S.B. 277
- *SB277*
SENATE BILL NO. 277–SENATORS CRUZ-CRAWFORD AND DOÑATE
MARCH 5, 2025
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JOINT SPONSORS: ASSEMBLYMEMBERS
JACKSON; ANDERSON AND D’SILVA
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Referred to Committee on Education
SUMMARY—Revises provisions relating to education.
(BDR 34-786)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: May have Fiscal Impact.
Effect on the State: Yes.
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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
AN ACT relating to education; requiring each public school to
employ a school social worker to the extent that money is
available for that purpose; requiring the Commission on
Professional Standards in Education to adopt regulations
relating to the licensure of school counselors and school
social workers; and providing other matters properly
relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing law establishes various requirements governing educational personnel, 1
including requirements governing the licensing, qualifications, employment, 2
powers, duties, supervision and evaluation of such personnel. (Chapter 391 of 3
NRS) Under existing law, the Commission on Professional Standards in Education 4
is required to adopt regulations relating to the qualifications for licensure of 5
teachers and other educational personnel, including: (1) regulations relating to the 6
qualifications for licensure of school counselors and school social workers; and (2) 7
regulations that allow a person who is currently employed by a public school in a 8
position to provide support or other services relating to school psychology to 9
simultaneously complete a program of internship in psychology. (NRS 391.019, 10
391.0349) Section 2 of this bill requires the Commission to adopt regulations that 11
allow a person who is employed by a public school in a position relating to school 12
counseling or school social work, as applicable, and is enrolled in a program that 13
would allow the person to obtain a license or endorsement as a school counselor or 14
school social worker, as applicable, to simultaneously complete any required 15
internship or practicum hours for the purpose of obtaining such a license or 16
endorsement. 17
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Existing law establishes the powers and duties of a school counselor and school 18
social worker. (NRS 391.293, 391.296) Existing law requires each public school, 19
including each charter school, to the extent that money is available for that purpose, 20
to employ a school counselor at the school on a full-time basis. (NRS 388.055) 21
Section 1 of this bill additionally requires each public school, to the extent that 22
money is available for that purpose, to employ a school social worker at the school 23
on a full-time basis. Section 1 also prohibits, insofar as is practicable, each public 24
school from entering into a contract with an independent contractor for the 25
provision of the services that a school social worker is authorized to perform. 26
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Chapter 388 of NRS is hereby amended by adding 1
thereto a new section to read as follows: 2
Each public school, including, without limitation, each charter 3
school: 4
1. Shall, to the extent that money is available for that 5
purpose, employ a school social worker at the school on a full-time 6
basis. 7
2. Shall not, insofar as is practicable, enter into a contract 8
with an independent contractor for the provision of the services 9
that a school social worker is authorized to perform pursuant to 10
NRS 391.296. 11
Sec. 2. NRS 391.019 is hereby amended to read as follows: 12
391.019 1. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 391.027, 13
the Commission shall adopt regulations: 14
(a) Prescribing the qualifications for licensing teachers and other 15
educational personnel and the procedures for the issuance and 16
renewal of those licenses. The regulations: 17
(1) Must include, without limitation, the qualifications for 18
licensing teachers and administrators pursuant to an alternative route 19
to licensure which provides that the required education and training 20
may be provided by any qualified provider which has been approved 21
by the Commission, including, without limitation, institutions of 22
higher education and other providers that operate independently of 23
an institution of higher education. The regulations adopted pursuant 24
to this subparagraph must: 25
(I) Establish the requirements for approval as a qualified 26
provider; 27
(II) Require a qualified provider to be selective in its 28
acceptance of students; 29
(III) Require a qualified provider to provide in-person or 30
virtual supervised, school-based experiences and ongoing support 31
for its students, such as mentoring and coaching; 32
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(IV) Significantly limit the amount of course work 1
required or provide for the waiver of required course work for 2
students who achieve certain scores on tests; 3
(V) Allow for the completion in 2 years or less of the 4
education and training required under the alternative route to 5
licensure; 6
(VI) Provide that a person who has completed the 7
education and training required under the alternative route to 8
licensure and who has satisfied all other requirements for licensure 9
may apply for a regular license pursuant to sub-subparagraph (VII) 10
regardless of whether the person has received an offer of 11
employment from a school district, charter school or private school; 12
and 13
(VII) Upon the completion by a person of the education 14
and training required under the alternative route to licensure and the 15
satisfaction of all other requirements for licensure, provide for the 16
issuance of a regular license to the person pursuant to the provisions 17
of this chapter and the regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter. 18
