Colorado § 22-60.5-210 - Types of special services licenses issued - term.

§ 22-60.5-210. Types of special services licenses issued - term.

(1) The department of education is designated as the sole agency authorized to issue the following types of special services licenses to persons of good moral character:

(a) Initial special services license.

(I) The department of education, in its discretion, may issue an initial special services license to any applicant who:

(A) Has been awarded an appropriate degree from an institution of higher education;

(B) Has met the standards of the state board of education concerning academic and professional preparation, experience, and performance, as appropriate for the subject matter area or areas for which the initial special services license is to be endorsed; except that, to qualify for special services licensure with a school counselor endorsement, an applicant must hold, from an accredited institution of higher education, a master's degree or higher in school counseling that consists of at least forty-eight graduate semester credit hours.

(C) Has demonstrated professional competencies in subject areas as specified by rule and regulation of the state board of education pursuant to section 22-60.5-212.

(II) An initial special services license shall be valid in any school districts or nonpublic schools that provide, or charter schools that provide or participate in, an approved induction program for special services providers or have obtained a waiver of the approved induction program requirement pursuant to section 22-60.5-114 (2). Any initial special services license issued pursuant to this subsection (1)(a) is valid for a period of three years after the date of issuance and is renewable only once for an additional period of three years; except that, if an initial special services licensee is unable to complete an induction program for reasons other than incompetence, the state board of education may renew the licensee's initial special services license for one or more additional three-year periods upon the initial licensee's showing of good cause for inability to complete an approved induction program.

(III) For purposes of this paragraph (a), in establishing standards pursuant to sub-subparagraph (B) of subparagraph (I) of this paragraph (a) concerning academic and professional preparation and experience and performance with regard to school psychologists, school social workers, occupational therapists, physical therapists, and school nurses, the state board of education shall not require an applicant for an initial special services license who holds a valid Colorado license or registration or valid national certificate to take and achieve a passing score on an assessment of basic skills.

(b) Professional special services license.

(I) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (1)(b)(I.5) of this section, the department of education may, in its discretion, issue a professional special services license to any applicant who:

(A) Holds a valid initial special services license; and

(B) Has completed an approved induction program for special services providers and has been recommended for licensure by the school district, charter school, the institute, or nonpublic school that provided such induction program; except that the applicant need not complete an approved induction program as an initial special services licensee if the applicant previously completed an induction program while employed under an emergency authorization or a temporary educator eligibility authorization or if the school district or charter school in which the applicant is employed has obtained a waiver of the induction program requirement pursuant to section 22-60.5-114 (2). If the applicant is employed by a school district, charter school, nonpublic school, or the institute that has obtained a waiver of the induction program requirement, the applicant shall demonstrate completion of any requirements specified in the school district's, charter school's, or nonpublic school's plan for support, assistance, and training of initially licensed educators.

(I.5) The department of education may issue a professional special services license to an applicant who meets the requirements specified in section 22-60.5-111 (4)(c)(II) or (5)(e)(II).

(II) (A) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (1)(b)(II)(B) of this section, any professional special services license issued pursuant to this subsection (1)(b)(II)(A) is valid for a period of seven years after the date of issuance and is renewable pursuant to section 22-60.5-110. If, as of September 7, 2021, an individual has partially completed the individual's five-year professional special services licensing period, the licensing period for that individual is extended to a seven-year period. The years that the individual already completed toward the five-year professional special services licensing period will count toward the individual's new seven-year professional special services licensing period.

(B) Any professional special services license issued pursuant to this paragraph (b) which is held in conjunction with a master certificate pursuant to section 22-60.5-211 shall be valid for a period of seven years after the date of issuance and is renewable as provided in section 22-60.5-110.

(2) The state board of education is authorized to establish, by rule and regulation, such other requirements for licenses specified in subsection (1) of this section as it deems necessary to maintain and improve the quality of administration and supervision of education instructional programs; except that the state board of education may not require any person applying for a professional special services license to demonstrate professional competencies.

(3) (a) The department of education may, at its discretion, issue an initial special services license provided for in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section to any applicant from another state or country whose qualifications meet or exceed the standards of the state board of education for the issuance of an initial special services license.

(b) (I) The department of education may issue a professional special services license to any applicant from another state if:

(A) The applicant holds a license or certificate from that state that is comparable to a special services license in this state and the standards for the issuance of such license or certificate meet or exceed the standards of the state board of education for the issuance of a professional special services license; and

(B) The applicant has had at least three years of successful, evaluated experience within the previous seven years as a special services provider in an established elementary or secondary school and can provide documentation of such experience on forms provided by the department.

(II) An applicant for a professional special services license pursuant to this paragraph (b) need not have:

(A) Completed an approved induction program for special services providers;

(B) Held an initial special services license pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section; or

(C) Demonstrated professional competencies in subject areas as specified by rule of the state board of education pursuant to section 22-60.5-212.

(III) Repealed.

(4) The state board of education is authorized to enter into interstate reciprocal agreements in which the department of education agrees to issue initial special services licenses to persons licensed as special services providers in another state.

(5) Repealed.

Source: L. 91: Entire article added, p. 492, § 1, effective June 6. L. 96: (1)(a)(III) added, p. 127, § 1, effective March 25. L. 97: (1)(a)(II), (1)(b)(I)(B), and (2) amended, pp. 1660, 1663, §§ 11, 16, effective June 5. L. 98: (1)(a)(III) amended, p. 159, § 1, effective April 6. L. 2000: (3) amended, p. 1104, § 2, effective August 2. L. 2002: IP(1)(b)(I) amended, p. 1021, § 34, effective June 1. L. 2004: (1)(b)(I) amended and (1)(b)(I.5) added, p. 1280, § 4, effective May 28. L. 2005: (1)(a), (1)(b)(I), (3)(a), (3)(b)(II)(B), and (4) amended, p. 181, § 16, effective April 7. L. 2006: (5) repealed, p. 638, § 52, effective August 7. L. 2018: (1)(a)(II), IP(1)(b)(I), and (1)(b)(I)(B) amended, (SB 18-160), ch. 97, p. 763, § 9, effective August 8; (3)(b)(I)(B) amended and (3)(b)(III) added, (HB 18-1095), ch. 47, p. 482, § 2, effective August 8; (3)(b)(I)(B) amended, (HB 18-1130), ch. 76, p. 659, § 2, effective August 8. L. 2019: (3)(b)(I)(B) amended and (3)(b)(III) repealed, (HB 19-1059), ch. 30, p. 97, § 3, effective March 11; (1)(a)(II) and (1)(b)(I)(B) amended, (SB 19-069), ch. 37, p. 125, § 9, effective August 2. L. 2021: (1)(b)(II)(A) amended, (HB 21-1104), ch. 245, p. 1320, § 3, effective September 7. L. 2026: (1)(a)(I)(B) amended, (SB 26-153), ch. 86, p. 341, § 2, effective May 4.

Editor's note: Amendments to subsection (3)(b)(I)(B) by HB 18-1095 and HB 18-1130 were harmonized.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 19-1059, see section 1 of chapter 30, Session Laws of Colorado 2019. For the legislative declaration in HB 21-1104, see section 1 of chapter 245, Session Laws of Colorado 2021. For the legislative declaration in SB 26-153, see section 1 of chapter 86, Session Laws of Colorado 2026.