SUBTITLE A: EDUCATION
CHAPTER I: STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION
SUBCHAPTER b: PERSONNEL
PART 25 CERTIFICATION
SECTION 25.275 RENEWAL OF THE SCHOOL SERVICE PERSONNEL CERTIFICATE
Section 25.275 Renewal of the School Service Personnel Certificate
The requirements set forth in this Section apply to renewal of school service personnel (SSP) certificates in accordance with Section 21-25 of the School Code [105 ILCS 5/21-25].
a) Pursuant to Section 21-25 of the School Code, the renewal of school service personnel certificates held by individuals employed and performing services in certain types of public schools is contingent upon certificate-holders' presentation of evidence of continuing professional development. Renewal of any affected SSP certificate whose period of validity begins on or after July 1, 2008 shall require the certificate-holder's:
1) possession of one of the State licenses identified in Section 21-25(e) of the School Code, that is:
A) current licensure as either a clinical professional counselor or a professional counselor under the Professional Counselor and Clinical Professional Counselor Licensing Act [225 ILCS 107];
B) current licensure as either a clinical social worker or a social worker under the Clinical Social Work and Social Work Practice Act [225 ILCS 20]; or
C) current licensure as a speech-language pathologist under the Illinois Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Practice Act [225 ILCS 110]; or
2) possession of one of the national certifications identified in Section 21-25(e) of the School Code; or
3) completion of sufficient professional development activities to satisfy the requirements of Section 21-25 of the School Code.
b) An individual who wishes to qualify for certificate renewal based on licensure or national certification as permitted by Section 21-25 of the School Code shall maintain documentation related to the relevant license or certificate, including its date of issue, period of validity, and issuing body. This information shall be included in the individual's application for certificate renewal in place of the statement of assurance called for in subsection (k) of this Section.
c) Completion of the certification process conducted by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS) may be used to fulfill the entire requirement for professional development under subsection (a)(2) of this Section for the renewal cycle during which completion occurs. Evidence of completion of this process shall be the inclusion of the certificate-holder's name on NBPTS' composite list of those who have completed the certification process (as distinct from having received certification).
d) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this Section, each professional development activity used to fulfill the requirements of this Section shall be required to address one or more of the purposes set forth in Section 21-25(e) of the School Code, and three of the four purposes must be addressed. No later than 60 days after the State Board of Education votes to establish or change the list of areas determined by the Board to be critical for all school service personnel (Section 21-25 of the School Code), the State Superintendent of Education shall notify each school district superintendent, each regional superintendent of schools, and any organization that requests this notification. The notice shall include a list of the areas and state the date upon which the list takes effect.
e) CPDUs shall be generated for completion of activities in accordance with the provisions of Section 25.875 of this Part, provided that, as necessary to the context:
1) references to Section 21-14 of the School Code shall be understood to mean the comparable provisions of Section 21-25 of the School Code;
2) references to teachers, teaching, and instruction shall be understood to mean holders of the school service personnel certificate and their performance of services;
3) references to the classroom shall be understood to mean the setting where services are provided;
4) references to classes directly taught by the certificate-holder (Section 25.875(e) and (n) of this Part) shall be understood to mean students directly served by the certificate-holder;
5) references specific to the supervision or preparation of candidates for teaching certificates (Section 25.875(h) and (m) of this Part) shall be understood to mean the supervision or preparation of candidates for the school service personnel certificate;
6) references to content-area standards (Section 25.875(i) of this Part) shall be understood to mean the relevant standards set forth at 23 Ill. Adm. Code 23 (Standards for the School Service Personnel Certificate); and
7) the reference to State priorities (Section 25.875(k) of this Part) shall be understood to mean the critical areas identified by the State Board of Education pursuant to Section 21-25(e)(2) of the School Code.
f) The provisions of Sections 25.855, 25.860, 25.865, and 25.872 of this Part shall apply to the awarding of CPDUs for activities offered by providers, provided that, as necessary to the context:
1) references to Section 21-14 of the School Code shall be understood to mean the comparable provisions of Section 21-25 of the School Code;
2) references to Subpart J of this Part shall be understood as referring to this Section;
3) references to teachers shall be understood to include holders of the school service personnel certificate; and
4) references to continuing education units (CEUs) shall not apply.
g) Each school service personnel certificate shall be maintained as "valid and active" or "valid and exempt" for each semester of its validity. Periods of exemption and proportionate reductions in the requirements for continuing professional development shall be determined as discussed in Section 25.880(a) of this Part. In addition:
1) the number of continuing professional development units needed to renew the certificate shall be reduced by 50 percent for any amount of time during which the certificate-holder has been employed and performing services on a part-time basis, i.e., for less than 50 percent of the school day or school term; and
2) a certificate-holder who is employed as a substitute on a part-time basis or a day-to-day basis shall only be required to pay the registration fee in order to renew his or her certificate (Section 21-25(e) of the School Code).
h) Credit earned for any activity that is completed (or for which the certificate-holder receives evidence of completion) on or after April 1 of the final year of a certificate's validity, if not claimed with respect to that period of validity, may be carried over and claimed in the subsequent period of validity, provided that the activity in question is relevant to the requirements that apply to that period.
i) Each certificate-holder shall:
1) maintain the required form of evidence of completion for each activity throughout the period of validity that follows the renewal of the certificate based on completion of the activities documented; and
2) present the evidence of completion upon request by the regional superintendent or a representative of the State Board of Education or if required as part of an appeal under this Section.
j) An Illinois master SSP certificate shall have a ten-year period of validity. When an individual receives an Illinois master SSP certificate, any other SSP certificate held by the same individual shall be renewed as of the date of issuance of the master certificate. Any other SSP certificate shall automatically qualify for renewal at the end of its five-year period of validity, as long as the individual continues to hold the master certificate.
