Illinois 2025-2026 Regular Session

Illinois Senate Bill SB1945 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1945 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 105 ILCS 5/21B-20105 ILCS 5/21B-30 Amends the Educator License Article of the School Code. Provides that if an assessment is determined to be non-uniform, a provisional in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation program at an Illinois institution of higher education and who has not successfully completed an applicable content area test but who meets certain requirements, which is valid for one full fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not be renewed. Provides that the process by which the State Board of Education evaluates content area tests to determine content validity, absence of bias, or scores required to pass shall be public information and is available on the website of the State Board. Requires the State Board to evaluate each content area test after it has been administered for at least 10 months, but not more than 12 months, and shall determine whether a content test is non-uniform. Provides that an assessment first introduced prior to January 1, 2017 shall be considered uniform, and an assessment introduced on or after January 1, 2017 that does not meet specified criteria shall be considered uniform. Provides that if the State Board finds that the content area test forms available as of January 1, 2025 are not uniform in the level of difficulty as compared to previous forms of those exams, any candidate for licensure who attempted any content area test in the form that was available as of January 1, 2025, and whose best scores in each subsection of the same content area exam, taken across multiple attempts on the same form of the exam, equal or exceed the passing score for that content area exam as of January 1, 2025, shall be determined to have passed that content area exam. LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b A BILL FOR 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1945 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: 105 ILCS 5/21B-20105 ILCS 5/21B-30 105 ILCS 5/21B-20 105 ILCS 5/21B-30 Amends the Educator License Article of the School Code. Provides that if an assessment is determined to be non-uniform, a provisional in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation program at an Illinois institution of higher education and who has not successfully completed an applicable content area test but who meets certain requirements, which is valid for one full fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not be renewed. Provides that the process by which the State Board of Education evaluates content area tests to determine content validity, absence of bias, or scores required to pass shall be public information and is available on the website of the State Board. Requires the State Board to evaluate each content area test after it has been administered for at least 10 months, but not more than 12 months, and shall determine whether a content test is non-uniform. Provides that an assessment first introduced prior to January 1, 2017 shall be considered uniform, and an assessment introduced on or after January 1, 2017 that does not meet specified criteria shall be considered uniform. Provides that if the State Board finds that the content area test forms available as of January 1, 2025 are not uniform in the level of difficulty as compared to previous forms of those exams, any candidate for licensure who attempted any content area test in the form that was available as of January 1, 2025, and whose best scores in each subsection of the same content area exam, taken across multiple attempts on the same form of the exam, equal or exceed the passing score for that content area exam as of January 1, 2025, shall be determined to have passed that content area exam. LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b A BILL FOR
2	2	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1945 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
3	3	105 ILCS 5/21B-20105 ILCS 5/21B-30 105 ILCS 5/21B-20 105 ILCS 5/21B-30
4	4	105 ILCS 5/21B-20
5	5	105 ILCS 5/21B-30
6	6	Amends the Educator License Article of the School Code. Provides that if an assessment is determined to be non-uniform, a provisional in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation program at an Illinois institution of higher education and who has not successfully completed an applicable content area test but who meets certain requirements, which is valid for one full fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not be renewed. Provides that the process by which the State Board of Education evaluates content area tests to determine content validity, absence of bias, or scores required to pass shall be public information and is available on the website of the State Board. Requires the State Board to evaluate each content area test after it has been administered for at least 10 months, but not more than 12 months, and shall determine whether a content test is non-uniform. Provides that an assessment first introduced prior to January 1, 2017 shall be considered uniform, and an assessment introduced on or after January 1, 2017 that does not meet specified criteria shall be considered uniform. Provides that if the State Board finds that the content area test forms available as of January 1, 2025 are not uniform in the level of difficulty as compared to previous forms of those exams, any candidate for licensure who attempted any content area test in the form that was available as of January 1, 2025, and whose best scores in each subsection of the same content area exam, taken across multiple attempts on the same form of the exam, equal or exceed the passing score for that content area exam as of January 1, 2025, shall be determined to have passed that content area exam.
7	7	LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
8	8	LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
9	9	A BILL FOR
10	10	SB1945LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
11	11	SB1945 LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
12	12	1 AN ACT concerning education.
13	13	2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
14	14	3 represented in the General Assembly:
15	15	4 Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Sections
16	16	5 21B-20 and 21B-30 as follows:
17	17	6 (105 ILCS 5/21B-20)
18	18	7 Sec. 21B-20. Types of licenses. The State Board of
19	19	8 Education shall implement a system of educator licensure,
20	20	9 whereby individuals employed in school districts who are
21	21	10 required to be licensed must have one of the following
22	22	11 licenses: (i) a professional educator license; (ii) an
23	23	12 educator license with stipulations; (iii) a substitute
24	24	13 teaching license; or (iv) until June 30, 2028, a short-term
25	25	14 substitute teaching license. References in law regarding
26	26	15 individuals certified or certificated or required to be
27	27	16 certified or certificated under Article 21 of this Code shall
28	28	17 also include individuals licensed or required to be licensed
29	29	18 under this Article. The first year of all licenses ends on June
30	30	19 30 following one full year of the license being issued.
31	31	20 The State Board of Education, in consultation with the
32	32	21 State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, may adopt such
33	33	22 rules as may be necessary to govern the requirements for
34	34	23 licenses and endorsements under this Section.
35	35
36	36
37	37
38	38	104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1945 Introduced 2/6/2025, by Sen. Meg Loughran Cappel SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
39	39	105 ILCS 5/21B-20105 ILCS 5/21B-30 105 ILCS 5/21B-20 105 ILCS 5/21B-30
40	40	105 ILCS 5/21B-20
41	41	105 ILCS 5/21B-30
42	42	Amends the Educator License Article of the School Code. Provides that if an assessment is determined to be non-uniform, a provisional in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation program at an Illinois institution of higher education and who has not successfully completed an applicable content area test but who meets certain requirements, which is valid for one full fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not be renewed. Provides that the process by which the State Board of Education evaluates content area tests to determine content validity, absence of bias, or scores required to pass shall be public information and is available on the website of the State Board. Requires the State Board to evaluate each content area test after it has been administered for at least 10 months, but not more than 12 months, and shall determine whether a content test is non-uniform. Provides that an assessment first introduced prior to January 1, 2017 shall be considered uniform, and an assessment introduced on or after January 1, 2017 that does not meet specified criteria shall be considered uniform. Provides that if the State Board finds that the content area test forms available as of January 1, 2025 are not uniform in the level of difficulty as compared to previous forms of those exams, any candidate for licensure who attempted any content area test in the form that was available as of January 1, 2025, and whose best scores in each subsection of the same content area exam, taken across multiple attempts on the same form of the exam, equal or exceed the passing score for that content area exam as of January 1, 2025, shall be determined to have passed that content area exam.
