Paraeducator

There are four types of paraeducator certification in Washington state: General Paraeducator, English Language Learner Subject Matter, Special Education Subject Matter, and Advanced Paraeducator. Please review the outline of requirements for each type below.

Eligible Clock Hours

For ALL First-Time Paraeducator certificates below, clock hours must be earned on or after July 1, 2019, to meet requirements. When applying for your certificate, you must submit documentation of completed clock hours or equivalents for review with the application.

General

This application is for paraeducators who have completed the requirements for the General Paraeducator certificate.

Requirements

• Completion of the Fundamental Course of Study (FCS)
  • Enter this into your E-Certification (eCert) account under the professional development section. Under credit type, select Paraeducator Fundamental Course of Study.
    • Please Note: Individuals who hold a full, valid education certificate and have completed the FCS, are considered to have met requirements for the General Paraeducator certificate and can apply in eCert.
• 70 additional clock hours of professional development
  • One Professional Growth Plan (PGP) may be used towards the 70 clock hour requirement.

English Language Learner Subject Matter

This application is for paraeducators who have completed requirements for the English Language Learner Subject Matter Paraeducator certificate.

Requirements

• Completion of the Fundamental Course of Study (FCS)
  • Enter this into your eCert account under the professional development section. Under credit type, select Paraeducator Fundamental Course of Study.
    • Please Note: Individuals who hold a valid regular educator certificate with an ELL/Bilingual endorsement issued by OSPI may apply once the FCS is complete. 
• 20 additional clock hours in English Language Learner professional development
  • The 20 clock hours of professional development can be used towards attaining the General Paraeducator certificate.
  • Enter this into your E-Certification account under the professional development section. Under type of study, select English Language Learner Content.

Special Education Subject Matter

Requirements

This application is for paraeducators who have completed requirements for the Special Education Subject Matter Paraeducator certificate.

• Completion of the Fundamental Course of Study (FCS)
  • Enter this into your eCert account under the professional development section. Under credit type, select Paraeducator Fundamental Course of Study.
    • Please Note: Individuals who hold a valid regular educator certificate with an Early Childhood Special Education or Special Education endorsement issued by OSPI may apply once the FCS is complete. 
• 20 additional clock hours in Special Education professional development
  • The 20 clock hours of professional development can be used towards attaining the General Paraeducator certificate.
  • Enter this into your eCert account under the professional development section. Under type of study, select Special Education Content.

Advanced 

Requirements

This application is for paraeducators who have completed the requirements for the General Paraeducator certificate and want to apply for the Advanced Paraeducator certificate.

• 75 clock hours of professional development related to the duties of an advanced paraeducator
  • Trainings should be related to the following activities (clock hours are not awarded for performing these activities): 
    • Assisting in highly impacted classrooms;
    • Assisting in specialized instructional support and instructional technology applications;
    • Mentoring and coaching other paraeducators; and
    • Acting as a short-term emergency substitute teacher

Clock Hour Timeline

Clock hours for the Advanced Paraeducator certificate must be earned on or after the issuance date of the General Paraeducator certificate. When applying for a certificate, submit documentation of completed clock hours or equivalents for review with the application.