§ 1210. | § 1211. | § 1212. | § 1213. | § 1214. | § 1215. | § 1216. | § 1217. | § 1218. | § 1219.
§ 1210. Tier One -- Initial licensure.
(a) An initial license is valid for 3 years unless revoked. The Department shall issue an initial license under this section if an applicant demonstrates that the applicant has received a bachelor's degree from a regionally accredited 4-year college or university, has achieved a passing score on an examination of general knowledge such as Praxis I, and has either completed a student teaching program or meets any 1 of the following alternatives to student teaching:
(1) One year of teaching experience consisting of a minimum of 91 days of long-term teaching experience in 1 assignment. Experience in the Alternative Routes to Licensure and Certification program or the Special Institute for Teacher Licensure and Certification program may not be used to meet this alternative; or
(2) The applicant is enrolled and participating in the Alternative Routes to Licensure and Certification Program pursuant to subchapter VI of this chapter of this title; or
(3) The applicant is enrolled and participating in the Special Institute for Teacher Licensure and Certification pursuant to subchapter V of this chapter of this title.
(b) Notwithstanding the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, an initial license may be issued to an applicant who meets all other requirements for initial licensure except for passage of the PRAXIS I exam, provided that the applicant must pass PRAXIS I within the period of time from the date of hire to the end of the next, consecutive fiscal year. If proof of passage of PRAXIS I has not been provided during the time period specified, the initial license will be suspended unless the superintendent of the school district submits to the Secretary of Education a written request for a 1-year extension. The request must also document the effectiveness of the applicant. Any applicant who is within 2 points of the passing score on the reading, writing, or mathematics section of PRAXIS I may use a composite score to meet the requirements of passage. An applicant teaching the secondary content area of Math or English/Language Arts must meet the passing score in that content area.
(c) If a licensee intends to apply for a continuing license, the licensee shall, prior to the expiration of that licensee's initial license, complete professional development and mentoring activities as may be required by rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(d) Pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter, the Department may issue an initial license to an applicant with less than 3 years of teaching experience who is licensed as an educator in another jurisdiction or to an applicant who previously held a valid Delaware certificate that has since expired.
(e) An initial license may not be renewed. It may, however, be extended pursuant to § 1216 of this title.
(f) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (c) through (e) of this section, an initial license may be issued for a period of up to 6 years for applicants in a vocational trade and industry area to complete specified college level course work required for certification. Such applicants must achieve a passing score on an examination of general knowledge such as Praxis I prior to the expiration of initial licensure.
(g) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a), (b) and (d) of this section, the Department shall issue an initial license to an applicant who meets the criteria for Meritorious New Teacher candidate designation adopted pursuant to § 1203 of this title. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 73 Del. Laws, c. 20, § 1; 73 Del. Laws, c. 84, § 2; 74 Del. Laws, c. 14, §§ 1-3; 75 Del. Laws, c. 77, §§ 4, 5.)
§ 1211. Tier Two -- Continuing licensure.
(a) A continuing license is valid for 5 years unless extended pursuant to § 1216 of this title or revoked.
(b) Upon application, the Department shall issue a continuing license to an educator holding an initial license if the educator has successfully completed the requirements of § 1210 of this title and has not received more than 1 unsatisfactory annual evaluation, as defined by the State-approved educator performance system, during the period of initial licensure.
(c) Pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter, the Department may issue a continuing license to an applicant licensed as an educator in another jurisdiction or to an applicant who previously held a valid Delaware certificate that has since expired. The applicant must have completed 3 or more years of successful teaching experience. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 74 Del. Laws, c. 14, § 4; 75 Del. Laws, c. 77, § 6.)
§ 1212. Continuing licensure -- Renewal.
Upon application, the Department shall renew a continuing license for an additional 5-year term if the educator has completed 90 clock-hours of approved professional development, as well as other professional development and/or mentoring requirements as may be required by the rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter. For the purpose of this section, "clock-hour" means actual time spent in professional development, not credit hours. The Standards Board shall review the professional development requirements of this section on an ongoing basis for the purpose of proposing regulations that modify the minimum requirements of this section and that improve the effectiveness of professional development. Notwithstanding any provisions of this section to the contrary, the Standards Board may not modify the minimum clock-hour requirement of this section until January 1, 2003. The professional development required by this chapter for license renewal may be waived if the educator has successfully completed the professional development requirements pursuant to an approved local school district professional development pilot plan. The Secretary, after consultation with the Professional Standards Board, may approve one pilot local school district's professional development plan, submitted within twelve months of enactment of this Bill, if the pilot plan was developed and agreed upon by the district, ratified by the organization representing the district's teachers for collective bargaining purposes, and the pilot plan is at least as rigorous as the professional development requirements under this chapter. A pilot local professional development plan approved under this section shall be considered a 3-year pilot professional development plan. After 3 years, the local school district may seek to have the pilot professional development plan continued pursuant to § 1203 of this Chapter. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 72 Del. Laws, c. 295, § 1.)
