Advocate Drum Announces
The New Transitional J Certificate

At its October meeting, the New York State Board of Regents gave final approval to the new “Transitional J” Teaching Certificate, which will provide license reciprocity for the spouses of active duty military personnel whose duty station is in New York State.  The new certificate had received initial approval by the Board of Regents in July, and after the required public comment period, the final approval allows the new certificate to be available beginning November 4, 2020.  This follows several years of efforts and advocacy by Advocate Drum to create this much needed opportunity for military spouses, who had previously experienced many daunting hurdles as they attempted to transfer teaching certificates from other states to New York.
 
To be eligible for the Transitional J Certificate, a military spouse must either hold a valid certificate from another U.S State or territory or have completed a teacher education program.  Candidates must have an employment and support commitment from a school district or BOCES as a teacher in the area for which certification is being sought.  The certificate will be valid for 1 year, during which time the candidate must pass two New York State certification exams required of all certified teachers in the state.  Once those two tests have been passed, the Transitional J Certificate can be renewed for an additional 2 years, during which time the candidate can complete the requirements for a permanent certificate (as all teachers must do).  This Transitional J Certificate will allow qualified military spouses to go right to work in New York Schools without all the hurdles that previously made it very challenging to do so.  It is a big win for our military families, our schools, and our communities.