Superintendent Arntzen Releases Teacher Licensing Report

• Brian O'Leary
• January 06 2023

HELENA – Superintendent Elsie Arntzen has released the 2022 teacher licensure report. This report includes the number of new and maintained teacher licenses, and the number of emergency authorization of employment in Montana from January 2022 through December 2022.

“Every classroom in Montana deserves a quality educator to guide our children in achieving academic success," said Superintendent Elsie Arntzen. “As I’ve said before, our schools mirror the many help wanted signs in businesses throughout our Montana communities. I have sought solutions by offering flexibilities in our teacher licensing rules, streamlining our teacher licensing system, increasing our professional development courses, and developing a teacher residency program to ensure our first year teachers are classroom ready. Through these innovative solutions Montana is putting our students first!”

New teacher licenses are first time Montana licensees, which includes new first year teachers as well as current teachers who moved to Montana and applied for a first time Montana license.

Maintained teacher licenses are renewals, upgrades, and added endorsements to current Montana teaching licenses. All Montana teachers must renew their licenses every five years. Upgraded licenses include upgrading Class 2 Standard Licenses to Class 1 Professional Licenses, upgrading from Class 5 Provisional Licenses to Class 1 or Class 2 licenses, and upgrading to administrative licenses. Adding endorsements include adding a foreign language, career and technical education, or other specialized area endorsements to a current teaching license.

Emergency authorization of employment is a teaching position filled by an individual that is not currently licensed. School district administrators must have exhausted all possibilities for hiring a licensed teacher. Emergency authorizations are valid for one year.

Between 2018 and 2022 the numbers of licenses per year were:

• New licenses
  • 2018: 1,532
  • 2019: 1,521
  • 2020: 1,251
  • 2021: 1,646
  • 2022: 1,207
• Maintained licenses
  • 2018: 5,657
  • 2019: 5,489
  • 2020: 5,530
  • 2021: 5,204
  • 2022: 5,256
• Emergency Authorizations of Employment
  • 2018: 94
  • 2019: 84
  • 2020: 120
  • 2021: 173
  • 2022: 134

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