COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 57
(By Senators Edgell and Kessler)
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[Originating in the Committee on Education;
reported March 20, 2009.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §18-7a-38 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; and to amend and reenact §18A-3-1 and §18A-
3-2a of said code, all relating to education generally;
excluding certain coaching employment from the calculation on
the limit on the number of days a Teachers Retirement System
retiree may be employed; eliminating United States citizenship
as a condition of certification; certificates and permits to
coach in public schools; removing certain limitation on such
service under certain conditions; making technical
corrections; and deleting obsolete language.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18-7A-38 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; and that §18A-3-1 and §18A-3-2a of said
code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 7A. STATE TEACHERS RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
§18-7A-38. Maximum number of days a retired teacher may accept employment; calculating days worked for retirants
engaged in substitute teaching.
(a) The Legislature finds that:
(1) The Consolidated Public Retirement Board has determined
that retired substitute teachers should not perform substitute
teaching without limit;
(2) The Consolidated Public Retirement Board has established,
by rule, a maximum number of days in which a retired teacher may
accept employment prior to having his or her retirement benefit
reduced; and
(3) There have been inconsistencies in the manner in which
county boards calculate the maximum number of days established by
rule.
(b) The Consolidated Public Retirement Board may not set forth
in rule a maximum number of days in which a retired teacher may
accept employment prior to having his or her retirement benefit
reduced that is less than one hundred forty days: Provided, That
a retiree may be employed as a coach up to three hours per day
without this time being included in the calculation of the one
hundred forty-day limit.
(c) For the purpose of calculating whether a retired
substitute teacher has exceeded the maximum number of days in which
a substitute teacher may accept employment without incurring a
reduction in his or her retirement benefit, the number of days
worked shall be determined by:
(1) Totaling the number of hours worked; and
(2) Dividing by the standard number of hours that a full-time
teacher works per day.
ARTICLE 3. TRAINING, CERTIFICATION, LICENSING, PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT.
§18A-3-1. Teacher preparation programs; program approval and
standards; authority to issue teaching certificates.
(a) The education of professional educators in the state is
under the general direction and control of the state board after
consultation with the Secretary of Education and the Arts and the
Chancellor for Higher Education who shall represent the interests
of educator preparation programs within the institutions of higher
education in this state as those institutions are defined in
section two, article one, chapter eighteen-b of this code.
The education of professional educators in the state includes
all programs leading to certification to teach or serve in the
public schools including:
(1) Those programs in all institutions of higher education,
including student teaching as provided in this section;
(2) Beginning teacher internship programs;
(3) The granting of West Virginia certification to persons who
received their preparation to teach outside the boundaries of this
state, except as provided in subsection (b) of this section;
(4) Any alternative preparation programs in this state leading
to certification, including programs established pursuant to the provisions of section one-a of this article and programs which are
in effect on the effective date of this section; and
(5) Any continuing professional education, professional
development and in-service training programs for professional
educators employed in the public schools in the state.
(b) The state board, after consultation with the Secretary of
Education and the Arts and the Chancellor for Higher Education,
shall adopt standards for the education of professional educators
in the state and for awarding certificates valid in the public
schools of this state. The standards shall include, but not be
limited to, the following:
(1) A provision for the study of multicultural education. As
used in this section, multicultural education means the study of
the pluralistic nature of American society including its values,
institutions, organizations, groups, status positions and social
roles;
(2) A provision for the study of classroom management
techniques, including methods of effective management of disruptive
behavior which shall include societal factors and their impact on
student behavior; and
(3) Subject to the provisions of section ten of this article,
a teacher from another state shall be awarded a teaching
certificate for a comparable grade level and subject area valid in
the public schools of this state if he or she:
(A) Holds a valid teaching certificate or a certificate of
eligibility issued by another state;
(B) Has graduated from an educator preparation program at a
regionally accredited institution of higher education;
(C) Possesses the minimum of a bachelor's degree; and
(D) Meets all of the requirements of the state for full
certification except employment.
