Moving toward Standard Certification
As the school year wraps up, provisional teachers should be looking at their certification status and progress towards earning a standard certificate. Provisional certificates are valid for up to two years and expire on July 31st regardless of issue date. All teachers working under a Certificate of Eligibility with Advanced Standing (CEAS) or a Certificate of Eligibility (CE) have a limited amount of time to complete requirements for a standard certificate. Most provisional certificates may be renewed once, while a few may be renewed twice if the exceptions in regulations at NJAC 6A:9B-8.5(c) are met. Educators may check their certificates and applications in the New Jersey Educator Certification
(NJEdCert) Portal.
Requirements for Standard Certificates
All candidates for an initial standard instructional certificate must successfully complete a district mentoring program and achieve two final summative evaluation ratings of effective or highly effective within three consecutive years of teaching. Additionally, CE holders must complete a CE educator preparation program. Districts are required to document mentoring completion and final summative ratings in the NJEdCert portal. On April 12th, the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE) issued a broadcast memo informing districts of their responsibility for initiating standard certification applications and provisional certificate renewals NJDOE Broadcast. CE educator preparation programs submit digital verification of program completion (VOPC) through the portal. Teachers holding a CEAS or CE who have completed the requirements for a standard certificate, should ensure that their current school district initiates the conversion of the provisional certificate to a standard certificate in the NJEdCert portal. Once the application is initiated, teachers will be prompted by email to log on to the portal to complete the oath and pay a fee, if applicable.
Renewal of Provisional Certificates
Provisional teachers with licenses expiring July 31, 2023, but who have not yet completed the requirements, should be certain their district initiates a renewal in time for the 2023/24 school year. Provisional certificates are specific to the employing district. If provisional teachers change districts the new district must initiate a new provisional license.
Questions for NJDOE?
A customer service feature is available in the NJEdCert portal or applicants may call 609-292-2070 Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. to reach a representative.