§ 1213. Tier Three -- Advanced licensure.
An advanced license is valid for up to 10 years unless extended pursuant to § 1216 of this title or revoked. Upon application, the Department shall issue an advanced license to an educator who receives National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification. The term of the advanced license be the same as the balance of the term of the educator's National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification. The Department may also issue an advanced license to an educator who, upon application, demonstrates proficiency under an equivalent program that has been approved in rules and regulations promulgated and adopted under this chapter. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 75 Del. Laws, c. 77, §§ 7, 8.)
§ 1214. Advanced licensure -- Renewal.
Upon application, the Department shall renew an advanced license for an additional 10-year term, provided that the educator maintained proficiency under the program for which the advanced license was first issued. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2.)
§ 1215. Licensure of educators holding professional status certificates or other certificates.
The Department shall issue a continuing license to a person holding a Delaware certificate issued by an education certifying board prior to July 13, 1971, or upon the expiration of a professional status certificate or standard certificate issued by the Department. Upon application, the Department shall issue an advanced license to a person holding current National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification and a current Delaware certificate as of May 3, 2000. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 74 Del. Laws, c. 14, § 5.)
§ 1216. License extension; license freeze.
(a) Upon a showing by an educator of exigent circumstances, the Department may, through rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter, issue a license extension for a period not to exceed 1 year.
(b) An educator may take an extended leave of absence for up to 3 years with no effect upon the validity or expiration of the educator's initial, continuing or advanced license.
(c) If an applicant is not employed by a public school district or charter school, the initial license shall be inactive until such time as the applicant is employed by a public school district or charter school. Once employed, the initial license shall be in effect for 3 years and all rules and regulations promulgated and adopted under this chapter shall apply.
(d) The expiration of an educator's license before the end of the school year shall be considered an exigent circumstance under subsection (a) of this section and the educator's license shall be extended until the end of that school year. Notwithstanding any extension, the effective date of any renewed license shall be the original expiration date. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 74 Del. Laws, c. 14, § 6; 75 Del. Laws, c. 77, § 9.)
Pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated and adopted pursuant to this chapter, the Department may refuse to issue a license to an applicant who otherwise meets the requirements of this subchapter upon a finding that the applicant is unfit to be licensed in the State. An applicant is entitled to a full and fair hearing before the Standards Board to challenge a denial pursuant to this section. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2.)
§ 1218. Revocation of license.
(a) A license issued under the provisions of this subchapter may be revoked upon the dismissal of the license holder for immorality, misconduct in office, incompetency, wilful neglect of duty or disloyalty, or upon the license holder's resignation or retirement pending dismissal for immorality, provided that clear and convincing evidence establishes the underlying misconduct.
(b) A license issued under the provisions of this subchapter shall be revoked upon a finding that the license holder made a materially false or misleading statement in the license holder's license application.
(c) A license holder is entitled to a full and fair hearing before the Standards Board to challenge a proposed revocation pursuant to this section. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 71 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1; 75 Del. Laws, c. 77, § 10.)
Pursuant to the rules and regulations promulgated and adopted under this chapter, the Department shall require each applicant for a license under this chapter to disclose that applicant's own criminal conviction history. Failure to disclose a criminal conviction history pursuant to this section is grounds for denial of a license under § 1217 of this title, revocation of a license under § 1218 of this title, and/or criminal prosecution under subchapter VI (Criminal Background Check for Public School Related Employment) of Chapter 85 of Title 11. (72 Del. Laws, c. 294, § 2; 70 Del. Laws, c. 186, § 1.)
NOTICE: The Delaware Code appearing on this site was prepared by the Division of Research of Legislative Council of the General Assembly with the assistance of the Government Information Center, under the supervision of the Delaware Code Revisors and the editorial staff of LexisNexis, includes all acts up to and including 76 Del. Laws, c. 246, effective June 19, 2008.
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