Opinion ID: 3064937
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: California Education Law

Text: In California, a fully certified teacher may work in almost any school district for an extended period of time. California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, Requirements for Teachers Prepared in California (Leaflet No. CL-561C), available at http://www.ctc.ca.gov/credentials/leaflets.html. There are two levels of full state certification depending on years of experience. See id.; Cal. Educ. Code § 44274.2. A teacher who completes the preparation requirements initially receives a “preliminary” credential, Cal. Educ. Code § 44274.2(a), which is valid for five years, id. § 44251(b)(2). These preparation requirements include, inter alia, “[s]atisfactory completion of a program of professional preparation,” id. § 44251(b)(3), which includes “[i]nternship programs,” id. § 44259(b)(3)(C), or completion of a more traditional program where teaching, training, and education are combined, id. § 44259(b)(3)(A), (B). A teacher receives the same preliminary credential regardless of the “program of professional preparation.” Id. §§ 44259(a), 44274.2. After two years of teaching with the “preliminary” credential, a teacher may receive the “clear” credential, id. § 44274.2(c), which is valid for five years but may be renewed, id. § 44251(b)(3). 3 Alternative route programs are alternatives to the traditional collegebased teacher education program routes for obtaining teacher certification. Amicus curiae Teach for America is one such program. RENEE v. DUNCAN 9471 Below the full credentials are a series of subordinate credentials. See A.B. 351, 1997 Reg. Sess., at 2 (Cal. 1997) (teachers in “internships . . . receive systematic support and training as they advance toward full certification”), available at http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/97-98/bill/asm/ab_03510400/ab_351_bill_19971012_chaptered.pdf; Bakersfield Teachers Assoc. v. Bakersfield City Sch. Dist., 52 Cal. Rptr. 3d 486, 501 (Cal. Ct. App. 2006) (observing that interns have “something less than a regular credential”). The “intern” credential, for example, permits individuals who have not completed their alternative teacher preparation program (i.e. are participating in their programs) to teach only in a single school district, Cal. Educ. Code §§ 44325, 44463, and only for a period of two years, id. § 44251(b)(1). Indeed, California law requires that districts hire preliminary or clear credential holders whenever they are available ahead of intern credential holders. See Cal. Educ. Code § 44225.7(a), (e).
California has promulgated “highly qualified” teacher regulations in order to implement NCLB. Under California law, “[a] teacher who meets NCLB requirements at the middle or secondary levels is one who . . . [i]s currently enrolled in an approved intern program for less than three years or has a full credential.” Cal. Code Regs. tit. 5, § 6110(2).4