New Law Surround Adjunct Teacher Requirements Causes Some Confusion

There’s been some controversy and confusion around a law passed over the Summer dealing with adjunct teacher qualifications.

Senate Bill 1119 allows adjunct teachers to become full-time educators, it does not loosen or change the teaching requirements.

"All that SB 1119 does is allow local districts to decide how many hours adjuncts are allowed to teach. It did not in any way shape or form modify the requirements to become an adjunct teacher. Those requirements- as they have been since 1991- are for someone to be exceptional in their field. We did not touch or change those requirements that have been on the books for over 30 years," said Kyle Rep. Hilbert, one of the sponsors of the bill passed in July.

This law was essentially a change to a previous law passed during an executive session in 1991 that created adjunct teaching. The law has always stated that local districts can decide which teachers qualify to become adjunct teachers. The State Board of Education tells us "There are currently 370 full-time, non-certified adjuncts."

“If somebody doesn't have a Bachelor of Science and they're teaching a class, it's gonna be because they're exceptional in their field. They're gonna have 20,30, 40 years of relevant experience that they're bringing to the class they're teaching," said Rep. Hilbert.

The previous law in place put a cap on the hours adjunct teachers were allowed in the classroom. That cap was at 270 hours, or 3 hours per day. This law has no cap, therefore allowing each district to determine how many hours adjunct teachers are allowed in the classroom.

“We just wanted to give more flexibility to districts- if you have a retired physician who wants to come to teach some science courses- to allow them to teach the entire day if that's an option," said Rep. Hilbert.

“The fact of the matter is- no school district is gonna hire some 19-year-old to come teach a class-. This adjunct law has been on the books for over 30 years- you would think if that was happening, we would have heard about it in the last 31 years," said Rep. Hilbert.

We reached out to Oklahoma City Public Schools to see what their requirements were to be adjunct teachers in the district. They provided this statement:

"The ideal scenario would involve having a certified teacher, with a degree in education in every classroom across the district. However, OKCPS, like many other school districts in Oklahoma and around the country, is experiencing a limited pool of potential teachers. OKCPS is grateful for the flexibility that allows us to hire emergency-certified and adjunct teachers. In addition to adjunct teachers, we also have other initiatives in place to address the teacher shortage.

For example, the OKCPS Foundation has several teacher pipeline programs. Among them is an “OKCPS Student to Teacher” Pipeline in which the Foundation pays for recent qualifying OKCPS graduates to obtain a degree in education while working as a paraprofessional for the district. This program also pays for bilingual and diverse paraprofessionals to attend college to obtain a degree and certification in education. The graduates of these pipeline programs commit to teaching in OKCPS for at least three years after they earn their teaching degree.

OKCPS will hire adjunct teachers with recognized expertise. “Recognized expertise” will be determined using the following criteria:

A level of mastery has been demonstrated that exhibits professional training, education, preparation, etc., in the field that the individual will teach. The level of expertise may be determined by personal observations of performances, recommendations from community members, and/or references; or

Minimum of two years of demonstrated full-time work experience in an instructional or supervisory role, with an audience consisting primarily of school-age children (e.g., summer camp, youth groups, parks, and recreation, etc.); Enrolled in a bachelor’s degree completion program and within 36 hours of completion of a bachelor’s degree; or

Successful experience as a classroom teacher, but otherwise ineligible for emergency certification.”

We reached out to the Oklahoma Education Association for their thoughts on the law. President Katherine Bishop told us in a statement:

"Oklahoma children deserve a highly qualified and trained education professional in each classroom.

Continuing to discredit our profession and the training it requires to meet all the needs of a student will not solve the educator shortage crisis. These types of solutions are short-term answers to long-term problems.”

And the solutions to these problems are known, we just need the will to do them. We must attract the most qualified educators possible through a culture of respect, investment in competitive pay and resources to support the crucial work of educating the children of Oklahoma."

You can read the full bill HERE

Read the FAQ on adjunct teachers from OSDE HERE: