Pub. 7 2017-2018 Issue 1

21 Last month, members of the Task Force presented the proposal to the full State Board where the proposal passed unanimously. It was then presented to the Education Interim Committee for their suppor t in crafting and modifying legislation for the proposal to be put into place; that suppor t was passed in Committee. The Task Force met approximately 11 times last fall; stakeholders from a variety of backgrounds were invited and a great deal of input was given. The Task Force spent the next couple of months formulating all of the gathered information into a format that would serve the intended purposes. Later, an additional 12 stakeholder focus groups were hosted and additional information was gathered. Last month, members of the Task Force presented the proposal to the full State Board where the proposal passed unanimously. It was then presented to the Education Interim Committee for their support in crafting and modifying legislation for the proposal to be put into place; that support was passed in Committee. The Task Force proposal moves away from Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3 licenses, along with the various other licensing options: APT, ARL, Letter of Exigence, etc. and separates licensing from employment. USBE sets standards and oversees licensing of educators but does not have authority to hire or fire educators. With that in mind, the Task Force proposed three separate licenses: Associate Permit, Professional License and LEA-Specific license. Associate Permit Student teachers and non-traditionally prepared teachers would apply for an Associate Permit. • This license would be for an individual who is in the process of meeting the requirements for a Professional Educator license. • It is intended to be temporary (several years). • It would need to be renewed on a yearly basis. • It would be valid for all district and charter schools. • Specific criteria will be determined by the Law and Licensing Committee. • The permit progresses to Professional Educator license. Professional Educator This is for educators who have current educator licenses, have completed student-teaching from a traditionally prepared education program, or have taught in a public school system (with positive evaluations) in another state. • It is intended to be permanent. • It would need to be renewed (suggestion is for 5 years). • It would be valid for all district and charter schools. • Specific criteria will be determined by the Law and Licensing Committee. LEA Specific License If either of the other licensing routes are “untenable” or “unreasonable”, one can apply for the LEA Specific License: • This license would need to have the approval of a local board of education in a public meeting. • It is valid in the specific LEA that approved it. • The educator must satisfy any additional requirements defined by the local board of education. • Specific criteria will be determined by the Law and Licensing Committee. The USBE Law and Licensing Committee is moving to finalize specific criteria and it is anticipated that criteria will be presented in the November or December Board meeting. We look forward to implementing a newer system for licensing; one that removes barriers and obstacles, allows more flexibility in employment decision-making, and gives greater control to local boards for professional development. We believe that there are wonderful and dedicated teachers in Utah and know there are others that would make excellent teachers; we look forward to this process and believe it will better allow LEAs to recruit and retain the best people possible in educating the students in Utah.