093_HB2296
LRB093 07043 NHT 07195 b
1 AN ACT concerning schools.
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 changing
5 Section 21-1 as follows:
6 (105 ILCS 5/21-1) (from Ch. 122, par. 21-1)
7 Sec. 21-1. Qualification of teachers. No one may be
8 certified to teach or supervise in the public schools of this
9 State who is not of good character, good health, a citizen of
10 the United States or legally present and authorized for
11 employment, and at least 19 years of age. If the holder of a
12 certificate under this Section is not a citizen of the United
13 States 6 years after the date of the issuance of the original
14 certificate, any certificate held by such person on that date
15 shall be cancelled by the board of education and no other
16 certificate to teach shall be issued to such person until
17 such person is a citizen of the United States.
18 Citizenship is not required for the issuance of a
19 temporary part-time certificate to participants in approved
20 training programs for exchange students as described in
21 Section 21-10.2. A certificate issued under this plan shall
22 expire on June 30 following the date of issue. One renewal
23 for one year is authorized if the holder remains as an
24 official participant in an approved exchange program.
25 In determining good character under this Section, any
26 felony conviction of the applicant may be taken into
27 consideration, but such a conviction shall not operate as a
28 bar to registration.
29 No person otherwise qualified shall be denied the right
30 to be certified, to receive training for the purpose of
31 becoming a teacher or to engage in practice teaching in any
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1 school because of a physical disability including but not
2 limited to visual and hearing disabilities; nor shall any
3 school district refuse to employ a teacher on such grounds,
4 provided that the person is able to carry out the duties of
5 the position for which he applies.
6 No person may be granted or continue to hold a teaching
7 certificate who has knowingly altered or misrepresented his
8 or her teaching qualifications in order to acquire the
9 certificate. Any other certificate held by such person may
10 be suspended or revoked by the State Teacher Certification
11 Board, depending upon the severity of the alteration or
12 misrepresentation.
13 No one may teach or supervise in the public schools nor
14 receive for teaching or supervising any part of any public
15 school fund, who does not hold a certificate of qualification
16 granted by the State Board of Education or by the State
17 Teacher Certification Board and a regional superintendent of
18 schools as hereinafter provided, or by the board of education
19 of a city having a population exceeding 500,000 inhabitants
20 except as provided in Section 34-6 and in Section 10-22.34 or
21 Section 10-22.34b. Beginning July 1, 2004, issuance or
22 renewal of a teaching certificate is contingent upon the
23 applicant demonstrating that he or she holds current
24 certification in first aid and CPR, according to the
25 standards of the American Red Cross, American Heart
26 Association, or other nationally recognized certifying
27 organization. The State Board of Education shall adopt rules
28 to provide for continuing education for certified teachers to
29 maintain their first aid and CPR qualifications. However, the
30 provisions of this Article do not apply to a member of the
31 armed forces who is employed as a teacher of subjects in the
32 Reserve Officer's Training Corps of any school. Sections
33 21-2 through 21-24 do not apply to cities having a population
34 exceeding 500,000 inhabitants, until July 1, 1988.
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1 Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the
2 board of education of any school district may grant to a
3 teacher of the district a leave of absence with full pay for
4 a period of not more than one year to permit such teacher to
5 teach in a foreign state under the provisions of the Exchange
6 Teacher Program established under Public Law 584, 79th
7 Congress, and Public Law 402, 80th Congress, as amended. The
8 school board granting such leave of absence may employ with
9 or without pay a national of the foreign state wherein the
10 teacher on leave of absence will teach, if the national is
11 qualified to teach in that foreign state, and if that
12 national will teach in a grade level similar to the one which
13 was taught in such foreign state. The State Board of
14 Education shall promulgate and enforce such reasonable rules
15 as may be necessary to effectuate this paragraph.
16 (Source: P.A. 88-189; 89-159, eff. 1-1-96; 89-397, eff.
17 8-20-95; 89-626, eff. 8-9-96.)