Illinois is a National Leader by Offering Dual Credit Endorsement for Teachers

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Board of Higher Education (IBHE), Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), and the Illinois Community College Board (ICCB) announced today that qualified high school dual credit teachers may now request an endorsement on the Professional Educator License for teaching dual credit courses. The availability of this endorsement will help meet the growing demand for dual credit teachers as more and more students seek to earn college credit while in high school.

Dual credit is an instructional arrangement in which an academically qualified high school student enrolls in a college-level course, and upon successful course completion, concurrently earns both college credit and high school credit. IBHE, ICCB, and ISBE collaborated to create a new endorsement for nine content-specific disciplines: English composition, English literature, general math, statistics, calculus, speech, history, biology, and psychology.

IBHE Deputy Director for Academic Affairs Stephanie Bernoteit, who initiated the effort, said, “Illinois has become a national leader by providing this important credential for teachers of dual credit courses. Educators who hold the dual credit endorsement on their license are being recognized for their academic qualifications to teach early college classes. Students and parents should feel confident that all dual credit classes meet the state’s standards.”

“Dual credit gives students a chance to develop college-level skills that put them ahead in college and career,” said State Superintendent of Education Carmen I. Ayala. “This new endorsement will build the pipeline of educators needed to support students’ growing participation in dual credit. ISBE is proud to partner with the IBHE and the ICCB to take this pioneering step to further strengthen college and career preparation programming for Illinois students.”

“This new endorsement levels the playing field for teachers, making the expectations for teaching dual credit clearer, as well as providing important quality controls in an area of instruction that is expanding rapidly across the state,” said ICCB Executive Director Brian Durham. “It is a great example of the strong partnerships that exist across the K-12, community colleges, and university sectors.”

Participation in dual credit is growing in Illinois. Students in the 10th through 12th grades took more than 165,000 dual credit courses from 2016 to 2018. Enrollment grew by more than 3,000 courses between the 2016-17 and 2017-18 school years. ISBE anticipates seeing another record increase when 2019 data is released Oct. 30.

A teacher must meet the faculty credential standards set by the Higher Learning Commission, IBHE, and ICCB to receive the endorsement. These standards require the teacher to complete a master’s degree within the discipline or any master’s degree with 18 graduate credit hours of coursework within the discipline being taught. The partner college or university offering the dual credit course will evaluate those teachers applying for the endorsement to determine eligibility. The Dual Credit Quality Act requires all public community colleges and universities that engage in dual credit to honor the endorsement.

Teachers interested in applying for the endorsement can learn more at www.isbe.net/Pages/Dual-Credit-Endorsements.aspx.

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