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All Frequently Asked Questions at CDE

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Educator Licensing

How do I renew my license?

Visit the "Applying for a License or Authorization" page, find the type of license you want to renew, and click to view the application checklist. The checklist will walk you through all of the steps required, including education requirements, identification that must be submitted, and more.

How do I become a teacher in Colorado?

Visit the "Applying for a License or Authorization" page, find the type of teacher license you want to apply for, and click to view the application checklist. The checklist will walk you through all of the steps required, including education requirements, identification that must be submitted, and more.

How do I look up an educator's credential/license information?

If you are a member of the public, you can see if an educator has an active credential, a past credential or if a credential was denied, suspended, revoked or annulled by using the Public Educator Lookup.

How do I look up my current license or view the status of pending licenses?

Log into your eLicensing account and click on the "Credential/Application Information" tab that may contain information pertaining to pending applications as well as current and past credentials.

Note: Information prior to 2011 may not be visible to you in this lookup as that information was migrated from our old system into eLicensing and may reside in a secondary account. If your school district is inquiring, have them login to their eLicensing account where they will be able to see this older information. In the future we will merge this data into your single account. You also may not see all of your information if you have created multiple eLicensing accounts.

How do I lookup an educator credential for my school district?

Log into your eLicensing Verification Access account.

If you do not have an account, please visit CDE's school district webpage for instructions on how to apply. Any old system that you may have used in the past have been permanently closed.

How does a new teacher I hired get an emergency license?

Visit the Educator Licensing Office's Emergency Authorization webpage for information about emergency authorizations and a checklist of requirements for the application.

How does someone get a substitute license?

Colorado Issues three types of substitute authorizations: 1-year authorization, 3-year authorization, and 5-year authorization. A substitute authorization allows you to work in a Colorado public school as a substitute teacher. The substitute authorizations are issued without grade level or subject endorsement area. Visit the Substitute Application webpage in the Educator Licensing Office for more information.