MASP: Professional Development: SB-CEU Reference guide

MASP - Michigan Association of School Psychologists

MASP is the only state-wide organization representing the interests of school psychologists in Michigan.”

Continuing Education Units (SB-CEU) Reference Guide

School Psychologist Certification Act
Who is eligible for SB-CEU certificate renewal?
What are SB-CEU’s? (How are they calculated?)
Approved Sponsors
SB-CEU Record Keeping
SB-CEU Activities
MASP Sponsored SB-CEU Activities
General SB-CEU Facts
Tips for Organizing Your SB-CEU Certificates

Note: A teacher can renew their certificate anytime after January 1st and it will always have an expiration date of June 30th. To give you an example... all the professional certificates renewed this year will have an expiration date of June 30, 2012 whether they are issued in January or November of this year.

Forms

Advanced Certificate Renewal Form (PDF File)

School Psychology Certification

Mandatory continuing education began with the health care profession. Changes in medical treatment happen so rapidly that in order to protect the public and insure skilled professionals in the field, continuing education courses were required for all medical personnel. In the 70’s several professions adopted this format of continuing education. For school psychologists’ certification was instituted in 1976 with the School Psychologist Certification Act.

School Psychologist Certification Act

Public Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1976 380.1251 School psychological service; rules; reports and information. Sec. 1251.

The board of a school district may establish and employ personnel necessary to provide an adequate school psychological service. School psychological service is a related non-classroom function and shall be operated under rules promulgated by the state board, which shall establish the educational and experience requirements for, and certify as qualified and issue certificates to, the personnel for the services.
The state board may require reports and information from participating school districts.

Michigan Department of Education
Office of Professional Preparation Services
P.O. Box 30008
Lansing, MI 48909
Telephone: (517) 373-3310

Who is eligible for SB-CEUs for certificate renewal?

Individuals who hold the following certificates are eligible to use SB-CEUs for certificate renewal every five years:

The Professional Education Certificate
The Occupational Education Certificate
The School of Psychologist Certificate

The above certificates require renewal every 5 years. The renewal requirement includes the completion of 6 semester hours of appropriate coursework through an approved institution, 18-SB-CEUs or a combination of both. School Administrators are required to complete 6 semester hours, 18 SB-CEUs or a combination of both every 5 years for continued employment.

What are SB-CEUs?

State Board Continuing Education Units (SB-CEUs) are State Board Approved inservice, workshop, training or conference credits that are used for the renewal of selected certificates issued by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE). SB-CEUs are calculated by dividing the total number of contact or instructional hours by the number 10. Thus, an 8-hour session would be eligible to receive eight tenths (.8) of an SB-CEU.

Significance of SB-CEUs

Generic CEUs cannot be used toward renewal of a Michigan Teacher or School Psychologist Certificate. Only state approved SB-CEU training counts toward certificate renewal. Training programs and/or conference sponsored by either an authorized provider of the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET), and/or Michigan Virtual University (MVU) may be eligible for SB-CEUs via a collaborative agreement between MDE and IACET and MVU, respectively.

Approved Sponsors

Only approved sponsors may apply directly to the MDE for approval to offer training and/or conference for SB-CEUs. An approved sponsor may be in any one of the following six categories:

Michigan accredited colleges and universities
Michigan institutions approved by the State Board of Education to prepare Michigan teachers
Michigan accredited community colleges
The Michigan Department of Education
Michigan school districts (both local and intermediate), private schools and public school academies
Local, state and national (with state or local chapter) professional education organizations

Individuals and private vendors may not submit SB-CEU program approval applications directly to MDE. They may, however, have their program approval application submitted through an “approved SB-CEU sponsor”. For a listing of approved SB-CEU sponsors, visit the MDE website.

SB-CEU Record Keeping

Both the approved SB-CEU sponsor and the individual are responsible for record keeping. The sponsors are required to collect and maintain records of all eligible participants who request SB-CEU credit. Participants are responsible for maintaining certificates of completion for all SB-CEU programs for which credit was granted. If a certificate of completion is lost, the program sponsor can be contacted for a duplicate copy of the SB-CEU transcript.

Non-traditional Activities Eligible to Receive SB-CEU Credit

In addition to traditional workshops, seminars, training, and conferences, the State Board of Education has approved non-traditional professional development activities, which are also eligible to receive SB-CEU credit. These SB-CEU activities are as follows:

Serving as a Mentor Teacher
Serving as a Supervising Teacher
Serving as a Supervising School Psychologist (Contact local ISD)*
Serving on a State Board Appointed Advisory Committee
Serving on an Approved Accreditation Review and/or Site Visit Team
Serving on a School or School District’s PA 25 School Improvement Team
Completion of the Portfolio Component of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (9 SB-CEUs)
Completion of the certification process and being awarded certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards
Graduate level University Guest Speaker (Contact local ISD)*

*=MASP will no longer be sponsoring individuals supervising school psychologists or functioning as guest speakers for graduate level courses. Please contact your local Intermediate School District (ISD) for SB-CEU applications.

Please be aware that a maximum of 9 SB-CEUs may be earned by an individual toward certificate renewal in any 5-year period.

Michigan Association of School Psychologists (MASP) Sponsored SB-CEU Activities

MASP annually sponsors the following conventions:

The MASP Annual Convention
The Critical Issues Annual Convention
The National Association of School Psychologists (N.A.S.P.) Annual and Summer Conventions*
Workshops organized by MASP Regional Directors

*=MDE approves Michigan workshops and conferences. The Annual N.A.S.P. convention is the exception due to MASP's affiliation with our national organization.

General SB-CEU Facts

The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) developed the rules related to the certification requirements for school personnel. These rules apply to all certified school personnel.
Sponsors must apply and be approved as sponsors by MDE. A yearly training is conducted for SB-CEU coordinators. Sponsor records are audited.
Workshop/Conferences cannot be approved for less than .3 SB-CEUs. The workshop must have 3 direct contact hours for approval (introductions, lectures during meals, breaks, etc. do not count for direct contact hours).
For those taking college or university classes, be certain that the course is relevant to our profession. Questionable topic areas may not be approved.
It is essential that you complete the required continuing education units by your 5-year deadline date. Certification identifies you as a qualified individual to work as a school psychologist. Non-certified personnel could be dismissed by a School District.

Tips for Organizing SB-CEU Certificates

Obtain a copy of the Advanced Certificate Renewal Form at the beginning of your 5 year renewal cycle. Use this form to record your workshop attendance.
When you attend a workshop or conference, write the name of the workshop, the sponsor, and the approval number on the form and put the certificate in a notebook.
Keep a copy of the School Psychologist Certificate you receive from workshop attendance because you will be required to send in the approval number with your renewal application. This form also serves as proof of your attendance if you are audited by the MDE.
Plan your 5-year SB-CEU activities ahead of time whenever possible. If you attend the equivalent of 36 hours a year (3.6 SB-CEUs) at SB-CEU approved activities, you will obtain the required credits on time. Example:

MASP Annual Conference	1.5
Critical Issues	.5
N.A.S.P. Annual Convention	1.5
Regional Workshop/ISD Sponsored Event	.5
	4.0