Senate Bill 1444

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444

    By Senator Klein





    28-763A-00

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to teacher certification;

  3         creating the Alternative Certification Program;

  4         requiring an applicant to possess certain

  5         educational credentials and aptitudes;

  6         requiring participating schools to coordinate

  7         activities required by the program; providing

  8         for demonstration of accomplished practices for

  9         educators; creating the Transition to Teaching

10         pilot program; encouraging participation by

11         postsecondary education institutions and

12         organizations that represent employees or

13         employ eligible applicants; providing for grant

14         proposals and applications; authorizing the

15         Department of Education to define terms;

16         authorizing certain exceptions; requiring an

17         evaluation; authorizing the State Board of

18         Education to adopt rules; amending s. 231.15,

19         F.S.; deleting authority for school districts

20         to design alternative certification programs;

21         providing an effective date.

22

23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

24

25         Section 1.  Alternative Certification Program.--The

26  Legislature recognizes the advantage of statewide consistency

27  in the certification process and finds that school districts

28  benefit from innovations designed by other school districts

29  and adopted by the state. Therefore, the Alternative

30  Certification Program is created and is modeled upon a program

31  similar in design and implemented by the Department of

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
    28-763A-00




  1  Education and Hillsborough County District School Board. The

  2  purpose of the program is to allow school districts to employ

  3  instructional personnel who possess a baccalaureate degree and

  4  an aptitude for teaching but who have not completed all the

  5  requirements for a professional teaching certificate. The

  6  program is not intended to place novice teachers into

  7  difficult teaching situations, but to create a route to

  8  professional certification that is rich in classroom

  9  experience, meets individual needs, and exploits the unique

10  accomplishments of experienced adults.

11         (1)  The purpose of the Alternative Certification

12  Program is to enable school districts to employ

13  college-educated people who do not hold a professional

14  teaching certificate but whose experience and aptitude are

15  recognized by an accomplished team of educators. An applicant

16  for the program must:

17         (a)  Be an instructional employee of the school

18  district whose teaching assignment does not vary from day to

19  day.

20         (b)  Possess a baccalaureate degree and meet the

21  subject-area requirements in a subject area for which a

22  professional certificate may be issued.

23         (c)  Be employed by a principal who agrees to

24  coordinate the Alternative Certification Program at his or her

25  school.

26         (d)  Meet any additional requirements to be eligible

27  for a 2-year temporary certificate.

28         (2)  The program consists of at least 180 days of

29  teaching under the supervision of a clinical educator and

30  trained support team consisting of the principal, a mentor

31

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
    28-763A-00




  1  teacher, and a representative of a state-approved

  2  educator-preparation program.

  3         (a)  The Department of Education shall provide

  4  technical assistance and oversight for the training of the

  5  support teams. During the Alternative Certification Program,

  6  the applicant shall demonstrate competency in each of the

  7  accomplished practices established by the Education Standards

  8  Commission and adopted by the State Board of Education. The

  9  Department of Education shall identify the accomplished

10  practices that may be demonstrated in the classroom and those

11  that must be achieved through professional development or

12  classroom instruction.

13         (b)  The school district shall establish a process to

14  assess the applicant's demonstration of the accomplished

15  practices that are evident by observation of classroom

16  management, by testing, or by evaluation of work products.

17         (c)  Each school district may evaluate the

18  qualifications of an applicant and prescribe additional

19  classroom instruction based on the applicant's education and

20  experience.

21         (3)  The Transition to Teaching pilot program is

22  created to provide financial assistance to participants in the

23  Alternative Certification Program and to encourage

24  professional associations, business and trade groups, unions,

25  and other organizations to assist their employees who want to

26  be teachers.

27         (a)  A community college, state university, or

28  independent college or university that contains a

29  state-approved educator-preparation program is eligible for a

30  grant to implement the pilot program by working with firms

31  that employ professionals or that represent employees. The

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
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  1  Commissioner of Education shall design the process for

  2  receiving and evaluating grant proposals in accordance with

  3  state and federal appropriations guidelines. Grants may be

  4  awarded only to the extent that funding is provided.

  5         (b)  To be eligible for the pilot program, an applicant

  6  must be eligible for the Alternative Certification Program or

  7  be capable of earning a teaching certificate upon completing a

  8  maximum of 15 college credit hours.

  9         (c)  An applicant to the Transition to Teaching pilot

10  program shall apply to the Commissioner of Education as the

11  commissioner requires. Participating postsecondary education

12  institutions and firms representing employees shall inform and

13  assist applicants in the process.

