Act 13 of 2020 Continuing Education Status Extension

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions During COVID-19

Page last updated: May 8, 2020

Act 13 of 2020 (Act 13) provides a one-year extension of each professional educator's current continuing professional education compliance period, as required by 24 P.S. §12-1205.2 and 1205.5. These requirements are more commonly referred to as Act 48 and Act 45 continuing professional education.

This extension only applies to professional educators with an active certification as of the effective date of March 27, 2020 and expires one year later on March 27, 2021.

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No. The applicability of the Act 13 depends on the status of an educator's certification. If a certificate holder has a current unexpired compliance period and the status is currently active, an extension of one year will be applied to the current Act 48 and Act 45 Pennsylvania Inspired Leadership (PIL) compliance period.

An educator with a current certification status of inactivation pending will not receive a one-year extension. However, the educator may receive a one-year extension if the educator's certification is returned to active status by completing the hours required for Act 48 and/or Act 45 PIL prior to March 27, 2021. The one-year extension will be applied to the educator's new Act 48 and Act 45 PIL compliance period.
An educator with a current certification status of inactive will not receive a one-year extension. However, the educator may receive a one-year extension if the educator's certification is returned to active status by completing the hours required for Act 48 and/or Act 45 PIL prior to March 27, 2021. The one-year extension will be applied to the educator's new Act 48 and Act 45 PIL compliance period.
An educator with a current certification status of voluntarily inactive will not receive a one-year extension. However, the educator will receive a one-year extension if the educator's certification is returned to active status by completing the hours, forms, and fees required to remove voluntary inactive status prior to March 27, 2021. The one-year extension will be applied to the educator's next Act 48 and Act 45 PIL compliance period.
An educator with a current certification status of active under appeal will not receive a one-year extension. If you have questions regarding the appeal process, please contact the Division of Planning via email at ra-edact48@pa.gov.
If an educator's certificate remains on an inactive, voluntarily inactive, or inactivation pending status and is not returned to active status prior to March 27, 2021 when the extension period under Act 13 expires, then no extension will be applied to any subsequent Act 48 and Act 45 PIL cycles.

Act 13 of 2020 Continuing Education Status Extension

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions During COVID-19

Accordion

How does Act 13 impact the continuing education period for professional educators?

When does Act 13 take effect?

Will the extension of the continuing education period for professional educators be applied to all subsequent Act 48 and Act 45 professional education requirement compliance periods?

May educators complete Act 48 or Act 45 Pennsylvania Inspired Leadership (PIL) courses, programs, or activities and receive credit hours during the extension period?

Have all the professional education requirements for Act 48 and Act 45 Pennsylvania Inspired Leadership (PIL) been extended for one year?

Do all certificate holders receive a one-year extension under Act 13?

How do educators access records to determine current certificate status?

How do educators get PPID numbers and access PERMS (Professional Education Record Management System) to see Act 48 and Act 45 Pennsylvania Inspired Leadership (PIL) records and current compliance periods?

How will this extension be applied to certificate holders' records?

Will reporting of continuing education hours and credits continue during the extension period?

How does the extension affect the continuing professional education periods of educators who get their first Act 48 and Act 45 certificate issued to them during the extension period?

Can educators request that their certificate(s) be placed on voluntary inactive status during the extension period?

Can an educator request an additional extension for extenuating circumstances during the extension period?

Will the department continue to offer free online courses for Act 48 hours during the extension period?

Will the extension be applied to the Principal Induction five-year timeline?

Will currently approved Pennsylvania Inspired Leaders (PIL) courses continue to be offered during the extension period?

Will the Invitation to Qualify (ITQ) approval process continue for new Pennsylvania Inspired Leadership (PIL) courses and programs during the extension period?

Will the provider approval process continue for Act 48 Approved Providers during the extension period?

What will happen if an Act 48 independent provider's period of approval expires during the period of the extension?