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1 STATE OF OKLAHOMA
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2 2nd Session of the 60th Legislature (2026)
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3 SENATE BILL 1894 By: Reinhardt
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6 AS INTRODUCED
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7 An Act relating to teachers; amending 70 O.S. 2021,
7 Section 6-194, as last amended by Section 5, Chapter
8 101, O.S.L. 2025 (70 O.S. Supp. 2025, Section 6-194),
8 which relates to professional development programs;
9 removing language placing a limit on certain required
9 professional development or training hours; requiring
10 electronic submission of certain report; updating
10 statutory language; providing an effective date; and
11 declaring an emergency.
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13 BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
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14 SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 6-194, as
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15 last amended by Section 5, Chapter 101, O.S.L. 2025 (70 O.S. Supp.
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16 2025, Section 6-194), is amended to read as follows:
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17 Section 6-194. A. The district boards of education of this
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18 state shall establish professional development programs for the
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19 certified teachers and administrators of the district. Programs
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20 shall be adopted by each board based upon recommendations of a
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21 professional development committee appointed by the board of
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22 education for the district.
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23 B. Each professional development committee shall include
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24 classroom teachers, administrators, school counselors or licensed
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1 mental health providers, and parents, legal guardians, or custodians
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2 of children enrolled in the school district and shall consult with a
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3 higher education institution faculty. A majority of the members of
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4 the professional development committee shall be composed of
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5 classroom teachers. The teacher members shall be selected by a
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6 designated administrator of the school district from a list of names
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7 submitted by the teachers in the school district. The members
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8 selected shall be subject to the approval of a majority vote of the
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9 teachers in the district.
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10 C. In developing program recommendations, each professional
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11 development committee shall annually utilize a data-driven approach
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12 to analyze student data and determine district and school
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13 professional development needs. The professional development
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14 programs adopted shall be directed toward development of
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15 competencies and instructional strategies in the core curriculum
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16 areas for the following goals:
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17 1. Increasing the academic performance data scores for the
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18 district and each school site;
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19 2. Closing achievement gaps among student subgroups;
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20 3. Increasing student achievement as demonstrated on state-
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21 mandated tests and the ACT;
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22 4. Increasing high school graduation rates; and
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23 5. Decreasing college remediation rates.
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1 Each program may also include components on classroom management
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2 and student discipline strategies, outreach to parents, legal
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3 guardians, or custodians of students, special education, and racial
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4 and ethnic education, which all personnel defined as teachers in
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5 Section 1-116 of this title shall be required to complete at a
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6 frequency as determined by the board of education. The State Board
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7 of Education shall provide guidelines to assist school districts in
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8 developing and implementing racial and ethnic education components
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9 into professional development programs.
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10 D. A program which includes the following information shall be
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11 completed the first year a certified teacher is employed by a school
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12 district, and then once every fifth academic year:
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13 1. Training on recognition of child abuse and neglect;
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14 2. Recognition of child sexual abuse;
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15 3. Proper reporting of suspected abuse including the reporting
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16 requirements of Section 1-2-101 of Title 10A of the Oklahoma
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17 Statutes and Section 1210.163 of this title and associated penalties
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18 for failure to report; and
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19 4. Available resources.
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20 E. One time per year, beginning in the 2009-2010 school year,
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21 training in the area of autism shall be offered and all resident
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22 teachers of students in early childhood programs through grade three
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23 shall be required to complete the autism training during the
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24 resident year and at least one time every three (3) years
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Req. No. 3318 Page 3
1 thereafter. All other teachers and education support professionals
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2 of students in early childhood programs through grade three shall be
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3 required to complete the autism training at least one time every
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4 three (3) years. The autism training shall include a minimum
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5 awareness of the characteristics of autistic children with autism,
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6 resources available, and an introduction to positive behavior
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7 supports to challenging behavior. Each adopted program shall allow
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8 school counselors to receive at least one-third (1/3) of the hours
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9 or credit required each year through programs or courses
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10 specifically designed for school counselors.
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11 Districts are authorized to utilize any means for professional
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12 development that is not prohibited by law including, but not limited
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13 to, professional development provided by the district, any state
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14 agency, institution of higher education, or any private entity.
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15 F. One time per year, beginning in the 2020-2021 school year, a
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16 dyslexia awareness program shall be offered. Beginning in the 2023-
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17 2024 school year, the program shall include information and training
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18 in dysgraphia. At a minimum, the program shall include:
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19 1. Training in awareness of dyslexia characteristics in
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20 students;
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21 2. Training in effective classroom instruction to meet the
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22 needs of students with dyslexia; and
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23 3. Available dyslexia resources for teachers, students, and
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24 parents.
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1 G. Except as otherwise provided for in this subsection, each
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2 certified teacher in this state shall be required by the school
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3 district board of education to meet the professional development
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4 requirements established by the board, or established through the
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5 negotiation process. Except as otherwise provided for in this
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6 subsection, the professional development requirements established by
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7 each board of education shall require every teacher to annually
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8 complete a minimum number of the total number of points required to
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9 maintain employment; provided, no more than a total of one hundred
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10 fifty (150) hours of local, state, or federal professional
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11 development or training shall be required for classroom teachers
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12 during any five-year period. Failure of any teacher to meet
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13 district board of education professional development requirements
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14 may be grounds for nonrenewal of such teacher's contract by the
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15 board. Such failure may also be grounds for nonconsideration of
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16 salary increments affecting the teacher. Teachers shall maintain
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17 written documentation of all their completed professional
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18 development.
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19 H. Each school district shall annually electronically submit a
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20 report to the State Department of Education on the district level
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21 district-level professional development needs, activities completed,
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22 expenditures, and results achieved for each school year by each goal
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23 as provided in subsection C of this section. If a school district
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24 elects not to adopt and offer a professional development program as
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Req. No. 3318 Page 5
1 provided for in subsection A of this section, the district shall not
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2 be required to submit an annual report as required pursuant to this
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3 subsection but shall report to the State Department of Education its
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4 election not to offer a program and all professional development
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5 activities completed by teachers and administrators of the school
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6 district.
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7 I. Subject to the availability of funds, the Department shall
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8 develop an online system for electronic reporting as required in
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9 subsection H of this section. The Department shall also make such
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10 information available on its website.
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11 SECTION 2. This act shall become effective July 1, 2026.
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12 SECTION 3. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
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13 of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
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14 declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
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15 be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
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17 60-2-3318 EB 1/15/2026 8:32:29 AM
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Req. No. 3318 Page 6Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.