Educator Certification Procedures
The Office of Educator Quality and Certification
receives its highest volume of requests from May to October.
In order to respond to the volume of requests, the
office is open to the public Mondays and Tuesdays ONLY. The Office of
Educator Quality and Certification is closed to the public on Wednesdays,
Thursdays, and Fridays. Educators may drop off applications but staff are
unable to answer questions, answer telephones, or reply to email inquiries on
these days.
Thank you for your patience
during the busy summer months.
Due to a reduction in staff, processing time
for certification applications is 6-8 months.
If you are applying for a Rhode Island Certification for the first time please
review the
New
Applicant Checklist
If you are renewing a certificate please review the
Instructions for Renewal
Revised Regents regulations were recently
adopted. For the renewal of a Professional Certificate that expires in
2008 or 2009 the following credits must be completed: 6 graduate credits
in ANY area AND 3 other college credits (undergraduate or graduate) or 45 hours
of approved professional development.
This page will provide you with all the information you need relating to the certification regulations in Rhode Island. Included on this page are the application procedures, forms, regulations and fee structure. Links
below will direct you to the information you need.
Please note that applications are processed in the order in which they are received.
Be certain that the application packet is complete. Only complete packets
can be processed. Every effort is made to respond to your request in a timely manner. However, the processing of certification requests during the busy season (May – October) may take up to
fourteen weeks.
Federal legislation, the “No Child Left Behind” Act mandates that all teachers of core academic subjects be “highly qualified” as defined by the law. To meet the federal definition of a “highly qualified” teacher you must:
- Hold a Bachelor’s Degree
- Hold full state certification
- Demonstrate subject matter competency in the core academic subject (s) by having a major or its equivalent or by passing a rigorous content knowledge test.
It is important to understand that by holding a Rhode Island teaching certificate does not necessarily mean that you have met the federal definition of a “highly qualified” teacher. This is especially true for educators securing certification by reciprocity. These educators may need to meet the Rhode Island testing requirement to meet the federal definition of a “highly qualified” teacher.