D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 5, r. 5-A1601

Current through Register Vol. 71, No. 49, December 6, 2024

Rule 5-A1601 - TEACHER CREDENTIALS

1601.1

An individual shall hold a teaching credential to serve as a teacher in the District of Columbia Public Schools for the sub-specializations enumerated in this section.

1601.2

All individuals required to hold a teaching credential to serve as a teacher in a local education agency (LEA) in the District of Columbia must do so in accordance with the sub-specializations enumerated in this chapter.

1601.3

OSSE shall issue an initial, standard, and provisional teaching credential in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

1601.4

All teaching credentials shall specify the discipline(s) and/or sub-specialization(s) in which the holder is authorized to teach.

1601.5

All applicants seeking an initial teaching credential in the District of Columbia shall:

(a) Have earned a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or have earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree from a college or university located outside the United States;

(b) Have successfully passed an examination approved by OSSE and developed to assess general reading, writing, mathematics skills and other general content knowledge as designated by OSSE, with a qualifying score determined by OSSE; or have earned a minimum overall 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or the equivalent of a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(c) Have successfully passed a subject matter content exam approved by OSSE, in the discipline(s) and/or sub-specializations(s) of the credential being sought; and

(d) Meet the requirements of Subsection 1601.6.

1601.6

An applicant shall be issued an initial teaching credential by meeting the requirements described in Subsection 1601.5 and submitting the following:

(a) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant

(1) Is admitted into an OSSE-approved teacher preparation program aligned with the content discipline of the credential being sought, or in a teacher preparation program approved by another state approved by OSSE in accordance with the interstate agreement provisions outlined in this chapter; and

(2) Is employed or contracted as a teacher or has an offer of employment to be a teacher by an LEA operating in the District of Columbia; or

(b) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(1) Has at least two (2) years of effective full-time teaching experience in another state as measured by a summative evaluation rating or two (2) years of effective or equivalent teaching as measured by the student growth component of an evaluation rating. The experience shall have been completed within the previous five (5) years, and the final year shall show a rating of effective or higher; and

(2) Has a valid, current teaching credential, in good standing, issued from another state approved by OSSE in accordance with the interstate agreement provisions outlined in this chapter; or

(c) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant is employed as a teacher or has an offer of employment to be a teacher by an LEA operating in the District of Columbia.

1601.7

The term of the initial teaching credential shall expire on July 31st of the third (3^rd) calendar year after issuance.

1601.8

The initial teaching credential is not renewable.

1601.9

An applicant shall be issued a standard teaching credential by meeting the following requirements and submitting the following:

(a) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(1) Has earned a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or have earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(2) Completed an educator preparation program approved by OSSE or an approved program in another state approved by OSSE in accordance with the interstate agreement provisions outlined in this chapter;

(3) Successfully passed an examination approved by OSSE, developed to assess general reading, writing, mathematics skills, and other general content knowledge as designated by OSSE; or earned a minimum overall 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or the equivalent of a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(4) Successfully passed a subject matter content examination approved by OSSE, in the content discipline for which a credential is sought; and

(5) Successfully passed a grade-appropriate pedagogy examination approved by OSSE, or performance-based assessment, as designated by OSSE, with a qualifying score determined by OSSE; or

(b) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(1) Held an initial teaching credential in the District of Columbia;

(2) Completed at least two (2) years of effective or equivalent fulltime teaching experience at an LEA in the District of Columbia within the five (5) year period prior to the application, as demonstrated by the applicant's summative evaluation rating from the employing LEA; and

(3) Successfully passed a grade-appropriate pedagogy examination approved by OSSE, or performance-based assessment, as designated by OSSE, with a qualifying score determined by OSSE; or

(c) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(1) Has earned a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or have earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(2) Holds a teaching credential issued by another state approved by OSSE in accordance with the interstate agreement provisions outlined in this chapter;

(3) Successfully passed an examination approved by OSSE and developed to assess basic reading, writing, mathematics skills, and other general content knowledge designated by OSSE; or earned a minimum overall 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or the equivalent of a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(4) Successfully passed a subject matter content examination approved by OSSE in the content discipline for which a credential is sought;

(5) Successfully passed a grade-appropriate pedagogy examination or performance-based assessment, as designated by OSSE; and

