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Requirements for Certification

XI. School Service Personnel Certificates

School Service Personnel certificates have five-year periods of validity and may be renewed upon registration. Each certificate is endorsed for an area of service for which the holder is qualified: School Social Worker, School Nurse, School Counselor, School Psychologist, or Speech/Language Pathologist (Non-Teaching). Persons who hold only school service personnel certificates may not be employed as teachers.

Applicants interested in any of the endorsements on the School Service Personnel Certificate must apply on form ISBE 73-03D,"Application for School Service or Administrative Certificate." Applicants may download the form from the website at http://www.isbe.net/certification/html/forms.htm, or they may apply over the internet using a credit card at http://www.isbe.net/otis/.

Provisional Certificates

Applicants from other states who hold such certificates with comparable endorsements in their states may obtain a provisional version of the school service personnel certificate valid for two fiscal years, with the first year ending on June 30 following the issue date. The holder of a provisional certificate may use the time to complete testing requirements or remove other deficiencies found during the evaluation. A holder of a provisional certificate with testing deficiencies must pass the test during the first nine months of the certificate's validity or the certificate will be canceled.

A. Certification of School Social Workers

Candidates for the School Service Personnel Certificate endorsed for school social work shall

  1. Hold a master's degree in social work with a specialization in school social work awarded by a graduate school of social work accredited by the Council on Social Work Education;
  2. Have completed an Illinois program approved for the preparation of school social workers or a comparable approved program in another state or country or hold a comparable certificate issued by another state or country;
  3. Have completed both a supervised field experience of at least 400 contact hours, supervised by a field instructor holding a master's or higher degree in social work, and a school social work internship of at least 600 contact hours in a school setting;
  4. Be required to pass the applicable content-area test, as well as the test of basic skills if its passage would be required for receipt of a standard certificate.

B. Certification of School Counselors (2004)

Applicants for the school service personnel certificate endorsed for school counseling shall

    1. Hold a master's degree awarded by a regionally accredited institution of higher education in school counseling, another counseling or related field (e.g., social work or psychology), or an educational field;
    2. Have completed an Illinois program approved for the preparation of school counselors or a comparable approved program in another state or country or hold a comparable certificate issued by another state or country;
    3. Have completed a supervised counseling practicum of at least 100 clock hours that provided interaction with individuals and groups of school age and included at least 40 hours of direct service work. Except as provided in subsection (e), each applicant shall have completed a structured and supervised internship that is part of an approved program.
      1. The internship shall be of a length that is determined by the approved program to be adequate to enable candidates to meet the standards but shall entail at least 600 hours and last no less than one semester, during which candidates shall engage in the performance of various aspects of the counseling role and shall be gradually introduced to the full range of responsibilities associated with that role. However, the internship for an individual with at least two years of teaching experience may, at the discretion of the institution offering the approved program, consist of no fewer than 400 hours. In each case at least 240 hours of the internship shall involve direct service work with school-age individuals and groups.
      2. The internship shall occur in a school setting except that, at the discretion of the institution, a maximum of one-third of the hours required may be credited for experiences in other related settings such as hospitals or day care settings that, in the judgment of the institution, expose the candidates to the needs of school-aged children and prepare the candidates to function as school counselors.
      3. An institution may recommend certification of candidates who were enrolled in an approved program prior to July 1, 2004, and have completed an internship meeting the requirements applicable at the time of their enrollment.
    4. Except as provided in subsections (e) and (f), either:
      1. hold or be qualified to hold a teaching certificate; or
      2. have completed, as part of an approved program, coursework addressing:
        1. the structure, organization and operation of the educational system, with emphasis on P-12 schools;
        2. the growth and development of children and youth, and their implications for counseling in schools;
        3. the diversity of Illinois students and the laws and programs that have been designed to meet their unique needs; and
        4. effective management of the classroom and the learning process.
    5. Applicants who hold another state's certification in school counseling shall not be subject to the requirements of completing a practicum or internship or subsection (4) if he or she presents evidence of at least two years' full-time experience as a school counselor.
    6. An applicant who has completed an approved school counseling program in another state that includes an internship meeting the requirements of subsection (c) shall not be subject to the requirements of subsection (d).
    7. Candidates shall be required to pass the applicable content-area test as well as the test of basic skills if its passage would be required for receipt of a standard certificate.
    8. Applicants who hold a master's degree in any field other than school counseling, or who hold a bachelor's degree only, shall be required to complete the equivalent of all requirements of an approved school counseling preparation program. The Illinois institution offering the program shall review the individual's educational and experiential background and identify any of the standards or other applicable requirements that the individual's preparation has not addressed. Upon successful completion of the coursework and experiences offered by the institution that address the identified standards, the applicant shall be eligible to be recommended for certification by entitlement.

C. Interim Certification of School Counselor Interns (2004)

    1. Individuals who wish to participate in internships enabling them to meet the requirements for certification as school counselors may obtain interim certification as school counselor interns. Applicants for this certification shall either:
      1. have completed, as part of an approved program coursework covering,
        • the structure, organization and operation of the educational system, with emphasis on P-12 schools
        • the growth and development of children and youth, and their implications for counseling in schools;
        • ¢ the diversity of Illinois students and the laws and programs that have been designed to meet their unique needs; and
        • effective management of the classroom and the learning process
          OR
      2. hold a master's degree in a field of counseling other than school counseling and be working toward completion of all requirements necessary for certification as a school counselor.
    2. Applicants shall be in good health and of sound moral character and shall be citizens of the United States or be legally present in the United States and possess legal authorization for employment.
    3. Each applicant shall submit the required fee along with an application to the State Board of Education and a transcript indicating compliance with (a)(1) and (a)(2).
    4. Interim certification as a school counselor intern shall be valid for three years and shall not be renewable.

