional development credit option for teacher and administrator professional certification, as follows:

    (i) The board must allow an applicant to qualify for the relevant professional certificate by earning seventy-five approved professional development credits within five years following the year that the educator first completes provisional status, and must provide a one-time, one-year extension to an applicant who does not meet these requirements that instead allows such applicant to qualify by earning ninety approved professional development credits within six years following the year that the educator first completes provisional status;

    (ii) Professional development credit means a credit earned by attending sixty minutes of approved professional development activity;

    (iii) Professional development activity means a method by which an educator may earn a professional development credit, where the activity is:  related to pedagogy, a teacher's endorsement area or an endorsement area the teacher wishes to add, professional responsibilities, mentoring, or working with families and the community, or other topics approved by the board; not required by federal or state laws, or local school district policies, though the subject matter of the activity may be related to federal, state, or local requirements; not related to first aid or athletics;

    (iv) The educator earns professional development credit by attending, participating in, teaching, presenting, or preparing for the professional development activity.  The educator may be compensated for earning, but must not be required to earn, the credit by the school district;

    (v) The board must develop and implement a means to approve and track professional development credits earned for approved professional development activities, and must develop a process for approving providers of professional development activities that meet the requirements of this subsection. However, the board may choose to approve activities that are not offered by an approved provider;

    (vi) The board must determine and adjust professional certification fees to defray the reasonable, necessary cost to the board and the office of the superintendent of public instruction of administering this professional certification option;

    (vii) The board and the office of the superintendent of public instruction may adopt rules necessary to meet the requirements of this subsection; and

    (viii) At the close of the fiscal year, the board and the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall report to the appropriate fiscal and education committee of the legislature with the costs to each agency to implement this subsection, the number of educators who applied for professional certification under this subsection, the amount of certification fees collected from such applicants, and recommendations for continuing the professional development credit option."

EFFECT:   Directs the Professional Educator Standards Board to adopt and implement rules that provide teachers with an alternative option to become professionally certified, based on earning 75 approved professional development credits.

FISCAL IMPACT:

           No net change to appropriated levels.

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