On June 24, 2022, Governor DeWine signed House Bill (“HB”) 583 in law to continue to provide flexibility for school districts to employ substitute teachers with relaxed educational qualifications through the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years. Like previous flexibility, HB 583 allows a public school district, JVS, ESC, STEM school and community or chartered nonpublic school to employ an individual as a substitute teacher according to the district’s or school’s own education requirements, as long as the individual also is deemed to be of good moral character and successfully completes a criminal records check.

The State Board will issue a nonrenewable temporary substitute teaching license to an individual who meets those requirements, even if the individual does not hold a post-secondary degree.

Unfortunately, the legislation does not allow ODE to issue the temporary substitute teaching credential until September 23, 2022, because HB 583 does not contain an emergency provision and therefore does not take effect until September 23. However, on July 21, 2022, ODE issued guidance indicating that it will accept applications for a one-year temporary non-bachelor’s substitute teaching license beginning August 1, 2022, to allow school districts to conditionally employ individuals who have an application pending for up to sixty (60) days from the date of application. This conditional employment allows school districts to employ these individuals starting August 1.

The process for employing these individuals will be as follows:

Applicants submit the temporary application August 1 or after for the 2022-2023 school year;
Once the Department receives an application, the local school board may conditionally employ the person as a substitute teacher for a period of 60 days. To hire the individual, the employing superintendent must believe the individual’s application indicates the person is qualified to obtain the substitute teaching license; and
On September 23, the Department will begin rapidly processing all pending applications to ensure they are processed within the 60-day conditional employment period. Please note the period of conditional employment will last for 60 days or until the licensure application has either been issued or declined, whichever comes first.

After September 23, 2022, the Department will resume processing 1-Year Temporary Non-Bachelor’s Substitute Teaching License applications in the normal fashion.