43	43	LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
44	44	LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
45	45	A BILL FOR
46	46
47	47
48	48
49	49
50	50
51	51	105 ILCS 5/21B-20
52	52	105 ILCS 5/21B-30
53	53
54	54
55	55
56	56	LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
57	57
58	58
59	59
60	60
61	61
62	62
63	63
64	64
65	65
66	66	SB1945 LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
67	67
68	68
69	69	SB1945- 2 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 2 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
70	70	SB1945 - 2 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
71	71	1 (1) Professional Educator License. Persons who (i)
72	72	2 have successfully completed an approved educator
73	73	3 preparation program and are recommended for licensure by
74	74	4 the Illinois institution offering the educator preparation
75	75	5 program, (ii) have successfully completed the required
76	76	6 testing under Section 21B-30 of this Code, (iii) have
77	77	7 successfully completed coursework on the psychology of,
78	78	8 the identification of, and the methods of instruction for
79	79	9 the exceptional child, including, without limitation,
80	80	10 children with learning disabilities, (iv) have
81	81	11 successfully completed coursework in methods of reading
82	82	12 and reading in the content area, and (v) have met all other
83	83	13 criteria established by rule of the State Board of
84	84	14 Education shall be issued a Professional Educator License.
85	85	15 All Professional Educator Licenses are valid until June 30
86	86	16 immediately following 5 years of the license being issued.
87	87	17 The Professional Educator License shall be endorsed with
88	88	18 specific areas and grade levels in which the individual is
89	89	19 eligible to practice. For an early childhood education
90	90	20 endorsement, an individual may satisfy the student
91	91	21 teaching requirement of his or her early childhood teacher
92	92	22 preparation program through placement in a setting with
93	93	23 children from birth through grade 2, and the individual
94	94	24 may be paid and receive credit while student teaching. The
95	95	25 student teaching experience must meet the requirements of
96	96	26 and be approved by the individual's early childhood
97	97
98	98
99	99
100	100
101	101
102	102	SB1945 - 2 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
103	103
104	104
105	105	SB1945- 3 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 3 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
106	106	SB1945 - 3 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
107	107	1 teacher preparation program.
108	108	2 Individuals can receive subsequent endorsements on the
109	109	3 Professional Educator License. Subsequent endorsements
110	110	4 shall require a minimum of 24 semester hours of coursework
111	111	5 in the endorsement area and passage of the applicable
112	112	6 content area test, unless otherwise specified by rule.
113	113	7 (2) Educator License with Stipulations. An Educator
114	114	8 License with Stipulations shall be issued an endorsement
115	115	9 that limits the license holder to one particular position
116	116	10 or does not require completion of an approved educator
117	117	11 program or both.
118	118	12 An individual with an Educator License with
119	119	13 Stipulations must not be employed by a school district or
120	120	14 any other entity to replace any presently employed teacher
121	121	15 who otherwise would not be replaced for any reason.
122	122	16 An Educator License with Stipulations may be issued
123	123	17 with the following endorsements:
124	124	18 (A) (Blank).
125	125	19 (B) Alternative provisional educator. An
126	126	20 alternative provisional educator endorsement on an
127	127	21 Educator License with Stipulations may be issued to an
128	128	22 applicant who, at the time of applying for the
129	129	23 endorsement, has done all of the following:
130	130	24 (i) Graduated from a regionally accredited
131	131	25 college or university with a minimum of a
132	132	26 bachelor's degree.
133	133
134	134
135	135
136	136
137	137
138	138	SB1945 - 3 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
139	139
140	140
141	141	SB1945- 4 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 4 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
142	142	SB1945 - 4 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
143	143	1 (ii) Successfully completed the first phase of
144	144	2 the Alternative Educator Licensure Program for
145	145	3 Teachers, as described in Section 21B-50 of this
146	146	4 Code.
147	147	5 (iii) Passed a content area test, as required
148	148	6 under Section 21B-30 of this Code.
149	149	7 The alternative provisional educator endorsement is
150	150	8 valid for 2 years of teaching and may be renewed for a
151	151	9 third year by an individual meeting the requirements set
152	152	10 forth in Section 21B-50 of this Code.
153	153	11 (C) Alternative provisional superintendent. An
154	154	12 alternative provisional superintendent endorsement on
155	155	13 an Educator License with Stipulations entitles the
156	156	14 holder to serve only as a superintendent or assistant
157	157	15 superintendent in a school district's central office.
158	158	16 This endorsement may only be issued to an applicant
159	159	17 who, at the time of applying for the endorsement, has
160	160	18 done all of the following:
161	161	19 (i) Graduated from a regionally accredited
162	162	20 college or university with a minimum of a master's
163	163	21 degree in a management field other than education.
164	164	22 (ii) Been employed for a period of at least 5
165	165	23 years in a management level position in a field
166	166	24 other than education.
167	167	25 (iii) Successfully completed the first phase
168	168	26 of an alternative route to superintendent
169	169
170	170
171	171
172	172
173	173
174	174	SB1945 - 4 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
175	175
176	176
177	177	SB1945- 5 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 5 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
178	178	SB1945 - 5 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
179	179	1 endorsement program, as provided in Section 21B-55
180	180	2 of this Code.
181	181	3 (iv) Passed a content area test required under
182	182	4 Section 21B-30 of this Code.
183	183	5 The endorsement is valid for 2 fiscal years in
184	184	6 order to complete one full year of serving as a
185	185	7 superintendent or assistant superintendent.
186	186	8 (D) (Blank).
187	187	9 (E) Career and technical educator. A career and
188	188	10 technical educator endorsement on an Educator License
189	189	11 with Stipulations may be issued to an applicant who
190	190	12 has a minimum of 60 semester hours of coursework from a
191	191	13 regionally accredited institution of higher education
192	192	14 or an accredited trade and technical institution and
193	193	15 has a minimum of 2,000 hours of experience outside of
194	194	16 education in each area to be taught.
