INFORMATIONAL

  FEE SCHEDULE FOR LICENSURE.  During the Board of Education
  meeting on June 27, 1996, approval was granted to implement
  a new fee structure in the Teacher Education and Licensure
  Office, effective September 1, 1996.
  
  The 1994 Appropriations Act requested that the
  Superintendent of Public Instruction study the feasibility
  of establishing a fee schedule to fund the operation of the
  teacher education and licensure office.  In recent years,
  many state departments of education have studied the
  possibility of requiring fees to support or partially fund
  the operation of their licensure units.  A survey conducted
  in 1995 revealed that 44 states require a fee for full or
  partial support of the licensure unit.
  
  In October 1995 when the Board of Education received a
  revised fee schedule for review, the Board requested the
  Governor and the General Assembly to provide funding for the
  teacher education and licensure office.  The request was
  submitted by the Superintendent of Public Instruction to the
  Governor for budget consideration; however, funding was not
  approved during the 1996 General Assembly session. 
  Consequently, the request for a new fee schedule was
  submitted and approved by the Board of Education.
  
  The following fee schedule will become effective September
  1, 1996.  Requests for the following actions must be
  accompanied by a money order, certified check, or cashier's
  check made payable to the Virginia Department of Education.
  
  
  
  
  SUPTS. MEMO. NO. 137
  Page 2
  August 2, 1996
  
  
  
  
          Initial License
                    In-state                      $    50
                    Out-of-state                       75
  
          Superintendent License
                    In-state                      $   100
                    Out-of-state                      150
  
          Renewal*                                $    25
          
  Evaluation/Review for Additional Endorsement*   $    25
          
  Other Actions on Licenses* (name change,        $    25
  add a degree, or duplicate license)                            
  
  *  A cap of $50 will be assessed for each request for
       multiple actions on a license.
  
  
  A cap of $50 will be assessed for each request for multiple
  actions on a license. For example, an individual may request
  renewal, name change, additional degree, and an additional
  endorsement in a single request and pay $50 instead of $25
  per action.   
  
  The fee for an initial license will be determined by the
  mailing address stated on the application form.  Copies of
  the revised application form reflecting the revision in the
  fee schedule will be sent to the licensure contact persons
  in each school division in the near future. 
  
  An individual completing an approved teacher preparation
  program in Virginia in the summer of 1996 will not be
  subject to the new fee schedule provided that his/her
  application and fee are received in the teacher education
  and licensure office prior to December 31, 1996.
  
  
  PROFESSIONAL TEACHER'S ASSESSMENT FOR LICENSURE.  The Board
  of Education's approval to make the transition from the
  National Teacher Examinations to the Praxis Series of
  Professional Assessments for Beginning Teachers was
  announced in Superintendent's Informational Memorandum
  Number 156 dated November 27, 1995.  Effective July 1, 1996,
  individuals must meet Virginia's scores for Praxis I and an
  appropriate Specialty Area test.  
  
  SUPTS. MEMO. NO. 137
  Page 3
  August 2, 1996
  
  
  Individuals currently enrolled in a Virginia approved
  teacher preparation program who took and passed all three
  Core Battery tests of the National Teacher Examinations by
  the end of July 1996, must submit their credentials for the
  issuance of their license no 
  
  later than July 1, 1998.  Passing scores on all three Core
  Battery tests of the National Teacher Examinations will also
  be accepted for individuals who took the tests prior to the
  end of July 1996, are eligible for a license, and make
  application prior to December 31, 1996.   
  
  The experience exemption for the professional teacher's
  assessment will continue. Individuals who have completed a
  minimum of two years of full-time, successful teaching
  experience in an accredited public or nonpublic school
  (kindergarten through grade twelve) will be exempted from
  the assessment requirement.  The teaching experience must
  have been completed prior to applying for an initial
  Virginia license.
  
  Please do not hesitate to contact Thomas A. Elliott,
  Division Chief for Compliance, at (804) 371-2522 or Patty S.
  Pitts, Manager for Professional Licensure, at (804) 225-2022
  if you have any questions regarding the implementation of
  the new fee schedule and the new Professional Teacher's
  Assessment for licensure.
  
  
  RTL:psp