Minnesota Administrative Rules

8710.0314 TIER 4 LICENSE.

Subpart 1.

Purpose.

A Tier 4 license authorizes the license holder, consistent with this part, to teach in the field and scope aligned to the license holder's preparation. A Tier 4 license indicates the license holder has had at least three years of experience in Minnesota within the field and scope of licensure and completed the professional development requirements mandated by statute.

Subp. 2.

Requirements.

The board must issue a Tier 4 license if the applicant meets all of the requirements of this subpart.

A.

The applicant must:

(1)

hold the minimum of a bachelor's degree from a college or university located in the United States that is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission or by the regional association for accreditation of colleges and secondary schools, as verified by a college transcript;

(2)

hold a credential from outside the United States that is equivalent to a bachelor's degree, as verified by a credential evaluation completed by a credential evaluator approved by the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services or other board-approved credential evaluation service; or

(3)

for applicants in career and technical education fields and career pathway courses of study, have one of the following:

(a)

five years of relevant work experience aligned to the licensure area sought;

(b)

an associate's degree aligned to the licensure area sought; or

(c)

a professional certification aligned to the licensure area sought from an approved certifying organization.

B.

The applicant must have completed one of the following:

(1)

a board-approved teacher preparation program aligned to the licensure area sought. The board must accept certifications for related services professionals under parts 8710.6000 to 8710.6400 in lieu of completion of a board-approved teacher preparation program; or

(2)

a preparation program approved in another state aligned to the licensure area sought that included field-specific student teaching equivalent to field-specific student teaching in Minnesota-approved teacher preparation programs. The applicant is exempt from field-specific student teaching if the applicant has at least two years of field-specific experience teaching as the teacher of record.

C.

The applicant must obtain passing scores on the board-approved skills, pedagogy, and content examinations aligned to the licensure area sought. Any licensure area that does not have a board-approved content examination is exempt from the content examination requirement.

D.

The applicant must have at least three years of experience teaching in Minnesota as the teacher of record.

E.

The applicant's most recent summative evaluation must not have resulted in placing or otherwise keeping the teacher in an improvement process aligned to the district's teacher development and evaluation plan.

F.

The applicant must have participated in mentorship and evaluation aligned to the district's teacher development and evaluation model under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.40, subdivision 8, or 122A.41, subdivision 5, or if the statutory models are not practicable, to another identified district-aligned evaluation.

Subp. 3.

Adding a Tier 4 license.

To add an additional Tier 4 license, the applicant must show evidence of meeting the requirements of subpart 2, item C, and part 8710.0313, subpart 2, item C, subitem (1), (2), (3), or (4), in the licensure area sought. An applicant may add a teachers of science endorsement by meeting the requirements of part 8710.4770. When a licensure area is added to a Tier 4 license issued under this part, the expiration date is the date previously established for the Tier 4 license in effect.

Subp. 4.

Duration.

A Tier 4 license is valid for up to five years and expires on June 30 of the expiration year.

Subp. 5.

Renewal.

A Tier 4 license may be renewed an unlimited number of times. To renew a Tier 4 license, the applicant must complete:

A.

mentorship and evaluation aligned to the district's teacher development and evaluation model under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.40, subdivision 8, or 122A.41, subdivision 5; and

B.

board-approved licensure renewal requirements, including obtaining approval from the applicant's local continuing education/relicensure committee, under parts 8710.7100 and 8710.7200 and Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.187, subdivision 3.

Subp. 6.

Restrictions and expansions.

A.

An applicant whose content training or experience does not align to a currently approved Minnesota license, but for which past rules have been adopted, and who meets all other requirements of this part must be issued a Tier 4 license restricted to the scope and licensure area of the applicant's content training or experience.

B.

Applicants with content training or experience within two grade levels of a currently approved Minnesota licensure scope must be granted the full scope of the Minnesota license.

C.

Upon request and at the time of application or renewal, a teacher who holds a Tier 4 license that is restricted or limited in scope must be granted the full scope of a currently approved Minnesota license when:

(1)

the teacher has two years of teaching experience in the content area within two grade levels of a currently approved Minnesota licensure scope;

(2)

the teacher has completed field-specific student teaching within two grade levels of a currently approved Minnesota licensure scope; or

(3)

the teacher has completed:

(a)

field-specific methods in a state-approved teacher preparation program aligned to the scope of the currently approved Minnesota license; and

(b)

an evaluated field experience aligned to the scope of the currently approved Minnesota license.

Subp. 7.

Moving from Tier 3 to Tier 4 license.

An applicant who holds a Tier 3 license and is seeking a Tier 4 license after three years of teaching experience in Minnesota, and who has passed the board-approved skills exam, must meet the renewal clock hour requirements in part 8710.7200, subpart 2, and the professional development requirements in part 8710.7200, subpart 2a.

Statutory Authority:

MS s 122A.09; 122A.092; 122A.18

History:

43 SR 463; 47 SR 986

Published Electronically:

August 31, 2023