International Reading Association “Clock Hours” and the 50 United States

The International Reading Association provides transcripts of “clock hours” that are approved by most states for continuing education credit. Transcripts can be used by teachers in these states as verification of continuing education needed for license renewal. Calculation of clock hours is based on “seat time” or “instructional time” during which an educator is engaged in learning. Breaks and lunches do not count toward clock hours.

This document describes professional development and license renewal requirements in each U.S. state, and is current as of December 2004. IRA is an approved provider of clock hour transcripts, except where explicitly noted. The information below is intended only as a summary. Please check with your district for approval of any clock hour program prior to undertaking it

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

State	Requirements
Alabama	Three years of satisfactory full-time teaching experience and 50 clock hours of professional development over five years are required.
Alaska	For certificate renewal, six semester credits are required; nonacademic credits can be substituted for three of the six. The State Department of Education will credit teachers with one nonacademic credit per 15 clock hours. Therefore, IRA transcripts of clock hours recording up to a total of 45 hours can be used toward certificate renewal.
Arizona	Requires 180 clock hours of professional development activities during the valid six year period listed on teaching certificate. Note: A maximum of 30-clock hours per year may be earned by attendance at professional conferences and workshops. The required documentation shall be a conference agenda and a statement or certificate from the sponsoring organization noting the clock hours earned.
Arkansas	In order for teachers to be able to renew a license, they must have participated in a continuing education and professional development program based on their school improvement plans, performance evaluation results and student achievement scores. Thirty approved clock hours of annual professional development are required over the duration of a five-year teaching license.
California	An individual program of professional growth shall consist of a minimum of 150 clock hours (over five years) of participation in activities that are aligned with the California Standards for the Teaching Profession that contribute to competence, performance or effectiveness in the profession of education and the teacher’s classroom assignments.
Colorado	Ninety clock hours and/or six semester hours of university credit of professional development are required every five years.
Connecticut***	Ninety clock hours of professional development are required every five years. Local and regional boards of education must make available a minimum of 18 hours of professional development activities each year. ***IRA is not an approved CEU provider in Connecticut.
Delaware	Ninety clock hours of professional development activities are required over five years.
Florida	Six semester hours of college credit or equivalent must be earned during each renewal period (5 years) to renew certificate. Sixty inservice points (clock hours) are equivalent to three semester hours of college credit. Local school districts are authorized to award inservice points to teachers.
Georgia***	The Clear Renewable certificate is valid for five years during which time a teacher must earn ten credits of Georgia Professional Learning Units (PLUs), or six semester hours of acceptable college credit, or ten credits of Continuing Education Units. ***IRA is not an approved CEU provider in Georgia, nor does IRA qualify as a PLU provider.
Hawaii	Sixty clock hours of professional development are required over five years.
Idaho	Renewal of certification is required every five years. Up to three semester credit hour equivalency credits (45 IRA clock hours) of the six required semester credit hours may be earned by district-approved inservice. The other three renewal credits must be earned through accredited college or university coursework.
Illinois IRA is registered as an Approved Provider of Illinois CPDUs (Provider #031202131950178). Valid through Dec. 8, 2006	Candidates need to accumulate the equivalent of 120 CPDUs (continuing professional development units, or clock hours) for the entire period of certificate’s validity. This can be achieved through • 8 semester hours of college coursework, or • 24 continuing education units (CEUs), or • 120 CPDUs, or • any combination of college courses, CEUs or CPDUs equivalent to 24 CEUs or 120 CPDUs. One semester hour equals 15 CPDUs (or 15 clock hours).
Indiana	If you are licensed under Rules 2002, you must always submit a Professional Growth Plan License Renewal Report for evaluation. Your professional growth activities must equal 90 points (over five years) for license renewal. For individuals with renewable license issued under prior rules, the professional growth plan is now an additional option for license renewal. Under the Professional Growth Plan renewal option, teachers may acquire 45 points by attending professional conferences and workshops. Each point equals one clock hour. IRA clock hours associated with IRA professional growth activities qualify as points under the Professional Growth Plan License Renewal option.
Iowa***	Only staff development credits from Iowa Area Education Agencies and regionally accredited colleges and universities may be used to renew an educational license. Teachers need six staff development credits every five years. *** IRA clock hours do not count toward license renewal under current Iowa regulations.
Kansas	Bachelor’s degree: completion of eight semester hours and 80 inservice education points (clock hours). Master’s degree: completion of six semester hours and 120 inservice education points (clock hours). License is good for five years.
