Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SB1845
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Full Text of SB1845  98th General Assembly

SB1845enr 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

  
  
  

 


 
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1    AN ACT concerning education.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections
521-5b and 21-5c as follows:
 
6    (105 ILCS 5/21-5b)
7    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
8    Sec. 21-5b. Alternative certification. The State Board of
9Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
10Certification Board, shall establish and implement an
11alternative certification program under which persons who meet
12the requirements of and successfully complete the program
13established by this Section shall be issued an alternative
14teaching certificate for teaching in the schools. The program
15shall be limited to not more than 260 new participants during
16each year that the program is in effect. The State Board of
17Education, in cooperation with one or more not-for-profit
18organizations in the State that support excellence in teaching,
19which may be in partnership with a university that offers
204-year baccalaureate and masters degree programs and that is a
21recognized institution as defined in Section 21B-105 of this
22Code, may within 30 days after submission by the program
23sponsor approve a course of study developed by the program

 

 

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1sponsor that persons in the program must successfully complete
2in order to satisfy one criterion for issuance of an
3alternative certificate under this Section. The Alternative
4Teacher Certification program course of study must include
5content and skills which have been approved by the State Board
6of Education, in consultation with the State Teacher
7Certification Board, as meeting the requirement for State
8teacher certification.
9    The alternative certification program established under
10this Section shall be known as the Alternative Teacher
11Certification program. The Alternative Teacher Certification
12Program shall be offered by the submitting partnership, and
13such partnership may be offered by one or more not-for-profit
14organizations in the State which support excellence in
15teaching. The program shall be comprised of the following 3
16phases: (a) the first phase is the course of study offered on
17an intensive basis in education theory, instructional methods,
18and practice teaching; (b) the second phase is the person's
19assignment to a full-time teaching position for one school
20year; and (c) the third phase is a comprehensive assessment of
21the person's teaching performance by school officials and the
22partnership participants and a recommendation by the program
23sponsor to the State Board of Education that the person be
24issued a standard alternative teaching certificate. Successful
25completion of the Alternative Teacher Certification program
26shall be deemed to satisfy any other practice or student

 

 

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1teaching and subject matter requirements established by law.
2    A provisional alternative teaching certificate, valid for
3one year of teaching in the common schools and not renewable,
4shall be issued under this Section 21-5b to persons who at the
5time of applying for the provisional alternative teaching
6certificate under this Section:
7        (1) have graduated from an accredited college or
8    university with a bachelor's degree;
9        (2) have successfully completed the first phase of the
10    Alternative Teacher Certification program as provided in
11    this Section;
12        (3) have passed the tests of basic skills and subject
13    matter knowledge required by Section 21-1a; and
14        (4) (i) have been employed for a period of at least 5
15    years in an area requiring application of the individual's
16    education or (ii) have attained at least a cumulative grade
17    average of a "B" if the individual is assigned either to a
18    school district that has not met the annual measurable
19    objective for highly qualified teachers required by the
20    Illinois Revised Highly Qualified Teachers (HQT) Plan or to
21    a school district whose data filed with the State Board of
22    Education indicates that the district's poor and minority
23    students are taught by teachers who are not highly
24    qualified at a higher rate than other students; however,
25    this item (4) does not apply with respect to a provisional
26    alternative teaching certificate for teaching in schools

 

 

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1    situated in a school district that is located in a city
2    having a population in excess of 500,000 inhabitants.
3    Assignment may be made under clause (ii) of this item (4)
4    only if the district superintendent and the exclusive
5    bargaining representative of the district's teachers, if
6    any, jointly agree to permit the assignment.
7    A person possessing a provisional alternative certificate
8under this Section shall be treated as a regularly certified
9teacher for purposes of compensation, benefits, and other terms
10and conditions of employment afforded teachers in the school
11who are members of a bargaining unit represented by an
12exclusive bargaining representative, if any.
13    Until February 15, 2000, a standard alternative teaching
14certificate, valid for 4 years for teaching in the schools and
15renewable as provided in Section 21-14, shall be issued under
16this Section 21-5b to persons who first complete the
17requirements for the provisional alternative teaching
18certificate and who at the time of applying for a standard
19alternative teaching certificate under this Section have
20successfully completed the second and third phases of the
21Alternative Teacher Certification program as provided in this
22Section. Alternatively, beginning February 15, 2000, at the end
23of the 4-year validity period, persons who were issued a
24standard alternative teaching certificate shall be eligible,
25on the same basis as holders of an Initial Teaching Certificate
26issued under subsection (b) of Section 21-2 of this Code, to

 

 

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1apply for a Standard Teaching Certificate, provided they meet
2the requirements of subsection (c) of Section 21-2 of this Code
3and further provided that a person who does not apply for and
4receive a Standard Teaching Certificate shall be able to teach
5only in schools situated in a school district that is located
6in a city having a population in excess of 500,000 inhabitants.
7    Beginning February 15, 2000, persons who have completed the
8requirements for a standard alternative teaching certificate
9under this Section shall be issued an Initial Alternative
10Teaching Certificate valid for 4 years of teaching and not
11renewable. At the end of the 4-year validity period, these
12persons shall be eligible, on the same basis as holders of an
13Initial Teaching Certificate issued under subsection (b) of
14Section 21-2 of this Code, to apply for a Standard Teaching
15Certificate, provided they meet the requirements of subsection
16(c) of Section 21-2.
17    Such alternative certification program shall be
18implemented so that the first provisional alternative teaching
19certificates issued under this Section are effective upon the
20commencement of the 1997-1998 academic year and the first
21standard alternative teaching certificates issued under this
22Section are effective upon the commencement of the 1998-1999
23academic year.
24    The State Board of Education, in cooperation with the
25partnership or partnerships establishing such Alternative
26Teacher Certification programs, shall adopt rules and

