Get Your West Virginia Teaching Certification
If you want to become a teacher in West Virginia, a good start is to complete your education at an accredited college or university with an approved teacher preparation program. Once you complete this program, you will be recommended for certification with the West Virginia Department of Education.
In order to receive your certification to teach, you will need to submit an application as well as take and pass the WVBE-required Praxis I and II licensure exams, and complete a West Virginia State Police and FBI background check. Upon approval, you will receive your Initial Professional Teaching Certificate. After you have been teaching for two years with your Initial Professional Teaching Certificate, you will be able to convert it to a renewable Professional Teaching Certificate. In order to do so, you will need to successfully complete the beginning teacher internship, teach at least two years (one of which is in West Virginia), and receive a recommendation for certification.
Once you have received your certification to teach in West Virginia, you will need to find employment at one of the schools. Kanawha County Schools in Charleston believe that quality teaching coupled with community involvement will help to achieve their goals of student success and closing the achievement gap. Cabell County Schools in Huntington approach learning with a team focus that includes not only teachers, but the entire staff of the school district, as well as families and communities to provide an environment for student success. Wood County Schools in Parkersburg boasts a long heritage of academic success in a district that receives a number of awards and scholarships alongside tremendous community support. Ohio County Schools in Wheeling has received a number of local, state, and national recognitions for their success. They attribute much of their recent achievements to the Foundations of Success program they have in place.
After teaching in West Virginia with your Professional Teaching Certificate, you will need to renew it every five years. In order to do so, you will be required to have one of the following three options for renewal: six semester hours of coursework from an accredited institution on higher education, the certificate being renewed reflects an advanced salary classification of MA +30 of higher, or the applicant has reached age 60.
