Section 25.485  Licensure of Persons with Prior Certificate or License Sanctions

A previous denial of licensure or another action against an individual's license may indicate that issuance, renewal, reinstatement, or registration of a license would also currently be inappropriate. Accordingly, each applicant for the issuance, renewal, reinstatement, or registration of an Illinois professional educator license, an educator license with stipulations, or substitute teaching license or for the addition of another credential (e.g., endorsement, approval, or designation), including any credential issued under Subpart G, shall be required to indicate on the relevant form whether the applicant has ever had a professional license of any kind or teaching certificate or license denied, suspended, or revoked in Illinois or any other state, country or jurisdiction.

a)         Each individual providing an affirmative response to this question shall be required to submit a copy of the notice issued by the responsible agency in the state where the action occurred that includes:

1)         the date of the action;

2)         the reasons for the action;

3)         any penalties that were imposed;

4)         the ending date of each penalty, if applicable; and

5)         if requested by the State Superintendent, a personal statement and character references pursuant to Sections 25.480(a) and (b).

b)         Subject to subsection (c) or (d), the State Superintendent shall review the information submitted pursuant to subsection (a) and shall determine whether issuance, renewal, reinstatement, or registration of a license or issuance of one or more additional credentials, as applicable, is appropriate in light of the circumstances surrounding the previous denial or suspension (including the applicant's age and the background of the applicant at the time of the action), any penalty that was imposed, and any evidence the applicant has provided concerning the applicant's good character that may mitigate the defect in the record. (Also see Sections 25.480 (a) and (b).)

c)         The State Superintendent may review any other license held by the applicant to determine if, based on the severity of the actions that led to the prior license denial, suspension, or revocation, the revocation or suspension of any additional license issued by the State Board is warranted.

d)         An application shall not be evaluated from an individual whose previous denial occurred five or fewer years from the date of application. 

e)         An application from an individual whose educator license is revoked at the time of application either in Illinois or another state shall not be considered except that the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to any individual who voluntarily surrendered a license pursuant to Section 21B-45 of the Code, or similar provision in another state, provided that the voluntary surrender was unrelated to misconduct.

f)         Submission of the application following the time period specified in subsection (e) is not a guarantee that the application will be approved and a license, endorsement, approval, or designation issued. An individual may appeal the decision to deny the application in accordance with procedures set forth in the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act [5 ILCS 100/Art. 10].

g)         An individual shall not be entitled to a refund of the application fee in the event that the application is subsequently denied.

(Source:  Amended at 48 Ill. Reg. 7729, effective May 9, 2024)