195	195	17 The career and technical educator endorsement on
196	196	18 an Educator License with Stipulations is valid until
197	197	19 June 30 immediately following 5 years of the
198	198	20 endorsement being issued and may be renewed.
199	199	21 An individual who holds a valid career and
200	200	22 technical educator endorsement on an Educator License
201	201	23 with Stipulations but does not hold a bachelor's
202	202	24 degree may substitute teach in career and technical
203	203	25 education classrooms.
204	204	26 An individual who holds a valid career and
205	205
206	206
207	207
208	208
209	209
210	210	SB1945 - 5 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
211	211
212	212
213	213	SB1945- 6 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 6 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
214	214	SB1945 - 6 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
215	215	1 technical educator endorsement on an Educator License
216	216	2 with Stipulations is entitled to all of the rights and
217	217	3 privileges granted to a holder of a Professional
218	218	4 Educator License.
219	219	5 (F) (Blank).
220	220	6 (G) Transitional bilingual educator. A
221	221	7 transitional bilingual educator endorsement on an
222	222	8 Educator License with Stipulations may be issued for
223	223	9 the purpose of providing instruction in accordance
224	224	10 with Article 14C of this Code to an applicant who
225	225	11 provides satisfactory evidence that he or she meets
226	226	12 all of the following requirements:
227	227	13 (i) Possesses adequate speaking, reading, and
228	228	14 writing ability in the language other than English
229	229	15 in which transitional bilingual education is
230	230	16 offered.
231	231	17 (ii) Has the ability to successfully
232	232	18 communicate in English.
233	233	19 (iii) Either possessed, within 5 years
234	234	20 previous to his or her applying for a transitional
235	235	21 bilingual educator endorsement, a valid and
236	236	22 comparable teaching certificate or comparable
237	237	23 authorization issued by a foreign country or holds
238	238	24 a degree from an institution of higher learning in
239	239	25 a foreign country that the State Educator
240	240	26 Preparation and Licensure Board determines to be
241	241
242	242
243	243
244	244
245	245
246	246	SB1945 - 6 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
247	247
248	248
249	249	SB1945- 7 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 7 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
250	250	SB1945 - 7 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
251	251	1 the equivalent of a bachelor's degree from a
252	252	2 regionally accredited institution of higher
253	253	3 learning in the United States.
254	254	4 A transitional bilingual educator endorsement
255	255	5 shall be valid for prekindergarten through grade 12,
256	256	6 is valid until June 30 immediately following 5 years
257	257	7 of the endorsement being issued, and shall not be
258	258	8 renewed.
259	259	9 Persons holding a transitional bilingual educator
260	260	10 endorsement shall not be employed to replace any
261	261	11 presently employed teacher who otherwise would not be
262	262	12 replaced for any reason.
263	263	13 (H) Language endorsement. In an effort to
264	264	14 alleviate the shortage of teachers speaking a language
265	265	15 other than English in the public schools, an
266	266	16 individual who holds an Educator License with
267	267	17 Stipulations may also apply for a language
268	268	18 endorsement, provided that the applicant provides
269	269	19 satisfactory evidence that he or she meets all of the
270	270	20 following requirements:
271	271	21 (i) Holds a transitional bilingual
272	272	22 endorsement.
273	273	23 (ii) Has demonstrated proficiency in the
274	274	24 language for which the endorsement is to be issued
275	275	25 by passing the applicable language content test
276	276	26 required by the State Board of Education.
277	277
278	278
279	279
280	280
281	281
282	282	SB1945 - 7 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
283	283
284	284
285	285	SB1945- 8 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 8 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
286	286	SB1945 - 8 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
287	287	1 (iii) Holds a bachelor's degree or higher from
288	288	2 a regionally accredited institution of higher
289	289	3 education or, for individuals educated in a
290	290	4 country other than the United States, holds a
291	291	5 degree from an institution of higher learning in a
292	292	6 foreign country that the State Educator
293	293	7 Preparation and Licensure Board determines to be
294	294	8 the equivalent of a bachelor's degree from a
295	295	9 regionally accredited institution of higher
296	296	10 learning in the United States.
297	297	11 (iv) (Blank).
298	298	12 A language endorsement on an Educator License with
299	299	13 Stipulations is valid for prekindergarten through
300	300	14 grade 12 for the same validity period as the
301	301	15 individual's transitional bilingual educator
302	302	16 endorsement on the Educator License with Stipulations
303	303	17 and shall not be renewed.
304	304	18 (I) Visiting international educator. A visiting
305	305	19 international educator endorsement on an Educator
306	306	20 License with Stipulations may be issued to an
307	307	21 individual who is being recruited by a particular
308	308	22 school district that conducts formal recruitment
309	309	23 programs outside of the United States to secure the
310	310	24 services of qualified teachers and who meets all of
311	311	25 the following requirements:
312	312	26 (i) Holds the equivalent of a minimum of a
313	313
314	314
315	315
316	316
317	317
318	318	SB1945 - 8 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
319	319
320	320
321	321	SB1945- 9 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 9 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
322	322	SB1945 - 9 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
323	323	1 bachelor's degree issued in the United States.
324	324	2 (ii) Has been prepared as a teacher at the
325	325	3 grade level for which he or she will be employed.
326	326	4 (iii) Has adequate content knowledge in the
327	327	5 subject to be taught.
328	328	6 (iv) Has an adequate command of the English
329	329	7 language.
330	330	8 A holder of a visiting international educator
331	331	9 endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations
332	332	10 shall be permitted to teach in bilingual education
333	333	11 programs in the language that was the medium of
334	334	12 instruction in his or her teacher preparation program,
335	335	13 provided that he or she passes the English Language
336	336	14 Proficiency Examination or another test of writing
337	337	15 skills in English identified by the State Board of
338	338	16 Education, in consultation with the State Educator
339	339	17 Preparation and Licensure Board.
340	340	18 A visiting international educator endorsement on
341	341	19 an Educator License with Stipulations is valid for 5
342	342	20 years and shall not be renewed.