Kentucky	First five-year renewal requires 15 graduate credits or half of CEO (continuing education option—an alternate to college courses) requirements. Second five-year renewal requires completion of Master’s degree, or 32 graduate credits, or completion of CEO requirements. The continuing education option (CEO) shall consist of four elements:(1) Building a plan for job-embedded professional development and completion of the on-line module;(2) Content Reading and Research;(3) Classroom Implementation and Student Assessment; and(4) Professional Leadership and Publication. A job-embedded professional development plan may include a combination of graduate college course work, research, field experiences, and professional development activities. IRA clock hours associated with IRA professional development activities may qualify as part of the CEO. IRA publishes professional journals and books. Consider working with IRA to publish your work in order to meet CEO requirements.
Louisiana	Requires 150 CLUs (continuing learning units) over a five-year period. One IRA clock hour equals one Louisiana CLU.
Maine	A professional teacher certificate may be renewed for 5-year periods with the completion at least 6 hours of professional or academic study, or in-service training designed to improve the performance of the teacher in the field for which the teacher holds an endorsement, or in a related subject area.
Maryland***	If the certificate was issued prior to January 1995, it is good for ten years, and no clock hours are required. If the certificate was issued after January 1995 see below: Six credits during the first five years are required to move from a Standard Professional Certificate level 1 to level II. To move from a Standard Professional Certificate Level II, to an Advanced Professional Certificate a candidate must: Present six semester hours of acceptable credit Present verification of three years of satisfactory school-related experiences Meet one of the following: 1. Earned a master's or higher degree from an institution of higher education in a certification area directly related to public school education, including six semester hours related to the teacher's specific discipline or the specialist's specific assignment 2. Earned at least 36 semester hours of approved content or professional education coursework directly related to public school education, earned after the conferral of the bachelor's or higher degree, including at least 21 graduate credits, of which at least six credits shall be related to the teacher's specific discipline or the specialist's specific assignment 3. Obtained National Board Certification and earned a minimum of 12 semester hours of approved graduate coursework, earned after the conferral of the bachelor's or higher degree and related to the teacher's specific discipline or the specialist's specific assignment ***IRA clock hours do not count toward license renewal under current regulations.
Massachusetts	The license must be renewed every five years. Requires 150 Professional Development Points (PDPs), with a minimum of 10 hours in one topic and 120 points in content/pedagogy with a minimum of 90 points in content. While PDPs are no longer awarded for attendance at a professional conference, educators are eligible to receive 30 PDPs the first time they make a presentation at a professional conference in a five-year renewal cycle. In addition, educators who attend a professional conference may extend their learning by developing a school-based activity or curriculum, or by publishing written material. These activities will assist educators in earning PDPs for recertification. School-Based Activity: Teachers may earn PDPs for developing and implementing an activity for students, parents, or teachers that incorporates the learning standards of the curriculum frameworks. Teachers may earn 1 PDP per clock hour with a maximum of 30 points (or clock hours) in a five-year cycle when the school-based activity is distributed or implemented within a local school, district, or university. Teachers may count PDPs from school-based activities toward the recertification content requirement when the activity is directly related to the content area of the certificate.
Michigan	Provisional Certificate: Applicant must complete 10 semester hours of an 18 hour planned program or hold a master’s degree from a Michigan approved accrediting institution. Professional Education Certificate: Holder must complete six semester hours of credit or 18 State Board-Continuing Education Units (SB-CEUs) or a combination of the two. The candidate must complete the required credit hours or SB-CEUs after the issuance of the Professional Education Certificate and within five years of the date of application for the renewal. IRA conferences, workshops, and study groups all count as acceptable professional development activities.
Minnesota	Requires 125 clock hours of professional development over five years.
Mississippi***	A teaching license may be renewed with semester hours, Continuing Education Units (CEUs), or completion of National Board of Professional Teaching Standards process. ***IRA clock hours do not count toward license renewal under current Mississippi regulations.
Missouri	An Initial Professional Certificate (IPC) is good for four years, during which the holder must receive 30 clock hours of professional development. A Career Continuous Professional Certificate (CCPC) is valid continuously so long as the holder meets the requirements at ICP level. The holder must complete 15 clock hours of professional development per year and have a local professional development plan.
