Health Careers Education Teacher Certification
Policies and Procedures

Certification/licensure is not required of instructors who will be teaching only adult students; however, certification/licensure is required if even a single high school student is enrolled in the program.

A Statement of Qualifications must be on file in the Health Careers Education Office for all prospective teachers before any application can be processed. The state staff will determine whether the prospective teacher is able to qualify for a teaching certificate.

Applicants for the license/certificate in this program must receive a recommendation from the State Program Manager  in addition to the recommendation from an institution approved to offer a Standard Certificate in Health Careers Education.

At its December 19, 2002, meeting the Oklahoma State Board of Education (OSBE) approved rules that require all first-time credentialed Oklahoma teachers to have on file with the OSBE a current Oklahoma criminal history record from the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) as well as a national fingerprint-based criminal history record provided by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).  Oklahoma law, 70 O.S. § 6-190, requires the OSBI and FBI criminal history records for licensure.  The new OSBE rule applies to a person who has never held a license or certificate in Oklahoma. 

APPLICATION FOR LICENSURE

A license is a one-year credential issued to educators who have completed a teacher education program after February 1, 1982, and who have zero years of teaching experience in a state or regionally accredited school.  The applicant will participate in the Residency Program during the initial year of teaching in Oklahoma. A residency committee consisting of a mentor teacher, an administrator, and a faculty member in an institution of higher education will provide guidance and assistance and will ultimately make a recommendation regarding certification.  Contact the State Program Manager for more information prior to making application for a license.  Click here for application form.

 

APPLICATION FOR CERTIFICATION*

  1. Submit an Application for Oklahoma School Certificate form, (Provisional Level I, Provisional Level II, Standard), or Renewal of Standard form.  You can link to the forms from this page, or call the State Department of Education at (405) 521-3337 for more information; their website is  www.sde.state.ok.us.

  2. Submit a check of $10 for License, $30 for initial certificate, and $10 for renewal made payable to the State Department of Education.  

  3. Submit a current official transcript or official evidence of meeting all listed requirements (for any initial issue or reissue of certificate). Send the above to:       

                Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education
                Health Careers Education
                1500 W. Seventh Avenue
                Stillwater, OK  74074

         *Official documentation must accompany each appropriate application.

Provisional Level I Certificate (Click here for application form)  

  1. The applicant for this certificate must have earned a high school diploma or passed the G.E.D.

  2. The applicant shall provide evidence of having three (3) years of appropriate experience (within the five [5] years preceding initial certification) in the field to be taught.

  3. The issuance of this certificate must be requested and signed by the employing superintendent.

  4. The applicant must receive a recommendation for the Provisional Level I Certificate from the State Program Manager as well as a statement from an institution approved to offer a Standard Certificate in CareerTech education the applicant has an  approved plan of study for the Level II and the Standard Certificate.

        Basic CareerTech Coursework - Hours Toward Standard Certificate        

See the following tentative schedules:  

UCO Fall 2008 Course Schedule (Word Format 151 KB)

OSU Fall 2008 Course Schedule  (Word format 38 KB)

OSU Spring/Summer Course Schedule  (Word format 35 KB)

If you have questions concerning these courses or schedules, contact the respective Teacher Educator:

University of Central Oklahoma:
Dr. Karen L. Barnes
Health Occupations Education
100 North University Drive, Box 120
Edmond, OK  73034-5209
405/974-5334, Ext 1-5741 or 1-5801
kbarnes@ucok.edu

Oklahoma State University:
Dr. Mary Jo Self
Assistant Professor
Occupational Education Studies
School of Teaching and Curriculum Leadership
207 Willard Hall
Stillwater, OK 74078
(405) 744-9191
 maryjo.self@okstate.edu

  1. The Provisional Level I Certificate has a one-year (1) term of validity.

  2. In order to renew a Provisional I, an instructor must take six (6) hours within the first TWO years of their employment. All courses must be transcripted by June 30.

  3. Provisional Level I Certificates may be successively reissued upon satisfactory completion of not less than six (6) semester hours of credit toward standard certification including the basic 14/15 courses during the one year term of validity.  A request by the employing superintendent, a recommendation from the State Program Manager, and an official transcript from the institution of higher education with which the applicant has filed a plan of study, must accompany the application.

  4. All Provisional I requirements should be completed within five years.

Provisional Level II Certificate  (Click here for application form)

  1. The applicant must have completed all of the requirements for Provisional Level I Certificate.

  2. The Provisional Level II Certificate has a five-year (5) term of validity.

  3. The Provisional Level II Certificate may be reissued if the certificate holder has completed fifteen (15) semester credit hours on approved plan of study during the five-year (5) term of validity as documented by an official transcript.  

 Standard Certificate  (Click here for application form)

  1. The applicant shall be a graduate of an accredited four-year college or university and shall hold the standard baccalaureate degree.

  2. Specific coursework may count toward completion of requirements in professional education or specialization; however, no coursework may be counted for both professional education and specialization.

  3. The Standard Certificate has a five-year (5) term of validity.

Renewal of Standard Certificate  
(Effective January, 1989) (Click here for application form)

  1. The applicant must have three (3) or more years of experience during the life of the certificate in an accredited school or program approved by the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education as a teacher, supervisor, administrator, or combination thereof, and must meet all other requirements.

