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HOUSE BILL NO. 254
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
BY REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSTON
Introduced: 2/17/20
Referred: Education, Finance
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
1 "An Act relating to teacher certification; relating to educator preparation programs;
2 relating to the duties and powers of the Department of Education and Early
3 Development and the state Board of Education and Early Development; relating to
4 teacher qualifications and performance standards; establishing the Alaska Educator
5 Standards Commission in the Department of Education and Early Development; and
6 eliminating the Professional Teaching Practices Commission."
7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
8 * Section 1. AS 14.20.015(a) is amended to read:
9 (a) The department shall issue a preliminary teacher certificate to an out-of-
10 state teacher who meets the requirements of this section. To be eligible for a
11 preliminary teacher certificate, a person shall
12 (1) have received at least a baccalaureate degree from an institution of
13 higher education accredited by a recognized regional or national accrediting
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1 association or approved by the commissioner;
2 (2) hold a valid teacher certificate issued by another jurisdiction
3 [STATE];
4 (3) have submitted fingerprints to the department to be used for a
5 criminal history background check and been found by the department to be suitable for
6 employment as a teacher under AS 14.20.020(f);
7 (4) have paid the fee required by the commission [DEPARTMENT]
8 under AS 14.20.020(c);
9 (5) have completed training regarding alcohol and drug related
10 disabilities required under AS 14.20.680, training regarding sexual abuse and
11 sexual assault awareness and prevention required under AS 14.30.355, training
12 regarding teen dating violence and abuse awareness and prevention required
13 under AS 14.30.356, and training regarding suicide awareness and prevention
14 required under AS 14.30.362.
15 * Sec. 2. AS 14.20.015(b) is amended to read:
16 (b) An out-of-state teacher who has fewer than three years of full-time
17 teaching experience and has been issued a preliminary teacher certificate under this
18 section shall pass the competency examination designated by the commission
19 [BOARD] under AS 14.20.020(i) within two years [ONE YEAR] after the date the
20 preliminary teacher certificate was issued. If the teacher does not pass the
21 examination, the department shall immediately revoke the teacher's preliminary
22 teacher certificate.
23 * Sec. 3. AS 14.20.015(c) is amended to read:
24 (c) The preliminary teacher certificate issued under this section and any
25 subsequent teacher certificate issued under this chapter must contain the same
26 endorsements as those on the current valid teacher certificate issued by the other state.
27 * Sec. 4. AS 14.20.015(f) is amended to read:
28 (f) A preliminary teacher certificate and any endorsements issued under this
29 section are valid for up to four [THREE] years and may not be renewed. The
30 department may not issue a provisional certificate or a temporary certificate to a
31 teacher who has held a preliminary teacher certificate.
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1 * Sec. 5. AS 14.20.015 is amended by adding a new subsection to read:
2 (g) Neither the department nor the commission may require a person who is
3 eligible for a preliminary teacher certificate under (a) of this section and who is the
4 spouse of an active duty member of the armed forces of the United States to pay a fee
5 under (a)(4) of this section, other than the fees required by the Department of Public
6 Safety related to a criminal history background check required under (a)(3) of this
7 section.
8 * Sec. 6. AS 14.20.017(a) is amended to read:
9 (a) The department shall issue a teacher certificate as described in
10 AS 14.20.020, subject to revocation, to a teacher who meets the requirements of this
11 section. To be eligible for a revocable teacher certificate under this section, a person
12 shall
13 (1) have held a valid teacher certificate issued under AS 14.20.020 that
14 expired more than 12 months before the teacher applied for a certificate under this
15 section;
16 (2) have paid the fee required by the commission [DEPARTMENT]
17 under AS 14.20.020(c);
18 (3) have submitted fingerprints to the department to be used for a
19 criminal history background check and been found by the department to be
20 suitable for employment as a teacher under AS 14.20.020(f);
21 (4) have completed training regarding alcohol and drug related
22 disabilities required under AS 14.20.680, training regarding sexual abuse and
23 sexual assault awareness and prevention required under AS 14.30.355, training
24 regarding teen dating violence and abuse awareness and prevention required
25 under AS 14.30.356, and training regarding suicide awareness and prevention
26 required under AS 14.30.362.