Montana***	Class 1 (professional) licenses require 60 renewal units (clock hours) or combination of renewal units and credits. Class 2 (standard) licenses require 60 renewal units, 3 semester credits and 15 renewal units, OR 4 semester credits. One semester credit equals 15 renewal units. **Licensees need prior approval from the State Department of Education for IRA professional development activities to qualify for renewal units. Teachers can request approval of renewal units prior to attending IRA conferences.
Nebraska	For every six years of employment, permanent certificated staff must earn six semester hours of college credit or give evidence of professional growth (as determined by the local board; they may accept any professional development activity as meeting professional development requirements).
Nevada	Six semester hours or equivalent of professional development are required over five years for teachers with BS; over six years for teachers with master’s; over eight years for specialist. One credit hour equals 15 clock hours.
New Hampshire	Seventy-five clock hours of professional development are required over three years.
New Jersey (Provider #5008)	One hundred clock hours of professional development are required every five years. IRA is a registered provider of professional development in the State of New Jersey.
New Mexico	There are no renewal clock hour requirements for certification. Teachers are certified as Level I (Provisional Teacher) for three years; Level II, renewable every nine years for life; or Level III, an optional advanced license. Teachers at all levels must develop a Professional Development Plan (PDP) based upon New Mexico’s nine teaching competencies. IRA’s professional development activities can assist you in fulfilling Strand 3 (Evidence of Professional Learning) requirements associated with your Professional Development Dossier (PDD).
New York	Holders of a Professional Teaching Certificate need 175 clock hours of professional development every five years.
North Carolina	Teachers must earn ten semester hours or 15 units of renewal credit during each five-year cycle. A unit of renewal credit is equivalent to ten clock hours.
North Dakota***	Re-education credit for teachers must be provided through an approved teacher education college program. Four semester hours are required over 5 years. ***IRA clock hours do not count toward license renewal under current regulations.
Ohio	Holders of the Professional Teaching License must complete six semester hours of coursework or 180 clock hours over five years to renew license.
Oklahoma	The Oklahoma Standard Certificate is valid for five years. No renewal credits or clock hours are required for teachers with three or more years’ experience. With two years’ teaching experience, a teacher needs 45 professional development points (clock hours). Teachers with one year of teaching experience need 60 clock hours; those with less than one year’s teaching experience need 75 clock hours.
Oregon	Teachers who hold Basic, Standard, or Continuing Licenses are required to complete a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Plan in order to renew the license. Teachers who renew a Basic license will need to complete 75 Professional Development Units (PDUs). Teachers renewing Standard or Continuing licenses will need to complete 125 PDUs. A Professional Development Unit equates to one clock hour. The CPD plan provides two options for the teacher. One is a plan offered by the District. The second is an individual plan developed by the teacher in collaboration with a supervisor or a CPD advisor. A CPD advisor may be a colleague, faculty member from an institution, or business or community member who is related to the activities of the plan and approved by the educator’s supervisor. Activities included in the plan may include college course work, professional conferences, publications, action research, etc. The CRD plan becomes part of the Professional Educational Experience Report.
Pennsylvania	Pennsylvania requires all certified educators to complete six college credits, six credits of continuing professional education courses, 180 clock hours of continuing professional education, or any combination of collegiate studies, continuing professional education courses, or learning experiences equivalent to 180 hours every five years.
Rhode Island	Recertification regulations provide for Rhode Island educators to participate in the Individual Professional Development Plan Program (I-Plan) that will be used for certification renewal. I-Planners renew their certification through a three-step process: I-Plan approval; I-Plan implementation; and submission of document portfolio. Required components of the I-Plan include self-study; 2–4 goals; professional development activities; evidence of accomplishment of professional development activities in document portfolio; reflections; and 150 clock hours of qualifying professional development for a five-year plan. Qualifying professional development activities include college or university coursework; workshops/training sessions; board, committee team participation; applied studies with colleagues (study groups, action research, assessments, providing training/workshops for colleagues; publications; presentations, parent/community outreach, individual professional learning activities (job embedded); a five-year plan for a master's degree; and advanced degrees or National Board Certification.
South Carolina	A teacher’s professional certificate is valid for five years and expires on June 30 of the expiration year. In order to be eligible for certificate renewal, the educator must earn a minimum of 120 renewal credits. One renewal credit equals one clock hour.
