The Oklahoma State Senate Education committee voted 8 to 1 to pass Senate Bill 186 which addresses the state’s ongoing certified teacher shortage.
Sen. Mark Mann (D-Oklahoma City) drafted the bill, and it has received committee approval.
According to a state Senate press release, the “Teacher Certification Emergency to Permanency Revolving Fund” would help teachers who have provisional standing complete their full certification.
According to the bill summary, “The measure directs grants to be awarded annually to up to 1,000 applicants on a first-come, first-served basis.” The awarding of these grants would be “subject to availability of funding.”
As it is written, the Office of Educational Quality and Accountability (OEQA) would establish the grant program. This state office was established in 2012 as a combination of the Oklahoma Commission for Teacher Preparation and the Office of Accountability.
OEQA is involved in several education initiatives from the tests teachers take to complete their certification to recording district profiles and the state report card.
Addressing the Oklahoma Teacher Shortage
The Educator Preparation section of the OEQA website says they use a “peer-review approach” that focuses on “the practical demonstrations of teacher candidates within classroom settings.”
“The reality is that we have more than 4,000 people in our state who’ve changed careers to help meet the ongoing, critical need for teachers. SB 186 will provide grants for additional training and certification,” said Sen. Mann in the press release.
In October 2024, KFOR reported 3,783 educators were requesting new emergency certifications. Roughly 740 are teachers with prior certificates and 1,017 are wanting to renew their emergency certificate.
Sen. Mann said “This will help address the shortage while giving emergency certified educators the tools they need to succeed and drive academic growth in our schools.”
The next step for this bill is to pass the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Related Stories:
- Tulsa launches $50K home down-payment program for teachers
- US has a teacher shortage. HBCUs are helping to change that
