Per Public Act: 23-159, Connecticut teacher candidates are required to submit the edTPA to Pearson for official scoring and meet Relay’s established cut scores in a handbook area approved for their CT endorsement area to be recommended for certification. Relay has set a required edTPA cut score of 37 on 15-rubric handbook areas and 44 for 18-rubric handbook areas. These cut scores represent one Standard Error of Measurement (SEM) below the nationally recommended professional performance standard and are aligned with the edTPA cut scores established by the CSDE that went into effect on September 1, 2019. 

Candidates who do not meet the established cut score, but score within 1-2 points, can demonstrate that they are prepared to become a certified teacher of record by satisfying the requirements below:

• edTPA exam score. Have an edTPA status of 35-36 for 15-rubric handbook areas or 42-43 for 18-rubric handbook areas.

• Letters of Recommendation forms. Have two “Letter of Recommendation” forms submitted on their behalf—one by a clinical practice faculty member at Relay, and another by someone who supervised the candidate while they completed clinical experience in a Birth–Grade 12 educational setting. These forms must be emailed to Relay’s edTPA coordinator ([email protected]) and emailed from the employment email address of the recommender.

• Minimum Relay GPA of 2.7.

Review Process

If a candidate meets the criteria listed above, their “Letter of Recommendation” forms will be forwarded to the edTPA coordinator and Connecticut Clinical Practice Director. They will decide if the candidate should receive a waiver for the established edTPA cut score. After making their decision, Relay Connecticut’s Manager of Certification will email candidates to inform them of their status.

The edTPA coordinator and Connecticut Clinical Practice Director’s determination is final. If students are denied, they will have to submit a new edTPA (either part or whole) to Pearson and meet the established cut score for their handbook area.

Candidates will not be recommended for certification until after completing all program requirements and meeting Relay’s established edTPA requirement.