27 * Sec. 7. AS 14.20.017(b) is amended to read:
28 (b) A revocable teacher certificate issued under this section is valid for four
29 years [ONE YEAR], during which the teacher shall complete any requirements for the
30 issuance of a regular teacher certificate under AS 14.20.020 that the teacher has not
31 already met. The department shall expedite the procedures required of teachers
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1 holding revocable teacher certificates who are seeking certification under
2 AS 14.20.020.
3 * Sec. 8. AS 14.20.017(c) is amended to read:
4 (c) A teacher holding a revocable teacher certificate under this section who
5 previously passed the competency examination designated by the commission
6 [BOARD] under AS 14.20.020(i) or who has at least three years' full-time teaching
7 experience is not required to retake the examination before being eligible for a regular
8 certificate under AS 14.20.020. A teacher holding a revocable teacher certificate who
9 did not previously take or pass the competency examination or who does not have at
10 least three years' full-time teaching experience shall take and pass the examination
11 within two years [ONE YEAR] after the date the revocable teacher certificate was
12 issued. If the teacher does not pass the examination, the department shall immediately
13 revoke the revocable teacher certificate.
14 * Sec. 9. AS 14.20.017(e) is amended to read:
15 (e) The revocable teacher certificate issued under this section and any
16 subsequent teacher certificate issued under this chapter must contain the same
17 endorsements as those on the teacher's expired teacher certificate.
18 * Sec. 10. AS 14.20.017(g) is amended to read:
19 (g) A revocable teacher certificate and any endorsements issued under this
20 section are valid for up to four years [ONE YEAR] and may not be renewed under
21 this section. The department may not issue a provisional certificate or a temporary
22 certificate to a teacher who has held a teacher certificate issued under this section.
23 * Sec. 11. AS 14.20.020(b) is amended to read:
24 (b) A person is not eligible for a teacher certificate unless that person has
25 received at least a baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education
26 accredited by a recognized regional or national accrediting association or approved
27 by the commissioner, has successfully completed an educator preparation
28 program, and, if applicable, has passed the examination or examinations required by
29 (i) of this section. However, this subsection is not applicable to
30 (1) persons employed in the state public school system on
31 September 1, 1962;
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1 (2) persons issued an emergency certificate during a situation that, in
2 the judgment of the commissioner, requires the temporary issuance of a certificate to a
3 person not otherwise qualified.
4 * Sec. 12. AS 14.20.020(c) is amended to read:
5 (c) The commission [BOARD] may establish by regulation additional
6 requirements for the issuance of certificates. The board shall require teachers to submit
7 fingerprints and the fees required by the Department of Public Safety under
8 AS 12.62.160 for criminal justice information and a national criminal history record
9 check. The board shall submit the fingerprints and fees to the Department of Public
10 Safety for a report of criminal justice information under AS 12.62 and a national
11 criminal history record check under AS 12.62.400. The commission
12 [DEPARTMENT] shall establish by regulation the fees to be charged for each
13 certificate and for other charges assessed against teachers as part of certification. In
14 establishing the fees to be charged, the commission [DEPARTMENT] shall establish
15 the fee levels so that the total amount of the fees collected relating to the certification
16 of teachers approximately equals, when added to the other fees collected from
17 teachers, the actual regulatory costs for certifying and disciplining teachers in the
18 state. The commission [DEPARTMENT] shall annually review each fee level to
19 determine whether the regulatory costs are approximately equal to fee collections. If
20 the review indicates that fee collections and regulatory costs are not approximately
21 equal, the commission [DEPARTMENT] shall calculate fee adjustments to the fees
22 for certification of teachers and adopt regulations under this subsection to implement
23 the adjustments. In January of each year, the commission [DEPARTMENT] shall
24 report on all fee levels and revisions for the previous year under this subsection to the
25 office of management and budget. The commission [DEPARTMENT] shall consider
26 the [BOARD'S] recommendations of the department and the board concerning the
27 fee levels and regulatory costs before revising fee schedules to comply with this
28 subsection. In this subsection, "regulatory costs" means costs of the commission and
29 the department that are attributable to regulation of the teaching profession, including
30 the portion of the expenses of the board that are attributable to the regulation of the
31 teaching profession [AND THE EXPENSES OF THE PROFESSIONAL TEACHING
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1 PRACTICES COMMISSION].
