PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
GENERAL INFORMATION
The following section is intended to provide a quick reference and Internet links for some of the most common education-related questions that ROE #02 addresses from time to time. Since regulations are constantly changing, the Illinois State Board of Education website should be consulted for accuracy and a more comprehensive guide. Included in this section are the following:
CERTIFICATE EXPIRATION
The Certificate Expiration is the date on which a renewable certificate will expire if the requirements for renewal are not met, or the date on which a non-renewable certificate expires.
The expiration date will always be June 30, or the end of the last fiscal year of the certificate's validity. This is because certificates are registered and issued by fiscal year and not by calendar year. So if a certificate is registered and issued on June 15 of 1994 and is valid for four years, it will actually expire on June 30 of 1997 rather than June 15 of 1998. Additional information can be found at: www.isbe.net/certification/html/lapsed.htm
ADMINISTRATORS CERTIFICATE RENEWAL
Individuals employed on an administrative certificate for any period of time during their certificate’s validity period must complete professional development requirements in order to be eligible to renew their administrative certificate through the Educator Certification System (ECS). Two separate requirements must be met in order to renew such administrative certificates:
Note: Administrative certificate holders who evaluate certified staff must also complete “Introduction to the Evaluation of Certified Staff” and do so in addition to the annual Administrators’ Academy requirement if they have not already completed this requirement in the past.
For example, an administrator who is employed for the full five (5) years under his/her administrative certificate must complete at least five (5) professional development activities that total at least one hundred (100) professional development hours in addition to 5 Administrators’ Academy activities. If employed less than the than the full five (5) year period, a minimum average of 20 hours per year is required and one Academy per year. That is, if the administrator works 2 years he/she must complete at least 2 activities with a total of at least 40 professional development hours and two Administrators’ Academy activities.
Details about requirements and submitting a Statement Of Assurance (SOA) for certificate renewal can be reviewed under ECS HELP OPTIONS after logging on to ECS or by going to:
www.isbe.net/certification/html/admin.htm
TEACHERS CERTIFICATE RENEWAL
Individuals employed on a teaching certificate for any period of time during their certificate’s validity period must complete professional development requirements in order to be eligible to renew their certificate through the ECS system. Professional development activities are divided into three sections of which only one section (or a prorated combination of 2 and 3) must be completed:
For example with option number 3, a teacher who is employed for the full five (5) years under his/her teaching certificate may complete professional development (CPDU) activities that total at least one hundred twenty (120) professional development hours. If employed less than the than the full five (5) year period, a minimum average of 24 hours per year is required. That is, if the teacher works 2 years he/she must complete activities with a total of at least 48 professional development hours; working 3 years requires at least 3 activities totaling at least 72 professional development hours.
Details about requirements and submitting a Statement Of Assurance (SOA) for certificate renewal can be reviewed under ECS HELP OPTIONS after logging on to ECS or by going to:
www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/CPDU_CEU.pdf
http://www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/CPDU_abridged.pdf
SCHOOL SERVICE PERSONNEL CERTIFICATE RENEWAL
(type 73 certificates)
On July 1, 2008, Illinois implemented renewal requirements and procedures for individuals who hold School Service Personnel Certificates and who are employed in positions requiring the certificates in Illinois public schools during the five-year (Type 73) or ten-year (Master) validity cycle of those certificates. These procedures are similar to those followed by teachers and school administrators through the ECS system.
The law does not require anyone in nonpublic schools to participate in professional development activities to renew certificates. If you are employed by a nonpublic school or you are employed as a substitute on a part-time basis or a day-to-day basis, you are only required to pay the registration fee in order to renew your certificate.
For this
purpose, “employment” in a public school is defined as performing services in
an
On or after September 1 of the final year of your validity cycle, you submit a Statement of Assurance (SOA) in which you list sufficient professional development (CPDU’s) to cover the timeframe you were actively employed during the validity cycle. Once that Statement is approved by your Regional Superintendent, Janet Ulrich, and the State Teacher Certification Board, you may reregister with your Regional Office of Education #02 for the next validity cycle.
