§ 115C-295.2. Powers and duties of the Commission.
§ 115C‑295.2. Powers and duties of theCommission.
(a) The North Carolina Teaching Standards Commission shall:
(1) Develop and recommend to the State Board of Educationprofessional standards or revisions to professional standards for NorthCarolina teachers.
(2) Review the areas of teacher certification and recommend tothe State Board of Education those areas that should be consolidated,redesigned, eliminated, or enhanced.
(3) Consider current methods to assess teachers and teachingcandidates, including the National Teacher Exam, the assessments of theNational Board for Professional Teaching Standards, and alternative methods ofassessment and recommend to the State Board of Education the implementation ofrigorous and appropriate assessments for initial and continuing certificationthat are valid and reliable measures of professional practice.
(4) Evaluate, develop, and recommend to the State Board aprocedure for the assessment and recommendation of candidates for initial andcontinuing teacher certification.
For purposes of this subsection, the areas of teacher certificationinclude initial certification, continuing certification, and certificationrenewal, and do not include teacher education programs.
(b) The Commission shall submit its recommendations undersubsection (a) of this section to the State Board. The State Board shall adoptor reject the recommendations. The State Board shall not make any substantivechanges to any recommendation that it adopts. If the State Board rejects therecommendation, it shall state with specificity its reasons for rejection; theCommission then may amend that recommendation and resubmit it to the StateBoard. The Board shall adopt or reject the amended recommendation. If theState Board fails to adopt the Commission's original and amended recommendationconcerning the implementation of assessments for certification and theprocedure for the assessment and recommendation of candidates for teachercertification, the State Board may develop and adopt its own plan.
(c) The Commission shall submit an annual report by December 1of each year to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee and theState Board of Education of its activities during the preceding year, togetherwith any recommendations and findings regarding improvement of the teachingprofession. The State Board shall submit a report by April 15, 1998, to theJoint Legislative Education Oversight Committee on the current status ofassessments for certification and any changes to the procedures for assessmentand recommendation of candidates for teacher certification. (1996, 2nd Ex. Sess., c. 18, s. 18.12(b).)