Polaris Education Partners

Highlights from the August 17, 2026 Meeting

Agenda

The Advisory Board on Teacher Education and Licensure (ABTEL) convened on August 17, 2026, at the James Monroe Building in Richmond. The meeting included updates from the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) on legislation enacted during the 2026 General Assembly session, changes to division superintendent licensure requirements, the transition to a new paraprofessional assessment, implementation of the legislatively mandated Alternative Route to Licensure Pathway Work Group, and an updated Middle School Social Studies Praxis assessment. The agenda also began ABTEL’s 2026-27 cycle, with new members introduced and officers and committee chairs selected.

ABTEL approved recommended passing scores for the new ParaPathways assessment and Middle School Social Studies Praxis, selected two representatives for the Alternative Route to Licensure Pathway Work Group, and deferred action on proposed changes related to division superintendent licensure.

Opening Business and Leadership

Approximately one-third of the members present were new to ABTEL for the 2026-27 year. Dr. Jessica Jones was selected to continue as Chair. Shelby Elliott was selected to chair the Licensure Committee, and Eric Moffa was selected to chair the Teacher Education Committee.

The Board also approved the April 20 meeting minutes with corrections, including correction of a member’s name and clarification that the August 17 meeting was being held in person rather than virtually. No public comment was received in advance or offered at the meeting.