You must complete either the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) certification process or at least 80 Continuing Professional Development Units (CPDU’s) prorated to 16 per year that you were actively employed. These Professional Development Units must address three of the four purposes (see below) outlined in the legislation to renew your certificate. In addition, you will be deemed to have satisfied the continuing professional requirements if you:
• hold an active license issued by the State as a clinical professional counselor, a professional counselor, a clinical social worker, a social worker, or a speech-language pathologist;
• hold national certification as a Nationally Certified School Psychologist from the National School Psychology Certification Board;
• are nationally certified as a National Certified School Nurse from the National Board for Certification of School Nurses;
• are nationally certified as a National Certified Counselor or National Certified School Counselor from the National Board for Certified Counselors; or
• hold a Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Details including CPDU values, Professional Development Options, Evidence of Completion, and CPDU’s can be found at the following two web addresses:
www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/school_service_personnel.pdf
www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/CPDU_school_personnel.pdf
OPTIONS AND EVIDENCE OF COMPLETION FOR CERTIFICATE RENEWAL
As you complete your professional development, you must maintain the evidence of completion for any activity you plan to use to meet renewal requirements. Each creditable activity has specific documentation. Anything other than the required evidence is not acceptable, and if you are selected for audit, you will not be credited for any activities for which you do not hold the required evidence. You must keep the evidence of completion for activities in your own files for at least one renewal cycle. If you are selected for audit, you must provide the evidence upon request from the Regional Superintendent of Schools.
If you are audited and cannot provide the required evidence of completion for sufficient credit to meet renewal requirements, you will be afforded an opportunity for a hearing, and your certificate may be suspended for one fiscal year (July 1 to June 30). Since it is illegal to be employed on an unregistered certificate in a public school, you will not be able to fill a position that legally requires that certificate during the year of suspension.
Additional information may be found at:
www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/cpdu_evidence.pdf
www.isbe.net/certification/pdf/77-21B_evidence_completion.pdf
The Illinois State Board of Education's Online Teacher Information System (OTIS) & Certificate Renewal Tracking System (CeRTS) were merged together to form the new Educator Certification System (ECS) in September 2006. ECS is a web-based system that allows educators, district administrators, and the public access to certification data from ISBE's Teacher Certification Information System (TCIS). **NOTE** CeRTS will remain open until July 2012 on a read-only basis for reference purposes.
To log on to ECS:
Go to ISBE’s homepage: www.isbe.net
1. Click on “ECS” located on the ISBE homepage
2. Scroll down to select “Educator Access” (will require an account) or “Public Search”
3. If you have not set up your ECS account, follow the instructions to create a new account
4. Log on to ECS
The ECS web site consists of two portals, or doorways, to certification data: district administrators and the general public can view certification data that is considered public information, and educators can both view their files and perform functions such as submit Statements Of Assurance (SOA), pay registration, apply for NCLB HOUSSE HQ status, etc. ECS accepts only credit cards as payment. Once access is gained in either portal, a comprehensive ECS user manual is available as an on-line link.
NEW TEACHERS: MOVING FROM AN INITIAL TO STANDARD CERTIFICATE
A new teacher is issued an Initial Certificate at the start of his or her career. The teacher must eventually earn a Standard Certificate to continue teaching in Illinois by completing a minimum of 4 years of teaching experience and concurrently completing one of several other initiatives (60 CPDU’s, Mentor Program, advanced degrees, etc.) An application and $30 fee must be submitted to the Regional Office of Education #02 and can be sent electronically using ECS. If a teacher prefers to use paper, ISBE Form 73-03C may be submitted.
You will find the most current information on the isbe.net web page: www.isbe.net
1. Under "Teacher A-Z Index" select “Certification”
2. Pick "Services and Information for Current or Perspective Teachers".
3. Under "Current Illinois Educators" select "Initial to Standard Certification".
The various options to move from initial to standard have links under "What are my professional development options?"
