Application for Certificate of License to Teach

PURPOSE: The State Board of Education is authorized to grant certificates of license to teach in any of the public schools of the state and establish requirements and qualifications for those certificates. This rule outlines the procedures for application for a certificate of license to teach. (1) An applicant for a Missouri certificate of license to teach who possesses good moral character and has successfully completed an educator preparation program approved by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (department) or earned a doctoral degree may be granted an initial Missouri certificate of license to teach in their major area of study, subject to the specific content area certification re quirements established by the State Board of Education (board), which can be found in 5 CSR 20-400.500–5 CSR 20-400.700. (2) Applications for a Missouri certificate of license to teach shall be submitted on the forms provided by the department, accompanied by the appropriate fee, and may be obtained by writing the Educator Certification Section of the department at PO Box 480, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0480 or downloading from the Internet. (3) An application is not considered officially filed with the board until it has been determined by the board or the department staff to be complete and the application is submitted on the forms provided by the department, signed, and accompanied by two (2) full sets of fingerprints with the appropriate fee as set by the Missouri State Highway Patrol (Highway Patrol) and/or the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and any other applicable forms and/or fees. All information should be received by the department within ninety (90) days of the date of the application. (A) The applicant is responsible for submitting the fingerprints in the manner acceptable to the Highway Patrol and/or FBI and the payment of any fees required by the Highway Patrol and/ or FBI. (4) The applicant shall submit verification of certification or licensure directly to the department, including information regarding any disciplinary action from each state or United States’ territory regulatory entity in which a professional license, including a certificate of license to teach, is held or has been held. (5) An applicant for a Missouri certificate of license to teach who has successfully completed an educator preparation program approved by the department must comply with the following additional criteria in addition to any requirements specific to the content area for which the applicant seeks certification: (A) The applicant must possess a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college or university; (B) The applicant must possess a grade point average of 3.00 or higher in professional education; (C) The applicant must request and obtain the recommendation of the designated certification official from a baccalaureate or higher-level educator preparation program approved by the department; and (D) The applicant must achieve a score equal to or in excess of the qualifying score on the required exit assessment(s) as defined in 5 CSR 20-400.310 and 5 CSR 20-400.440. The official score shall be submitted to the department. (6) An applicant for a Missouri certificate of license to teach who possesses a valid certificate of license to teach from another state and who possesses good moral character may be granted a Missouri certificate of license to teach. (7) An applicant for a Missouri certificate of license to teach who has successfully obtained certification by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS), or for school psychologists, the certificate of nationally certified school psychologists issued by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), and possesses good moral character may be granted a Missouri certificate of license to teach in their area of NBPTS or NASP certification most closely aligned with the current areas of certification approved by the board. The certificate of license to teach will be an initial student services classification or a career continuous student services classification if the applicant possesses four (4) years of student services experience. (8) An applicant for an initial Missouri certificate of license to teach who has earned a doctoral degree from an institution of higher education accredited by a regional accreditation agency including, but not limited to, the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA) must comply with the following additional criteria: (A) The applicant must have completed and provide documentation of a doctoral degree earned in an area of study for which an initial professional certificate (IPC) of license to teach may be issued; (B) The applicant must achieve a score equal to or in excess of the qualifying score on the pedagogy assessment approved by the department for the specific grade levels as defined in the rules promulgated by the board. The official score report shall be submitted to the department; and (C) The applicant may only be granted an IPC level certificate of license to teach in their major area of study pursuant to the rules promulgated by the board. A career continuous professional level certificate of license to teach will not be issued. (9) An applicant for an initial Missouri certificate of license to teach in the area of personal finance, banking, or financial responsibility who has earned a bachelor’s degree, or higher degree, from an institution of higher education accredited by a regional accreditation agency including, but not limited to, the Higher Learning Commission of the NCA must comply with the following additional criteria: (A) The applicant must provide documentation of a valid degree being conferred and achieve a score equal to or in excess of the qualifying score on the assessment designated by the board. The official score report shall be submitted to the department; (B) Comply with the professional experience requirements specific to the particular content area for which certification is sought as set forth in rules 5 CSR 20-400.500–5 CSR 20-400.700; and (C) The applicant may only be granted an initial career education level of certificate of license to teach in the field of personal finance. (10) The board may grant additional professional certificates of license to teach to a certificate holder as follows: (A) The applicant may take the appropriate content knowledge or specialty area exit assessment(s) for certification and must achieve a score equal to or in excess of the qualifying score on the content knowledge or specialty area exit assessment(s) as defined in 5 CSR 20-400.440 and 5 CSR 20-400.500 to 5 CSR 20-400.700; (B) If the board has not designated a content knowledge or specialty area exit assessment(s) for a particular certification area or grade level or the applicant chooses not to take the appropriate content knowledge or specialty area exit assessment(s), the applicant must meet the specific content area certification requirements found in 5 CSR 20-400.500 to 5 CSR 20-400.700; or (C) Applicants who seek to add a Library Media Specialist K-12 certificate must meet the requirements of (10)(A), above, and must also complete a three- (3-) semester hour course in each of the following areas: 1. Foundations of Librarianship; 2. Library Media Administration; 3. Developing and Managing Collections; and 4. Organizing Information. (11) Following review by the department the applicant shall be informed of the decision regarding the application for certificate of license to teach. (12) The holder of a certificate of license to teach shall ensure that the department has their current legal name and address. (A) A holder of a certificate of license to teach whose name is changed shall notify the department within ninety (90) days of the name change and provide a copy of the appropriate documents verifying the name change. (B) A holder of a certificate of license to teach whose address has changed shall inform the department of the change within ninety (90) days of the effective date of the change. (13) Regardless of the certification pathway, any applicant for an initial certification to teach in Elementary Education must demonstrate proficiency in the teaching of reading by passing the State Board of Education-approved Elementary reading exam. AUTHORITY: sections 161.092, 168.011, 168.071, 168.081, 168.405, and 168.409, RSMo 2016, and sections 168.021 and 168.400, RSMo Supp. 2024.* Original rule filed Oct. 29, 2013, effective May 30, 2014. Amended: Filed Nov. 2, 2020, effective May 30, 2021. Amended: Filed March 15, 2021, effective Oct. 30, 2021. Amended: Filed Dec. 10, 2024, effective July 30, 2025. *Original authority: 161.092, RSMo 1963, amended 1973, 2002, 2003, 2013, 2014; 168.011, RSMo 1963, amended 1984; 168.021, RSMo 1963, amended 1973, 1984, 1988, 1990, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024; 168.071, RSMo 1963, amended 1973, 1978, 1984, 1988, 1993, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2011, 2013, 2014; 168.081, RSMo 1963, amended 1984, 2002, 2014; 168.400, RSMo 1985, amended 1990, 2002, 2024; 168.405, RSMo 1985; and 168.409, RSMo 1985.