Teacher Licensure
Reminders for New Teachers
New Teacher Induction
2013-2014
Anita W. Alpenfels, Ed.D.
Executive Director for Human Resources
Rebecca Brown, Licensure Analyst
Becky Carlson, Licensure Analyst
A PRIMER
LICENSURE
CONTRACT EXPERIENCE
• Must be licensed in all • Terminating
areas you teach
- All late hires
• “Beginning Teachers”
- All Lateral Entry
and “New Teachers”
• Probationary
may not be the same
- “1 of 4,” “2 of 4,”
thing
“3 of 4” and “4 of 4”
• SP1-holder may be a
- Requires three
Beginning Teacher OR
administrator
experienced teacher
observations, one peer
from out-of-state
observation, and a
Summary Evaluation
• Career Status
- Number of
observations contingent
on license cycle
• Determines Pay Level
• Pay stub will always
be a year behind,
because the scale
begins at “0”
• Experience on the
license may be
different than “years of
service” for purposes of
State Service, i.e.,
retirement purposes
A PRIMER
LICENSURE
CONTRACT EXPERIENCE
1 year = 120 paid days For career status purposes:
(whether actually on
• 1 year = 120 days on the
the job or using paid
job
leave)
• May not include any paid
leave days
1 year = 120 paid days
(whether actually on
the job or using paid
leave)
NC LICENSURE
It is the responsibility of the individual
license holder to know and satisfy
requirements for NC licensure.
STANDARD PROFESSIONAL 1
LICENSE
• SP1 is the first clear license issued to
teachers in North Carolina (formerly
called “Initial” license).
• A Lateral Entry or Provisional license
may be issued if the teacher is not
eligible for an SP1 license.
• The SP1 license is valid for three (3)
years at which point it must be
converted to an SP2 license.
STANDARD PROFESSIONAL 1
LICENSE
• SP1 license holders are not required to
earn a certain number of Continuing
Education Units (CEUs or “renewal
credits”), but they must participate in
any professional development required
of them.
CONVERTING SP1 to SP 2
• The individual must have three (3) years
of successful teaching experience, at
least one (1) of which is in North Carolina.
• In addition, the individual must
– Satisfy NC Praxis™ II testing requirements; or
– Receive a satisfactory evaluation, i.e., “proficient” or
better in all areas, in the most recent year of
employment in North Carolina, which verifies
the ability to positively impact student learning
along with an additional form completed by
the principal; or
– Be Nationally Board Certified.
TESTING REQUIREMENTS
• If required to complete testing
requirements, you should not wait to
register for the last available test date.
• Tests are administered at major
universities with approved teacher
education programs.
• You must provide a copy of test scores
to Human Resources; they will not be
sent to us automatically.
www.ets.org/praxis
CONVERTING SP1 to SP 2
• Human Resources makes the
recommendation to the Department of
Public Instruction (DPI) for conversion
of the license.
• A new five-year cycle is issued
when the SP1 license is converted to
an SP2 license.
DATING OF LICENSES
Effective Date
• July 1 unless there is a mid-year
completion of requirements
– Other factors may occasionally create a
slightly longer/shorter cycle (e.g., mid-year
graduation)
• Test date will be used for effective date
when testing requirements are met
• Expiration Date – ALWAYS June 30
• Once SP2 license, generally a 5-year
cycle
LICENSE RENEWAL
• Five-year license renewal requires 7.5
continuing education units (CEUs)
relevant to area of licensure (75 contact
hours = 7.5 CEUs).
• One (1) of the 7.5 CEUs is required in
literacy for all professional educators
except administrators.
• In addition, one (1) of the 7.5 CEUs
is required in content (licensure + area
of assignment) for all professional
educators except administrators.
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
• The remaining 5.5 CEUs may be
general credits not to include years of
experience.
• License renewal requirements are
different for individuals who have let
their licenses expire, i.e., 15 renewal
credits in the most recent five years or
15 renewal credits within the next three
years.
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
• For administrators:
– Three (3) renewal credits that align with the
expectations of the North Carolina School
Executive Standards 2, 4, and 5, focused on
the school executive’s role as instructional,
human resources, and managerial leader
– 4.5 general credits (not to include years of
experience) at the discretion of the LEA, if
employed
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
• Completion of National Board
Certification may count for one entire
renewal cycle (7.5 credits) and may be
“banked.”
• National Board Certification “counts”
for both literacy and content credits.
• Renewal of National Board Certification
counts as two renewal credits, one for
literacy and one for content.
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
• When participating in workshops
sponsored by Moore County Schools,
your signature must be on the class
sign-in sheet to receive license renewal
credits.
• Reminder: Because of the high volume
of professional development activities
taking place in the summer, it may take
six to eight weeks for CEUs to be
posted (and, in the case of this
induction, to process stipends).
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
• You may always check the progress of
your CEU’s via the “Human Resources”
page at www.ncmcs.org. Click on
“Departments.”
– The “CEU” link is also where you may find
your “UID” for the On-Line Teacher
Evaluation System.
NOTE: The posting of district-sponsored
CEU’s requires documentation from the
presenter to Human Resources.
LICENSE RENEWAL, cont.
