Teach St. Tammany Alternative Certification

• Teach St. Tammany provides a path for college graduates and career experts to become a teacher in our school system in the critical shortage areas of math, science, English, or special education.
• On-the-job training, certification, professional development, and ongoing support are provided while teaching full time and receiving a teacher salary.
• There is no out-of-pocket cost for the program with a three-year commitment to teach in STPPS. 
• Applicants who are accepted in the program and are offered a job through our Job Fair, will go through our Summer Seminar and New Teacher Induction (see Course Schedule), and assume a full-time teaching position at the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year.
• During the first year of teaching, practitioners will complete residency requirements with Saturday learning sessions (see Course Schedule), complete online program assignments, and receive one-on-one supervision with feedback.
• After successfully completing the residency and other program requirements, the practitioner will receive a teaching certificate.

Education:
Bachelor’s Degree from an accredited institution
Minimum 2.2 GPA

PRAXIS Test:
Praxis I is no longer a requirement for entering the profession and for teacher licensure.

Praxis II (Content Knowledge Exams) must be taken prior to applying for the program.

• Content area must align with your certification
• Visit https://www.ets.org/praxis/la/requirements to see specific LA requirements for each certification area.

Available teaching areas:

• English Language Arts: Grades 4-8
• English Language Arts: Grades 6-12
• Math: Grades 4-8
• Math: Grades 6-12
• Science: Grades 4-8
• Elementary: Grades 1-5 (ONLY offered to those who decide to teach Students with Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 1-5)

If you decide to teach Special Education, any of the content areas above must be paired with the Special Education (Students With Exceptionalities) areas below:

• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 1-5/ Elementary: Grades 1-5
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ English Language Arts: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ Math: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ Science: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 6-12/ English Language Arts: Grades 6-12
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 6-12/ Math: Grades 6-12

Please note: Those who select Students With Exceptionalities as their teaching area will receive certification in their content/grade level area and certification in Special Education (Students with Exceptionalities) while enrolled in the program.  Participants can only teach in SWE positions while in the Teach St. Tammany Program.

Participation in Teach St. Tammany is free of charge but requires a 3-year employment commitment.

If the candidate leaves STPPS prior to fulfilling the 3-year commitment, they will be charged the following:

• Leave during Year 1: $3,000
• Leave after Year 1: $2,000
• Leave after Year 2: $1,000

Summer Seminar

Dates: Mid-June to Mid-July
Times: 7:30 A.M. – 4:30 P.M.
Location: Treen Technology Center – 2024 Livingston, Mandeville, LA 70448

New Teacher Induction

Dates: Third week of July
Times: 8:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M.
Location: TBD

Saturday Sessions

Dates:
Regular-education teachers will attend one Saturday per month.
SWE teachers will attend the regular session as well as the SWE session.

Regular Sessions - Time: 8:30 A.M. – 3:00 P.M.
SWE Sessions – Time: 9:30 A.M. – 1:00 P.M.
Location: Treen Technology Center – 2024 Livingston, Mandeville, LA 70448

Am I guaranteed a job in STPPS if I am accepted into the program?
Employment and acceptance in the program are not guaranteed. Participants must secure a position by interviewing with school administrators at job fair.

What will I be eligible to teach?
You will be able to teach in the grade level/subject area you select in your plan of study while enrolled in the Teach St. Tammany program. Once you have selected the certification area you will pursue and take the aligned Praxis II test, you will interview for positions that require that specific area of certification.

After you receive your teaching certificate in your selected certification area, you will be eligible to teach that grade level/subject area only unless you obtain additional certifications after successfully exiting the program and fulfilling your three-year teaching commitment.

The critical shortage areas you can select for your certification area are the following:

• Available teaching areas:

• English Language Arts: Grades 4-8
• English Language Arts: Grades 6-12
• Math: Grades 4-8
• Math: Grades 6-12
• Science: Grades 4-8
• Elementary: Grades 1-5 (ONLY offered to those who decide to teach Students with Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 1-5)

If you decide to teach Special Education, any of the content areas above must be paired with the Special Education (Students With Exceptionalities) areas below:

• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 1-5/ Elementary: Grades 1-5
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ English Language Arts: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ Math: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 4-8/ Science: Grades 4-8
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 6-12/ English Language Arts: Grades 6-12
• Students With Exceptionalities (Mild-Moderate): Grades 6-12/ Math: Grades 6-12

Please note: Those who select Students With Exceptionalities as their teaching area will receive certification in their content/grade level area and certification in Special Education (Students with Exceptionalities) while enrolled in the program.  Participants can only teach in SWE positions while in the Teach St. Tammany Program.

What tests do I have to take?

Praxis II (Content Knowledge Exams) must be taken and passed prior to applying for the program.

The test you take depends on the content area you are going into and are eligible to receive certification in. The shortage areas you may choose from and the aligning content exam(s) you are required to take are below.

The test you must take for each teaching area is listed below.

English Language Arts: Grades 4-8
Take Praxis test #5047

English Language Arts: Grades 6-12
Take Praxis Test #5039

Math: Grades 4-8
Take Praxis Test #5164

Math: Grades 6-12
Take Praxis Test #5165

Science: Grades 4-8
Take Praxis Test #5442

Elementary: Grades 1-5
Take Praxis test #5001

Candidates who decide to teach special education must pass the following while enrolled in the program:

• Mild-Moderate Pedagogy – Special Education: Core Knowledge and Mild to Moderate Applications Praxis exam
• Take Praxis test #5543 (same test # for Mild-Moderate Elementary 1-5, Middle Grades 4-8, & Secondary Grades 6-12)

Candidates must also pass the following while enrolled in the program:

• Principals of Teaching & Learning (PLT): Grades K-6
• Principals of Teaching & Learning (PLT): Grades 5-9
• Principals of Teaching & Learning (PLT): Grades 7-12

How do I schedule a Praxis test?
View the requirements and schedule a test at https://www.ets.org/praxis/la/requirements.