343	343	21 (J) Paraprofessional educator. A paraprofessional
344	344	22 educator endorsement on an Educator License with
345	345	23 Stipulations may be issued to an applicant who holds a
346	346	24 high school diploma or its recognized equivalent and
347	347	25 (i) holds an associate's degree or a minimum of 60
348	348	26 semester hours of credit from a regionally accredited
349	349
350	350
351	351
352	352
353	353
354	354	SB1945 - 9 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
355	355
356	356
357	357	SB1945- 10 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 10 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
358	358	SB1945 - 10 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
359	359	1 institution of higher education; (ii) has passed a
360	360	2 paraprofessional competency test under subsection
361	361	3 (c-5) of Section 21B-30; or (iii) is at least 18 years
362	362	4 of age and will be using the Educator License with
363	363	5 Stipulations exclusively for grades prekindergarten
364	364	6 through grade 8, until the individual reaches the age
365	365	7 of 19 years and otherwise meets the criteria for a
366	366	8 paraprofessional educator endorsement pursuant to this
367	367	9 subparagraph (J). The paraprofessional educator
368	368	10 endorsement is valid until June 30 immediately
369	369	11 following 5 years of the endorsement being issued and
370	370	12 may be renewed through application and payment of the
371	371	13 appropriate fee, as required under Section 21B-40 of
372	372	14 this Code. An individual who holds only a
373	373	15 paraprofessional educator endorsement is not subject
374	374	16 to additional requirements in order to renew the
375	375	17 endorsement.
376	376	18 (K) Chief school business official. A chief school
377	377	19 business official endorsement on an Educator License
378	378	20 with Stipulations may be issued to an applicant who
379	379	21 qualifies by having a master's degree or higher, 2
380	380	22 years of full-time administrative experience in school
381	381	23 business management or 2 years of university-approved
382	382	24 practical experience, and a minimum of 24 semester
383	383	25 hours of graduate credit in a program approved by the
384	384	26 State Board of Education for the preparation of school
385	385
386	386
387	387
388	388
389	389
390	390	SB1945 - 10 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
391	391
392	392
393	393	SB1945- 11 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 11 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
394	394	SB1945 - 11 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
395	395	1 business administrators and by passage of the
396	396	2 applicable State tests, including an applicable
397	397	3 content area test.
398	398	4 The chief school business official endorsement may
399	399	5 also be affixed to the Educator License with
400	400	6 Stipulations of any holder who qualifies by having a
401	401	7 master's degree in business administration, finance,
402	402	8 accounting, or public administration and who completes
403	403	9 an additional 6 semester hours of internship in school
404	404	10 business management from a regionally accredited
405	405	11 institution of higher education and passes the
406	406	12 applicable State tests, including an applicable
407	407	13 content area test. This endorsement shall be required
408	408	14 for any individual employed as a chief school business
409	409	15 official.
410	410	16 The chief school business official endorsement on
411	411	17 an Educator License with Stipulations is valid until
412	412	18 June 30 immediately following 5 years of the
413	413	19 endorsement being issued and may be renewed if the
414	414	20 license holder completes renewal requirements as
415	415	21 required for individuals who hold a Professional
416	416	22 Educator License endorsed for chief school business
417	417	23 official under Section 21B-45 of this Code and such
418	418	24 rules as may be adopted by the State Board of
419	419	25 Education.
420	420	26 The State Board of Education shall adopt any rules
421	421
422	422
423	423
424	424
425	425
426	426	SB1945 - 11 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
427	427
428	428
429	429	SB1945- 12 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 12 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
430	430	SB1945 - 12 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
431	431	1 necessary to implement Public Act 100-288.
432	432	2 (L) Provisional in-state educator. A provisional
433	433	3 in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License
434	434	4 with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has
435	435	5 completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation
436	436	6 program at an Illinois institution of higher education
437	437	7 and who has not successfully completed an
438	438	8 evidence-based assessment of teacher effectiveness but
439	439	9 who meets all of the following requirements:
440	440	10 (i) Holds at least a bachelor's degree.
441	441	11 (ii) Has completed an approved educator
442	442	12 preparation program at an Illinois institution.
443	443	13 (iii) Has passed an applicable content area
444	444	14 test, as required by Section 21B-30 of this Code.
445	445	15 (iv) Has attempted an evidence-based
446	446	16 assessment of teacher effectiveness and received a
447	447	17 minimum score on that assessment, as established
448	448	18 by the State Board of Education in consultation
449	449	19 with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure
450	450	20 Board.
451	451	21 A provisional in-state educator endorsement on an
452	452	22 Educator License with Stipulations is valid for one
453	453	23 full fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not
454	454	24 be renewed.
455	455	25 (L-5) Provisional in-state educator. If an
456	456	26 assessment is determined to be non-uniform according
457	457
458	458
459	459
460	460
461	461
462	462	SB1945 - 12 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
463	463
464	464
465	465	SB1945- 13 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 13 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
466	466	SB1945 - 13 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
467	467	1 to subsection (i-5) of Section 21B-30, a provisional
468	468	2 in-state educator endorsement on an Educator License
469	469	3 with Stipulations may be issued to a candidate who has
470	470	4 completed an Illinois-approved educator preparation
471	471	5 program at an Illinois institution of higher education
472	472	6 and who has not successfully completed an applicable
473	473	7 content area test but who meets all of the following
474	474	8 requirements:
475	475	9 (i) Holds at least a bachelor's degree.
476	476	10 (ii) Has completed an approved educator
477	477	11 preparation program at an Illinois institution.
478	478	12 (iii) Has passed an evidence-based assessment
479	479	13 of teacher effectiveness, as required by Section
480	480	14 21B-30. If an evidence-based assessment of teacher
481	481	15 effectiveness is not required by Section 21B-30 at
482	482	16 the time a candidate applies for this provisional
483	483	17 in-state educator endorsement on an Educator
484	484	18 License with Stipulations, candidates shall not be
485	485	19 eligible under this subsection.
486	486	20 (iv) Has attempted an applicable content area
487	487	21 test that has been determined to be non-uniform
488	488	22 per subsection (i-5) of Section 21B-30 and has not
489	489	23 attempted any uniform content area tests.
490	490	24 A provisional in-state educator endorsement on an
491	491	25 Educator License with Stipulations is valid for one full
492	492	26 fiscal year after the date of issuance and may not be
493	493
494	494
495	495
496	496
497	497
498	498	SB1945 - 13 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
499	499
500	500
501	501	SB1945- 14 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 14 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
502	502	SB1945 - 14 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
503	503	1 renewed.
504	504	2 (M) (Blank).
505	505	3 (N) Specialized services. A specialized services
506	506	4 endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations
507	507	5 may be issued as defined and specified by rule.