(2) Must require an applicant for a license to teach middle 19
school or junior high school education or secondary education to 20
demonstrate proficiency in a field of specialization or area of 21
concentration by successfully completing course work prescribed by 22
the Department or completing a subject matter competency 23
examination prescribed by the Department with a score deemed 24
satisfactory. 25
(3) Must not prescribe qualifications which are more 26
stringent than the qualifications set forth in NRS 391.0315 for a 27
licensed teacher who applies for an additional license in accordance 28
with that section. 29
(b) Identifying fields of specialization in teaching which require 30
the specialized training of teachers. 31
(c) Except as otherwise provided in NRS 391.125, requiring 32
teachers to obtain from the Department an endorsement in a field of 33
specialization to be eligible to teach in that field of specialization. 34
(d) Setting forth the educational requirements a teacher must 35
satisfy to qualify for an endorsement in each field of specialization. 36
(e) Setting forth the qualifications and requirements for 37
obtaining a license or endorsement to teach American Sign 38
Language, including, without limitation, being registered with the 39
Aging and Disability Services Division of the Department of Health 40
and Human Services pursuant to NRS 656A.100 to engage in the 41
practice of sign language interpreting in a primary or secondary 42
educational setting. 43
(f) Requiring teachers and other educational personnel to be 44
registered with the Aging and Disability Services Division pursuant 45
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to NRS 656A.100 to engage in the practice of sign language 1
interpreting in a primary or secondary educational setting if they: 2
(1) Provide instruction or other educational services; and 3
(2) Concurrently engage in the practice of sign language 4
interpreting, as defined in NRS 656A.060. 5
(g) Prescribing course work on parental involvement and family 6
engagement. The Commission shall: 7
(1) Work in cooperation with the Office of Parental 8
Involvement and Family Engagement created by NRS 385.630 in 9
developing the regulations required by this paragraph. 10
(2) Establish standards for professional development training 11
which may be used to satisfy any course work requirement 12
prescribed pursuant to this paragraph. 13
(h) Establishing the requirements for obtaining an endorsement 14
on the license of a teacher, administrator or other educational 15
personnel in cultural competency. 16
(i) Authorizing the Superintendent of Public Instruction to issue 17
a license by endorsement to an applicant who holds an equivalent 18
license or authorization issued by a governmental entity in another 19
country if the Superintendent determines that the qualifications for 20
the equivalent license or authorization are substantially similar to 21
those prescribed pursuant to paragraph (a). 22
(j) Establishing the requirements for obtaining an endorsement 23
on the license of a teacher, administrator or other educational 24
personnel in teaching courses relating to financial literacy. 25
(k) Authorizing a person who is employed as a paraprofessional 26
and enrolled in a program to become a teacher to complete an 27
accelerated program of student teaching in the same or a 28
substantially similar area in which the person is employed as a 29
paraprofessional while remaining employed as a paraprofessional. 30
(l) Requiring the Department to accept a program of student 31
teaching or other teaching experience completed in another state or 32
foreign country by an applicant for a license if the Department 33
determines that the program or experience substantially fulfills the 34
standards of a program of student teaching in this State. 35
(m) Authorizing a person who is employed by a public school in 36
a position to provide support or other services relating to [school] : 37
(1) School psychology, if the person does not hold a license 38
or endorsement as a school psychologist but is enrolled in a program 39
that would allow the person to obtain such a license or endorsement, 40
to complete a program of internship in school psychology while 41
remaining employed in such a position. 42
(2) School counseling, if the person does not hold a license 43
or endorsement as a school counselor but is enrolled in a program 44
that would allow the person to obtain such a license or 45
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endorsement, to complete any required internship or practicum 1
hours for the purpose of obtaining a license or endorsement as a 2
school counselor while remaining employed in such a position. 3
(3) School social work, if the person does not hold a license 4
or endorsement as a school social worker but is enrolled in a 5
program that would allow the person to obtain such a license or 6
endorsement, to complete any required internship or practicum 7
hours for the purpose of obtaining a license or endorsement as a 8
school social worker while remaining employed in such a position. 9
(n) To carry out the provisions of NRS 391B.010. 10
2. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 391.027, the 11
Commission may adopt such other regulations as it deems necessary 12
for its own government or to carry out its duties. 13
3. Any regulation which increases the amount of education, 14
training or experience required for licensing: 15
(a) Must, in addition to the requirements for publication in 16
chapter 233B of NRS, be publicized before its adoption in a manner 17
reasonably calculated to inform those persons affected by the 18
change. 19
(b) Must not become effective until at least 1 year after the date 20
it is adopted by the Commission. 21
(c) Is not applicable to a license in effect on the date the 22
regulation becomes effective. 23
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