Requires State Board of Education to reduce clinical practice requirements for certain teacher candidates.

A2377

ASSEMBLY, No. 2377

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman WILLIAM F. MOEN, JR.

District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)

Assemblywoman SHANIQUE SPEIGHT

District 29 (Essex and Hudson)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Stanley, Assemblywomen Carter and
Reynolds-Jackson

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires State Board of Education to reduce clinical
practice requirements for certain teacher candidates.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
concerning teacher certification and supplementing
chapter 26 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.��� a.�������� As used in P.L.���
, c.��� (C.����� ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):

���� "Certificate of
eligibility with advanced standing" means a certificate with lifetime
validity issued by the State Board of Examiners to candidates who meet degree,
academic, and test requirements for teacher certification and complete an educator
preparation program.

���� �Clinical practice� means a
field-based experience or internship in a kindergarten through grade 12
environment where a teacher candidate demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and
dispositions necessary to be an effective educator.

���� b.��� Notwithstanding any law,
rule, or regulation to the contrary, the State Board of Education shall reduce
the two semester and 175-hour clinical practice requirements for a candidate
for a certificate of eligibility with advanced standing.

���� c.���� The Commissioner of
Education shall develop recommendations for reducing the clinical practice
requirements pursuant to subsection b. of this section and shall submit the
recommendations to the State Board of Education. �In developing the
recommendations, the commissioner shall consult with representatives of the
education community including, but not limited to, the New Jersey Education
Association, the New Jersey School Boards Association, the New Jersey
Association of School Administrators, and the New Jersey Principals and
Supervisors Association.

���� 2.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall first apply to the first full academic year
following the date of enactment.� �

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires the State
Board of Education to reduce certain clinical practice requirements for a
teacher candidate to be eligible for a certificate of eligibility with advanced
standing.

���� A �certificate of eligibility
with advanced standing� is defined as a certificate with lifetime validity
issued by the State Board of Examiners to candidates who meet degree, academic,
and test requirements for teacher certification and complete an educator
preparation program.� The bill defines �clinical practice� as a field-based
experience or internship in a kindergarten through grade 12 environment where a
teacher candidate demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and dispositions
necessary to be an effective educator.

����
Under
current State Board of Education regulations, a teacher candidate seeking a
certificate of eligibility with advanced standing is required to complete
clinical practice that (1) occurs during at least two semesters; and (2) includes
the completion of at least 175 hours prior to one full-time semester, of which
at least 100 of the 175 hours are to be completed in the semester immediately
preceding the semester of full-time clinical practice.

���� �
This bill authorizes the State Board of Education to reduce these clinical
practice requirements.�
This bill requires the Commissioner of Education
to develop recommendations for reducing the clinical practice requirements and those
recommendations are required to be submitted to the State board. �In developing
the recommendations, the commissioner is required to consult with
representatives of the education community including, but not limited to, the
New Jersey Education Association, the New Jersey School Boards Association, the
New Jersey Association of School Administrators, and the New Jersey Principals
and Supervisors Association.

���� It
is the intent of this bill to reduce the 175 hours of clinical practice in
order for a teacher candidate to fulfill the clinical practice requirements in
only one semester.� Reducing the amount of clinical practice hours will help
eliminate the burden of a costly and redundant second semester of clinical
practice.