508	508	6 (O) Provisional career and technical educator. A
509	509	7 provisional career and technical educator endorsement
510	510	8 on an Educator License with Stipulations may be issued
511	511	9 to an applicant who has a minimum of 8,000 hours of
512	512	10 work experience in the skill for which the applicant
513	513	11 is seeking the endorsement. Each employing school
514	514	12 board and regional office of education shall provide
515	515	13 verification, in writing, to the State Superintendent
516	516	14 of Education at the time the application is submitted
517	517	15 that no qualified teacher holding a Professional
518	518	16 Educator License or an Educator License with
519	519	17 Stipulations with a career and technical educator
520	520	18 endorsement is available to teach and that actual
521	521	19 circumstances require such issuance.
522	522	20 A provisional career and technical educator
523	523	21 endorsement on an Educator License with Stipulations
524	524	22 is valid until June 30 immediately following 5 years
525	525	23 of the endorsement being issued and may be renewed.
526	526	24 An individual who holds a provisional career and
527	527	25 technical educator endorsement on an Educator License
528	528	26 with Stipulations may teach as a substitute teacher in
529	529
530	530
531	531
532	532
533	533
534	534	SB1945 - 14 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
535	535
536	536
537	537	SB1945- 15 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 15 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
538	538	SB1945 - 15 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
539	539	1 career and technical education classrooms.
540	540	2 An individual who holds a provisional career and
541	541	3 technical educator endorsement on an Educator License
542	542	4 with Stipulations is entitled to all of the rights and
543	543	5 privileges granted to a holder of a Professional
544	544	6 Educator License.
545	545	7 (3) Substitute Teaching License. A Substitute Teaching
546	546	8 License may be issued to qualified applicants for
547	547	9 substitute teaching in all grades of the public schools,
548	548	10 prekindergarten through grade 12. Substitute Teaching
549	549	11 Licenses are not eligible for endorsements. Applicants for
550	550	12 a Substitute Teaching License must hold a bachelor's
551	551	13 degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution
552	552	14 of higher education or must be enrolled in an approved
553	553	15 educator preparation program in this State and have earned
554	554	16 at least 90 credit hours.
555	555	17 Substitute Teaching Licenses are valid for 5 years.
556	556	18 Substitute Teaching Licenses are valid for substitute
557	557	19 teaching in every county of this State. If an individual
558	558	20 has had his or her Professional Educator License or
559	559	21 Educator License with Stipulations suspended or revoked,
560	560	22 then that individual is not eligible to obtain a
561	561	23 Substitute Teaching License.
562	562	24 A substitute teacher may only teach in the place of a
563	563	25 licensed teacher who is under contract with the employing
564	564	26 board. If, however, there is no licensed teacher under
565	565
566	566
567	567
568	568
569	569
570	570	SB1945 - 15 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
571	571
572	572
573	573	SB1945- 16 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 16 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
574	574	SB1945 - 16 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
575	575	1 contract because of an emergency situation, then a
576	576	2 district may employ a substitute teacher for no longer
577	577	3 than 30 calendar days per each vacant position in the
578	578	4 district if the district notifies the appropriate regional
579	579	5 office of education within 5 business days after the
580	580	6 employment of the substitute teacher in that vacant
581	581	7 position. A district may continue to employ that same
582	582	8 substitute teacher in that same vacant position for 90
583	583	9 calendar days or until the end of the semester, whichever
584	584	10 is greater, if, prior to the expiration of the
585	585	11 30-calendar-day period then current, the district files a
586	586	12 written request with the appropriate regional office of
587	587	13 education for a 30-calendar-day extension on the basis
588	588	14 that the position remains vacant and the district
589	589	15 continues to actively seek qualified candidates and
590	590	16 provides documentation that it has provided training
591	591	17 specific to the position, including training on meeting
592	592	18 the needs of students with disabilities and English
593	593	19 learners if applicable. Each extension request shall be
594	594	20 granted in writing by the regional office of education. An
595	595	21 emergency situation is one in which an unforeseen vacancy
596	596	22 has occurred and (i) a teacher is unexpectedly unable to
597	597	23 fulfill his or her contractual duties or (ii) teacher
598	598	24 capacity needs of the district exceed previous indications
599	599	25 or vacancies are unfilled due to a lack of qualified
600	600	26 candidates, and the district is actively engaged in
601	601
602	602
603	603
604	604
605	605
606	606	SB1945 - 16 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
607	607
608	608
609	609	SB1945- 17 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 17 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
610	610	SB1945 - 17 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
611	611	1 advertising to hire a fully licensed teacher for the
612	612	2 vacant position.
613	613	3 There is no limit on the number of days that a
614	614	4 substitute teacher may teach in a single school district,
615	615	5 provided that no substitute teacher may teach for longer
616	616	6 than 120 days beginning with the 2021-2022 school year
617	617	7 through the 2022-2023 school year, otherwise 90 school
618	618	8 days for any one licensed teacher under contract in the
619	619	9 same school year. A substitute teacher who holds a
620	620	10 Professional Educator License or Educator License with
621	621	11 Stipulations shall not teach for more than 120 school days
622	622	12 for any one licensed teacher under contract in the same
623	623	13 school year. The limitations in this paragraph (3) on the
624	624	14 number of days a substitute teacher may be employed do not
625	625	15 apply to any school district operating under Article 34 of
626	626	16 this Code.
627	627	17 A school district may not require an individual who
628	628	18 holds a valid Professional Educator License or Educator
629	629	19 License with Stipulations to seek or hold a Substitute
630	630	20 Teaching License to teach as a substitute teacher.
631	631	21 (4) Short-Term Substitute Teaching License. Beginning
632	632	22 on July 1, 2018 and until June 30, 2028, applicants may
633	633	23 apply to the State Board of Education for issuance of a
634	634	24 Short-Term Substitute Teaching License. A Short-Term
635	635	25 Substitute Teaching License may be issued to a qualified
636	636	26 applicant for substitute teaching in all grades of the
637	637
638	638
639	639
640	640
641	641
642	642	SB1945 - 17 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
643	643
644	644
645	645	SB1945- 18 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 18 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
646	646	SB1945 - 18 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
647	647	1 public schools, prekindergarten through grade 12.
648	648	2 Short-Term Substitute Teaching Licenses are not eligible
649	649	3 for endorsements. Applicants for a Short-Term Substitute
650	650	4 Teaching License must hold an associate's degree or have
651	651	5 completed at least 60 credit hours from a regionally
652	652	6 accredited institution of higher education.
