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HB5321 Enrolled LRB104 20507 LNS 33980 b
1 AN ACT concerning education.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 5. The School Code is amended by adding Section
5 24-8.2 as follows:
6 (105 ILCS 5/24-8.2 new)
7 Sec. 24-8.2. Continuing education coursework used for
8 salary increases.
9 (a) In this Section:
10 "Continuing education coursework" means any
11 graduate-level, degree-eligible credit course taught by an
12 instructor of record and completed by a licensed classroom
13 teacher for the purpose of salary advancement or other
14 compensation-related advancement under a collective bargaining
15 agreement, school district employment contract, school board
16 policy, or salary schedule. "Continuing education coursework"
17 includes professional development sequences that are taken or
18 completed and are approved by the State Board of Education or
19 an industry-recognized credential, including a credential for
20 career and technical educators.
21 "Graduate-level, degree-eligible credit" means academic
22 credit documented on an official academic transcript through a
23 regionally accredited institution of higher education that may
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1 be applied toward a master's degree, education specialist
2 degree, or doctoral degree.
3 "Instructor of record" means an individual assigned the
4 responsibility for academic oversight of a continuing
5 education course, including instruction, evaluation and
6 feedback of participant work, and the assignment of grades,
7 who:
8 (1) is a credentialed educator holding a master's
9 degree or higher and is academically qualified to teach
10 the continuing education course, with demonstrated
11 experience in the content area or areas of the continuing
12 education course;
13 (2) provides substantive instructional support to a
14 participating licensed classroom teacher throughout the
15 period of continuing education course enrollment; and
16 (3) evaluates participant work and provides
17 individualized, written feedback aligned to continuing
18 education course objectives.
19 "Licensed classroom teacher" means an individual holding a
20 valid and current Professional Educator License under Section
21 21B-20. "Licensed classroom teacher" does not include any
22 individual who is an administrator or is not covered by a
23 collective bargaining agreement pertaining to teachers.
24 (b) This Section applies only to licensed classroom
25 teachers who have the ability, under the terms of a collective
26 bargaining agreement, employment contract, school board
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1 policy, or salary schedule, to achieve salary advancement
2 through continuing education coursework.
3 (c) Beginning with continuing education coursework
4 completed on or after July 1, 2026, a school district, special
5 education cooperative, or other public educational employer
6 may provide salary advancement to licensed classroom teachers
7 for the completion of continuing education coursework. The
8 school district, special education cooperative, or other
9 public educational employer may recognize continuing education
10 coursework for purposes of salary advancement only if the
11 continuing education coursework:
12 (1) is graduate-level, degree-eligible credit offered
13 through a regionally accredited institution of higher
14 education and documented on an official academic
15 transcript; and
16 (2) includes an instructor of record.
17 (d) Nothing in this Section requires a school district,
18 special education cooperative, or other public educational
19 employer to create a salary schedule or salary advancement
20 pathway if one does not otherwise exist.
21 (e) Nothing in this Section precludes the parties to a
22 collectively bargained agreement from negotiating salary
23 advancement or other compensation-related advancements under
24 the collectively bargained agreement for other negotiated
25 actions or activities by a licensed classroom teacher not set
26 forth in this Section.
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1 (f) Implementation of this Section, including standards
2 for documentation, transcript verification, institutional
3 accreditation, salary advancement, and compliance monitoring,
4 shall be determined by each school district, special education
5 cooperative, or other public educational employer.
6 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7 becoming law.Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.