State Licensure Requirements
Liberty meets education requirements.

Special Education: Adapted Curriculum & Early Childhood Special Education with CTE Transition & Special Needs – Tennessee

Educational Requirements

According to the Tennessee Department of Education:

The state of Tennessee offers the following endorsements.

  • Tennessee offers 461 – Special Education Comprehensive (K-12) and 468 – Early Development and Learning (PreK-K).

Additional Requirements (After Degree Conferral)

  1. Please submit all licensure documents (located on the Gate 4 Checklist) to gate4@liberty.edu. 
  2. Students will need to obtain their Virginia license first to qualify for reciprocity.
  3. Gate 4 will complete a College Verification Form which will be used to apply for Virginia licensure.
  4. After obtaining a Virginia license students can then apply for a Tennessee license through reciprocity.

Reciprocity

The practitioner license is an initial license, valid for three years. To be issued a practitioner license using a valid out-of-state initial-level license, an applicant must:

  • hold a bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university;
  • hold an initial level license in a state other than Tennessee,
  • submit a recommendation, using the Out-of-State Educator Preparation Verification form, from the out-of-state EPP where the educator completed a preparation program (all out-of-state providers must meet conditions stipulated in State Board Rule 0520-02-04); and
  • ensure that the department has official transcripts of all credits earned through an institution of higher education. The transcript must be submitted by the institution to Educator.Licensure@tn.gov through an approved clearinghouse, or mailed to 710 James Robertson Parkway, 9th Floor, Nashville, TN 37243. For more information, review the Academic Transcripts Operating Procedures.
  • meet TN Literacy Success Act requirements as evidenced by completion of a qualifying training or assessment, if applicable

Educators who apply for the practitioner license based on possession of an active initial level out-of-state license are not required to submit assessments as part of the initial application process. However, such educators must either pass the required content assessment(s) as defined in Professional Assessments for Tennessee Educators Policy 5.105 or submit evidence of possession of an active professional level out-of-state license in order to qualify for renewal or advancement.”