Delaware Professional Standards Board

What the Professional Standards Board Does

The Delaware Professional Standards Board (PSB) is the body that writes the rules governing educator licensure and certification in the state. It operates under Title 14 of the Delaware Code and works in coordination with the Delaware Department of Education to set the requirements for every credential an educator can hold.

The PSB does not process your application — that is the DDOE Educator Support Team's job through the DEEDS system. Instead, the PSB establishes the regulations that define what qualifications you need, what assessments you must pass, how many clock hours you need for renewal, and what coursework counts toward various certifications.

Think of it this way: the PSB writes the rules, and the DDOE enforces them.

How PSB Regulations Are Organized

PSB regulations live in Title 14 of the Delaware Administrative Code. The sections most relevant to teachers:

Section 1510 establishes the requirements for the Initial License — the first license tier for new educators. It defines who qualifies, what documentation is needed, and the timeline for transitioning to a Continuing License.

Section 1511 covers the Continuing License, including the 90 clock hours of professional development required for each five-year renewal cycle and the rules for what counts as an approved clock hour.

Chapter 12 of Title 14 Delaware Code is the statutory foundation. This is the actual law passed by the General Assembly that gives the PSB its authority and establishes the basic framework for educator licensure, evaluation, and professional conduct.

Individual Standard Certificate requirements have their own regulation sections. For example, 14 DE Admin. Code 1571 covers the Special Education Teacher of Students with Disabilities Standard Certificate, and separate codes govern elementary education, secondary content areas, school counselor, and other specialist credentials.

Why PSB Regulations Matter to You

Every certification decision the DDOE makes on your DEEDS application is grounded in a specific PSB regulation. When your dashboard shows a deficiency, it means your file does not yet satisfy a requirement defined in the applicable PSB code section.

This matters in practice because:

Regulations change. The PSB regularly amends its codes through a public rulemaking process. Recent changes include updated coursework requirements for the special education certificate under Section 1571, new permitting rules under HB 97, and the elementary assessment transition from Praxis 5001 to Teaching Reading 5205. If you are using advice from a year or two ago, the underlying regulation may have shifted.

Not all regulations apply to all candidates. A traditional-route graduate from a Delaware university faces different PSB requirements than an out-of-state reciprocity applicant or an ARTC career changer. The regulations are pathway-specific, and applying the wrong section's requirements to your situation leads to unnecessary delays.

The PSB is not the DDOE help desk. If you have a question about your specific application, contact the DDOE Educator Support Team. The PSB sets policy at the macro level — they do not handle individual application inquiries.

How to Read PSB Regulations

All current PSB regulations are published on the Delaware Regulations website under Title 14. The language is dense legal prose, which is part of the reason a plain-language process guide has value. But if you want to verify a specific requirement, going straight to the source is the most reliable approach.

For a plain-language translation of every PSB requirement that applies to your pathway — traditional, ARTC, reciprocity, or substitute route — the Delaware Teacher Certification Guide maps the regulations to concrete steps with deadlines and checklists.

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