Establishes emergency teacher certificate in certain circumstances.

This bill (A2886) creates an emergency teaching certificate for school districts facing shortages of certified teachers in high-need fields like special education and bilingual education. It allows school administrators to apply for this certificate for candidates who are enrolled in teacher preparation programs, hold a bachelor’s degree, and have passed subject exams. The certificate is renewable annually up to two times (max 3 years total) and limits districts to employing no more than 10% of teaching staff under this emergency certification. The Department of Education must publish and annually review the list of eligible high-need fields.