Key Presentations and Updates

  • 2026 General Assembly Legislative Update: VDOE reviewed six legislative changes from the 2026 General Assembly session with direct implications for educator licensure, preparation, compensation, or workforce policy: HB 253, HB 255, HB 332/SB 203, HB 647, HB 1165, and SB 450. VDOE also emphasized that enactment of legislation does not necessarily mean every change can be implemented immediately. Dr. Bryan Jackson shared that some measures require amendments to Board of Education regulations and must proceed through Virginia’s regulatory process before becoming fully operational.
    • Interstate Teacher Mobility Compact – HB 253:
      • Virginia joins 14 other states that are officially part of the Compact.
      • Virginia also joined the interstate compact for school psychologists. VDOE noted that requirements for school psychologists can vary significantly among states and that Virginia continues to experience shortages in this area.
      • The compact is intended to improve professional mobility among participating states.
      • Dr. Bryan Jackson is currently serving as Virginia’s representative to both compacts.
    • Three-Year CTE/Dual Enrollment License – HB 332/SB 203:
      • The General Assembly created a new three-year renewable license intended in part to provide greater staffing flexibility for College Partnership Laboratory Schools and address CTE and dual-enrollment staffing needs.
      • The license allows eligible individuals to teach CTE courses or dual-enrollment courses that count toward undergraduate credit. To qualify, an individual must be employed as an instructor at a regionally accredited institution of higher education and teach in the same subject area in which the individual seeks to teach public school students. School boards employing an individual through this pathway must provide training in instruction and assessment during the teacher’s first year.
      • VDOE explained that the legislation is particularly helpful for bringing individuals with significant subject-matter or industry expertise into classrooms when they have not completed a traditional teacher preparation pathway. Dr. Bryan Jackson shared that regulatory changes are still necessary for full implementation.
    • CTE Salary Scale Credit for Occupational Experience – HB 647
      • HB 647 requires the Board of Education to amend regulations governing allowable credit for teaching experience. The legislation applies to CTE teachers whose licensure requires occupational experience beyond the apprenticeship level and expands the ability to recognize relevant industry experience when determining salary placement.
      • Qualifying CTE teachers may receive one year of teaching-experience credit for every two years of occupational experience or, where applicable, one year of credit for each year of occupational experience. The Board must promulgate implementing regulations within 280 days of enactment, so ABTEL will likely see this again in the form of a NOIRA.
    • Division Superintendent Licensure – HB 1165
      • VDOE provided a more detailed presentation on HB 1165, which requires amendments to 8VAC20-23-630, the regulation governing qualifications for division superintendents.
      • The legislation requires candidates under all four superintendent licensure options to attest to good character and demonstrated ability as an educational administrator. VDOE noted that the current application already contains eight background questions addressing legal, ethical, licensure, abuse/neglect, and misconduct matters, along with documentation of professional experience. ABTEL was asked to consider whether additional language or documentation should be required to verify good character.
      • The legislation also substantially changes Option IV. Candidates must continue to hold a master’s degree or equivalent and have at least three years of successful full-time senior leadership experience, but they must now also have five years of successful educational experience, including at least two years of full-time preK-12 teaching and two years in administration and supervision. A candidate who does not meet the educational-experience requirement may seek a waiver from the Board of Education after review of the individual’s qualifications.
      • In addition, Option IV will now be available only when the candidate is recommended by a school board governing a division with fewer than 2,000 students.
      • Current Option IV superintendents are grandfathered under the prior requirements as long as they maintain continuous employment as a division superintendent in Virginia. VDOE reported during the meeting that four current Virginia superintendents were serving under Option IV.
      • Discussion focused particularly on how “good character” should be documented. One suggestion was to seek input from the superintendent association and consider whether financial responsibility should be addressed given the substantial financial authority exercised by division superintendents.
      • ABTEL ultimately deferred action on the proposed division superintendent licensure changes to allow additional consideration.
  • Assessment Transition for Paraprofessionals: VDOE presented the transition from ETS’s existing ParaPro (1755) assessment to the new ParaPathways assessment.
    • VDOE stressed that ParaPathways is not a teacher licensure assessment. Paraprofessionals are employed and credentialed by school divisions, not licensed by the Board of Education. The assessment is particularly relevant to federal qualification requirements applicable to paraprofessionals in Title I settings. School divisions remain responsible for hiring, training, verifying credentials, and ensuring applicable federal requirements are met.
    • ParaPathways is designed to modernize ParaPro by providing a more streamlined assessment of reading, writing, and mathematics with greater emphasis on classroom applications, digital literacy, and practical instructional support.
    • A significant addition is ParaPathways Bridge. Eligible candidates who narrowly miss a passing score may complete targeted learning modules to demonstrate competency rather than retaking the entire assessment.
    • ETS recommended the following qualifying scores:
      • Reading and Writing (5758): 332
      • Mathematics: 334
    • ABTEL approved the ETS-recommended qualifying scores of 332 for Reading and Writing and 334 for Mathematics. VDOE indicated its intent to take the recommendation to the Board of Education in September 2026 and discussed a likely January 1, 2027 implementation date.
    • The presentation also provided workforce context. Virginia’s paraprofessional workforce has grown from approximately 22,989 positions in 2022-23 to approximately 25,959 in 2025-26. At the same time, the paraprofessional vacancy rate declined from 6.8% to 3.9%.
  • Alternative Route to Licensure Pathway Work Group: VDOE provided details about the new work group established pursuant to Chapter 891. The General Assembly directed VDOE to convene a stakeholder group to conduct a comprehensive review of Virginia’s alternative pathways to teacher licensure and make recommendations for future policy.
    • The review is intentionally broad and will include reviews of Local Eligibility Licensure; Career Switcher programs; Teach For America; iTeach Virginia; nontraditional educator preparation programs offered by public institutions of higher education, school divisions, or certified providers; long-term substitutes serving as teachers of record; and any other alternate route used to meet Virginia’s statutory licensure requirements.
    • The legislation also prescribes broad stakeholder representation, including education associations; educator preparation faculty with expertise in teacher education, educational leadership, special education, and English learner instruction; community colleges and school division-led programs; teachers who have completed or are participating in alternative pathways; ABTEL; the Virginia Longitudinal Data System; an English learner advocacy organization; and representatives of the House and Senate education committees.
    • VDOE sought ABTEL representatives with expertise in licensure policy and regulation, standards setting, policy development, and workforce trend analysis. Their responsibilities will include helping ensure alignment with licensure regulations, supporting policy recommendations, and interpreting licensure trends and gaps.
    • The work group is expected to meet quarterly. Its first meeting is scheduled virtually for September 17, 2026, at 3:30 p.m. An interim report is due to the General Assembly on October 1, 2026, with a final report due October 1, 2027.
    • Jessica Jones and Shelby Elliott were selected as ABTEL’s representatives to the work group.
  • Middle School Social Studies Praxis Assessment: An additional voting item was added to the agenda to address ETS’s updated Middle School Social Studies Praxis assessment.
    • ETS is retiring Middle School Social Studies Praxis 5089 and replacing it with Praxis 5589. The new assessment increases the number of multiple-choice questions from 90 to 140 and testing time from 120 to 150 minutes. Content categories have been reorganized, and the new assessment uses selected-response questions exclusively, eliminating the three constructed-response questions included in 5089.
    • ETS’s multi-state standard-setting study produced a recommended passing score of 149, corresponding to 71 of 100 raw-score points.
    • VDOE noted that the previous assessment’s passing score of 160 should not be directly compared with the new 149 score because the assessments differ in structure and content. ETS also indicated that Praxis 5089 would remain available temporarily while remaining states complete their approval processes, likely through late 2026. Candidates already registered for the existing assessment would remain eligible to take it during the transition.
    • ABTEL approved the recommended passing score of 149 for Praxis 5589, effective January 1, 2027.

Action Items

ABTEL took the following actions:

  1. Approved ETS’s recommended ParaPathways qualifying scores of 332 for Reading and Writing and 334 for Mathematics.
  2. Approved a passing score of 149 for Middle School Social Studies Praxis 5589, effective January 1, 2027.
  3. Selected Jessica Jones and Shelby Elliott to represent ABTEL on the Alternative Route to Licensure Pathway Work Group.
  4. Deferred action on the division superintendent licensure item to allow additional consideration of the proposed changes and documentation related to HB 1165.

Liaison Reports

No representatives from SCHEV or the Virginia Community College System were in attendance to share updates.

Committee Work

ABTEL’s Licensure and Teacher Education standing committees were scheduled to begin their 2026-27 work by identifying recommended areas of focus for the year. Shelby Elliott will chair the Licensure Committee, and Eric Moffa will chair the Teacher Education Committee.

The next ABTEL meeting is scheduled for Monday, September 14, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. at the James Monroe Building in Richmond.