653	653	7 Short-Term Substitute Teaching Licenses are valid for
654	654	8 substitute teaching in every county of this State. If an
655	655	9 individual has had his or her Professional Educator
656	656	10 License or Educator License with Stipulations suspended or
657	657	11 revoked, then that individual is not eligible to obtain a
658	658	12 Short-Term Substitute Teaching License.
659	659	13 The provisions of Sections 10-21.9 and 34-18.5 of this
660	660	14 Code apply to short-term substitute teachers.
661	661	15 An individual holding a Short-Term Substitute Teaching
662	662	16 License may teach no more than 15 consecutive days per
663	663	17 licensed teacher who is under contract. For teacher
664	664	18 absences lasting 6 or more days per licensed teacher who
665	665	19 is under contract, a school district may not hire an
666	666	20 individual holding a Short-Term Substitute Teaching
667	667	21 License, unless the Governor has declared a disaster due
668	668	22 to a public health emergency pursuant to Section 7 of the
669	669	23 Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act. An individual
670	670	24 holding a Short-Term Substitute Teaching License must
671	671	25 complete the training program under Section 10-20.67 or
672	672	26 34-18.60 of this Code to be eligible to teach at a public
673	673
674	674
675	675
676	676
677	677
678	678	SB1945 - 18 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
679	679
680	680
681	681	SB1945- 19 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 19 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
682	682	SB1945 - 19 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
683	683	1 school. Short-Term Substitute Teaching Licenses under this
684	684	2 Section are valid for 5 years.
685	685	3 (Source: P.A. 102-711, eff. 1-1-23; 102-712, eff. 4-27-22;
686	686	4 102-713, eff. 1-1-23; 102-717, eff. 4-29-22; 102-894, eff.
687	687	5 5-20-22; 103-111, eff. 6-29-23; 103-154, eff. 6-30-23;
688	688	6 103-193, eff. 1-1-24; 103-564, eff. 11-17-23; 103-617, eff.
689	689	7 7-1-24.)
690	690	8 (105 ILCS 5/21B-30)
691	691	9 Sec. 21B-30. Educator testing.
692	692	10 (a) (Blank).
693	693	11 (b) The State Board of Education, in consultation with the
694	694	12 State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board, shall design
695	695	13 and implement a system of examinations, which shall be
696	696	14 required prior to the issuance of educator licenses. These
697	697	15 examinations and indicators must be based on national and
698	698	16 State professional teaching standards, as determined by the
699	699	17 State Board of Education, in consultation with the State
700	700	18 Educator Preparation and Licensure Board. The State Board of
701	701	19 Education may adopt such rules as may be necessary to
702	702	20 implement and administer this Section.
703	703	21 (c) (Blank).
704	704	22 (c-5) The State Board must adopt rules to implement a
705	705	23 paraprofessional competency test. This test would allow an
706	706	24 applicant seeking an Educator License with Stipulations with a
707	707	25 paraprofessional educator endorsement to obtain the
708	708
709	709
710	710
711	711
712	712
713	713	SB1945 - 19 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
714	714
715	715
716	716	SB1945- 20 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 20 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
717	717	SB1945 - 20 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
718	718	1 endorsement if he or she passes the test and meets the other
719	719	2 requirements of subparagraph (J) of paragraph (2) of Section
720	720	3 21B-20 other than the higher education requirements.
721	721	4 (d) All applicants seeking a State license shall be
722	722	5 required to pass a test of content area knowledge for each area
723	723	6 of endorsement for which there is an applicable test. There
724	724	7 shall be no exception to this requirement.
725	725	8 (d-5) The State Board shall consult with any applicable
726	726	9 vendors within 90 days after July 28, 2023 (the effective date
727	727	10 of Public Act 103-402) to develop a plan to transition the test
728	728	11 of content area knowledge in the endorsement area of
729	729	12 elementary education, grades one through 6, by July 1, 2026 to
730	730	13 a content area test that contains testing elements that cover
731	731	14 bilingualism, biliteracy, oral language development,
732	732	15 foundational literacy skills, and developmentally appropriate
733	733	16 higher-order comprehension and on which a valid and reliable
734	734	17 language and literacy subscore can be determined. The State
735	735	18 Board shall base its rules concerning the passing subscore on
736	736	19 the language and literacy portion of the test on the
737	737	20 recommended cut-score determined in the formal
738	738	21 standard-setting process. Candidates need not achieve a
739	739	22 particular subscore in the area of language and literacy. The
740	740	23 State Board shall aggregate and publish the number of
741	741	24 candidates in each preparation program who take the test and
742	742	25 the number who pass the language and literacy portion.
743	743	26 (e) (Blank).
744	744
745	745
746	746
747	747
748	748
749	749	SB1945 - 20 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
750	750
751	751
752	752	SB1945- 21 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 21 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
753	753	SB1945 - 21 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
754	754	1 (f) Beginning on August 4, 2023 (the effective date of
755	755	2 Public Act 103-488) through August 31, 2025, no candidate
756	756	3 completing a teacher preparation program in this State or
757	757	4 candidate subject to Section 21B-35 of this Code is required
758	758	5 to pass a teacher performance assessment. Except as otherwise
759	759	6 provided in this Article, beginning on September 1, 2015 until
760	760	7 August 4, 2023 (the effective date of Public Act 103-488) and
761	761	8 beginning again on September 1, 2025, all candidates
762	762	9 completing teacher preparation programs in this State and all
763	763	10 candidates subject to Section 21B-35 of this Code are required
764	764	11 to pass a teacher performance assessment approved by the State
765	765	12 Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator
766	766	13 Preparation and Licensure Board. A candidate may not be
767	767	14 required to submit test materials by video submission. Subject
768	768	15 to appropriation, an individual who holds a Professional
769	769	16 Educator License and is employed for a minimum of one school
770	770	17 year by a school district designated as Tier 1 under Section
771	771	18 18-8.15 may, after application to the State Board, receive
772	772	19 from the State Board a refund for any costs associated with
773	773	20 completing the teacher performance assessment under this
774	774	21 subsection.
775	775	22 (f-5) The Teacher Performance Assessment Task Force is
776	776	23 created to evaluate potential performance-based and objective
777	777	24 teacher performance assessment systems for implementation
778	778	25 across all educator preparation programs in this State, with
779	779	26 the intention of ensuring consistency across programs and
780	780
781	781
782	782
783	783
784	784
785	785	SB1945 - 21 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
786	786
787	787
788	788	SB1945- 22 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 22 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
789	789	SB1945 - 22 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
790	790	1 supporting a thoughtful and well-rounded licensure system.
