Rhode Island Code of Regulations
Title 200 - Board of Education
Chapter 20 - Council on Elementary and Secondary Education
Subchapter 20 - Educator Quality and Certification
Part 1 - Regulations Governing the Certification of Educators in Rhode Island
Section 200-RICR-20-20-1.2 - Definitions

1. "Administrator certificate" means a certification issued to educators whose primary duties may include the supervision of programs or curriculum or the supervision or management of a local educational agency, a school building, a school program, or a school system.

2. "Administrative knowledge of field competencies" means the knowledge and skills established by the applicable national professional association as core competencies for administrators that define the range of expectations for the specific certification administrative position(s) addressed by the certification area.

3. "Administrator knowledge of field testing" means the use of assessments to evaluate the knowledge of field and skills of a prospective administrator in the specific administrator area.

4. "Advanced educator certificate" means the third (3rd) and highest level in the three (3) tier system of full certification. This level of certification is held by educators who consistently demonstrate accomplished practice.

5. "Alternate route Preliminary Certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate awarded to prospective educators who are enrolled in a Rhode Island approved alternate route preparation program and who have been offered a position in a district to serve as an educator of record while completing certification requirements.

6. "Approved program route to educator certification" or "Approved program" means a post-secondary educator preparation program that holds approved status under the program approval standards of the Rhode Island Department of Education.

7. "Building level administrator" means any individual responsible for the administration of a PK-12 school, including principals, assistant principals, and charter school chief administrators.

8. "Career and technical education Preliminary Certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate awarded to prospective educators who have a high school diploma and who have demonstrated that they have appropriate work experience in their respective career and technical fields. These prospective educators can seek employment as teachers of record in employing agencies that are willing to employ them while the individuals pursue full certification.

9. "Certificate" means a document issued by the Rhode Island Department of Education that identifies the area(s) of certification held by an educator and the date of issuance and date of expiration between which the certificate is valid.

10. "Certification area" means the specific educational subject matter and grade ranges that a teacher is qualified to teach, the specific level of administration and grade ranges that an administrator is qualified to lead, or the specific role in which a support professional is qualified to serve.

11. "Certification route" means a pathway of preparation through which a prospective educator attains certification.

12. "Certification fees" means fees set by the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education to issue certificates.

13. "Credential development plan" means a plan for review and monitoring by RIDE to gain certification for Prospective Educators who hold a Preliminary Certificate while pursuing certification. The plan describes how the individual will demonstrate evidence of meeting competency, assessment, and field experience requirements.

14. "Credential review route to certification" or "Credential review route" means the process of reviewing an applicant's preparation against a set of standards and criteria to determine eligibility for certification. The process of review may include a review of preparation, field experience, and testing results.

15. "Educator of record" means a certified teacher, administrator, or support professional in Rhode Island Public Schools. Teachers of record are responsible for providing instruction and determining student grades. Administrators of record are responsible for the supervision and management of schools, school programs, and school districts. Support professionals of record are responsible for instructional leadership or serving as a specialist/consultant or a related service provider.

16. "Emergency route preliminary certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate awarded to prospective educators at the request of an employing agency when a fully-certified and qualified educator who meets the criteria for the position cannot be secured.

17. "Employing agency" means any school committee, school board, charter school, educational collaborative, state-approved Special Education program and state funded pre-kindergarten program, or other public school entity responsible for hiring certified educators.

18. "Endorsement" means added to an existing valid teacher, support professional or administrator certificate in recognition of specialized or advanced expertise in an area.

19. "English language competency testing" means the assessment of competency in English for prospective educators who completed educator preparation in a program where the language of instruction was a language other than English.

20. "Expert residency preliminary certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate awarded to prospective educators who demonstrate sufficient preparation in subject matter, administrative expertise, or other certificate area specific requirements to be considered for positions as educators while pursuing certification. These prospective educators can seek employment as teachers of record in employing agencies that are willing to employ them while the individual pursues full certification. Certified educators seeking to add new certification areas may also use the Expert Residency Preliminary Certificate as part of a route to certification in that area.

21. "Expert residency shortages preliminary certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate awarded to prospective educators who demonstrate sufficient proficiency in the related subject matter. The certificate is requested by the employing agency while the individual pursues full certification.

22. "Extension of certificate" means a one (1) year extension of a certificate when certified educators experience an interruption in employment and are unable to provide performance data from state approved local evaluations for each year of a certificate at the time of certificate renewal.

23. "Fast-track principal" means a certificate awarded to educators who meet the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws § 16-11-9 and these Regulations. It is designed to recognize teaching experience to allow for an expedited pathway to principal certification. An educator may also qualify for the Fast Track Expert Residency Preliminary Certificate which can be awarded to educators with a minimum of ten (10) years of experience who demonstrate sufficient leadership qualities. The certificate is requested by the employing agency while the individual pursues full certification.

24. "Full certificate" means a multi-year certificate that demonstrates the educator has met all Rhode Island requirements for certification and is included in the three (3) tier system of Rhode Island Educator Certificates.

25. "Independent certificate area" means an area in which certification can be obtained independent of, or not requiring, certification in another area.

26. "Initial educator certificate" means the first (1st) level in the three (3) tier system of full certification. This level of certification is held by all educators when they are certified for the first time in Rhode Island.

27. "Internship" means an extended field-based experience that provides a prospective administrator or support professional the opportunity to develop skills in school or school district contexts.