(c) To give prospective teachers the teaching experience
needed to demonstrate competence as a prerequisite to certification
to teach in the West Virginia public schools, the state board may
enter into an agreement with county boards for the use of the
public schools.
(d) An agreement established pursuant to subsection (c) of
this section shall recognize student teaching as a joint
responsibility of the educator preparation institution and the
cooperating public schools and shall include:
(1) The minimum qualifications for the employment of public
school teachers selected as supervising teachers, including the
requirement that field-based and clinical experiences be supervised
by a teacher fully certified in the state in which that teacher is
supervising;
(2) The remuneration to be paid public school teachers by the
state board, in addition to their contractual salaries, for
supervising student teachers;
(3) Minimum standards to guarantee the adequacy of the
facilities and program of the public school selected for student
teaching;
(4) That the student teacher, under the direction and supervision of the supervising teacher, shall exercise the
authority of a substitute teacher; and
(5) A provision requiring any higher education institution
with an educator preparation program to document that the student
teacher's field-based and clinical experiences include
participation and instruction with multicultural, at-risk and
exceptional children at each programmatic level for which the
student teacher seeks certification.
(e) Beginning the fall, two thousand six - two thousand seven
academic term, In lieu of the student teaching experience in a
public school setting required by this section, an institution of
higher education may provide an alternate student teaching
experience in a nonpublic school setting if the institution of
higher education:
(1) Complies with the provisions of this section;
(2) Has a state board-approved educator preparation program;
and
(3) Enters into an agreement pursuant to subsections (f) and
(g) of this section.
(f) At the discretion of the higher education institution, an
agreement for an alternate student teaching experience between an
institution of higher education and a nonpublic school shall
require that either:
(1) The student teacher complete at least one half of the
clinical experience in a public school; or
(2) The educator preparation program include a requirement that any student performing student teaching in a nonpublic school
complete at least:
(A) Two hundred clock hours of field-based training in a
public school; and
(B) A course, which is a component of the institution's state
board-approved educator preparation program, that provides to
prospective teachers information that is equivalent to the teaching
experience needed to demonstrate competence as a prerequisite to
certification to teach in the public schools in West Virginia. The
course shall include instruction on at least the following
elements:
(i) State board policy and provisions of this code governing
public education;
(ii) Requirements for federal and state accountability,
including the mandatory reporting of child abuse;
(iii) Federal- and state-mandated curriculum and assessment
requirements, including multicultural education, safe schools and
student code of conduct;
(iv) Federal and state regulations for the instruction of
exceptional students as defined by the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act, 20 U. S. C. §1400, et seq.;
(v) Varied approaches for effective instruction for students
who are at-risk;
(g) In addition to the requirements set forth in subsection
(f) of this section, an agreement for an alternate student teaching
experience between an institution of higher education and a nonpublic school shall:
(1) Require that the higher education institution with an
educator preparation program document that the student teacher's
field-based and clinical experiences include participation and
instruction with multicultural, at-risk and exceptional children at
each programmatic level for which the student teacher seeks
certification; and
(2) Include the minimum qualifications for the employment of
school teachers selected as supervising teachers, including the
requirement that field-based and clinical experiences be supervised
by a teacher fully certified in the state in which that teacher is
supervising.
(h) The state superintendent may issue certificates to
graduates of educator preparation programs and alternative educator
preparation programs approved by the state board. The certificates
are issued in accordance with this section and rules adopted by the
state board after consultation with the Secretary of Education and
the Arts and the Chancellor for Higher Education.
(1) A certificate to teach may be granted only to any person
who is:
(A) A citizen of the United States, except as provided in
subdivision (2) of this subsection;
(B) (A) Is of good moral character;
(C) (B) Physically, mentally and emotionally qualified to
perform the duties of a teacher; and
(D) (C) At least eighteen years on or before the first day of October of the year in which his or her certificate is issued.
(2) A permit to teach in the public schools of this state may
be granted to a person who is an exchange teacher from a foreign
country or an alien person who meets the requirements to teach.
