2005 California Education Code Sections 44380-44386 Article 11. Alternative Certification

44380.  (a) The Legislature finds and declares that the teaching
profession must be able to recruit talented individuals, in addition
to college students, from a variety of sources to address geographic
and subject area shortages.  Many persons changing careers and early
retirees from industry and the military are interested in the
challenge of teaching.
   (b) The Legislature further finds that, in California, there is a
serious shortage of qualified teachers in the subjects of
mathematics, science, and technology, of teachers who work with
limited-English-proficient pupils, and of minority teachers.
   (c)  Therefore, in enacting this article, the Legislature intends
to encourage public school districts, county offices of education,
and colleges and universities to design concentrated programs leading
to a permanent credential for people with work experience and others
who already have a bachelor's degree.
44381.  As used in this article, "alternative certification program"
is a program operated by a school district, county office of
education, college or university, or other public education entity,
individually or in collaboration with other public education entities
in the region to be served, and designed to provide a concentrated
program leading to a permanent teaching credential.
44382.  Alternative certification programs shall address geographic
and subject matter shortage areas, and shall be targeted toward
people with work experience and others who already have a bachelor's
degree in the field in which they plan to teach.
44383.  School districts or county offices of education operating,
or that propose to operate, an alternative certification program
pursuant to this article, may apply to the Commission on Teacher
Credentialing for incentive grant funding that has been appropriated
for the purposes of this article.
44384.  An alternative certification program that receives grant
funding pursuant to this article shall be operated pursuant to either
Article 7.5 (commencing with Section 44325) of this chapter or
Article 3 (commencing with Section 44450) of Chapter 3, or both.  The
commission shall encourage, and may provide funding to, programs
that include innovative training, assessment, or support models and
strategies that have the potential of improving the quality of the
teaching force.  The commission shall encourage collaboration among
school districts in funding alternative certification programs.
44385.  The commission, with the assistance of representatives of
classroom teachers, school administrators, parents, university and
college educators, and others, as appropriate, shall establish
criteria for selecting grant applicants to be funded.  The criteria
shall be limited to the following:
   (a) The geographic distribution.
   (b) The demonstrated need.
   (c) The number of participants to be served.
   (d) The quality of the curriculum, instruction, support, and
assessment.
   (e) The cost-effectiveness.
44386.  (a) From funds appropriated for the purposes of this
article, the Commission on Teacher Credentialing shall award
incentive grants to qualifying school districts or county offices of
education.  Each school district or county office of education that
receives a grant shall provide matching funds from any available
source in an amount equal to 50 percent of the cost of the
alternative certification program.  Grants shall be awarded by the
commission for the remaining 50 percent of the cost of the
alternative certification program, but in no event shall the grant
amount awarded to any school district or county office of education
exceed two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) per intern per
year, except that the commission may require a lesser local
contribution, or provide a larger grant per intern per year, in
hardship cases.
   (b) Participants in a district intern program conducted pursuant
to Article 7.5 (commencing with Section 44325) or in an intern
program conducted pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with Section
44450) of Chapter 3, who have received a preliminary credential and
who are receiving funding for participating in an induction program
pursuant to Article 4.5 (commencing with Section 44279.1) are not
eligible for funding under this section.
   (c) As determined by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing,
funds appropriated in the annual Budget Act for the alternative
certification program may also be made available for expenditure on
the Pre-Internship Teaching Program authorized pursuant to Article
5.6 (commencing with Section 44305).