The following information outlines a change in one of the provisions in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and provides general guidance for implementation.

The former “Highly Qualified” teacher requirement is no longer in force.  The new requirement under ESSA states:

The district must ensure that all teachers and paraprofessionals working in a program supported with funds under ESSA, Title I Part A, meet applicable State certification and licensure requirements, including any requirements for certification obtained through alternative routes to certification.

Q: What does this mean in terms of implementation?

A: In a schoolwide Title I school all teachers must be properly licensed for the grade and subject area in which the teacher has been assigned. In a targeted Title I program school only the Title I teacher(s) must meet this requirement for Title I, Part A.  “All teachers” refers to teachers of core academic areas, to include visual arts, physical education, media, reading, mathematics, English Language/Arts, communications, the sciences, social studies, history.

Q: What does “proper licensure” include?

A: Proper licensure is a valid teaching license as issued by the Minnesota Department of Education and may include special permissions such as, variance, waiver, community expert, or limited license.

Long call substitutes must also have the required license for the grade and subject area in which the substitute teacher is assigned. If the substitute does not, then the substitute would not meet the requirement above. Short call substitutes would not have to meet this requirement as they may not be in an assignment for more than 15 consecutive days.

Q: What happens if a teacher does not meet the licensure requirements after 20 consecutive days (4 weeks)?

A: Parents must be provided with timely notice that the student has been assigned, or  taught for four or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who does not meet applicable State certification or license requirements at the grade level and subject area in which the teacher has been assigned (see notice template at the end of this document).

Q: What must I do as an administrator to ensure we do not have to send this notice to parents?

• Ensure every teacher meets the Minnesota Licensure requirements.
  • All teachers are properly licensed for the subject area and grade level you have assigned them.
• Example: A teacher assigned to a Reading Teacher position at a middle school must have a K-12 Reading license. A teacher with an English 5-8 license would not hold the proper license for this assignment.
  • If you assign a teacher to a course for which the teacher needs special permission to do so, work with your HR Coordinator to ensure that the permissions are requested in a timely manner to avoid having that teacher in a position for 4 or more consecutive weeks before getting proper permission from the Minnesota Department of Education.