Coming from Oregon, I did my MAT at Western Oregon University. This meant that I got my Oregon Initial teaching license first. Many Alaskan educators complete their masters and student teaching in Alaska, which is a much more streamlined process towards certification. If you graduate with a Masters from a UA program, your initial license should come pretty easily.
Since I did not do this, I had to go through the out of state transfer process. Basically what this means is that the State of Alaska/DEED granted reciprocity to my Oregon license and gave me one year license, which could be extended to three years if I submitted additional documentation.
Basically, I had one year to turn in my Praxis/NES scores, two years to turn in a few other documents, and three years to complete my required classes– Alaska History and Multicultural teaching. I did both classes through ASDN. They offer an asynchronous option, which you can start whenever you like and finish in as little as 30 days (or up to a year).
The other option they have is a hybrid in-person and online class that they offer a few times a year with Father Michael Oleksa. This is the much better option, in my opinion. Father Michael is an Orthodox priest who just genuinely loves Alaska history and all its highs and lows. He teaches using mostly oral tradition, that is, standing in front of a room and talking, but his story telling is incredible and really engaging. You usually attend class for 2.5 full days and then have some follow-up work to complete with Sharon Bandle through ASDN’s online portal. I took Alaska Alive! in 2016 and Communicating Across Cultures in 2017. Both were incredible and really helped me begin to understand what a new world I was in up here in Alaska.
When I had these courses complete, I started the application for a full license, and called DEED for help going over the list. Calling them is ALWAYS a great choice. They are quick to email, but are also very helpful over the phone. One of the administrators gave me another 1-year extension when I called in 2018, which was really nice as this was when my father was ill and I was considering a move back to Oregon. I would have been sad to pay for a certificate renewal that I would never use. Many educators who call are offered a free one-year extension depending on when they call and how busy the office is, so if you’re stressing with a deadline, it’s worth the phone call.
I finally completed my professional license-sure in October 2019. The checklist seems daunting but is a total godsend. Supposedly you can send all your documents online now instead of printing them and having a notary sign them, too, which is great. If you do still need to have a notary, keep in mind that most banks have free notary service for their customers.
HeyKenna 