1) When an Illinois certificate-holder successfully renews his or her National Board certification, he or she shall be entitled to renew the Illinois master SSP certificate and any other SSP certificate held if the applicable requirements of this Section have also been met.
2) The holder of an Illinois master certificate whose certification through the NBPTS is not renewed shall nevertheless be entitled to renew the master certificate when it expires, provided that the applicable requirements of this Section have been met during the master certificate's period of validity.
k) Each holder of an SSP certificate shall apply for renewal of that certificate as set forth with respect to teaching certificates in Section 25.830 of this Part, including the submission of a statement of assurance that conforms to the requirements of subsection (b) of that Section, except that:
1) each application for certificate renewal shall be submitted to the regional superintendent of schools, regardless of whether a local professional development committee is in operation in the employing district; and
2) references to "standard" certificates in that Section shall be understood to apply to SSP certificates.
l) Within 14 days after receiving an application for the renewal of a school service personnel certificate, the regional superintendent shall forward to the State Teacher Certification Board a recommendation for renewal or nonrenewal on a form prescribed by the State Superintendent of Education.
1) The regional superintendent shall transmit a list identifying all the certificate-holders with respect to whom the regional superintendent is recommending renewal of SSP certificates, along with verification that:
A) each certificate-holder has completed professional development or otherwise qualifies for certificate renewal in accordance with the requirements of Section 21-25 of the School Code and this Section; and
B) each certificate-holder has submitted the statement of assurance required in accordance with subsection (k) of this Section.
2) If the recommendation is not to renew the certificates held, or if the application indicates the individual is or may be out of compliance with Section 10-65 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act with regard to child support payments, the certificate-holder's copy shall be sent concurrently by certified mail, return receipt requested. Each recommendation for nonrenewal shall include the regional superintendent's rationale.
m) A certificate-holder with respect to whom a regional superintendent has recommended nonrenewal of the SSP certificate may appeal to the State Teacher Certification Board in accordance with the provisions of Section 25.835(h) of this Part, except that the requirements of Section 21-25 of the School Code shall be understood to apply rather than those established by Section 21-14 of the School Code.
n) The State Teacher Certification Board shall review regional superintendents' recommendations regarding the renewal of SSP certificates and notify the affected certificate-holders in writing as to whether their certificates have been renewed or not renewed. This notification shall take place within 90 days after the State Teacher Certification Board receives regional superintendents' recommendations, subject to the right of appeal set forth in this subsection (n).
1) Within 60 days after receipt of an appeal filed by a certificate-holder challenging a regional superintendent's recommendation for nonrenewal, the State Teacher Certification Board shall hold an appeal hearing. The Board shall notify the certificate-holder of the date, time, and place of the hearing.
2) The certificate-holder shall submit to the State Teacher Certification Board such additional information as the Certification Board determines is necessary to decide the appeal.
3) The State Teacher Certification Board may request that the certificate-holder appear before it. The certificate-holder shall be given at least ten days' notice of the date, time, and place of the hearing.
4) In verifying whether the certificate-holder has met the renewal criteria set forth in Section 21-25 of the School Code, the State Teacher Certification Board shall review the recommendation of the regional superintendent of schools and all relevant documentation.
o) The State Teacher Certification Board shall notify the certificate-holder in writing, within seven days after completing its review, as to whether the SSP certificate has been renewed. Upon receipt of notification of renewal, the certificate-holder shall pay the applicable registration fee to the regional superintendent. If the decision is not to renew the certificate, the notice to the certificate-holder shall be transmitted by certified mail, return receipt requested, and shall state the reason for the decision. The decision of the State Teacher Certification Board is final and subject to administrative review as set forth in Section 21-24 of the School Code [105 ILCS 5/21-24].
p) An individual whose certificate is not renewed because of his or her failure to meet the requirements of Section 21-25 of the School Code and this Section may apply for a reinstated certificate valid for one year. After the one-year period of validity of the reinstated certificate, the individual shall receive a renewable SSP certificate only if he or she presents evidence of having:
1) completed the balance of the professional development activities that were required for renewal of the certificate previously held; and
2) earned five additional semester hours of credit from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning relevant to the field of certification.
q) The provisions of Section 25.840(d) of this Part shall apply to the renewal of the school service personnel certificate.
r) If fewer than five years remain in the period of a certificate's validity as of July 1, 2008, the number of CPDUs required in order to renew the certificate at the conclusion of that period shall be proportionately reduced.
s) An individual who performs services both on an SSP certificate and concurrently also on some other type of certificate to which renewal requirements apply shall be subject to the provisions of Section 25.475 of this Part.
(Source: Added at 32 Ill. Reg. 13263, effective July 25, 2008)