(6) Has at least two (2) years of effective or equivalent full-time teaching experience in another state, as measured by a summative evaluation rating of two (2) years of effective or equivalent teaching based upon the student growth component of an evaluation rating. The experience shall have been completed within five (5) years prior to an application for the credential, and the final year shall show a rating of effective or higher; or

(d) Documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(1) Has earned a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or have earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(2) Is currently or has been employed as a teacher by an LEA operating in the District of Columbia;

(3) Has completed at least two (2) years of effective or equivalent fulltime teaching experience at an LEA in the District of Columbia within the three (3) years prior to the application, as demonstrated by the applicant's summative evaluation rating from the employing LEA;

(4) Successfully passed an examination approved by OSSE, developed to assess general reading, writing, mathematics skills and other general content knowledge as designated by OSSE; or earned a minimum overall 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or the equivalent of a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(5) Successfully passed a subject matter content examination approved by OSSE, in the content discipline for which a credential is sought; and

(6) Successfully passed a grade-appropriate pedagogy examination or performance-based assessment, as designated by OSSE, with a qualifying score determined by OSSE.

1601.10

A standard teaching credential shall be valid for a term of four (4) years.

1601.11

A standard teaching credential may be renewed if the requirements for renewal of this credential are met, in accordance with this chapter. A renewal period shall be for a term of four (4) years.

1601.12

An applicant seeking a one-year, nonrenewable provisional teaching credential shall provide documentation satisfactory to OSSE to confirm that the applicant:

(a) Has earned a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education or has earned the equivalent of a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States;

(b) Has successfully passed an examination approved by OSSE and developed to assess general reading, writing, mathematics skills and other general content knowledge as designated by OSSE, with a qualifying score determined by OSSE; or has earned a minimum overall 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university accredited by one of the regional accrediting bodies approved by the U.S. Department of Education, or the equivalent of a 3.0 grade point average on a 4.0 scale culminating in a bachelor's degree at a college or university located outside the United States; and

(c) Is employed as a teacher or has a conditional offer of employment to be a teacher by an LEA operating in the District of Columbia.

1601.13

A provisional teaching credential shall be valid for a term of one (1) calendar year from the date of issuance.

1601.14

A provisional teaching credential is not renewable.

1601.15

An LEA that hires a provisionally-credentialed teacher who is required to be licensed in accordance with D.C. Official Code § 47-2853.04(a)(36) shall:

(a) Describe in writing to OSSE the reason the LEA needed to fill the teaching role of the applicant seeking a provisional credential;

(b) Detail in writing to OSSE the steps taken by the LEA to attempt to hire for the teaching position an individual who holds an initial or standard teacher credential;

(c) Provide OSSE with the name and school placement of the individual who is teaching under the provisional teaching credential no more than thirty (30) calendar days after the start of each school year; and

(d) Make the name and school placement of any individual teaching under a provisional teaching credential public on its website no more than thirty (30) calendar days after the start of each school year.

1601.16

For an individual holding a provisional teaching credential, the provisional teaching credential shall serve as a temporary waiver of the requirement that the individual hold an initial or standard teaching credential in accordance with this chapter.

1601.17

An LEA that employs a teacher who holds a provisional teaching credential shall continue to comply with all requirements of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), 20 U.S.C. § 6301et seq., including without limitation the educator equity requirements in Section 1112(b)(2) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. § 6312(b)(2)) and the Parent Right to Know provisions in Section 1112(e)(1) of the ESEA (20 U.S.C. § 6312(e)(1)) .

1601.18

With respect to examinations referenced in this section as requiring OSSE approval, OSSE shall publish information regarding such approval on its website. The information shall include, as applicable, the name of each particular examination approved by OSSE and information regarding scores needed to pass the examination.

1601.19

The District of Columbia Public Schools shall publish on its website, no more than thirty (30) calendar days after the start of each school year, the name and school placement of any individual serving as a teacher in the District of Columbia Public Schools that does not hold an active OSSE teacher credential.

D.C. Mun. Regs. tit. 5, r. 5-A1601

Final Rulemaking published at 63 DCR 9071 (7/1/2016); amended by Final Rulemaking published at 69 DCR 12822 (10/21/2022)