Being a Fellow

Certification

All candidates accepted into teachNOLA must enroll in the Louisiana Practitioner Teacher Program (LPTP), an alternate teaching certification program to earn a Louisiana teaching certificate. The program provides a streamlined path to certification by combining intensive professional development experiences with full-time teaching. Recent data shows that LPTP teachers outperform beginning and experienced teachers in math, reading, and language arts. The study said that LPTP produces teachers who make “a positive contribution to student achievement from the point of entering the classroom.” Read more about LPTP here.

While working towards certification, Fellows meet state and federal highly-qualified requirements by teaching on a Practitioner License. For 2009 Fellows, certification costs totaled approximately $3,500. Fellows are responsible for paying LPTP tuition costs. The first tuition payments are typically due at the start of the school year.

While teachNOLA Teaching Fellows helps Fellows connect the pieces relating to licensure, it is the Fellow’s responsibility to meet all requirements in a timely manner to ensure receipt of certification.

One requirement to gain admittance to LPTP, and to earn a Louisiana Practitioner License, is the passage of specific Praxis teaching tests. Please visit our Required Tests page for more information and to get started preparing for these important tests.

Teaching Fellows begin their LPTP certification work upon entering the classroom as a full-time, salaried teacher immediately following the Institute. To earn full certification, Fellows attend content-specific seminars, complete additional professional development hours, and successfully complete a comprehensive portfolio demonstrating their effectiveness in the classroom. The teacher must teach within the area specified on his or her license. Upon successful completion of all components of LPTP, the teacher then earns a Level 1 Professional License, which is the same certificate awarded to those who successfully complete undergraduate education programs.

The Level 1 Professional License is generally earned in one to two years depending on the pace at which the Fellow successfully progresses through the program.  As the Practitioner License is a one-year license that can be renewed annually for up to three years, all Fellows must earn their Level 1 Certificate within that timeframe.  For more information on this alternate route teacher certification program, visit LPTP’s website.