Professional Growth Plan and License Renewal Report

Professional Growth Plan and License Renewal Report
Frequently Asked Questions

		Question and Answer

1	Q	Who is eligible to use the Professional Growth Plan for license renewal?
	A	If you are licensed under Rules 2002, you must always submit a Professional Growth Plan License Renewal Report for evaluation. Even if you have six (6) credit hours and/or the equivalent of ninety (90) CRU’s, your professional growth activities must equal 90 points for license renewal. For individuals with renewable license issued under prior rules, the professional growth plan is now an additional option for license renewal. IMPORTANT NOTE: For individuals licensed under Rules 46-47 or who hold licenses under a previous Bulletin, once you elect to submit a Professional Growth Plan, you MUST CONTINUE to submit a licensing renewal report for ALL subsequent license renewals.

2	Q	I have earned enough credit hours and/or CRU’s to renew my Rules 46-47 license. Will completing a Professional Growth Plan allow me to count those toward another five-year renewal?
	A	If you go over the 90-point requirement in any five-year period, you will not be allowed partial credit toward a subsequent five-year renewal. In this case, completing the Professional Growth Plan would not give additional license renewal credit.

3	Q	Can professional growth experiences be used to renew an inactive license?
	A	Professional growth experiences can be used to renew an inactive license as long as ALL participation in those experiences occurred during the five years immediately preceding renewal of the license.

4	Q	Can I renew all of my licenses with one licensing report?
	A	A renewal report for an instructional license will enable you to renew instructional licenses ONLY. Completion of the administrator’s license renewal report, however, will enable the holder of multiple licenses to renew all of those licenses with a single report.

5	Q	Can I use the same report to renew licenses with different expiration dates?
	A	As long as professional growth experiences have occurred within either the five-year period the license is active or within the five years immediately preceding the renewal of an inactive license, a single report can be used to renew licenses with different expiration dates.

6	Q	What if I am unable to complete enough professional growth activities to earn 90 points within the appropriate five-year period? Will I be able to obtain credit for those experiences?
	A	Because you must demonstrate that you have earned 90 professional growth experience points during the five-year period your license is active (or prior to the renewal of an inactive license), you will not be able to "bank" points toward a future renewal. However, conversations with experienced teachers indicate most can identify well over 90 points of creditable experiences within the time period allowed for completion.

7	Q	How are my goals determined?
	A	The educator chooses up to three goals that should be aligned with the PL-221 plans, Indiana Academic Standards and the appropriate Indiana Professional Standards for the individual. The goals should focus on specific professional development objectives.

8	Q	What should I do if I teach in different buildings at different levels in different subject areas?
	A	Consider all of the Developmental and Content Standards relevant to your situation, and establish your goals to represent your unique and diverse circumstances.

9	Q	Can I earn professional growth experience points for serving on my school district’s teacher contract negotiating team?
	A	"Negotiating a Contract" is not an approved option for earning professional growth experience points. Keep in mind that the experiences highlighted in your Professional Growth Plan must support the attainment of at least one of your goals. In addition, those experiences "must enhance your work in the profession or contribute to your area of specialization, and [be] documented as standards-based."

10	Q	When can I submit my Professional Growth Plan report for evaluation?
	A	Professional Growth Plan reports may be submitted NO EARLIER than two (2) years prior to the expiration of the license(s) being renewed; however, you are encouraged to submit your report NO LATER than 120 days prior to the expiration date of your license(s).

11	Q	What happens if the Professional Standards Board receives my report later than the 120 days prior to the expiration date on my license(s)?
	A	The educator is responsible for timely submission of license renewal reports; therefore, any reports received with less than 120 days for processing and evaluation are not guaranteed the issuance of an evaluation approval or denial letter prior to the expiration of the license(s). The Professional Standards Board recommends alerting your superintendent or human resources staff to the possibility that there will be a delay in renewing your license(s).

12	Q	What happens if I become employed by another school district, I am no longer teaching, or my employment situation changes in any other way?
	A	The Professional Growth Plan belongs to the individual and can be submitted regardless of one’s employment situation for the purpose of renewing both active and/or inactive licenses.

13	Q	What feedback will I receive about my Professional Growth Plan licensing renewal report?
	A	If you have met the appropriate established criteria for renewal, you will receive an approval letter indicating successful completion of the report. In addition, the letter will reflect a deadline (or expiration date) for submitting application materials needed to renew your license(s). Please note, since your report will not be returned, you should retain a copy of the entire submission for your files.

14	Q	What if I receive a denial letter?
	A	You will have a specific time period, as indicated on the denial letter, for addressing any deficiencies. If you are unable to clear deficiencies prior to the date indicated on your denial letter, you will be required to submit a new Professional Growth Plan licensing renewal report for evaluation.

15	Q	How do I obtain my renewed license(s)?
	A	Once you have received an approval letter indicating successful completion of the license renewal report, you will need to follow the application instructions on the renewal checklist. Instead of submitting transcripts and/or obtaining a licensing advisor’s recommendation for renewal, you will submit your approval letter along with the other application materials (including appropriate fee). IMPORTANT: Application must be made PRIOR to the expiration date on the approval letter. Anyone submitting an application after the date indicated on the letter will be required to submit a new Professional Growth Plan.