(i) In consultation with the Secretary of Education and the
Arts and the Chancellor for Higher Education, institutions of
higher education approved for educator preparation may cooperate
with each other, with the center for professional development and
with one or more county boards to organize and operate centers to
provide selected phases of the educator preparation program. The
phases include, but are not limited to:
(1) Student teaching;
(2) Beginning teacher internship programs;
(3) Instruction in methodology; and
(4) Seminar programs for college students, teachers with
provisional certification, professional support team members and
supervising teachers.
The institutions of higher education, the center for
professional development and county boards may by mutual agreement
budget and expend funds to operate the centers through payments to
the appropriate fiscal office of the participating institutions,
the center for professional development and the county boards.
(j) The provisions of this section do not require
discontinuation of an existing student teacher training center or
school which meets the standards of the state board.
(k) All institutions of higher education approved for educator preparation in the 1962-1963 school year shall continue to hold
that distinction so long as they meet the minimum standards for
educator preparation. Nothing in this section infringes upon the
rights granted to any institution by charter given according to law
previous to the adoption of this code.
(l) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, nor
any other provision of rule, law or this code to the contrary, an
institution of higher education may enter into an agreement with a
nonpublic school:
(1) For the purposes of this section regarding student
teaching;
(2) For the spring, two thousand six academic term only;
(3) If the institution is approved for educator preparation by
the state board; and
(4) If the institution had entered into the agreement for that
academic term prior to the effective date of this section.
(m) (l) As used in this section:
(1) "Nonpublic school" means a private school, parochial
school, church school, school operated by a religious order or
other nonpublic school that elects to:
(A) Comply with the provisions of article twenty-eight,
chapter eighteen of this code;
(B) Participate on a voluntary basis in a state-operated or
state-sponsored program provided to such schools pursuant to this
section; and
(C) Comply with the provisions of this section;
(2) "At-risk" means having the potential for academic failure,
including, but not limited to, the risk of dropping out of school,
involvement in delinquent activity or poverty as indicated by free
or reduced lunch status; and
(3) "Exceptional children" has the meaning ascribed pursuant
to section one, article twenty, chapter eighteen of this code, but
does not include gifted students.
§18A-3-2a. Authority of state superintendent to issue
certificates; kinds of certificates.
(a) In accordance with State Board of Education rules for the
education of professional educators adopted after consultation with
the Secretary of Education and the Arts, the State Superintendent
of Schools may issue certificates valid in the public schools of
the state. Provided, That
(1) A certificate shall may not be issued to any person who is
not a citizen of the United States, is not of good moral character,
and is not physically, mentally and emotionally qualified to
perform the duties for which the certification would be is granted
and who has not attained the age of eighteen years on or before the
first day of October of the year in which the certificate is
issued. Provided, however, That
(2) An exchange teacher from a foreign country or an alien
person who meets the requirements to teach may be granted a permit
to teach within the public schools of the state.
(b) Certificates authorized to be issued: include
(1) Professional teaching certificates. -- A professional
teaching certificate for teaching in the public schools may be
issued to a person who under the following conditions:
(A) Regular professional preparation. --
(i) Has The applicant holds at least a bachelor's degree from
an accredited institution of higher education in this state;
(ii) The applicant has completed a program for the education
of teachers which meets the requirements approved by the state
board of Education or has met equivalent standards at institutions
in other states; and
(iii) The applicant has passed appropriate state
board-approved basic skills and subject matter tests or has
completed three years of successful experience within the last
seven years in the area for which licensure is being sought; or
(B) Alternative professional preparation. --
(i) Has The applicant holds at least a bachelor's degree in a
discipline taught in the public schools from an accredited
institution of higher education;
(ii) The applicant has passed appropriate state board-approved
basic skills and subject matter tests or has completed three years
of successful experience within the last seven years in the area
for which licensure is being sought;
(iii) The applicant has completed an alternative program for
teacher education approved by the state board; and
(iv) The applicant is recommended for a certificate by the
chairperson of the professional support team of the person's alternative program or the state superintendent based on
documentation submitted;
(C) The certificate shall be is endorsed to indicate the grade
level or levels or areas of specialization in which the person is
certified to teach or to serve in the public schools;
(D) The initial professional certificate shall be is issued
provisionally for a period of three years from the date of issuance
and may be converted to a professional certificate valid for five
years subject to successful completion of a beginning teacher
internship, if applicable, or renewed subject to rules adopted by
the state board.