D. Certification of School Psychologists (2004)

    1. Candidates for the school service personnel certificate endorsed for school psychology shall hold a master's degree in psychology or educational psychology with a specialization in school psychology.
    2. Each candidate shall have completed an Illinois program approved for the preparation of school psychologists or a comparable approved program in another state or country or hold a comparable certificate issued by another state or country.
    3. Candidates shall have completed both a supervised field experience of at least 250 hours in a school setting and/or child study center and an internship of at least 1200 contact hours and lasting a full school year under the direction of an intern supervisor.
    4. Candidates shall be required to pass the applicable content-area test, as well as the test of basic skills unless meeting the waiver described on page 33.

E. Certification of School Nurses (2004)

    1. Candidates for the school service personnel certificate endorsed for school nursing shall hold a bachelor's degree.
    2. Candidates shall be licensed as registered professional nurses in Illinois pursuant to the Nursing and Advanced Practice Nursing Act.
    3. Each candidate shall have completed an Illinois program approved for the preparation of school nurses or a comparable approved program in another state or country or hold a comparable certificate issued by another state or country.
    4. Candidates shall have met the requirements of either subsection (d)(1) or subsection (d)(2) of this Section.
      1. Completion of an internship that
        1. was determined by the approved program to be sufficient in length for the candidates to meet the standards set forth at 23 Ill. Adm. Code 23.120, but in no case consisted of fewer than 300 hours of experiences; and
        2. was supervised by a certified school nurse with at least two full school years of full-time experience as a school nurse and at least one full school year of full-time experience with the current employer.
      2. Completion of two years of experience as a school nurse prior to July 1, 1972.
    5. Candidates shall be required to pass the applicable content-area test, as well as the test of basic skills if its passage would be required for receipt of a standard certificate.

F. Certification of Non-Teaching Speech-Language Pathologists

A School Service Personnel Certificate with a speech and language endorsement will be issued under Section 21-25 of the School Code of Illinois to speech-language pathologists who meet ALL of the following requirements:

  1. IDPR License
    1. regular valid IDPR license; OR
    2. valid Certificate of Clinical Competence from ASHA and a regular license from another state/territory/District of Columbia and has applied for an IDPR license; OR
    3. holds or has applied for temporary IDPR license
  2. Master’s or Doctoral Degree
    Holds a master’s/doctoral degree with a major in speech-language pathology from an institution whose course of study was approved or program was accredited by ASHA or its predecessor
  3. Approved Program
    1. completed a program of study that meets the content area standards for speech-language pathologists approved by the State Board of Education in consultation with the State Teachers Certification Board; OR
    2. completed a program in another state/territory that is comparable to an approved Illinois approved program; OR
    3. holds a certificate issued by another state/territory that is comparable to a school service personnel certificate with a speech-language endorsement
  • No approved program or out-of-state certificate
    • If the requirements for (i), (ii), or (iii) of paragraph (3) have not been met, a person must provide evidence that he/she has completed at least 150 clock hours of supervised experience in speech-language pathology with students with disabilities in a school setting. The official letter must specify how the supervised experience related to:
      • Planning and intervention,
      • The learning environment,
      • Service delivery,
      • Professional conduct and ethics, and
      • Facilitation and advocacy.
  1. Successful Completion of the Required Certification Tests
    1. Basic Skills
    2. #154 Non-teaching Speech-Language Pathologist
  2. Payment of Application Fee
    1. Speech Language Pathologist (application form 73-03D) $30.00 fee OR
    2. Interim Speech Language Pathologist Intern (application form ISBE 73-03D) $30.00 fee

Interim Certification of Speech-Language Pathologist Interns

An individual who wishes to participate in an internship enabling him or her to complete the supervised, school-based professional experience described in Section 14-1.09b(b)(3) of the School Code may obtain interim certification as a speech-language pathologist intern when he/she has:

      • an Illinois Speech-Language Pathology License OR
      • a current Certificate of Clinical Competence from ASHA & a license from another state and application for Illinois licensure OR
      • a temporary Illinois speech language pathologist license
      • AND
      • A master or doctor degree in speech pathology from an ASHA accredited institution
      1. Each applicant for this certification shall be in good health and of sound moral character and shall be a citizen of the United States or be legally present in the United States and possess legal authorization for employment.
      2. Each applicant shall submit an application to the State Board of Education along with:
          1. the required fee;
          2. evidence that he or she meets the above licensing requirements; and
          3. evidence that he or she holds the required advanced degree in conformance with
      3. c) Interim certification as a speech-language pathologist intern shall be valid for three years, subject to Section 21-22 of the School Code, and shall not be renewable.

G. Supervisory Endorsement on the School Service Personnel Certificate

The holder of the School Service Personnel Certificate may have the added endorsement for supervision upon presentation of evidence of:

    1. Possessing a master's degree or higher from a regionally accredited institution of higher learning;
    2. Possessing eight semester hours of graduate professional education which shall include at least one course related primarily and explicitly to the supervision of personnel and one course primarily and explicitly related to the administration and organization of schools; and
    3. At least two years of appropriate school service personnel experience

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Illinois State Board of Education
100 North First Street
Springfield, IL 62777