Two Bills Increase Teacher Licensure Requirements

Senator Petersen’s SB 1345 requires that “any individual licensed and endorsed to teach (i) middle school civics or economics, or (ii) high school government or history who is seeking renewal of such license to demonstrate knowledge of Virginia history or state and local government by completing a module or professional development course specifically related to Virginia history or state and local government that has a value of five professional development points.”

The story on this bill is amusing.  This requirement was put into effect some years ago.  The Governor’s Commission of Local Mandates recommended that it be eliminated, and it was.  This year’s bill reinstates the requirement.  Here is the link to this training:

http://www.civicseducationva.org

I am told that the training and test take between two and three hours to complete.

The second bills relating to teacher licensure is Senator Stuart’s SB 986 and Delegate Dudenhefer’s companion HB2028.  This bill requires that,  “Every person seeking initial licensure or renewal of a license shall provide evidence of completion of certification or training in emergency first aid, cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and the use of automated external defibrillators. The certification or training program shall be based on the current national evidence-based emergency cardiovascular care guidelines for cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the use of an automated external defibrillator, such as a program developed by the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross. The Board shall provide a waiver for this requirement for any person with a disability whose disability prohibits such person from completing the certification or training ….”

VEA unsuccessfully argued that this training should be in-service training rather than a licensure requirement.

To take a course, go to www.heart.org/cpr and click on "Find a Course" or call 1-877-AHA-4CPR (272-4277); you can also contact your local hospital or firehouse to see if they have a course.