Harrisburg, PA – Today, the Shapiro Administration announced updates to the Pennsylvania Department of Education’s (PDE) website that will make it easier than ever for aspiring educators to become a certified teacher in Pennsylvania, while still earning a paycheck. This announcement adds to the Shapiro Administration’s growing list of strategic initiatives that strengthen the Commonwealth’s pipeline of qualified K-12 educators.
PDE and the Commonwealth Office of Digital Experience Pennsylvania (CODE PA) have redesigned multiple pages on PDE’s website to provide step-by-step guides on:
- How to get certified to teach in Pennsylvania schools;
- How to get certified when already credentialed in another state;
- How to get a permit to substitute teach in Pennsylvania; and,
- How to return to teaching after time away.
The updated pages also include a standardized format and commonly used terms for prospective teachers to more easily find and understand information to get successfully certified.
“Clear, accessible pathways to teacher certification are essential to building a strong and sustainable educator workforce in Pennsylvania,” said Acting Secretary of Education Dr. Carrie Rowe. “By removing barriers and providing step-by-step guidance, we’re making it easier to enter the profession and ensuring that every student in the Commonwealth has access to a well-prepared, passionate teacher in their classroom.”
“Since the relaunch of PA.gov in January, CODE PA has continued to improve the experience so that more Pennsylvanians can benefit from the valuable services provided by state agencies,” said Sara Hall, Acting Executive Director of CODE PA. “This collaboration with PDE on teacher certification is helping educators navigate the process faster and get into the classroom where they are needed. It’s something we are very proud to be part of.”
Pennsylvania is facing a teacher shortage, making it more critical than ever to remove barriers to entering and staying in the profession. Under the leadership of Governor Shapiro, PDE and other Commonwealth agencies have been laser-focused on strategic initiatives to recruit and retain high-quality teachers in Pennsylvania classrooms.
These efforts are working. In 2024-25, the number of experience-based certifications issued to aspiring educators increased by more than 45 percent – up from 382 in 2023-24 to 555 in 2024-25. Experience-based certificates are an alternative to emergency permits and provide new teachers with both mentorship and a pathway to a highly valuable permanent teaching credential. Previously known as intern certificates, experience-based certificates were renamed by Act 47 of 2025.
Individuals with an experience-based certificate have passed the content test demonstrating that they have the knowledge to teach in a content area and must only complete their professional core education work and student teaching before becoming fully certified. Rather than re-applying every year for emergency permits, these new teachers have five-year certificates, giving them the chance to complete their student teaching while working and getting paid as a teacher of record. PDE has approved 54 additional experience-based preparation programs in the past 18 months.
Since the 2021-22 school year, PDE has seen a steady increase in the number of Instructional 1 certificates issued every year. PDE issued a total of 6,612 in-state and out-of-state Instructional 1 certificates in 2023-24. The Act 82 Report compiled and published each year by PDE also showed an increase of 793 newly certified PK-4 educators, 85 more health and physical PK-12 educators, and 762 PK-12 special educators over the past two years.
To tackle Pennsylvania’s teacher shortage, the Shapiro Administration has:
- Reduced teacher certification processing times by more than 10 weeks
- Made experience-based certificates free to aspiring educators
- Created a new Career and Technical Education (CTE) program in Education for high school students: The new Career and Technical Education (CTE) program in Education for high school students has also shown promise in helping students earn industry recognized credentials prior to graduating high school. Since launching two years ago, 37 public schools representing 25 counties have received PDE approval to offer the CTE program in Education.
- Launched the Accelerated Special Education Teacher Certification Program: This summer, a second group of students began coursework to become certified special education teachers in Pennsylvania. Enrolled at 14 colleges and universities throughout the Commonwealth, 110 students are on track to obtain their teaching certification by December 2026. Earlier this year, the first cohort of 142 students successfully completed the accelerated program, graduating with specialized skills to support students with disabilities and help them thrive in the classroom and beyond.
- Created and expanded the Student Teacher Support Program to provide a stipend to student teachers: The Student Teacher Support Program – administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency – provides stipends to eligible student teachers in Pennsylvania to ensure student teachers are compensated for their hard work. Student teaching is a fulltime job – one that typically keeps student teachers from working another paid job – and the stipend program lowers a barrier to entry into teaching for students who would otherwise struggle to afford to student teach. This year, student teacher stipends supported more than 2,000 student teachers in Pennsylvania. Governor Shapiro successfully advocated for a $10 million increase in the 2025-26 budget, raising the annual amount available for the initiative to $30 million.
- Made it easier for Pennsylvanians to find jobs in education: In May, PDE launched the newly refreshed Teach in PA website to help individuals interested in obtaining a career in education more easily find relevant job opportunities.
- Launched a first-of-its-kind teacher apprenticeship program partnership: Through a partnership between the departments of Education and Labor & Industry (L&I), the Shapiro Administration announced a $7.76 million investment in grants to 16 organizations throughout Pennsylvania to start their own earn-as-you-learn teacher apprenticeship programs.
The 2025-26 budget and Act 47 of 2025 build on Governor Shapiro’s work to cut costs, strengthen the Commonwealth’s workforce, drive economic growth, and create more opportunities for Pennsylvania’s children.
Earlier this month, Governor Shapiro signed Pennsylvania’s 2025-26 budget, which includes an $11.9 million increase to maintain the maximum state grant amount and help more students afford college and a $10 million increase for the Student Teacher Stipend Program, helping address educator shortages and make teaching a more accessible and rewarding career path – raising the annual amount available for the initiative to $30 million.
For more information on the Pennsylvania Department of Education, please visit the Department's website or follow PDE on Instagram, Facebook, X, YouTube, and Pinterest.
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