28. "Local educator evaluation system" means a RIDE-approved educator evaluation system that meets Rhode Island Educator Evaluation System Standards pursuant to this Part.

29. "Major equivalent" means presentation of thirty (30) or more hours of coursework in a closely related content field deemed to be acceptable by the Rhode Island Department of Education by applicants who did not complete a major in the required content field.

30. "National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification" or "NASDTEC" means the professional organization that represents professional standards boards, commissions and state departments of education in all fifty (50) states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Educational Activity, and the U.S. Territories which are responsible for the preparation, licensure and discipline of educational personnel. NASDTEC administers the Interstate Agreement for Educator Licensure that supports reciprocity of certification across the various state jurisdictions.

31. "One-year practical residency" means an approach to the clinical preparation of teachers that combines theories of teaching with experiential learning. Teacher residencies are designed to approximate the breadth and depth of preparing to be the primary certified teacher in a classroom. The residency may take place over the course of one (1) year or may take place over multiple terms, as long as a minimum intensive, full teaching load experience is built in. While general field experience is designed to expose future teachers to a variety of educational settings and children, the one (1) year practical residency is designed to provide deep instructional practice.

32. "Pedagogy testing" means the use of assessments to evaluate the knowledge of teaching of a prospective teacher.

33. "Practicum" means a field-based experience in educator preparation that provides the prospective educator the opportunity to apply knowledge in the context of a school or other educational setting. Practicum is a requirement to add an additional category of teaching certification beyond a first area of teaching certification.

34. "Preliminary educator certificates" means certificates that allow educators who are not fully certified to serve as educators of record while pursuing certification. Alternate Route Preliminary, Career and Technical Education Preliminary, Emergency Preliminary, Expert Residency Preliminary, Temporary Initial Educator Preliminary, and Visiting Lecturer Preliminary are the six (6) types of Preliminary Educator Certificates. These certificates are not "full certificates" of the National Association of State Directors of Education and Certification (NASDTEC) certification system and do not qualify for certification in other states through reciprocity.

35. "Professional competencies" means the knowledge and skills defined in the Rhode Island Professional Teaching Standards, the Rhode Island Standards for Educational Leaders, and national professional associations that articulate the professional standards for all teachers, administrators, and support professionals.

36. "Professional educator certificate" means the second (2nd) level in the three (3) tier system of full certification. This level of certification is awarded to holders of Initial Educator Certificates once they complete the required professional learning units.

37. "Professional learning units" means the hours or demonstration of competencies as part of certification renewal requirements for all Full Certificates.

38. "Reciprocity route to educator certification" means the process by which Rhode Island issues certification to educators who completed approved educator preparation programs or hold full certification in another state.

39. "Reinstatement fee" means the fee charged to reinstate an expired certificate or a certificate that was non-renewed based on performance. The appropriate certification fee is also required for reinstatement.

40. "Regionally accredited institution" means a college or university that awards a bachelor's or higher degree and, if located within the United States, is fully accredited by one (1) of the following regional accrediting bodies: Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools, New England Association of Schools and Colleges, North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools, and Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

41. "Rhode Island Professional Teaching Standards" or "RIPTS" means the standards that identify the professional knowledge and skills expected of all teachers.

42. "Rhode Island Standards for Education Leaders" or "RISEL" means the standards that identify the professional knowledge and skills expected of all administrators.

43. "Registered school nurse" means a professional, registered nurse who provides health services. A Registered School Nurse is not a classroom teacher, though may consult with classroom teachers for related content design and delivery.

44. "Special provisional certificate" means issued to educators who hold Initial, Professional, or Advanced Educator Certificates and did not obtain approval or did not complete professional learning unit requirements. The Special Provisional Certificate can only be issued once during the time of an educator's career.

45 "Substitute teacher" means an individual who is employed on a temporary basis to fill in for a teacher on a day to day or long-term basis.

46. "Support professional certificate" means issued to an educator, other than a teacher or administrator, who has primary responsibility as an instructional leader, a specialist/consultant, or a related service provider in schools.

47. "Support professional knowledge of field competencies" means the knowledge and skills established by the applicable national professional association as core competencies for support professionals that define the range of expectations for the specific support professional position(s) addressed by the certification area.

48. "Support professional knowledge of field testing" means the use of assessments to evaluate the knowledge of field and skills of a prospective support professional in the specific support professional area.

49. "Teacher certificate" means issued to a person whose primary responsibility is to instruct students.

50. "Teacher content competencies" means the knowledge and skills defined by professional associations as core subject matter competencies for teachers within the specific certification content area.

51. "Teacher content testing" means the use of assessments to evaluate the subject matter knowledge and skills of a prospective teacher in the specific teaching area.

52. "Temporary initial educator certificate" means a Preliminary Certificate issued for a limited duration to applicants who seek certification through reciprocity and who meet all requirements for the Initial Educator Certificate except for the testing requirement, including the English Language Competency Test when applicable. This certificate allows the applicant time to take the test that may not have been available in their state. The educator does not have a Rhode Island "Full Certificate" until the testing requirement is met and an Initial Educator Certificate is issued.

53. "Visiting lecturer Preliminary Certificate" is a Preliminary Certificate awarded to individuals with distinctive qualifications and, therefore, a unique capacity to enhance educational programs in districts and who have been offered employment in districts. This certificate is not a route to full certification.