(2) Professional administrative certificate. -- A professional
administrative certificate, endorsed for serving in the public
schools, with specific endorsement as a principal, vocational
administrator, supervisor of instructions or superintendent, may be
issued to a person who has completed the following requirements all
to be approved by the state board: as follows
(A) For A master's degree from an institution of higher
education accredited to offer a master's degree;
(B) has successfully completed Successful completion of an
approved program for administrative certification, developed by the
state board of Education in cooperation with the governing boards
of the university of West Virginia system and the state college
system Higher Education Policy Commission;
(C) has successfully completed Successful completion of
education and training in evaluation skills through the Center for Professional Development or equivalent education and training in
evaluation skills; and
(D) Three years of management level experience;
Provided, That anyone having received a certificate during the
period from the thirtieth day of August, one thousand nine hundred
ninety, until the effective date of this bill without having met
the above requirements shall complete those requirements within
five years after the effective date of this bill: Provided,
however, That any
(E) A person who was serving in the position of dean of
students on the effective date of this section June 4, 1992, shall
is not be required to hold a professional administrative
certificate; Beginning the first day of September, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-two,
(F) The initial professional administrative certificate shall
be is issued provisionally for a period of five years. This
certificate may be converted to a professional administrative
certificate valid for five years or renewed subject to the
regulations of the state board.
(3) Paraprofessional certificate. -- A paraprofessional
certificate may be issued to a person who meets the following
conditions:
(A) Has completed thirty-six semester hours of post-secondary
education or its equivalent in subjects directly related to
performance of the job, all approved by the state board; and
(B) can Is able to demonstrate the proficiencies to perform duties as required of a paraprofessional as defined in section
eight, article four of this chapter.
(4) Other certificates; permits. -- Subject to the approval of
the state board, other certificates and permits may be issued
subject to the approval of the state board, to persons who do not
qualify for the professional or paraprofessional certificate. Such
(A) These certificates or permits shall may not be given
permanent status and persons holding such them shall meet renewal
requirements provided by law and by regulation, unless the state
board declares certain of these certificates to be the equivalent
of the professional certificate;
(B) Within the category of other certificates and permits, the
state superintendent may issue certificates for persons to serve in
the public schools as athletic coaches or coaches for other
extracurricular activities, coaches whose duties may include the
supervision of students subject to the following conditions and
limitations:
(A) Such (i) The person shall be is employed under a contract
with the county board of education under a contract which specifies
the following:
(I) The duties to be performed including the supervision of
students; which specifies
(II) A rate of pay equivalent to the rate of pay for
professional educators in the district who accept similar duties as
extra duty assignments; and which provides
(III) Provisions for liability insurance associated with the activity; Provided, That such
(ii) A persons person who holds a certificate or permit as
provided in this subdivision shall may not be considered employees
an employee of the county board for salary and benefit purposes
other than except as specified in the contract;
(B) A currently employed certified professional educator has
not applied for the position, and (C) such
(iii) The person completes an orientation program designed and
approved in accordance with state board rules; and which shall be
adopted no later than the first day of January, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-one,
(iv) A currently employed certified professional educator has
not applied for the position. This preference does not apply if
the position is filled currently by a person who meets the
following requirements:
(I) Has been issued a certificate or permit in compliance with
this subdivision;
(II) Has been employed in the same position for at least five
years; and
(III) Has received satisfactory evaluations for each of the
last five years.
When the conditions of this paragraph are met, the county
board is not required to post the coaching position annually.