Step 3: Employment In A Florida Elementary Or Secondary School
To be issued a Florida Temporary Certificate, an individual must be employed either in a public school or a nonpublic school that has a state-approved program for demonstration of professional education competence (a requirement for issuance of a Florida Professional Certificate).
The following sites will assist you in contacting school districts or other school employers:
Traditional Public Schools
Florida has 67 public school districts (each county is a school district) and several developmental research schools and state-supported schools which operate as independent school districts. Each school district is responsible for employing teachers from among those eligible for certification. Please make direct contact with each school district in which you might like to teach.
Charter Public Schools
Charter schools in Florida are public schools and are sponsored by the school district in which they reside. Each charter school employs its own teachers and administrators, but the school district's personnel staff provide the necessary certification assistance for charter school instructional employees. If you are employed by a charter school, you should work with the local school district for fingerprinting and other educator certification procedures.
Florida Virtual Schools
The Florida Virtual School is the largest state virtual school in the nation and each school district operates online schools, programs and/or courses for their students. Florida's virtual schools and programs provide high quality online instruction and curriculum, which meet state and national standards, and are held accountable for student and school performance. The Florida Virtual School is responsible for employing teachers from among those eligible for certification. If you are employed by an approved virtual education provider, you should work with the local school district for fingerprinting and other educator certification procedures.
Private Schools
Florida has a number of private or nonpublic schools, which serve many of Florida's students both independently and through various affiliations and associations. Several of the Florida nonpublic school associations have state-approved programs for demonstrating professional education competence which are implemented in each of their member schools.
Individuals Not Seeking Florida Employment
The individual who is a citizen of the United States and holds an Official Statement of Status of Eligibility (SOE) verifying eligibility for a Florida Professional Certificate is issued the certificate after his/her fingerprint screening results have been cleared. Proceed to Step 4 (Submitting Fingerprints for Certification) and review the section entitled "Individuals Not Seeking Florida Employment."
The Florida Temporary Certificate is not issued until the individual is employed in an approved Florida school. Please refer back to the above sections for information on employment in Florida’s traditional public schools, charter public schools, the Florida virtual schools, or private schools.