791	791	2 Members appointed to the Task Force must reflect the racial,
792	792	3 ethnic, and geographic diversity of this State. The Task Force
793	793	4 shall consist of all of the following members:
794	794	5 (1) One member of the Senate, appointed by the
795	795	6 President of the Senate.
796	796	7 (2) One member of the Senate, appointed by the
797	797	8 Minority Leader of the Senate.
798	798	9 (3) One member of the House of Representatives,
799	799	10 appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
800	800	11 (4) One member of the House of Representatives,
801	801	12 appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of
802	802	13 Representatives.
803	803	14 (5) One member who represents a statewide professional
804	804	15 teachers' organization, appointed by the State
805	805	16 Superintendent of Education.
806	806	17 (6) One member who represents a different statewide
807	807	18 professional teachers' organization, appointed by the
808	808	19 State Superintendent of Education.
809	809	20 (7) One member from a statewide organization
810	810	21 representing school principals, appointed by the State
811	811	22 Superintendent of Education.
812	812	23 (8) One member from a statewide organization
813	813	24 representing regional superintendents of schools,
814	814	25 appointed by the State Superintendent of Education.
815	815	26 (9) One member from a statewide organization
816	816
817	817
818	818
819	819
820	820
821	821	SB1945 - 22 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
822	822
823	823
824	824	SB1945- 23 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 23 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
825	825	SB1945 - 23 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
826	826	1 representing school administrators, appointed by the State
827	827	2 Superintendent of Education.
828	828	3 (10) One member representing a school district
829	829	4 organized under Article 34 of this Code, appointed by the
830	830	5 State Superintendent of Education.
831	831	6 (11) One member of an association representing rural
832	832	7 and small schools, appointed by the State Superintendent
833	833	8 of Education.
834	834	9 (12) One member representing a suburban school
835	835	10 district, appointed by the State Superintendent of
836	836	11 Education.
837	837	12 (13) One member from a statewide organization
838	838	13 representing school districts in the southern suburbs of
839	839	14 the City of Chicago, appointed by the State Superintendent
840	840	15 of Education.
841	841	16 (14) One member from a statewide organization
842	842	17 representing large unit school districts, appointed by the
843	843	18 State Superintendent of Education.
844	844	19 (15) One member from a statewide organization
845	845	20 representing school districts in the collar counties of
846	846	21 the City of Chicago, appointed by the State Superintendent
847	847	22 of Education.
848	848	23 (16) Three members, each representing a different
849	849	24 public university in this State and each a current member
850	850	25 of the faculty of an approved educator preparation
851	851	26 program, appointed by the State Superintendent of
852	852
853	853
854	854
855	855
856	856
857	857	SB1945 - 23 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
858	858
859	859
860	860	SB1945- 24 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 24 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
861	861	SB1945 - 24 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
862	862	1 Education.
863	863	2 (17) Three members, each representing a different
864	864	3 4-year nonpublic university or college in this State and
865	865	4 each a current member of the faculty of an approved
866	866	5 educator preparation program, appointed by the State
867	867	6 Superintendent of Education.
868	868	7 (18) One member of the Board of Higher Education,
869	869	8 appointed by the State Superintendent of Education.
870	870	9 (19) One member representing a statewide policy
871	871	10 organization advocating on behalf of multilingual students
872	872	11 and families, appointed by the State Superintendent of
873	873	12 Education.
874	874	13 (20) One member representing a statewide organization
875	875	14 focused on research-based education policy to support a
876	876	15 school system that prepares all students for college, a
877	877	16 career, and democratic citizenship, appointed by the State
878	878	17 Superintendent of Education.
879	879	18 (21) Two members representing an early childhood
880	880	19 advocacy organization, appointed by the State
881	881	20 Superintendent of Education.
882	882	21 (22) One member representing a statewide organization
883	883	22 that partners with educator preparation programs and
884	884	23 school districts to support the growth and development of
885	885	24 preservice teachers, appointed by the State Superintendent
886	886	25 of Education.
887	887	26 (23) One member representing a statewide organization
888	888
889	889
890	890
891	891
892	892
893	893	SB1945 - 24 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
894	894
895	895
896	896	SB1945- 25 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 25 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
897	897	SB1945 - 25 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
898	898	1 that advocates for educational equity and racial justice
899	899	2 in schools, appointed by the State Superintendent of
900	900	3 Education.
901	901	4 (24) One member representing a statewide organization
902	902	5 that represents school boards, appointed by the State
903	903	6 Superintendent of Education.
904	904	7 (25) One member who has, within the last 5 years,
905	905	8 served as a cooperating teacher, appointed by the State
906	906	9 Superintendent of Education.
907	907	10 Members of the Task Force shall serve without
908	908	11 compensation. The Task Force shall first meet at the call of
909	909	12 the State Superintendent of Education, and each subsequent
910	910	13 meeting shall be called by the chairperson of the Task Force,
911	911	14 who shall be designated by the State Superintendent of
912	912	15 Education. The State Board of Education shall provide
913	913	16 administrative and other support to the Task Force.
914	914	17 On or before October 31, 2024, the Task Force shall report
915	915	18 on its work, including recommendations on a teacher
916	916	19 performance assessment system in this State, to the State
917	917	20 Board of Education and the General Assembly. The Task Force is
918	918	21 dissolved upon submission of this report.
919	919	22 (g) The content area knowledge test and the teacher
920	920	23 performance assessment shall be the tests that from time to
921	921	24 time are designated by the State Board of Education, in
922	922	25 consultation with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure
923	923	26 Board, and may be tests prepared by an educational testing
924	924
925	925
926	926
927	927
928	928
929	929	SB1945 - 25 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
930	930
931	931
932	932	SB1945- 26 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 26 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
933	933	SB1945 - 26 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
934	934	1 organization or tests designed by the State Board of
935	935	2 Education, in consultation with the State Educator Preparation
936	936	3 and Licensure Board. The test of content area knowledge shall
937	937	4 assess content knowledge in a specific subject field. The
938	938	5 tests must be designed to be racially neutral to ensure that no
939	939	6 person taking the tests is discriminated against on the basis
940	940	7 of race, color, national origin, or other factors unrelated to
941	941	8 the person's ability to perform as a licensed employee. The
942	942	9 score required to pass the tests shall be fixed by the State
943	943	10 Board of Education, in consultation with the State Educator
944	944	11 Preparation and Licensure Board. The State Board of
945	945	12 Education's rules for scoring the content area knowledge test
946	946	13 may include scoring and retaking of each test section
947	947	14 separately and independently. The tests shall be administered
948	948	15 not fewer than 3 times a year at such time and place as may be
949	949	16 designated by the State Board of Education, in consultation
950	950	17 with the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board.