14         (d)  An applicant who wishes to teach elementary

15  education or another subject for which he or she does not meet

16  the subject area requirements is not required to be employed

17  by a school district to participate in the pilot program.

18  However, the applicant must obtain a commitment for employment

19  from a school district, contingent upon the applicant's

20  meeting the requirements within a designated period of time.

21         (e)  Each eligible participant in the pilot program

22  must agree to serve in an eligible school district for at

23  least 3 years and to become fully certified within 2 years

24  after employment. The commissioner shall determine which

25  school districts are eligible and shall establish the

26  conditions under which a participant must repay all or a

27  portion of the training stipend if the participant fails to

28  complete his or her service obligation.

29         (f)  Each district school board that employs a

30  pilot-program participant shall evaluate the program's

31  effectiveness using guidelines provided by the commissioner.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
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  1  The commissioner shall coordinate the information provided in

  2  each evaluation and provide the same information to the

  3  President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of

  4  Representatives, and the Governor.

  5         (3)  The State Board of Education may adopt rules under

  6  sections 120.536(1) and 120.54, Florida Statutes, to implement

  7  this section.

  8         Section 2.  Subsection (1) of section 231.15, Florida

  9  Statutes, is amended to read:

10         231.15  Positions for which certificates required.--

11         (1)  The State Board of Education shall classify school

12  services, designate the certification subject areas, establish

13  competencies, including the use of technology to enhance

14  student learning, and certification requirements for all

15  school-based personnel, and prescribe rules in accordance with

16  which the professional, temporary, and part-time certificates

17  shall be issued by the Department of Education to applicants

18  who meet the standards prescribed by such rules for their

19  class of service. The rules must allow the holder of a valid

20  professional certificate to add an area of certification

21  without completing the associated course requirements if the

22  certificateholder attains a passing score on an examination of

23  competency in the subject area to be added, and provides

24  evidence of at least 2 years of satisfactory performance

25  evaluations that considered the performance of students taught

26  by the certificateholder. The rules must allow individuals who

27  have specific subject area expertise, but who have not

28  completed a standard teacher preparation program, to

29  participate in a state-approved alternative certification

30  program for a professional certificate. As appropriate, this

31  program must provide for demonstration competencies in lieu of

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
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  1  completion of a specific number of college course credit hours

  2  in the areas of assessment, communication, critical thinking,

  3  human development and learning, classroom management,

  4  planning, technology, diversity, teacher responsibility, code

  5  of ethics, and continuous professional improvement. The State

  6  Board of Education shall consult with the State Board of

  7  Independent Colleges and Universities, the State Board of

  8  Nonpublic Career Education, the Board of Regents, and the

  9  State Board of Community Colleges before adopting any changes

10  to training requirements relating to entry into the

11  profession. This consultation must allow the educational board

12  to provide advice regarding the impact of the proposed changes

13  in terms of the length of time necessary to complete the

14  training program and the fiscal impact of the changes. The

15  educational board must be consulted only when an institution

16  offering the training program falls under its jurisdiction.

17  Each person employed or occupying a position as school

18  supervisor, principal, teacher, library media specialist,

19  school counselor, athletic coach, or other position in which

20  the employee serves in an instructional capacity, in any

21  public school of any district of this state shall hold the

22  certificate required by law and by rules of the state board in

23  fulfilling the requirements of the law for the type of service

24  rendered. However, the state board shall adopt rules

25  authorizing school boards to employ selected noncertificated

26  personnel to provide instructional services in the

27  individuals' fields of specialty or to assist instructional

28  staff members as education paraprofessionals.

29         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                                  SB 1444
    28-763A-00




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  2                          SENATE SUMMARY

  3    Relates to teacher certification. Creates the Alternative
      Certification Program. Requires an applicant to possess
  4    certain educational credentials and aptitudes. Requires
      participating schools to coordinate activities required
  5    by the program. Provides for the demonstration of
      accomplished practices for educators. Creates the
  6    Transition to Teaching pilot program. Encourages
      participation by postsecondary education institutions and
  7    organizations that represent employees or employ eligible
      applicants. Provides for grant proposals and
  8    applications. Authorizes the Department of Education to
      define terms. Authorizes certain exceptions. Requires an
  9    evaluation. Authorizes the State Board of Education to
      adopt rules. Deletes from s. 231.15, F.S., authority for
10    school districts to design alternative certification
      programs.
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