Professional Certification Maintenance and Renewal Forms

Template - PGP for Certificate Renewal
(After opening the form; choose "File" then "Download.")

Administrator Professional Certificate Renewal Record of Continuing Education Form SPI 1656B (Word)

Administrator Professional Certificate (ProCert) Renewal FAQ

How do I renew my professional administrator certificate?
An administrator professional certificate has a five-year expiration date. To renew the certificate, the administrator must complete four one-year Professional Growth Plans (PGPs), completed since the certificate was issued, (see template link above). At the end of the five-year period, a completed SPI Form 1656B must be submitted to your ESD along with your application materials.

Do I need to address all six standards as part of my five 1-year PGPs?
No, all six standards do not have to be addressed. Renewal of the administrator professional certificate is a job-embedded, contextualized professional development and certification process. As such, administrators are expected to address standards based on their needs assessment.

More than one supervisor signed my PGP forms over the past five years. Which supervisor needs to sign the verification form?
The supervisor, supervisor designee, or appointed representative who signs the fourth PGP should also sign the verification form. Be sure to have copies of the previous four PGPs for the supervisor’s verification. Remember, it is your responsibility to maintain your certificate; be sure to keep the original PGP documents in a safe place.

I am leaving my position as a principal or program administrator. How do I renew my administrator certificate if I am no longer serving in the role?
If you have a professional certificate and are not employed in the role, you may have your professional certificate renewed for an additional five-year period by:

• completion of fifteen quarter credits (ten semester credits) of college credit course work directly related to the current performance-based leadership standards from a regionally accredited institution of higher education taken since the issuance of the professional certificate, or
• completion of 150 clock hours since the certificate was issued which relate to the career level benchmarks posted at http://program.pesb.wa.gov/review/standards/standard-5/principal/benchmarks; or
• completion of four PGPs developed annually since the certificate was issued. The PGPs must document the formalized learning opportunities and professional development activities that relate to the six standards and career level benchmarks (see link above). Please note that all six standards do not need to be addressed in each PGP, only the standard(s) which are chosen based on the educator’s needs assessment.

How do I renew my professional or continuing teaching certificate?
Continuing teaching certificates are renewed by completing 150 clock hours every five years. However, administrators may waive 30 hours of continuing education requirements for each completed PGP. See form 1211 at for additional details (question 9).

This waiver also applies to professional teaching certificates. See form 4034 for details (question 10).

How do I renew my professional or continuing ESA certificate?
Professional or continuing ESA certificates are renewed by completing 150 clock hours every five years or by completing five one-year PGPs developed annually since the certificate was issued. The clock hour waiver option described above for renewing teaching certificates also applies to ESA certificates.

I have a residency teaching certificate. How do I earn a professional teaching certificate when I’m no longer teaching?
When the residency teacher certificate is first issued, it has no expiration date until the individual has completed two years of teaching and has signed a contract for a third year in the same Washington school district, state-approved private school, or state agency providing education services to children. After the contract is signed for the third year, the certificate acquires a five-year expiration date. The expectation is that the professional certificate will be attained before the residency certificate expires. If the professional certificate has not been earned and you are not eligible for a professional certificate program (i.e., you are not teaching), you may receive a one-time five-year renewal by completing 15 quarter-credits (10 semester credits) since the residency was first issued.

To earn a professional teaching certificate, you must complete a teacher ProCert program prior to September 1, 2011, or pass the ProTeach Portfolio, or earn national board certification prior to your residency teaching certificate expiring. To complete the ProTeach Portfolio, candidates must be able to complete the three portfolio entries, including providing student work and classroom instructional evidence from their teaching that addressed the professional certificate standards and criteria. In other words, you must have access to a P-12 classroom to gather evidence. Additional information is located as www.proteach.org.

What office do I contact if there are additional questions?
The Certification Office may be reached at cert@k12.wa.us or (360) 725-6400 TTY: (360) 664-3631.