Draft: 5.18.18

ARKANSAS DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

EDUCATOR CAREER CONTINUUM - REQUIREMENTS

EARLY CAREER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR LICENSE:1. Description: The Early Career Professional Educator License is a first-time Standard License. The educator may or may not

be employed in an Arkansas educational entity, and has less than three (3) years of teaching experience at the time the license is issued.

2. Standards: The Arkansas Teaching Standards.

3. Requirements for the license: The educator must meet the requirements for an Arkansas first-time standard teaching license.

4. Renewal: This license is valid as long as it is renewed, and may be renewed every five (5) years with the professional development required by law and successful completion of background checks.

CAREER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR LICENSE:

1. Description: The Career Professional Educator License recognizes the educator as a career professional with a strong commitment to the teaching profession.

2. Standards: The Arkansas Teaching Standards.

3. Requirements for the license:

a. Holds a current Arkansas standard teaching license or meets all requirements for an Arkansas standard teaching license;

b. Has a minimum of three (3) years of licensed teaching experience (years teaching under an Arkansas Provisional License will count toward the three years); and

c. Provides verification that the educator has performed at the level of an Effective Teacher as evidenced by the educator’s most recent summative evaluation completed before applying for this license. Effective Teacher is defined in the state’s ESSA Plan. If the applicant is not employed by an Arkansas public school at the time of application, the Effective Teacher verification shall be provided by the last employing public school, charter school, education service cooperative, or private school.

4. Renewal: This license may be renewed every five (5) years with the professional development required by law and successful completion of background checks.

LEAD PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR LICENSE:

1. Description: The Lead Professional Educator License is issued when a teacher has demonstrated that she or he meets the Arkansas Teacher Leader Standards through one of the methods outlined below. A Lead Professional Educator is able to work with school leadership by providing professional learning support, mentoring, PLC leadership, school culture strategies, committee involvement, family and community engagement, data analysis and development of strategies for student growth, and in other collective leadership roles supporting school or district leadership.

document.docx 1

Draft: 5.18.18

2. Standards: The Arkansas Lead Professional Educator Standards.

3. Requirements for the license:

a. Holds a current Arkansas standard teaching license or meets all requirements for an Arkansas standard teaching license;

b. Has a minimum of three (3) years of licensed teaching experience (years teaching under an Arkansas Provisional License will count toward the three years);

c. Provides verification that the educator has performed at the level of an Effective Teacher as evidenced by the educator’s most recent summative evaluation completed before applying for this license. Effective Teacher is defined in the state’s ESSA Plan. If the applicant is not employed by an Arkansas public school at the time of application, the Effective Teacher verification shall be provided by the last employing public school, charter school, education service cooperative, or private school; and

d. Demonstrates teacher leader competencies through one of the following:

o Official score report demonstrating passing score, as set by the State Board, on a teacher leader performance assessment approved by the State Board; or

o Successful completion of an ADE-recognized external micro-credential aligned with the Arkansas Lead Professional Educator Standards; or

o Graduation from an ADE-recognized or approved teacher-leader academy, teacher-leader institute, or teacher-leader program (aligned with the Arkansas Lead Professional Educator Standards as demonstrated by the performance component of the academy, institute, or program).

5. Renewal: This license may be renewed every ten (10) years with the professional development required by law and successful completion of background checks.

MASTER PROFESSIONAL EDUCATOR LICENSE

1. Description: The Master Professional Educator License recognizes an educator who has demonstrated mastery of the educator’s content area and has a strong pedagogy. A Master Professional Educator makes contributions to education inside and outside of the school environment at local, regional, state and national levels. Through modeling and other activities, a Master Professional Educator elevates the teaching profession through teacher support and advocacy for the profession.

2. Standards: The Arkansas Master Professional Educator Standards.

3. Requirements for the license:

a. Holds a current Arkansas standard teaching license or meets all requirements for an Arkansas standard teaching license;

b. Has a minimum of three (3) years of licensed teaching experience (years teaching under an Arkansas Provisional License will count toward the three years);

c. Provides verification that the educator has performed at the level of an Effective Teacher as evidenced by the educator’s most recent summative evaluation completed before applying for this license. Effective Teacher is defined in the state’s ESSA Plan. If the applicant is not employed by an Arkansas public school at the time of application, the Effective Teacher verification shall be provided by the last employing public school, charter school, education service cooperative, or private school; and

document.docx 2

Draft: 5.18.18

d. Demonstrates excellence in teaching practices and/or instructional content through one of the following:

o Award Programs:

Arkansas Teacher of the Year

National Teacher of the Year Award or NTOY finalist

Milken Educator Award

Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching; or

o NBCT (must hold current certification at time of licensure); or

o Successful completion of a:

Master’s degree or doctoral degree in the teacher’s content area; and

An ADE-recognized external micro-credential demonstrating mastery of teaching practices.

4. Renewal: This license may be renewed every ten (10) years with the professional development required by law and successful completion of background checks.

DEFINITIONS:

ADE-recognized external micro-credential means a single or a stacked micro-credential that meets the criteria established by the Department and is recognized by the Department for the applicable license. The micro-credential shall, at a minimum:

Utilize national standards or competencies recognized by the Department;

Contain rigorous requirements for research, performance (including submission of artifacts), and self-reflection;

Require demonstration of a shift in practice that is observable; and

Require reviewer feedback.

Licensed teaching experience means employed as a teacher of record in the K-12 public or private schools in Arkansas or out-of-state, while holding a standard or provisional teaching license, or the equivalent if the applicant is seeking licensure reciprocity. Teaching experience under a waiver of licensure does not count as licensed teaching experience.

Stacked micro-credential means a series of micro-credentials, each of which builds upon a previous micro-credential in the series.

Arkansas Lead Professional Educator Standards means those standards adopted by the State Board of Education for the purpose of the Lead Professional Educator License.

Arkansas Master Professional Educator Standards means those standards adopted by the State Board of Education for the purpose of the Master Professional Educator License.

document.docx 3