Georgia Professional Standards Commission Meeting Report - October 2025

Josh Stephens
3 hours ago
3 min read

The Georgia Professional Standards Commission (GaPSC) met virtually Oct. 8 and 9.

Educator Preparation and Certification Rules Posted for Public Comment Commissioners approved to post several Educator Preparation rule amendments for public comment:

The commission also approved to post a proposed amendment to Educator Preparation Rule 505-3-.82 Birth Through Kindergarten Endorsement for public comment.

The proposed rule amendments will soon be posted on the GaPSC website. To provide public comment, written comments should be addressed to GaPSC Executive Secretary Dr. Joseph Barrow and may be submitted via e-mail (RulesComments@GaPSC.com) or via regular mail (200 Piedmont Avenue, Suite 1716, Atlanta, GA 30334).

The rules will be considered for formal adoption at the Dec. 11 meeting of the GaPSC.

Executive Secretary Update

GaPSC Executive Secretary Jody Barrow updated commissioners on the GaPSC's work to develop recommendations to strengthen the educator workforce as directed by SR 237. The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) continues to lead this work. PAGE is actively engaged in this work with the GaPSC and other education organizations and agencies to support Georgia's educator workforce.

Barrow asked school districts to continue submitting feedback on the AI ethics guidelines released by GaPSC earlier this year. The survey link is available at the bottom of the linked document.

He announced GaPSC plans to hire a literacy-focused educator preparation program reviewer to assist with the increased number of reviews of changes to literacy programs spurred by Georgia's increased focus on improving literacy.

Educator Preparation & Certification

Commissioners approved the removal of the following areas for improvement (AFI) for Young Harris College, thus reclassifying Standards 2, 4, and 5 from "not met" to "met" for the education preparation provider:

Standard 2.2 - Clinical Educators
Standard 2.3 - Clinical Experiences
Standard 4.1 - Completer Effectiveness
Standard 4.2 - Satisfaction of Employers
Standard 4.3 - Satisfaction of Completers
Standard 5.1 - Quality Assurance System
Standard 5.2 - Data Quality
Standard 5.3 - Stakeholder Involvement
Standard 5.4 - Continuous Improvement

Click here for more information about each standard.

Commissioners also removed an AFI from Young Harris College for Standard 6.5 for the following programs:

Biology Education (Grades 6-12)
Elementary Education (Grades P-5)
English Education (Grades 6-12)
History Education (Grades 6-12)
Mathematics Education (Grades 6-12)
Music Education (Grades 6-12)
Science Education (Grades 6-12)

Young Harris College's approval status was reclassified from Continuing Approval with Probation to Continuing Approval.

The commission also granted developmental approval of Atlanta Metropolitan State College's educator preparation program. Since AFIs were submitted, a progress report from the college is due to GaPSC on April 8, 2026.

First District RESA's ESOL endorsement program was granted administrative approval.

The commission approved several rules for initiation. Full information on the proposed rules can be found HERE. The proposed rules will remain open for public comment until Aug. 21. Comments should be addressed to GaPSC Executive Secretary, Dr. Joseph C. Barrow at RulesComments@GaPSC.com.

Ethics

The commission approved all recommendations for cases on the agenda. No ethics cases were pulled for discussion.

Assistant Attorney General (AAG) John Preston Smith, who replaced Steven Walters in the position, shared the following statistics:

7 negotiated consent orders (NCO)
346 cases assigned
96 cases were closed
3 cases pending before the Georgia Office of State Administrative Hearings (GOSAH)
0 cases pending for judicial review