Ohio+Resident+Educator+Transition+Program++Fact+Sheet+One

**Fact Sheet 1**
In January 2009, Gov. Ted Strickland introduced a new licensure system for teachers in Ohio. This system includes a Resident Educator License for beginning teachers. Recognizing that beginning teachers need additional support and training, the four-year teacher residency program will provide Ohio’s newest educators with coaching, mentoring and guidance that is critical to improving their skills and knowledge and student achievement. Because the new license will not be issued before January 2011, Ohio must develop a plan that will allow teachers who hold a two-year provisional license to advance to a five-year professional license during the interim period of July 1, 2009, to Jan. 1, 2011. To ensure that beginning teachers will have a pathway to transition from a provisional teaching license to a professional teaching license, the Ohio Department of Education and Ohio Board of Regents have developed a Resident Educator Transition Program. The Resident Educator Transition Program will:  Offer beginning teachers a yearlong program of mentoring and support that is aligned to Ohio’s Standards for the Teaching Profession;  Assess the beginning teachers’ acquisition of knowledge and skills through the use of formative assessments;  Require mentor selection based on ODE criteria and mentor participation in ODE- approved training programs; and  Provide tools to document beginning teacher growth through evidence. To be eligible to participate in the 2009-2010 Resident Educator Transition Program, beginning teachers must:  Hold a valid Provisional, Career Technical Route B Provisional or Interim License;  Teach at least two classes or .25 FTE in their area of licensure;  Be employed by an ODE-chartered educational entity;  Work 120 days as determined by the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio; and  Be assigned an ODE-certified, trained mentor by their employer. Advancement to a five-year professional license will require evidence of:  Successful completion of a year-long program of mentoring and support;  Growth of skills and knowledge (Ohio’s Standards for the Teaching Profession) as measured through formative assessments; and  Signatures of the beginning teacher, mentor and superintendent on the professional license application form. Further clarification about application requirements for transitioning from a provisional to a five-year professional license will be available soon.