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Certification Exam Reimbursement for School Year 2016-2017

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March 9, 2017

TO THE ADMINISTRATOR ADDRESSED:

SUBJECT: Certification Exam Reimbursement for School Year 2016-2017

The Texas Education Code §29.190 authorizes the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to pay school districts an amount equal to the cost paid by the district for a certification exam taken and passed by a student. TEA received a limited amount of funding for this purpose for the 2016-2017 biennium.

Districts may apply for reimbursement of certification exams taken by students during the 2016-2017 school year. The agency will reimburse the cost of each exam up to $350 per exam under the following conditions:

  • Students who take multiple certification exams are only eligible for one reimbursement.
      
  • The district must have paid the fee for the examination with state or local funds.
      
  • The student must either have successfully completed the career and technical education (CTE) program of a school district or charter school in which the student receives training and instruction for employment or have been enrolled in a special education program.
      
  • Each student must have taken and passed the certification exam to qualify for a license or certificate prior to July 31, 2017.
      
  • The certification exam passed by the student must be an end-of-program exam included on the 2017 Perkins Program Effectiveness Report (PER).
      
  • Certification exams paid for with Perkins federal funds are not eligible for reimbursement.

Applications may be submitted beginning Thursday, March 9, 2017, and ending Friday, August 4, 2017. Applications will be reviewed and reimbursements granted on a first-come, first-served basis until the allocated funding has been expended.

District Coordinator Instructions

  1. Carefully verify the accuracy and eligibility of all students based on the criteria listed above. When you submit the information to TEA, you are taking responsibility for its accuracy.
      
  2. Download the 2017 Certification Exam Reimbursement Application template attached to this correspondence.
      
  3. Compile information for all eligible students into the 2017 Certification Exam Reimbursement Application. Lists that contain duplicate students will be returned for corrections.
      
  4. Save your completed 2017 Certification Exam Reimbursement Application with a new name, following this format: [district] 2017 CTE (e.g., Alphabet ISD 2017 CTE). (This is a very important step as TEA will receive hundreds of versions of this application from districts all over the state.)
      
  5. Carefully organize and keep all documentation. This includes proof of payment by the district as well as verification that each student successfully completed a CTE program, and took and passed the certification exam.
     
    Should TEA have questions concerning your application, you will be asked to submit this documentation. The documentation will then be required for approval.
      
  6. Email the completed 2017 Certification Exam Reimbursement Application (saved with the new name) to career@tea.texas.gov. Some additional requirements for this email are:
     
    • Spreadsheets must be submitted through ShareFile, a secure file transfer protocol. Please see TEA's Contact information for more information.

    • The email must come from the email address of the superintendent-appointed district coordinator. This is the person taking responsibility for all information in the application.

    • The email must have the following as the subject line: [district] 2017 CTE.
    • The body of the email must contain the following statement of certification:

    • I, _________[name]____________, __[title]___ for _____[district name]____, have verified the information submitted to the Texas Education Agency via this email and attached document and certify its truth and accuracy.

    • Do not mail or fax the information to TEA. Mailed or faxed applications will be returned to the sender.
     
  7. Watch for emailed verification of the submission within five (5) working days. Should such verification not arrive within five business days, please contact the CTE Unit in the Department of College, Career, and Military Preparation by email at career@tea.texas.gov, or by phone at (512) 936-6060.

Sincerely,

 

Quentin Suffren
Executive Director
College, Career, and Military Preparation

 

Attachment: 2017 Certification Exam Reimbursement Application template 

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