ASSEMBLY, No. 2564

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ROSAURA "ROSY" BAGOLIE

District 27 (Essex and Passaic)

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblywoman LINDA S. CARTER

District 22 (Somerset and Union)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblyman Singh and Assemblywoman Katz

SYNOPSIS

     Requires certain candidates for teaching certifications to complete youth mental health education course or online module.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.

An Act concerning teacher certification and supplementing chapter 26 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

     1. a. As used in this section, “certificate of eligibility” means a certificate with lifetime validity issued by the State Board of Examiners to candidates who meet degree, academic, and applicable test requirements for teacher certification.

     b. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, all candidates for teaching certification who have completed an educator preparation program at a Commissioner of Education approved educator preparation program provider shall have satisfactorily completed a course or training on youth mental health education.

     c. All commissioner-approved educator preparation programs shall review and update their educator preparation programs to implement the requirements of subsection b. of this section and submit the revisions to the Department of Education for approval.

     d. The department shall develop an online module on issues in youth mental health education. The module shall include practical components such as case studies and simulations. The module shall also include information on:

     (1) the dangers of youth mental health challenges;

     (2) methods to create safe haven classrooms; and

     (3) cultural competence and diversity considerations in youth mental health education.

     e. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the State Board of Education shall require a candidate holding a valid teaching certificate issued by another state, or a candidate that possesses a certificate of eligibility, to complete the online module on youth mental health education developed by the department pursuant to subsection d. of this section within one year of the effective date of this act.

     f. A candidate that has completed a comparable mental health education course or training within the five years preceding the effective date of this act may request an exemption from the course or online module required pursuant to subsections b. and e. of this section on a form and in a manner determined by the commissioner.

     2. This act shall take effect in the first full academic year following the date of enactment, except that the Commissioner of Education may take any anticipatory action, in advance of the effective date, as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

STATEMENT

     This bill stipulates that beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, all candidates for teaching certification who have completed an educator preparation program at a Commissioner of Education approved educator preparation program provider are to have satisfactorily completed a course or training on youth mental health education.

     The bill requires all commissioner-approved educator preparation programs to review and update their educator preparation programs to implement the requirements of the bill and submit the revisions to the Department of Education for approval.

     The bill also requires the department to develop an online module on issues in youth mental health education. The module is to include practical components such as case studies and simulations. The module is also to include information on: (1) the dangers of youth mental health challenges; (2) methods to create safe haven classrooms; and (3) cultural competence and diversity considerations in youth mental health education.

     Additionally, the bill requires the State Board of Education to require a candidate holding a valid teaching certificate issued by another state, or a candidate that possesses a certificate of eligibility, to complete the online module on youth mental health education developed by the department within one year of the effective date of this act.

     Finally, the bill stipulates that a candidate that has completed a comparable mental health education course or training within the last five years preceding the effective date of the bill may request an exemption on a form and in a manner determined by the commissioner.