The State Board of Education (SBOE) on Thursday approved a significant repeal and replacement of the Alabama Administrative Code Chapter pertaining to Teacher Certification Professional Services, in alignment with recent legislative changes and modifications made through Alabama State Department of Education (SDE) memos over several years. The chapter's overhaul includes removing outdated and repetitive information, aligning with the new Administrative Code Chapter on Educator Preparation, updating renewal requirements and providing additional flexibilities for school systems and applicants.

View an overview of changes adopted for the Alabama Administrative Code Chapter  290-3-2 Teacher Certification, presented during the board's work session in March.

The board adopted three resolutions in its meeting:

• Revising Business Software Applications I standards to be embedded with statutorily-required financial literacy coursework and career preparation standards;
• Appointing the 2026-27 State Textbook Committee for Digital Literacy and Computer Science, Grades K-12; and
• Modifying the Praxis assessment names and cut scores for both Middle School Social Studies and Early Childhood Education Foundational Knowledge, formerly called Pre-Kindergarten Education, in alignment with national recommendations from Educational Testing Services (ETS).

FY27 RAISE Act Allocations

Deputy State Superintendent of Education for Administrative and Finance Arthur Watts reviewed during the work session a May 28 memo detailing each school system’s allocation for the upcoming 2026-27 school year under the student-weighted funding formula created through the Renewing Alabama’s Investment in Student Excellence (RAISE) Act. These RAISE Act funds are in addition to Foundation Program funding and are disbursed to systems based on weights established in the Education Trust Fund (ETF) budget act. While systems have some flexibility, state superintendent approval is required to move more than 10% of allocated funds between categories. 

The legislature allocated $191 million from the RAISE Act Fund for the upcoming school year, a $25 million increase over last year, with $58 million from redistributed ETF line items and $133 million from the RAISE Act Fund. The legislature also transferred an additional $399 million from the Educational Opportunities Reserve Fund (EORF) to the RAISE Act Fund for future years.

Pursuant to the RAISE Act, beginning this year, each school system must annually submit an accountability plan and report to the SDE by Nov. 1. The SDE will provide a form to systems to use in compiling the report by Oct. 1. The report must include:

• Establishing goals for the achievement of the student groups receiving weighted allocations through the RAISE Fund that are in alignment with the student achievement goals established in Alabama’s Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plan;
• Describing planned expenditures at the system and school level for the student groups receiving weighted allocations through the RAISE Fund; and
• Providing an analysis of the previous year’s progress of those student groups.

View the FY27 RAISE Act Guide and System Allocations memo here.

The SDE Thursday released school system-level reading scores from the Spring 2025 Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program (ACAP) but did not discuss the results in the work session.

View system-level ACAP reading scores here: https://www.alabamaachieves.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/RD_SP_202668_2026ACAPReading_v1.xlsx

Educator Preparation Programs (EPPs) 

Athens State University, University of Mobile, The University of Alabama, University of Montevallo, Tuskegee University, Auburn University at Montgomery, and Faulkner University each presented their Educator Preparation Programs (EPP) for review during the board's work session. Troy University presented a new Alternative Teacher Preparation Organization that would be the first in the state operated by a higher education institution.

Next SBOE Meeting and Work Session

The board’s next regular meeting will take place Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at 10 a.m. in Montgomery with a work session immediately following:

• Gordon Persons Building Auditorium
• Livestream viewing:  https://www.youtube.com/user/aldeptofed/live
• Archived meeting and work session recordings:  https://www.alabamaachieves.org/state-board-of-education/meeting-videos/