DEGREE CHANGE INFORMATION
- Tennessee Rules and Regulations degree change for pay purposes: (Rule 0520-01-02-.02, continued) July, 2021 (Revised)
- (5) If a local school board adopts a salary schedule based in part on training, the following shall apply:
- (a) For college or university course work completed after the start of the current school year but before September 1, the salary rating shall be adjusted as of September 1 of the current school year. The employee must notify the LEA of the employee’s intent to complete course work prior to Aug. 31, and the LEA must file documentation of changes to the employee’s salary rating with the Department on or before October 15 of the current school year.
- (b) For college or university course work completed after August 31, but before January 1 of the current school year, the salary rating shall be adjusted as of January 1 of the current school year. The employee must notify the LEA of the employee’s intent to complete course work prior to Jan. 1. The LEA must file documentation of changes to the employee’s salary rating with the Department on, or before, February 15 of the current school year.
- **If you are in the process of completing coursework or have completed coursework for a higher degree, you must complete the required District Degree Change Notification Form. to let us know that you have completed or are in the process of completing coursework to advance your degree at your earliest opportunity.**
- Once your degree is conferred, start a transaction in TNCompass to add the degree. See below for instructions from TN.gov/education:
- How to add a degree to current account in TNCompass: Educators may add a degree from a regionally accredited institution to their license. To add a degree to a license, an educator must:
- complete a transaction in TNCompass; and
- ensure that the department has official transcripts of all credits earned through an institution of higher education. The transcript must be submitted by the institution of higher learning to
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. through an approved clearinghouse, or mailed to 710 James Robertson Parkway, 9th Floor, Nashville, TN 37243.
- How to add a degree to current account in TNCompass: Educators may add a degree from a regionally accredited institution to their license. To add a degree to a license, an educator must:
JOB-EMBEDDED ALTERNATIVE TEACHING LICENSURE
- Interested in teaching, but do not have a license? By enrolling in a job-embedded program with a college or university that we partner with, you could be teaching in the classroom while completing your coursework. Sumner County Schools colleges/university partners: Austin Peay State University, Cumberland University, Lipscomb University, Middle Tennessee State University, Tennessee State University, Tennessee Tech University, Trevecca Nazarene University, Union University, University of Tennessee Knoxville, University of Tennessee Martin and Welch College.
- For more information about the Job Embedded Process, visit Job Embedded Information Sheet (pdf).
LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS
- **IMPORTANT NOTICE**
- Applicants applying for a certified position in Sumner County Schools MUST hold a valid TN teaching license with proper endorsement. (TCA 49-5-101)
- Beginning August 1, 2023, candidates seeking initial licensure, or an endorsement, advancement, or renewal of existing licensure, to teach students in K-3 or as an instructional leader will be required to either:
- Provide a certificate documenting the candidate's passage of a Tennessee reading instruction test developed or identified by the department and approved by the state board that tests the candidate's knowledge of foundational literacy skills instruction. The department will recommend to the state board for approval, the score that constitutes passage of the test. Also, the department will provide the test at no cost to the candidate or educator preparation provider; or
- Provide evidence documenting the candidate's completion of a foundational literacy skills instruction course within the previous year.
- See the link below in the next section to read the latest information on reading requirements and other important updates.
LICENSURE NEWS
- New Reading Requirement for Licensure
- New Mathematics 6-10 Endorsement
- Licensure Reactivation with an Out-of-State Professional License
- New Out-of-State Professional-Level Licensure Guidance
- Experience Requirements for Licensure Advancement
LICENSURE INFORMATION AND LINKS
TEACHING LICENSING