History and Overview of the New 216 License
Introduction
Due to the continued, long-term shortage of master’s level 215 licensed
Speech Language Pathologists in Mississippi, local school districts have not
been able to recruit and employ fully qualified staff to serve all eligible
students with speech/language disabilities. The Mississippi Department of
Education (MDE) has over the years granted renewable emergency and
interim 215 licenses to ensure that districts are able to offer language
speech services to eligible students as required by state and federal
regulations.
Critical Issues:
 Each year the MDE has issued between 125 and 175 emergency and
interim 215 licenses.
 The emergency and interim 215 license holders have no restrictions
on the scope of practice.
 Many of the emergency and interim 215 license holders do not meet
the master’s level program enrollment criteria, including the
minimum required GPA and/or the required GRE score.
 The total number of master’s level program slots at each IHL offering
that degree is limited, and only those candidates with the highest
GPA and GRE scores are accepted.
In 2010, Superintendent Tom Burnham challenged the Commission on
Teacher and Administrator Education, Certification and Licensure and
Development (Commission), to develop a new Bachelor’s level license that
would achieve the following:
 To implement a bachelor’s degree program that would provide the
clinical skills training and practicum experience necessary to provide
articulation therapy services by July 2013
 To eliminate the need for Emergency and Interim 215 licenses by July
2013
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History and Overview of the New 216 License
Commission on Teacher and Administrator Education
On July 9, 2010, the Commission approved a 5-year renewable Standard
License for the 216 Speech/Language Therapist effective beginning July 1,
2013.
State Board of Education Action
On October 21, 2010, the State Board of Education (Board) approved the
new 216 license for a Speech/Language Therapist following implementation
of the Administrative Procedures Act process. The new 216 license requires
the following:
 a bachelor’s degree from an approved Speech Pathology or
Communicative Disorder program;
 passing scores on the Praxis I; and
 limitations on the scope of practice to include articulation therapy
under the guidance/supervision of a master’s level 215 licensed
Speech Language Pathologist.
Task Force to Study and Make Recommendations
A Task Force was created by agreement of the Board and the State
Superintendent of Education. Gloria Kellum, Ph.D., was appointed as the
chair of the task force to advise and make recommendations to the Board
and MDE. Task Force members were selected and appointed by the State
Superintendent and by the Commissioner of Institutions of Higher Learning.
The Task Force identified the following guiding principles:
 Whether through screening, testing, providing direct services,
supervising, or other roles and practices, speech/language pathology
services impact children and their educational successes, and
ultimately their transition from school to work.
 Eliminating emergency and interim certificates must be replaced with
aggressive and creative recruitment of 215 licensed, master’s level
speech/language pathologists and recruitment of 216 licensed,
bachelor’s level personnel.
The Task Force report and recommendations were submitted to the State
Board in March 2012. The State Board and MDE will consider all
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History and Overview of the New 216 License
recommendations in establishing suggested guidelines to implement the
new 216 Speech/Language Therapist license by July 2013.
Major Areas for Recommendations
 Bachelor’s Degree Programs for Speech/Language Therapists. In
order to transition to the new 216 License for a bachelor’s level
Speech/Language Therapists to provide articulation therapy services
to eligible students, the IHL bachelor’s level degree programs will
need to provide an endorsement program of studies in
speech/language that includes 100 hours of supervised clinical
practice.
 Current Emergency and Interim 215 License Holders. The current
Emergency and Interim 215 license holders may need some degree
of clinical skills training and/or clinical practice (practicum
experience). The experience, training, and education of the
Emergency and Interim 215 license holder will determine the amount
of time needed for additional clinical skills training and/or clinical
practice.
 Scope of Practice for the 216 Speech/Language Therapist
o A bachelor’s level Speech/Language Therapist (216) will be
licensed to provide articulation assessment and treatment to
eligible students.
Articulation therapy includes the treatment of speech
sound errors, instruction in correct sound production,
and the facilitation of production in sentences and
conversational speech.
The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not perform
duties related to the assessment, diagnosis, and
treatment of more severe speech/language problems,
including voice, fluency, and language disorders.
The 216 Speech/Language Therapist may not serve as
the chairperson of the eligibility determination
committee.
o The 216 Speech/Language Therapist will work under the
guidance/direction of, and in collaboration with, a Master’s-
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History and Overview of the New 216 License
level, fully-certified Speech/Language Pathologist with a 215AA
license and/or with an American Speech-Language-Hearing
Association Certificate of Clinical Competence.
o Additional suggested guidance is outlined in the following
documents:
Working in Collaboration: A Mentoring Model
developed by the DeSoto County School District, DeSoto
County, MS
Scope of Practice for the 216 License, Speech/Language
Therapist
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