The authority for this chapter is RCW 28A.413.030 which authorizes the paraeducator board with the powers and duties to adopt rules for the effective and efficient implementation of RCW 28A.413.040.

(1)(a) A person working as a paraeducator for the employing school district before or during the 2017-18 school year must meet the requirements of subsection (2) of this section by the date of hire for the 2019-20 school year or any subsequent school year.

(b) A person who has not previously worked as a paraeducator for the employing school district must meet the requirements of subsection (2) of this section by the date of hire for the 2018-19 school year or any subsequent school year.

(2) The minimum employment requirements for paraeducators are as provided in this subsection. A paraeducator must:

(a) Be at least eighteen years of age and hold a high school diploma or its equivalent, as described in WAC 179-03-022; and

(b) In addition, a paraeducator must meet one or more of the following:

(i) Have received a qualifying score on the education testing service paraeducator assessment as published by the professional educator standards board; or

(ii) Hold an associate degree or higher from an accredited college or university; or

(iii) Have earned seventy-two quarter credits or forty-eight semester credits at the one hundred level or higher at an accredited college or university; or

(iv) Have completed an apprenticeship as a paraeducator, in a program registered with the Washington state apprenticeship and training council.

The requirement in WAC 179-03-020 for a paraeducator to hold a high school diploma or its equivalent may be met with any one or more of the following:

(1)(a) High school diploma, or copy of high school diploma; or

(b) High school transcript, or copy of transcript, which documents a high school diploma; or

(c) If the diploma or transcript has been lost or destroyed, or the institution holding the records no longer exists, a statement from an official of the school where the high school diploma was issued, or a statement from an official of the institution holding the records, indicating completion of the diploma by the individual; or

(2) Documentation of achievement of the minimum proficiency level on the general educational development (GED) test or award of certificate of educational competence as described in chapter 131-48 WAC; or

(3) College or university transcript, or copy of transcript, which documents:

(a) A high school diploma; or

(b) Achievement of the minimum proficiency level on the GED test or award of certificate of educational competence as described in chapter 131-48 WAC; or

(4) Associate degree or higher from an accredited college or university; or

(5) Equivalency for course work, diplomas, degrees, and programs completed in countries outside the United States: Individuals who have completed course work, diplomas, degrees, and programs in a country other than the United States may provide one or more of the following:

(a) A transcript, or copy of a transcript, from an accredited United States college or university indicating that the college or university has accepted the course work, diplomas, degrees, or programs as equivalent to a high school diploma, associate degree, or higher; or

(b) A statement of degree equivalency for a high school diploma, associate degree, or higher from an international credentials' evaluation agency approved by the professional educator standards board; or

(c) A statement from an official of the school, college, or university where the high school diploma, associate degree, or higher was completed, indicating completion of the diploma, program, or degree, and approval of the program by an agency governing education in that country; or

(6) A transcript, or copy of a transcript, from an accredited college or university documenting seventy-two quarter or forty-eight semester credits at the one hundred level or higher will be accepted as an equivalent to a high school diploma; or

(7) Home-based instruction: On a case-by-case basis, a district may, at its own discretion, choose to accept a certification of completion of a program of home-based instruction as described in WAC 180-96-053.