Non-district-sponsored workshops or
classes
– Must be approved in advance, i.e., prior to
registration, by the principal, and
– Must be documented with an official
certificate of completion or official transcript
and submitted to Amanda Bullard with
Instructional Design and Innovation to
receive consideration for license renewal
credits
ADDING TO LICENSURE
Adding Teaching Experience Credit
• Be sure to file all teaching experience
from other states on Form E. All forms
should be filed with the initial
application to avoid additional fees.
• Instructional TA experience can be
added at the following rates:
– One year = one year after earned bachelor’s
– Two years = one year before earned bachelor’s
• There is a $55.00 fee to add any
experience after the initial application.
ADDING TO LICENSURE
Adding Non-Teaching Work Experience
• Non-Teaching Work Experience is
defined as professional work
experience in public or private sectors
that is directly related to an individual’s
area of licensure and work assignment.
– There are many restrictions, and every
person’s background is different. Contact
Rebecca Brown if you believe you may
have relevant non-teaching work
experience.
ADDING TO LICENSURE
Adding Non-Teaching Work Experience,
cont.
• DPI makes the final determination if the
experience can be “counted.”
PAY ACCURACY
Reminder: Check your pay stub to make
sure you are being paid at the
correct level so that, if
needed, it can be corrected at
DPI before April 15 to make it
effective within the correct
school year. Corrections may
not be made for previous
fiscal years.
Teacher pay scales are available on the
“Human Resources” page at www.ncmcs.org.
ADDING MASTER’S LEVEL
LICENSURE
• Licensed public school personnel are
paid on the salary schedule applicable
to their assignment at the highest
license level held. This policy applies to
all areas, including administration,
student services and teaching.
ADDING MASTER’S LEVEL
LICENSURE
Before enrolling in a master’s program,
be sure to ask two questions:
1. Is the institution regionally
accredited?
www.ope.ed.gov/accreditation/search.aspx
2. Does the program lead to licensure
in that state?
Neither Human Resources nor DPI may
authorize “prior approval.”
APPROVAL FOR GRADUATE PAY
The Licensure Section shall authorize
salary on the master’s level (or other
appropriate) salary schedule for
professional educators who hold
master’s degrees or advanced degrees
that are not in teacher education if the
following criteria are met:
• The master’s or higher degree is
from a regionally accredited
university, and
APPROVAL FOR GRADUATE PAY
• The master’s or higher degree is in an
education or subject area directly related
to an existing area of licensure and
current teaching assignment or
instructional support responsibility, and
• The educator’s assignment for the
majority (50% or more) of the school day
is in the area for which the master’s or
higher degree applies.
APPROVAL FOR GRADUATE PAY
• There is a $55.00 processing fee to
request graduate pay.
*Change in location or assignment
may impact graduate pay approval.
ADDING LICENSURE AREAS
• Once a teacher has a clear SP1 or SP2
license, he/she may add an area of
licensure (teaching area only, not
administration, guidance, media, etc.)
simply by taking and earning a passing
score on the Praxis™ II for that area or
by documenting 24 semester hours in
the area.
• There is a $55.00 fee to add a
license area by Praxis™ II test or
semester hours.
LATERAL ENTRY
• License is issued for three (3) years,
the maximum time allowed to complete
requirements.
• Must complete a minimum of six (6)
semester hours each year from plan of
study (submission of official transcript
required).
– Waiting until summer is risky.
• Must meet Praxis™ II Test
requirements within first three (3) years
• Do not wait until summer of Year Three.
TENURE/CAREER STATUS
• A teacher must teach four consecutive
years with a non-provisional license
and non-terminating contract to be
eligible to obtain career status.
• Thus, for example, it could take a
lateral entry teacher seven years to
achieve career status.
TENURE/CAREER STATUS
• It is important for any teacher who has
previously held career status in North
Carolina to notify Human Resources in
writing immediately.
• If you are unsure, contact for your
former North Carolina school district.
This will affect the type of contract you
receive with Moore County Schools.
COURSE REIMBURSEMENT
Once Moore County Schools receives its
allocation for federal funds, the school
district may have resources for limited
tuition/testing reimbursement.
– Requests may be submitted three times
during the school year.
– Information is available from the
“Professional Development” link on the
“Curriculum” page of www.ncmcs.org.
COURSE REIMBURSEMENT
– Paperwork submitted for course/testing
reimbursement is separate from that
submitted for licensure, i.e., if you submit
a transcript for reimbursement (official
transcripts are not required for this
purpose), you must submit another official
transcript for licensure requirements
because they go to two different offices.
BEGINNING TEACHERS (BTs)
• By law, beginning teachers who take on
“extra duties” (such as coaching)
MUST make the request for such duty
in writing to the principal, with a copy
of the written request sent to Human
Resources for the individual’s
personnel file.
– This requirement is also in place for those
with 27+ years of experience.
– G.S. 115C-47
BEGINNING TEACHERS (BTs)
• Mentoring and other Beginning Teacher
questions should be forwarded to
Amanda Bullard with Instructional
Design and Innovation.
• Licensure questions should be
forwarded to Becky Carlson or Rebecca
Brown, Licensure Analysts.
BEST PRACTICES
• As a professional, the keeping of your
professional documents is critical, i.e.,
don’t rely on others to keep up with
copies of your evaluations/
observations, etc.
– It would be wise that you keep a paper file
of your on-line documents, as you will be
unable to access these once you leave
employment with Moore County Schools.