HIGHLY QUALIFIED GUIDELINES FOR TEACHERS
A teacher must use ECS to record their Highly Qualified status. Follow the instructions below:
1. Go to ISBE’s home page and log on to “ECS” following the instructions to Logging on to ECS as previously outlined.
2. On your account summary page, select “My Credentials”
3. From the “Credential Options” page select “NCLB Credentials.” From this page you will see the subjects for which ISBE was able to automatically determine your HQT status. Please note:
• These subjects do not necessarily relate to any area where you have teaching experience or to your current teaching assignment.
• Since these subjects are determined using information already submitted to the agency, you must not go through the “High Objective”.
4. Adding new subjects: To now add a HOUSSE result, select “Enter Subject Area(s) for Which you are Highly Qualified (using the IFT or IEA HOUSSE worksheet found on the ECS introductory page).
5. Enter the results of your HOUSSE worksheet. If you have not gone through HOUSSE for a subject, you can do so now by clicking the IFT/IEA link. Please note:
• If you are not currently employed as a teacher, to use the HOUSSE IFT/IEA worksheet you will have to respond as if you are employed at the grade level and subject of your interest.
6. After entering the results of your HOUSSE worksheet, indicate that you are the user and click “next”.
7. You will be directed to a page that outlines the various means to become Highly Qualified. If you have completed the HOUSSE process, click “next”.
8. You will then be directed to a listing of
options that districts use to complete the Teacher Service Record. If you are uncertain
how the TSR relates to your teaching assignments, click “
9. Repeat the process for any other subjects for which you have HOUSSE results as reported on your IFT/IEA worksheet.
10. Finally, to update your degrees, click “Degrees” under “My Credentials” and follow the instructions for adding pending degrees and submitting the evidence of work completed.
Additional information may be obtained from:
www.isbe.net/certification/html/highly_qualified.htm
SUBSTITUTE TEACHER CERTIFICATES
In order to be certified as a substitute teacher, applicants must possess a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning, submit the required application and fee, and meet all other statutory requirements. Applicants who are interested in obtaining a substitute teaching certificate should submit the following:
Application packages must be complete and contain all applicable documents in order to be considered by the Illinois State Board of Education. Application packages may be submitted in person or mailed to:
100 West Randolph Street, Suite 14-300
Additional information may be found at:
www.isbe.net/chicago/html/substitute.htm
PARAPROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION INFORMATION
The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 stated that paraprofessionals must show competency (e. g., be qualified) no later than four years after the law was enacted, by January 8, 2006. The deadline for teachers to become highly qualified in their core academic area was June 30, 2006. The U. S. Department of Education is extending the deadline for paraprofessionals, believing that the qualified paraprofessional and highly qualified teacher provisions should be consistent. USDE will align its monitoring and enforcement efforts of states for both the highly qualified teacher and paraprofessional provisions of the law. This will ensure a more efficient, effective and coordinated method of monitoring state efforts in these areas while ensuring that all children are provided with the resources the law provides them.
Additional information may be found at:
www.isbe.net/certification/html/paraprofessional.htm
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES THROUGH THE
REGIONAL OFFICE OF EDUCATION #02
The Illinois Regional Office of Education #02 strives to offer a comprehensive listing of professional development opportunities that are responsive to the needs of the educational community in the five counties that are served. Needs assessments are collected on a regular basis and additional input is welcome and appreciated. A coordinator is hired to address those needs. In addition to the variety of ‘hot topics” and professional development offerings, the Regional Office of Education #02 works to routinely posts the following opportunities on this estimated time frame:
August............................... Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
September......................... Evaluation Training, Asbestos Awareness Training, Principals’ Symposium, Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
October.............................. Educators’ Professional Development Institute, ELL training, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
November........................... Principals’ Symposium, Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
December.......................... Principals’ Symposium, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
January.............................. Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
February............................ Principals’ Symposium, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
March................................ Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
April................................... Removal of Floor Tile Containing Asbestos, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing
May................................... GED testing
June.................................. Bus Drivers’ Refresher Course, Superintendents’ Symposium, GED testing