2 * Sec. 13. AS 14.20.020(d) is amended to read:
3 (d) The commission [BOARD] may by regulation establish various classes of
4 certificates.
5 * Sec. 14. AS 14.20.020(e) is amended to read:
6 (e) The annual estimated balance in the account maintained by the
7 commissioner of administration under AS 37.05.142 may be used by the legislature to
8 make appropriations to the department to carry out the purposes of this section and to
9 support the activities of the commission [PROFESSIONAL TEACHING
10 PRACTICES COMMISSION] under AS 14.20.460, 14.20.470, and 14.20.500.
11 * Sec. 15. AS 14.20.020(h) is amended to read:
12 (h) A person is not eligible for a teacher certificate unless the person has
13 completed three semester hours in Alaska studies and three semester hours in
14 multicultural education or cross-cultural communications or has completed an
15 educator preparation program offered by a school district in the state that
16 includes multicultural education or cross-cultural communication and a history
17 of education in the state. However, the commissioner may issue a provisional
18 certificate, valid for no longer than four [TWO] years, to a person [AN
19 APPLICANT] who has not completed the coursework [SEMESTER HOURS]
20 required under this subsection at the time of application.
21 * Sec. 16. AS 14.20.020(i) is amended to read:
22 (i) Beginning on July 1, 1998, a person is not eligible for an initial regular
23 teacher certificate unless the person has taken and successfully completed a basic
24 competency examination or examinations designated, at the time the person took the
25 test, by the commission or submits proof satisfactory to the department that the
26 person has at least three years' full-time teaching experience under a valid
27 teaching certificate issued by another jurisdiction [BOARD]. The commission
28 [BOARD] shall review nationally recognized examinations that are designed to test
29 the competency of new teachers and shall designate those examinations that it finds
30 adequately test the skills and abilities of new teachers. For each examination
31 designated under this subsection, the commission [BOARD] shall establish the
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1 minimum acceptable level of performance.
2 * Sec. 17. AS 14.20.022(a) is amended to read:
3 (a) Notwithstanding AS 14.20.020, a person may be issued a subject-matter
4 expert limited teacher certificate, valid only in the subject-matter in which the person
5 has expertise, upon compliance with the requirements of this section. Except as
6 provided in (i) of this section, a [A] subject-matter expert teacher may only be
7 employed to teach subjects in which the person has satisfied the education or
8 experience requirements set out in (b)(1) of this section.
9 * Sec. 18. AS 14.20.022(b) is amended to read:
10 (b) To be eligible for a subject-matter expert limited teacher certificate, a
11 person shall
12 (1) except as provided in (i) of this section, hold at least a
13 baccalaureate degree from an institution of higher education accredited by a
14 recognized regional or national accrediting association or approved by the
15 commissioner and
16 (A) have majored or minored in the subject that the person will
17 be teaching; or
18 (B) have at least two years' [FIVE YEARS] experience in the
19 subject matter that the person will be teaching;
20 (2) have submitted fingerprints and the fees required by the
21 Department of Public Safety under AS 12.62.160 for criminal justice information and
22 a national criminal history record check to the department; the department must have
23 submitted the fingerprints and fees to the Department of Public Safety for a report of
24 criminal justice information under AS 12.62 and a national criminal history record
25 check under AS 12.62.400 and the person must have been found by the department to
26 be suitable for employment as a teacher under AS 14.20.020(f); [AND]
27 (3) be currently enrolled in an approved post-baccalaureate educator
28 preparation [TEACHER EDUCATION] program at a regionally accredited
29 institution meeting the requirements of AS 14.20.020(b) that provides for completion
30 of the regular teacher certificate education requirements within three [TWO] years
31 after receipt of a subject-matter expert limited teacher certificate under this section;
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