093_HB3587enr

 
HB3587 Enrolled                      LRB093 10197 AMC 12237 b

 1        AN ACT concerning education.

 2        Be it enacted by the People of  the  State  of  Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section  5.   The  School  Code  is  amended  by changing
 5    Sections 21-1 and 21-11.1 as follows:

 6        (105 ILCS 5/21-1) (from Ch. 122, par. 21-1)
 7        Sec. 21-1.  Qualification of teachers.   No  one  may  be
 8    certified to teach or supervise in the public schools of this
 9    State who is not of good character, of good health, a citizen
10    of  the  United  States or legally present and authorized for
11    employment, and at least 19 years of age. An applicant for  a
12    certificate  who  is  not a citizen of the United States must
13    sign and file with the State Board of Education a  letter  of
14    intent  indicating  that either (i) within 10 years after the
15    date that the  letter  is  filed  or  (ii)  at  the  earliest
16    opportunity  after  the  person becomes eligible to apply for
17    U.S. citizenship, the person will apply for U.S. citizenship.
18    If the holder of a certificate under this Section  is  not  a
19    citizen  of  the  United States 6 years after the date of the
20    issuance of the original certificate, any certificate held by
21    such person on that date shall be cancelled by the  board  of
22    education  and  no other certificate to teach shall be issued
23    to such person until such person is a citizen of  the  United
24    States.
25        Citizenship  is  not  required  for  the  issuance  of  a
26    temporary  part-time  certificate to participants in approved
27    training programs  for  exchange  students  as  described  in
28    Section  21-10.2.  A certificate issued under this plan shall
29    expire on June 30 following the date of issue.   One  renewal
30    for  one  year  is  authorized  if  the  holder remains as an
31    official participant in an approved exchange program.
 
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 1        In determining good character  under  this  Section,  any
 2    felony   conviction  of  the  applicant  may  be  taken  into
 3    consideration, but such a conviction shall not operate  as  a
 4    bar to registration.
 5        No  person  otherwise qualified shall be denied the right
 6    to be certified, to  receive  training  for  the  purpose  of
 7    becoming  a  teacher or to engage in practice teaching in any
 8    school because of a physical  disability  including  but  not
 9    limited  to  visual  and  hearing disabilities; nor shall any
10    school district refuse to employ a teacher on  such  grounds,
11    provided  that  the person is able to carry out the duties of
12    the position for which he applies.
13        No person may be granted or continue to hold  a  teaching
14    certificate  who  has knowingly altered or misrepresented his
15    or her  teaching  qualifications  in  order  to  acquire  the
16    certificate.   Any  other certificate held by such person may
17    be suspended or revoked by the  State  Teacher  Certification
18    Board,  depending  upon  the  severity  of  the alteration or
19    misrepresentation.
20        No one may teach or supervise in the public  schools  nor
21    receive  for  teaching  or supervising any part of any public
22    school fund, who does not hold a certificate of qualification
23    granted by the State Board  of  Education  or  by  the  State
24    Teacher  Certification Board and a regional superintendent of
25    schools as hereinafter provided, or by the board of education
26    of a city having a population exceeding  500,000  inhabitants
27    except as provided in Section 34-6 and in Section 10-22.34 or
28    Section 10-22.34b. However, the provisions of this Article do
29    not  apply to a member of the armed forces who is employed as
30    a teacher of subjects in the Reserve Officer's Training Corps
31    of any school.  Sections 21-2 through 21-24 do not  apply  to
32    cities  having  a  population  exceeding 500,000 inhabitants,
33    until July 1, 1988.
34        Notwithstanding any other  provision  of  this  Act,  the
 
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 1    board  of  education  of  any  school district may grant to a
 2    teacher of the district a leave of absence with full pay  for
 3    a  period of not more than one year to permit such teacher to
 4    teach in a foreign state under the provisions of the Exchange
 5    Teacher  Program  established  under  Public  Law  584,  79th
 6    Congress, and Public Law 402, 80th Congress, as amended.  The
 7    school board granting such leave of absence may  employ  with
 8    or  without  pay  a national of the foreign state wherein the
 9    teacher on leave of absence will teach, if  the  national  is
10    qualified  to  teach  in  that  foreign  state,  and  if that
11    national will teach in a grade level similar to the one which
12    was  taught  in  such  foreign  state.  The  State  Board  of
13    Education shall promulgate and enforce such reasonable  rules
14    as may be necessary to effectuate this paragraph.
15    (Source:  P.A.  88-189;  89-159,  eff.  1-1-96;  89-397, eff.
16    8-20-95; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)

17        (105 ILCS 5/21-11.1) (from Ch. 122, par. 21-11.1)
18        Sec.    21-11.1.      Certificates     for     equivalent
19    qualifications. An applicant who holds or is eligible to hold
20    a  teacher's certificate or license under the laws of another
21    state or territory of the United  States  may  be  granted  a
22    corresponding   teacher's  certificate  in  Illinois  on  the
23    written authorization of the State Board of Education and the
24    State  Teacher  Certification  Board   upon   the   following
25    conditions:
26             (1)  That the applicant is at least 19 years of age,
27        is  of  good  character, of good health, and a citizen of
28        the United States or legally present and  authorized  for
29        employment; and
30             (2)  That  the  requirements for a similar teacher's
31        certificate in the particular state or territory were, at
32        the date of issuance of  the  certificate,  substantially
33        equal  to  the  requirements  in  force  at  the time the
 
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 1        application is made for the certificate in this State.
 2        After January 1, 1988,  in  addition  to  satisfying  the
 3    foregoing  conditions  and  requirements,  an applicant for a
 4    corresponding teaching certificate in Illinois also shall  be
 5    required   to   pass  the  examinations  required  under  the
 6    provisions of Section 21-1a as directed by the State Board of
 7    Education.
 8        In determining good character  under  this  Section,  any
 9    felony   conviction  of  the  applicant  may  be  taken  into
10    consideration, but the conviction shall not operate as a  bar
11    to registration.
12        The  State  Board  of  Education in consultation with the
13    State Teacher Certification Board shall prescribe  rules  and
14    regulations  establishing  the  similarity of certificates in
15    other  states  and  the   standards   for   determining   the
16    equivalence of requirements.
17    (Source: P.A. 90-548, eff. 1-1-98.)