951	951	18 The State Board shall implement a test or tests to assess
952	952	19 the speaking, reading, writing, and grammar skills of
953	953	20 applicants for an endorsement or a license issued under
954	954	21 subdivision (G) of paragraph (2) of Section 21B-20 of this
955	955	22 Code in the English language and in the language of the
956	956	23 transitional bilingual education program requested by the
957	957	24 applicant.
958	958	25 (g-5) The process by which the State Board of Education,
959	959	26 or any entity designated by the State Board of Education,
960	960
961	961
962	962
963	963
964	964
965	965	SB1945 - 26 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
966	966
967	967
968	968	SB1945- 27 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 27 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
969	969	SB1945 - 27 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
970	970	1 evaluates content area tests to determine content validity,
971	971	2 absence of bias, or scores required to pass shall be public
972	972	3 information and shall be made available on the website of the
973	973	4 State Board of Education, including, but not limited to:
974	974	5 (1) details related to the process by which members
975	975	6 are selected to form a committee or group to make such
976	976	7 determinations;
977	977	8 (2) the names, titles, and organizational affiliations
978	978	9 of the members of any such group;
979	979	10 (3) the agendas and minutes of each meeting of any
980	980	11 such group, except that the complete text of individual
981	981	12 test questions shall not be public information if they
982	982	13 remain in the bank of questions to be used in active
983	983	14 content area tests; however, minutes of the discussion of
984	984	15 the content of those individual questions shall be public
985	985	16 to the maximum extent practicable that does not provide
986	986	17 candidates an advantage in correctly answering those
987	987	18 questions; and
988	988	19 (4) any determinations, recommendations, or decisions
989	989	20 made by any such group regarding tests or individual test
990	990	21 items.
991	991	22 (h) Except as provided in Section 34-6 of this Code, the
992	992	23 provisions of this Section shall apply equally in any school
993	993	24 district subject to Article 34 of this Code.
994	994	25 (i) The rules developed to implement and enforce the
995	995	26 testing requirements under this Section shall include, without
996	996
997	997
998	998
999	999
1000	1000
1001	1001	SB1945 - 27 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1002	1002
1003	1003
1004	1004	SB1945- 28 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 28 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1005	1005	SB1945 - 28 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1006	1006	1 limitation, provisions governing test selection, test
1007	1007	2 validation, and determination of a passing score,
1008	1008	3 administration of the tests, frequency of administration,
1009	1009	4 applicant fees, frequency of applicants taking the tests, the
1010	1010	5 years for which a score is valid, and appropriate special
1011	1011	6 accommodations. The State Board of Education shall develop
1012	1012	7 such rules as may be needed to ensure uniformity from year to
1013	1013	8 year in the level of difficulty for each form of an assessment.
1014	1014	9 (i-5) The State Board shall evaluate each content area
1015	1015	10 test after it has been administered for at least 10 months, but
1016	1016	11 not more than 12 months, and shall determine that a content
1017	1017	12 test is non-uniform if, in the first fiscal year in which it is
1018	1018	13 available:
1019	1019	14 (1) the overall percentage of candidates passing that
1020	1020	15 form of the content area test is 10 or more percentage
1021	1021	16 points lower than the percentage of candidates who passed
1022	1022	17 the most recent uniform content area test required by the
1023	1023	18 State Board for the same license or endorsement in either
1024	1024	19 of the 2 preceding fiscal years, or;
1025	1025	20 (2) the percentage of candidates, in any demographic
1026	1026	21 subgroup comprising at least 10 total test attempts,
1027	1027	22 passing that form of the content area test is 15 or more
1028	1028	23 percentage points lower than the percentage of candidates
1029	1029	24 in that demographic subgroup who passed the previous form
1030	1030	25 of that content area test in either of the two preceding
1031	1031	26 fiscal years for which that demographic subgroup comprised
1032	1032
1033	1033
1034	1034
1035	1035
1036	1036
1037	1037	SB1945 - 28 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1038	1038
1039	1039
1040	1040	SB1945- 29 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 29 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1041	1041	SB1945 - 29 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1042	1042	1 at least 10 total test attempts.
1043	1043	2 An assessment first introduced prior to January 1, 2017
1044	1044	3 shall be considered uniform, and an assessment introduced on
1045	1045	4 or after January 1, 2017 that does not meet the criteria in
1046	1046	5 paragraph (1) or (2) shall be considered uniform.
1047	1047	6 If a content test is determined to be non-uniform as
1048	1048	7 described in this Section, the State Board of Education shall:
1049	1049	8 (i) Convene, or require any applicable vendors to
1050	1050	9 convene, one or more committees to review the content,
1051	1051	10 bias, and passing score requirements of that content test
1052	1052	11 and recommend changes to improve uniformity, subject to
1053	1053	12 the transparency guidelines in subsection (g-5).
1054	1054	13 (ii) Offer, or require any applicable vendors to
1055	1055	14 offer, the most recent uniform content area test required
1056	1056	15 by the State Board for the same license or endorsement as
1057	1057	16 an option until the new assessment is determined to be
1058	1058	17 uniform.
1059	1059	18 (iii) Provide, or require any applicable vendors to
1060	1060	19 provide, an opportunity to attempt the most recent uniform
1061	1061	20 content area test required by the State Board for the same
1062	1062	21 license or endorsement to candidates who attempted but did
1063	1063	22 not pass the most recent version of the content area test,
1064	1064	23 at no cost to these candidates.
1065	1065	24 (iv) Implement a process by which candidates who
1066	1066	25 attempted but did not pass the content test may apply for
1067	1067	26 provisional licensure as described in paragraph (M) of
1068	1068
1069	1069
1070	1070
1071	1071
1072	1072
1073	1073	SB1945 - 29 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1074	1074
1075	1075
1076	1076	SB1945- 30 -LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b SB1945 - 30 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1077	1077	SB1945 - 30 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b
1078	1078
1079	1079
1080	1080
1081	1081
1082	1082
1083	1083	SB1945 - 30 - LRB104 10967 LNS 21049 b