  2. The director of Teacher Certification of the State Board of Education is authorized to reissue the Provisional Level I, Provisional Level II, and Standard Certificates when standards are met and approved by the State Program Manager of Health Careers Education and the institution of higher education with which the applicant has filed a plan of study.

CERTIFICATION AND/OR RECERTIFICATION

For certification and/or recertification, in addition to the above requirements, all teachers must attend the annual Summer Conference, and any other called professional meetings or workshops.  A telephone call of explanation followed by a letter to the State Program Manager is required if the teacher is going to miss a meeting.  Absences must be approved by the State Program Manager.

 It is the responsibility of the teacher to keep his/her teaching certificate current.  

       SCHOOL NURSE CERTIFICATION (8/24/2005)       

Instructors who hold a Baccalaureate degree AND possess a valid license as a Registered Nurse with the Oklahoma Board of Nursing are eligible to receive a standard teaching credential as a School Nurse.  In order to obtain this credential, the instructor must fill out a standard teaching certificate application and attach original transcripts, a copy of their nursing license (or verification page from Board of Nursing website: http://www.youroklahoma.com/nursing/verify/ ) and appropriate fees ($30 if first certificate; $10 if adding on to previous certificate) and mail to Lara Skaggs, State Program Manager, Health Careers Education, Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education, 1500 W. Seventh Ave., Stillwater, OK  74074-4364.

Those who qualify will be awarded a standard teaching certificate that will allow them to add on areas of certification that require a test such as science, or to meet requirements for HOUSSE “Highly Qualified Teacher.”

Health Careers Education instructors will still need to obtain either the basic 14 or basic 15 career and technology hours (dependent upon the college selected) to have their Career Tech Health Occupations Standard certificate added on to the School Nurse.  Courses required can be found at: http://www.okcareertech.org/health/Instructor%20Info/TeachCert/BasicCTCoursewk.doc. 

Please call Lara Skaggs at (405) 743-5106 with any questions. 

OCCUPATIONAL COMPETENCY EXAMINATION &
SCIENCE ENDORSEMENT

Professional licenses/certificates are accepted in lieu of the National Occupational Competency Testing Institute’s (NOCTI) series of Skilled Worker exams.

Biological Sciences Certification

1.  Standard Certified Teachers who hold a bachelors degree plus 24 hours of science credit on their transcript are considered “Highly Qualified” and do not need to take the Biology Certification exam.  They will NOT receive an additional Biology Certification on their certificate, but must submit their transcripts to be approved by the local sending school as “Highly Qualified.”  (If you want the Biology Certificate to appear on your Teaching Certificate, you MUST take the Biology Certification exam.)  For specific information regarding the “Highly Qualified” status see the following document or go to http://www.sde.state.ok.us :

2.  To register for the exam or to copy or read the Biology Study guide go to:   http://www.ceoe.nesinc.com/ 
Exams are only offered 4-5 times per year so be sure to register in plenty of time.

3.  The actual study guide for Biological Sciences can be printed from this website:  http://www.ceoe.nesinc.com/PDFs/OK_010_SG.pdf

 4.  A workshop was held in the Fall of ’03 and notes that were collected and disseminated.  (See Notes)

5.  Information that has been sent to the field from our agency regarding science credit include the following letters:

Ø Aug. 4, 2003   (Highly Qualified Teacher)

ØAug. 10, 2004 (Letter to Superintendents)

 6.  Science Credit is only transcripted by a students’ sending high school.  An agreement with the Technology Center must be board approved by the local high school in order for transcription to occur. 

7.  Objectives for the Anatomy and Physiology course that must be taught to grant credit:

8.  Study assistance:  

Lab Science Clarification

Approval for Lab Science Credit

Anatomy and Physiology, Chemistry and Advanced Placement Chemistry course standards have been approved by the State Dept.of Ed for lab science credit.  This means that these courses can get lab science credit for OHLAP, college entrance and high school graduation. 

In order for this science to count for LAB science, the instructor must have the biology credential on their standard teaching certificate.  This does not mean that the non‑lab science credit A & P cannot be offered by schools, just that this is now an option.

Requirements for College Admission Status (Title 70 O.S. § 11‑103.6)

These courses are to be taught by a highly qualified teacher with an Oklahoma Biology teaching certification or Anatomy/Physiology certification. The students should be in the eleventh or twelfth grade or if a sophomore, they should be in a Focused Field of Career Study program. The prerequisite for this course is Biology I with Chemistry being highly recommended. The course should consist of 40% laboratory or fieldwork in order to be considered a lab science. The course will have at a minimum, but may exceed, a duration of 120 hours within a school year (72 hours theory/48 lab hours).

    Anatomy & Physiology Final Standard
    A&P Chemistry
    Chemistry
 
For more information, contact the State Program Manager:

Lara Skaggs
State Program Manager
Health Careers Education
Oklahoma Department of
      Career and Technology Education
1500 West Seventh Avenue
Stillwater, Oklahoma   74074-4364
Phone:   405/743-5106     Fax:  405/743-6809
E-Mail:  lskag@okcareertech.org  

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