(a) The State Board of Education may offer and operate a nontraditional licensure program.
(b) (1) The Department of Education may provide grants of financial assistance to entities that train individuals seeking to obtain nontraditional licensure through the nontraditional licensure process administered by the department.
(2) The department shall pay the grants from funds appropriated by the General Assembly to the department for such purpose.
(c) (1) The state board shall promulgate rules and regulations to determine eligibility for and amount of awards of the grants concerning the operation of the nontraditional licensure program authorized by this section and for such other purposes as may be necessary in carrying out the intent of this section.
(2) The department may refuse to admit for enrollment in the nontraditional licensure program administered by the department a person who has been dismissed from a teacher education program at an institution of higher education.
(d) If the state board requires an applicant for nontraditional licensure to complete one (1) or more additional college-level courses and the applicant has obtained a bachelor's degree, the required course or courses shall meet one (1) or more of the following conditions:
(1) (A) Each course shall be offered at every state-supported, two-year institution of higher education.
(B) If more than one (1) course is required, all courses shall be offered in a one-semester block; or
(2) Each course shall be available as an online course, a traditional face-to-face course, or a hybrid course that is part online instruction and part face-to-face instruction, as approved by the department.
(e) (1) As used in this subsection, "accelerated teaching program" means a program intended for college graduates that provides intensive training and support for a period of two (2) or more years for teaching and leading in schools.
(2) The state board shall issue a standard five-year teaching license to an applicant if the applicant has:
(A) Either:
(i) Successfully completed an accelerated teaching program, including:
(a) The Teach For America, Inc., program;
(b) The Arkansas Teacher Corps program offered by the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville;
(c) The American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence program; or
(d) Another accelerated teaching program approved by the department; or
(ii) Been awarded a master's degree in teaching from an accredited program at an institution of higher education; and
(B) Successfully completed the criminal records checks and Child Maltreatment Central Registry check under § 6-17-410.
(3) (A) The state board shall issue to an applicant who is in an accelerated teaching program a provisional teaching license that is issued under the rules governing provisional licensure for nontraditional licensure applicants.
(B) The provisional license is valid for the entire period that the applicant is:
(i) Participating in the accelerated teaching program; and
(ii) Teaching in an Arkansas public school.
(4) The state board may require an applicant who meets the criteria of subdivision (e)(2) of this section to submit proof of the following academic eligibility:
(A) (i) Passing scores, as set by the state board, on state-required basic-skills, pedagogical, and content-area assessments, or their substantial equivalents.
(ii) As used in this subdivision, "substantial equivalents" includes the assessments required by the American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence program; and
(B) (i) If required by state board rules for the grade level and content area for which the applicant seeks licensure, successful completion of courses in Arkansas history or reading and writing in content areas, or both.
(ii) An applicant who has successfully completed an accelerated teaching program is exempt from the requirement of courses in reading and writing in content areas.
(5) No academic or experience requirements for obtaining an Arkansas teaching license in addition to those identified in this subsection (e) shall be imposed on an applicant who otherwise meets the requirements of this subsection (e) by:
(A) The state board;
(B) The department; or
(C) An Arkansas state-funded college or university.
(f) (1) The state board shall issue a nonrenewable three-year provisional professional teaching license to an applicant who submits to the department the following:
(A) Higher education transcripts evidencing the award of at least a baccalaureate degree;
(B) Evidence of a minimum of three (3) years of employment experience in the content area that the applicant seeks to teach;
(C) Evidence of an offer of employment to teach classes for credit in an Arkansas public school;
(D) A statement of justification from the applicant relating the applicant's experience to teaching in the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach;
(E) Two (2) professional letters of recommendation submitted by the applicant's references;
(F) Passing scores on the state-required basic-skills and content knowledge tests for the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach; and
(G) Successful completion of the criminal background checks and Child Maltreatment Central Registry check under § 6-17-410.
(2) (A) An individual who receives a three-year provisional teaching license under this subsection shall have in the first year of provisional licensure twenty-four (24) hours of training in pedagogy as determined by the Department of Education.
(B) The twenty-four (24) hours of training in pedagogy are in addition to and not considered a part of the professional development required for teachers by their employing school district or public school.
(3) At the end of each year of provisional licensure, the licensee shall undergo a summative evaluation as required by Arkansas law.
(4) At the end of three (3) years of provisional licensure, the state board shall issue a standard five-year teaching license to the licensee if the licensee:
(A) Submits passing scores on the state-required pedagogical assessment or its substantial equivalent for the content area in which the applicant seeks to teach;
(B) Is identified by the employing school district as proficient or above on a summative evaluation under § 6-17-2805 for the third year of provisional licensure; and
(C) Is recommended for full licensure by the superintendent of the employing school district.
Section: Previous 6-17-402 6-17-403 6-17-404 6-17-406 6-17-407 6-17-409 6-17-410 6-17-411 6-17-412 6-17-413 6-17-414 6-17-415 6-17-416 6-17-417 NextLast modified: November 15, 2016