 

 

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1regulations that are consistent with this Section and that the
2State Board of Education deems necessary to establish and
3implement the program.
4    No one may be admitted to an alternative certification
5program under this Section after September 1, 2014 2013, and
6those alternative certification candidates who are admitted on
7or before September 1, 2014 2013 must complete their coursework
8the program before January 1, 2016 2015, except that candidates
9admitted to an alternative certification program at Governors
10State University and participants in the Teacher Quality
11Partnership Grant program must be admitted on or before March
1231, 2014, complete their coursework on or before August 31,
132015, and be entitled to certification on or before September
1430, 2016 September 31, 2015. An The alternative certification
15program at Governors State University shall provide the State
16Board of Education with the names of the candidates who will be
17eligible for certification under this exception.
18    This Section is repealed on January 1, 2017 2016.
19(Source: P.A. 97-607, eff. 8-26-11; 97-702, eff. 6-25-12;
2098-38, eff. 6-28-13.)
 
21    (105 ILCS 5/21-5c)
22    (Section scheduled to be repealed on January 1, 2016)
23    Sec. 21-5c. Alternative route to teacher certification.
24The State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
25Teacher Certification Board, shall establish and implement one

 

 

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1or more alternative route to teacher certification programs
2under which persons who meet the requirements of and
3successfully complete the programs established by this Section
4shall be issued an initial teaching certificate for teaching in
5schools in this State. The State Board of Education may approve
6a course of study that persons in such programs must
7successfully complete in order to satisfy one criterion for
8issuance of a certificate under this Section. The Alternative
9Route to Teacher Certification programs course of study must
10include content and skills which have been approved by the
11State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
12Teacher Certification Board, as meeting the requirement for
13State teacher certification.
14    Programs established under this Section shall be known as
15Alternative Route to Teacher Certification programs. The
16programs may be offered by a university that offers 4-year
17baccalaureate and masters degree programs and that is a
18recognized institution as defined in Section 21B-105 of this
19Code, by one or more not-for-profit organizations in the State,
20or a combination thereof. The programs shall be comprised of
21the following 3 phases: (a) a course of study offered on an
22intensive basis in education theory, instructional methods,
23and practice teaching; (b) the person's assignment to a
24full-time teaching position for one school year, including the
25designation of a mentor teacher to advise and assist the person
26with that teaching assignment; and (c) a comprehensive

 

 

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1assessment of the person's teaching performance by school
2officials and program participants and a recommendation by the
3program sponsor to the State Board of Education that the person
4be issued an initial teaching certificate. Successful
5completion of Alternative Route to Teacher Certification
6programs shall be deemed to satisfy any other practice or
7student teaching and subject matter requirements established
8by law.
9    A provisional alternative teaching certificate, valid for
10one year of teaching in the common schools and not renewable,
11shall be issued under this Section 21-5c to persons who at the
12time of applying for the provisional alternative teaching
13certificate under this Section:
14        (1) have graduated from an accredited college or
15    university with a bachelor's degree;
16        (2) have been employed for a period of at least 5 years
17    in an area requiring application of the individual's
18    education;
19        (3) have successfully completed the first phase of the
20    Alternative Teacher Certification program as provided in
21    this Section; and
22        (4) have passed the tests of basic skills and subject
23    matter knowledge required by Section 21-1a.
24    An initial teaching certificate, valid for teaching in the
25common schools, shall be issued under Section 21-3 or 21-5 to
26persons who first complete the requirements for the provisional

 

 

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1alternative teaching certificate and who at the time of
2applying for an initial teaching certificate have successfully
3completed the second and third phases of the Alternative Route
4to Teacher Certification program as provided in this Section.
5    A person possessing a provisional alternative certificate
6or an initial teaching certificate earned under this Section
7shall be treated as a regularly certified teacher for purposes
8of compensation, benefits, and other terms and conditions of
9employment afforded teachers in the school who are members of a
10bargaining unit represented by an exclusive bargaining
11representative, if any.
12    The State Board of Education may adopt rules and
13regulations that are consistent with this Section and that the
14State Board deems necessary to establish and implement the
15program.
16    No one may be admitted to an alternative certification
17program under this Section after September 1, 2014 2013, and
18those alternative certification candidates who are admitted on
19or before June 30, 2014 September 1, 2013 must complete their
20coursework the program before January 1, 2016 2015, except that
21candidates admitted to an alternative certification program at
22Governors State University and participants in the Teacher
23Quality Partnership Grant program must be admitted on or before
24March 31, 2014, complete their coursework on or before August
2531, 2015, and be entitled to certification on or before
26September 30, 2016 September 31, 2015. An The alternative

 

 

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1certification program at Governors State University shall
2provide the State Board of Education with the names of the
3candidates who will be eligible for certification under this
4exception.
5    This Section is repealed on January 1, 2017 2016.
6(Source: P.A. 97-607, eff. 8-26-11; 97-702, eff. 6-25-12;
798-38, eff. 6-28-13.)