1. STATUTORY AUTHORITY:

Education Law 101 (not subdivided) charges the Department with the general management and supervision of all public schools and all of the educational work of the state.

Education Law 207 (not subdivided) grants general rule-making authority to the Regents to carry into effect State educational laws and policies.

Education Law 210 (not subdivided) authorizes the Regents to register domestic and foreign institutions in terms of New York standards.

Education Law 305(1) authorizes the Commissioner to enforce laws relating to the State educational system and execute Regents educational policies. Section 305(2) provides the Commissioner with general supervision over schools and authority to advise and guide school district officers in their duties and the general management of their schools.

Education Law 3001 establishes the qualifications of teachers in the classroom.

Education Law 3004(1) authorizes the Commissioner to promulgate regulations governing the certification requirements for teachers employed in public schools.

Education Law 3009 prohibits school district money from being used to pay the salary of an unqualified teacher.

2. LEGISLATIVE OBJECTIVES:

The purpose of the proposed amendment to Section 80-4.3 of the Regulations is to expand the pool of qualified teachers of students with disabilities by extending the grade levels in which they can teach, upon meeting certain requirements including experience and either CTLE or a college course. For each extension, a Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate holder must have a minimum of three years of teaching experience in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade levels of the extension, plus either 45 hours of acceptable Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) or 3 semester hours of pedagogical coursework focused on the grade levels of the extension sought. Experience for this purpose shall be defined as at least 75% or more of the candidate’s time spent teaching students with disabilities in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade level extension during each of the three school years. By extending the grade bands in which qualified teachers of students with disabilities may teach, the Department believes this will help to address the shortage of teachers of students with disabilities.

3. NEEDS AND BENEFITS:

There has been a continuous shortage of teachers who hold Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate titles in New York. The Department has been considering ways to increase the number of qualified certificate holders in this area, and has worked with the field to address these shortages. One way to expand the pool of qualified teachers of students with disabilities is to extend the grade levels in which they can teach.

Proposed Amendment

At this time, the Department is proposing four different extension certificates for current holders of Students with Disabilities Generalist certificates, as outlined below:

For each of the proposed extension titles, a Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate holder must have a minimum of three years of teaching experience in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade levels of the extension, plus either 45 hours of acceptable Continuing Teacher and Leader education (CTLE) or 3 semester hours of pedagogical coursework focused on the grade levels of the extension sought. Experience for this purpose shall be defined as at least 75% or more of the candidate’s time spent teaching students with disabilities in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade level extension during each of the three school years.

4. COSTS:

a. Costs to State government: The amendment does not impose any costs on State government, including the State Education Department.

b. Costs to local government: The amendment does not impose any costs on local government.

c. Costs to private regulated parties: The amendment does not impose any costs on private regulated parties.

d. Costs to regulating agency for implementation and continued administration: See above.

5. LOCAL GOVERNMENT MANDATES:

The proposed amendment does not impose any additional program, service, duty or responsibility upon any local government.

6. PAPERWORK:

The proposed amendment does not impose any additional paperwork requirements.

7. DUPLICATION:

The proposed amendment does not duplicate existing State or Federal requirements.

8. ALTERNATIVES:

No alternatives were considered. The proposed amendment seeks to address the shortage of teachers of students with disabilities by creating more flexibility in the grade levels in which they can teach.

9. FEDERAL STANDARDS:

There are no applicable Federal standards.

10. COMPLIANCE SCHEDULE:

It is anticipated that the proposed amendment will be adopted as a permanent rule by the Board of Regents at its March 2018 meeting. If adopted at the March 2018 meeting, the proposed amendment will become effective on March 28, 2018.

The purpose of the proposed amendment to Section 80-4.3 of the Regulations is to expand the pool of qualified teachers of students with disabilities by extending the grade levels in which they can teach, upon meeting certain requirements including experience and either CTLE or a college course. For each extension, a Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate holder must have a minimum of three years of teaching experience in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade levels of the extension, plus either 45 hours of acceptable Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) or 3 semester hours of pedagogical coursework focused on the grade levels of the extension sought. Experience for this purpose shall be defined as at least 75% or more of the candidate’s time spent teaching students with disabilities in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade level extension during each of the three school years.

The amendment does not impose any new recordkeeping or other compliance requirements, and will not have an adverse economic impact, on local governments or small businesses. Because it is evident from the nature of the proposed amendment that it does not affect small businesses or local governments, no further steps were needed to ascertain that fact and one were taken. Accordingly, a regulatory flexibility analysis for small businesses and local governments is not required and one has not been prepared.

1. TYPES AND ESTIMATED NUMBER OF RURAL AREAS:

This proposed amendment applies to all individuals in New York State pursuing an extension certificate in the classroom teaching service for students with disabilities in grade in the grades 3-4, PK-K, 7-8, or 5-6, including those located in the 44 rural counties with fewer than 200,000 inhabitants and the 71 towns and urban counties with a population density of 150 square miles or less.

2. REPORTING, RECORDKEEPING, AND OTHER COMPLIANCE REQUIREMENTS; AND PROFESSIONAL SERVICES:

The purpose of the proposed amendment to Section 80-4.3 of the Regulations is to expand the pool of qualified teachers of students with disabilities by extending the grade levels in which they can teach, upon meeting certain requirements including experience and either CTLE or a college course.

Proposed Amendment

The Department is proposing four different extension certificates for current holders of Students with Disabilities Generalist certificates. For each extension, a Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate holder must have a minimum of three years of teaching experience in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade levels of the extension, plus either 45 hours of acceptable Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) or 3 semester hours of pedagogical coursework focused on the grade levels of the extension sought. Experience for this purpose shall be defined as at least 75% or more of the candidate’s time spent teaching students with disabilities in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade level extension during each of the three school years.

3. COSTS:

The proposed amendment does not impose any costs on New York State school districts or BOCES.

4. MINIMIZING ADVERSE IMPACT:

The proposed amendments create no adverse impact on those school districts and BOCES in rural areas, and applies equally. The proposed amendment seeks to address the shortage of teachers of students with disabilities by creating more flexibility in the grade levels in which they can teach.

5. RURAL AREA PARTICIPATION:

Copies of the proposed amendments have been provided to Rural Advisory Committee for review and comment.

The purpose of the proposed amendment to Section 80-4.3 of the Regulations is to expand the pool of qualified teachers of students with disabilities by extending the grade levels in which they can teach, upon meeting certain requirements including experience and either CTLE or a college course. For each extension, a Students with Disabilities Generalist certificate holder must have a minimum of three years of teaching experience in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade levels of the extension, plus either 45 hours of acceptable Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) or 3 semester hours of pedagogical coursework focused on the grade levels of the extension sought. Experience for this purpose shall be defined as at least 75% or more of the candidate’s time spent teaching students with disabilities in either of the two grade levels closest to the grade level extension during each of the three school years. By extending the grade bands in which qualified teachers of students with disabilities may teach, the Department believes this will help to address the shortage of teachers of students with disabilities.

Because it is evident from the nature of the proposed amendment that it will have no impact on the number of jobs or employment opportunities in New York State, no further steps were needed to ascertain that fact and none were taken. In fact, the Department believes that the proposed amendment will help to address the shortage of teacher in students with disabilities.