South Dakota***	In order to renew your certificate for five years, you must have obtained at least six semester hours (nine quarter credits or equivalent combination) or CEU credits (90 clock hours of credit earned since September 1, 2001). Any combination of six semester hours completed between the date of issuance of the current valid certificate and the application for renewal from any accredited post-secondary institutions (including community colleges and postsecondary technical institutes), renewal credits approved by the Department of Education (DOE) or CEUs may be used for renewal. A minimum of three semester credit or five quarter hour credits of the six hours must be transcripted hours from a postsecondary institution accredited by a regional accrediting agency. The remainder of these hours must include one of these options: a. three semester credit or five credit hours transcripted from a postsecondary institution accredited by a regional accrediting agency b. three renewal credits approved by the department c. four-five clock hours of continuing education units (CEU’s) d. A combination of credits from a postsecondary institution accredited by a regional accrediting agency, renewal credits, or CEUs equivalent to three semester hours
Tennessee	The Professional License must be renewed every ten years. All educators holding a Professional License based on a Bachelor’s degree must earn 90 renewal points. All educators holding a Professional License based on a Master’s degree or higher who have not accrued five years of acceptable experience during the ten-year validity period of the license are also required to earn 90 renewal points Renewal points may be earned in a variety of ways. A teacher may choose to earn coursework (1 semester hour = 15 points), CEUs (1 CEU = 10 points), or clock hours (1 clock hour = 3 points).
Texas (Provider #500750)	Renewal of the Standard Certificate is every five years. (Educators holding lifetime certificates have been exempted from the renewal process.) During each five-year period, classroom teachers must complete 150 clock hours of professional development, while reading specialists and master teachers must complete 200 clock hours of professional development. IRA is an approved provider of professional development in the State of Texas.
Utah	A Utah teacher will need to complete 100 professional development license points (clock hours) over five years. Acceptable workshops and programs include those approved with prior written approval by the USOE, recognized professional associations, and district or school supervisors, regardless of the source of sponsorship or funding. One license point is awarded for each clock hour of participation.
Vermont	Recertification is through local and regional Standards Boards. Will need nine relicensure credits over five years. See this pdf document for full details of process.
Virginia	Regular teaching licenses must be renewed every five years. To renew the license, the teacher must obtain at least 180 points (clock hours) through a series of ten professional development options. License holders without a master’s degree must earn at least 90 points by completing a three-semester-hour course at an accredited two- or four-year college in the content area listed on the license.
Washington State	To maintain the validity of the continuing certificate, 150 clock hours of continuing education study and/or equivalent academic credit must be completed every five years. Clock hours can only be offered through a Washington State Board of Education approved provider. IRA is a Washington State Board of Education approved provider.
West Virginia	Professional Teaching Certificates can be renewed using one of three different options: 1) six semester hours of coursework from an accredited institution of higher education; 2) the certificate being renewed reflects an advanced salary classification of MA +30 of higher; or 3) the applicant has reached age 60. The coursework may be either graduate or undergraduate, but must meet the following criteria: 1) be completed at an accredited institution of higher education; 2) reflect a grade point average of 3.0 or higher; 3) be completed after the effective date of the certificate being renewed; 4) be completed within a five period preceding the date the application for renewal was received by the WVDE. ***IRA clock hours do not count toward license renewal under current West Virginia regulations.
Wisconsin	Renewal of a five-year Professional Educator License is contingent upon completion of a continuing professional growth requirement of six semester credits, completion of a Professional Development Plan (PDP), or completion of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards certification process. Semester credits may be taken at the undergraduate or graduate level but must be earned at a baccalaureate or graduate degree-granting college or university which is accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Dept. of Education. Professional Development Plan (PDP) Option (available for license renewal starting with licenses with a July 1, 2006 effective date) You may satisfy the continuing professional education requirement by completing a PDP You must complete the PDP during the five-year period of your license (between July 1 of the year issued and June 30 of expiration year). When you renew your license, you must submit verification of completion of a PDP approved by a majority of a three-member team. School districts and educators throughout Wisconsin are developing plans to implement the requirements under PI 34. The department has designated a number of regional License Renewal Support Centers to provide support for educators who do not have access to school district PDP teams required for verifying completion of the plan. DPI no longer approves programs under the old Equivalency Clock Hour Option. The types of activities previously approved for DPI clock hours (e.g. workshops, conferences, seminars) or course work converted to the clock hour option (technical college course work, college/university continuing education units “CEUs”) may be included as part of a PDP.
Wyoming	Holders of a Standard Certificate must complete five semester hours of college coursework or 75 clock hours of professional development over five years.