education.alaska.gov : Initial Teacher Certificate

Organization : Alaska Department of Education
Service Name : Initial Teacher Certificate
Country: United States of America

Website : https://education.alaska.gov/teachercertification/initial.html

Initial Teacher Certificate:

All applicants for Initial teacher certification must hold a bachelor’s degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution.

Related : Pennsylvania Department of Education Search Educator Certification : www.statusin.org/11056.html

Official transcripts reflecting all coursework and degree(s) must be included with the application or on file with the Teacher Certification Office, including community college and/or transfer credit.

If any college-level coursework has been completed outside of the United States, a completed, original foreign evaluation must be submitted with the application. More information concerning foreign evaluations can be found at education.alaska.gov/teachercertification/forms/Foreign_Evaluation_Info.pdf.

Applicants will also need to submit one fingerprint card, complete the appropriate application and submit the necessary fees (All fees are non-refundable).

Under AS 14.20.020(h), an holder of an Initial teacher certificate has two (2) years to complete three (3) semester hours of approved Alaska studies coursework and three (3) semester hours of approved Alaska multicultural coursework. Lists of approved courses that meet the Alaska studies and Alaska multicultural education coursework requirements are available at education.alaska.gov/teachercertification/ under Certification Requirements.

The Alaska Teacher Certification office issues five types of Initial teacher certificates:
** Initial/Two-Year, Three-Year
** Initial/Out-of-State,
** Initial/Program Enrollment,
** Initial/Reemployment and
** Second Initial

The additional requirements and expectations for the five types of Initial teacher certification are listed below.

Initial/Two-Year Teacher Certificate:
To qualify for an Two-Year teacher certificate, an applicant must meet the following requirements:
** Has passing scores on an approved basic competency exam (BCE)
** Has completed an approved teacher preparation program as verified by an Institutional Recommendation (IR) and the corresponding transcripts, or a State Recommendation (SR)
** Has never held an Initial or Provisional Alaska teacher certificate

-and-:
Is not eligible for reinstatement of a Professional or Master teacher certificate.

An Initial/Two-Year teacher certificate will be valid for two years, but may be reissued once with a one-year extension.

For the one-year extension, the certificate holder must submit official transcripts to the Teacher Certification office showing the completion of 3 semester hours of approved Alaska studies (AK) coursework and the completion of 3 semester hours of approved Alaska (MC) multicultural coursework. The official transcripts must be received in the Teacher Certification office prior to the expiration date of the Initial certificate.

An applicant who has satisfied the Alaska studies and Alaska multicultural coursework requirements at the time of application will be issued an Initial/Three-Year teacher certificate.

An Initial/Two-Year teacher certificate is not renewable.

Initial/Out-Of-State Teacher Certificate:
To qualify for an Initial/Out-of-State teacher certificate, an applicant must meet the following requirements:
** Has never held an Alaska teacher certificate
** Holds a current, valid out-of-state teacher certificate (out-of-country certificate will not be accepted)
** The out-of-state certificate will be current and valid at the time the applicant’s contract for instructional services begins in an Alaska public school district.

An Initial/Out-of-State teacher certificate will be valid for one year, but may be reissued twice for a total of two (2) one-year extensions.

For the first one-year extension, the following items must be received by the Teacher Certification office prior to the expiration of the Initial/Out-of-State certificate:
** Official passing scores on an approved basic competency exam (BCE)
** Institutional Recommendation(IR), State Recommendation (SR), or Program Enrollment Form

For the second one-year extension, official transcripts must be received by the Teacher Certification office prior to the expiration date of the Initial/Out-of-State certificate showing the completion of three (3) semester hours of approved Alaska studies coursework and the completion of three (3) semester hours of approved Alaska multicultural coursework. The transcripts must be received prior to the expiration date of the Initial/Out-of-State certificate.

Endorsements placed on an Initial/Out-of-State teacher certificate will reflect the endorsements on the applicant’s out-of-state certificate. If an applicant holds more than one valid, out-of-state certificate, the applicant must choose which out-of-state certificate to submit with the Initial application.

An Initial/Out-of-State teacher certificate is not renewable.