Ark. Code Ann. § 6-17-409 (2020)

1. As used in this section, “alternative educator preparation program” means a program of study approved by the Division of Elementary and Secondary Education for candidates holding a bachelor's degree who are preparing for licensure as teachers and leaders in public schools in this state.
2. 1. The State Board of Education may offer and operate an alternative educator preparation program.
   2. 1. The division may provide grants of financial assistance to entities that train individuals seeking to obtain licensure through an alternative educator preparation program administered by the division.
      2. The division shall pay the grants from funds appropriated by the General Assembly to the division for such purpose.
      3. The State Board of Education shall promulgate rules to determine eligibility for and amount of awards of the grants concerning the operation of the alternative educator preparation program authorized by this section and for such other purposes as may be necessary in carrying out the intent of this section.
   3. The division may refuse to admit for enrollment in the alternative educator preparation program administered by the division a person who has been dismissed from a teacher education program at an institution of higher education.
   4. If the State Board of Education requires an applicant for licensure through an alternative educator preparation program to complete one (1) or more additional college-level courses and the applicant has obtained a bachelor's degree, the required course or courses shall be available as an online course, a traditional face-to-face course, or a hybrid course that is part online instruction and part face-to-face instruction, as approved by the division.
3. The State Board of Education may promulgate rules for the requirements for educator licensure through other alternative educator preparation programs, including without limitation:
   1. A teacher or leader academy;
   2. A residency program at a public school, which may be in partnership with an educator preparation program at an institution of higher education;
   3. The Teach For America, Inc., program;
   4. The Arkansas Teacher Corps program of the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville;
   5. The American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence program;
   6. Another alternative educator preparation program approved by the division;
   7. A program conferring a master's degree in teaching from an accredited program at an institution of higher education; or
   8. An alternative educator preparation program or pathway for an applicant who has professional work experience in the content area in which the applicant desires to obtain a license.
4. 1. The State Board of Education shall issue to an applicant who is in an alternative educator preparation program a provisional teaching license that is issued under the state board's rules governing provisional licensure.
   2. The provisional license is valid for the entire period that the applicant:
      1. Is participating in the alternative educator preparation program;
      2. Has not been determined to have an ethics violation under § 6-17-428; and
      3. Is teaching in an Arkansas public school.
5. The State Board of Education may require an applicant for licensure under this section to submit proof of the following academic eligibility:
   1. 1. Passing scores, as set by the state board, on subject matter content-area assessments or their substantial equivalents.
      2. As used in this subdivision (e)(1), “substantial equivalents” includes without limitation the assessments required by the American Board for the Certification of Teacher Excellence program and any alternative method of demonstrating subject matter content competency identified by the State Board of Education under § 6-15-1004.
      3. An individual under this section shall demonstrate pedagogical competence;
   2. Successful completion of professional educator ethics training identified by rules of the State Board of Education; and
   3. As required by State Board of Education rules for the grade level and content area for which the applicant seeks licensure, successful completion of courses in Arkansas history or reading and writing in content areas, or both.
6. No academic or experience requirements for obtaining an Arkansas teaching license in addition to those identified in subsections (c)-(e) of this section shall be imposed on an applicant who has completed one of the programs under subdivisions (c)(3)-(5) and who otherwise meets the requirements of this section by:
   1. The State Board of Education;
   2. The division; or
   3. An Arkansas state-funded college or university.
7. Each applicant for a provisional license under this section shall successfully complete the criminal records checks and Child Maltreatment Central Registry check under § 6-17-410 before the division may issue the license.

History. Acts 1991, No. 308, § 1; 2005, No. 2151, § 17; 2007, No. 704, § 1; 2011, No. 989, § 37; 2011, No. 1178, § 2; 2013, No. 413, § 1; 2013, No. 454, §§ 2, 3; 2013 (1st Ex. Sess.), No. 2, § 1; 2015, No. 1090, §§ 5, 6; 2015, No. 1121, §§ 1, 2; 2017, No. 294, § 4; 2017, No. 416, § 2; 2019, No. 540, § 2; 2019, No. 692, § 17; 2019, No. 910, §§ 1381, 1382.

A.C.R.C. Notes. This section is set out above as amended by Acts 2017, 294, § 4. Subdivision (e)(2) of the former section also was amended by Acts 2017, 416, § 2 to add an additional subdivision (e)(2)(C) to read as follows:

“(C) Successfully completed the licensure tests required under § 6-17-402.”

Amendments. The 2011 amendment by No. 989 deleted “certification” following “licensure” in the section head, twice in (b), and in (d); substituted “State Board of Education may” for “department is hereby authorized to” in (e); and substituted “rules require” for “department requires” in (d).

The 2011 amendment by No. 1178 substituted “State Board of Education” for “Department of Education” in (a); substituted “Department of Education” for “department” in (b)(1); substituted “licensure” for “certification” in (b)(1) and (d); substituted “state board shall” for “department is hereby authorized to” in (c); substituted “state board” for “department” in (d); and added (e) and (f).

The 2013 amendment by No. 413 inserted present (e)(1) and redesignated the remaining subdivisions accordingly; rewrote present (e)(2); substituted “an accelerated teaching” for “the Teach for America” in (e)(3); substituted “Participating in the accelerated teaching” for “In the Teach for America” in (e)(3)(A); substituted “and accelerated teaching” for “the two-year Teach for America” in (e)(4)(B)(ii).

The 2013 amendment by No. 454 inserted “basic-skills” and “or their substantial equivalents” in (e)(4)(A); in (e)(4)(B)(i), inserted “state board rules for” and substituted “reading and writing in content areas” for “Methods of Teaching Reading”; inserted “nonrenewable” in the introductory language of (f)(1); in (f)(1)(F), inserted “state-required basic-skills” and deleted “and “pedagogical” preceding “test”; rewrote (f)(2); substituted “each year” for “three (3) years” in (f)(3); and rewrote (f)(4).

The 2013 (1st Ex. Sess.) amendment deleted “sixty (60) hours of” before “professional development” in (f)(2)(B).

The 2015 amendment by No. 1090 inserted designation (c)(1); and added (c)(2); inserted present designations (e)(3)(A) and (e)(3)(B); added “that is issued under the rules governing provisional licensure for nontraditional licensure applicants” in present (e)(3)(A); added “The provisional license is” in the introductory language of (e)(3)(B); and redesignated former (e)(3)(A) and (e)(3)(B) as (e)(3)(B)(i) and (e)(3)(B)(ii).

The 2015 amendment by No. 1121 inserted (e)(2)(A)(i) (c) , and redesignated former (e)(2)(A)(i) (c) as (e)(2)(A)(i) (d) ; redesignated (e)(4)(A) as (e)(4)(A)(i); and added (e)(4)(A)(ii).

The 2017 amendment by No. 294 rewrote the section heading and the section.

The 2017 amendment by No. 416 added (e)(2)(C).

The 2019 amendment by No. 540 substituted “subject matter” for “state-required pedagogical and” in (e)(1)(A); substituted “any” for “an” in (e)(1)(B); added (e)(1)(C); and made a stylistic change.

The 2019 amendment by No. 692 confirmed the 2017 codification decision of the Arkansas Code Revision Commission, which did not give effect to Acts 2017, No. 416, § 2.

The 2019 amendment by No. 910 substituted “Division of Elementary and Secondary Education” for “Department of Education” in (a); and substituted “division” for “department” throughout (b) and (g).