Illinois Administrative Code › Title 23 - EDUCATION AND CULTURAL RESOURCES › Part 1 - PUBLIC SCHOOLS EVALUATION, RECOGNITION AND SUPERVISION › Subpart F - STAFF LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS › Section 1.630 - Paraprofessionals; Other Unlicensed Personnel

Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 28, July 12, 2024
a) Pursuant to Sections 10-22.34 and 34-18 of
				the School Code [105 ILCS
				5/10-22.34 and 34 -18], school boards may employ
				nonteaching personnel or use volunteer personnel for nonteaching duties not
				requiring instructional judgment or evaluation of pupils.
b) Paraprofessionals
1) School boards may further utilize
				volunteer personnel or employ personnel who do hold an educator license with
				stipulations endorsed for paraprofessional educator to serve as
				paraprofessionals (or "teacher aides") to assist in the instruction of pupils,
				so long as each individual is under the immediate supervision of a teacher who
				holds a valid professional educator license endorsed for the teaching field of
				assignment and is directly engaged in teaching subject matter or conducting
				activities (see Sections 10-22.34 and 34-18 of the School Code). To "assist in
				the instruction of pupils", i.e., to serve as a paraprofessional, means to
				support teachers through interactions with students that will help them master
				curricular content, such as by tutoring; or to assist with classroom
				management, such as by organizing instructional materials.
2) Beginning July 1, 2013, an individual
				employed as a paraprofessional shall meet the requirements set forth in 23 Ill.
				Adm. Code
				25.510(Paraprofessionals)
				except in the following circumstances.
A) Any
				individual whose paraprofessional approval was continued after June 30, 2013,
				in accordance with the provisions of 23 Ill. Adm. Code
				25.15
				(Types of Licenses; Exchange), may continue to serve as a paraprofessional
				subject to any limitations of his or her approval.
B) An individual who holds an educator
				license indicative of completion of a bachelor's degree may serve as a
				paraprofessional without obtaining an educator license with stipulations
				endorsed for paraprofessional educator.
C) An individual who holds an educator
				license with stipulations endorsed for career and technical educator may serve
				as a paraprofessional without obtaining an additional endorsement for
				paraprofessional educator.
3) Each paraprofessional shall be under the
				direct supervision and control of a fully licensed teacher when assisting with
				instruction, whether this occurs in classrooms, laboratories, shops,
				playgrounds, libraries, or other educational settings where instructional
				judgment requires the supervision of a fully licensed teacher. The fully
				licensed teacher shall be responsible for planning the activities to be
				conducted by the paraprofessional and for evaluating the pupils with whom the
				paraprofessional works. The fully licensed teacher shall be continuously aware
				of the paraprofessional's activities, i.e., the teacher shall be responsible
				for controlling the paraprofessional's activities and shall be able to modify
				them at any time.
4)
				Paraprofessionals shall not be utilized as substitutes for or replacement of
				fully licensed teachers, and they shall not have equivalent responsibilities.
				Fully licensed teachers shall exercise professional judgment when assigning
				duties to paraprofessionals and shall retain the responsibility for determining
				students' scholastic activities.
5)
				Each school district shall:
A) submit a list
				of all paraprofessionals it employs to the State Superintendent of Education
				with its annual application for recognition;
B) maintain a file for each paraprofessional
				that describes his or her functions and includes his or her statement of
				approval, if applicable, or verification of his or her holding an educator
				license with stipulations endorsed for paraprofessional educator; and
C) be responsible for ensuring that no
				individual is employed as a paraprofessional without an educator license with
				stipulations endorsed for paraprofessional educator, except as permitted under
				subsection (b)(2) of this Section, and that paraprofessionals whose
				paraprofessional approval was continued are assigned only to tasks for which
				their approval is valid.