Kentucky guide

Kentucky teacher salary schedules, lane changes and license renewal

In Kentucky the same coursework renews your certificate and raises your pay, because both run on certification rank. The first two renewals push you toward Rank II, a master's or a 32-hour planned fifth-year program, and districts pay by rank and years of experience.

By TeacherPayGuide editorsPublished · 10 min read

Short answer

How do Kentucky teachers renew a certificate and move up the salary schedule?

A Kentucky professional certificate runs five years. The first renewal takes at least 15 graduate semester hours toward a planned fifth-year program, the second takes the completed program, and later renewals take three years of teaching or six semester hours. Pay follows rank (III, II, I) and experience, so the fifth-year program that renews your certificate can also qualify you for Rank II pay once the EPSB issues that rank.

Source: 16 KAR 2:010, Kentucky professional and provisional teacher certificates. Checked .

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How do you renew a Kentucky teaching certificate?

Kentucky certificates are issued and renewed by the Education Professional Standards Board (EPSB), and the rules live in Title 16 of the Kentucky Administrative Regulations. After the Kentucky Teacher Internship Program (KTIP), a teacher receives an initial professional certificate. Under 16 KAR 2:010, renewals then follow a fixed sequence:

  • First five-year renewal: at least 15 semester hours of graduate-level coursework applicable to a planned fifth-year program, completed by September 1 of the year the certificate expires; or the required components of the continuing education option.
  • Second five-year renewal: completion of the fifth-year program by September 1 of the expiration year, or successful completion of the continuing education option.
  • Every renewal after that: the general rule in 16 KAR 4:060, which is three years of successful teaching experience or at least six semester hours of credit.

The same regulation notes that older certificates keep the renewal terms in effect when they were issued, so a veteran teacher's certificate may read differently. Check the renewal requirements printed for your own certificate.

What counts toward renewal

Under 16 KAR 4:060, coursework taken for renewal "shall be selected from a nationally or regionally accredited postsecondary institution." A full year of teaching experience means at least 140 teaching days in the academic year, verified by your superintendent. Substitute teaching counts when you were employed and paid by the local board and worked at least 30 days a semester or 60 days a year in a certified position. Work at the EPSB, the Kentucky Department of Education or a similar agency, and teaching in educator preparation or your certified subject at an accredited college, also counts.

If you fall short, the certificate can be extended once, for one year after it expires, when you have finished at least a third of the requirements and your superintendent asks for the extension. The rest must then be done within that year.

The fifth-year program

16 KAR 8:020 defines the planned fifth-year program two ways:

  • Plan I: a master's degree in a professional education specialty, an academic subject for which certification is issued, or professional education with emphasis in such a subject.
  • Plan II: 32 semester hours of graduate-level coursework beyond the bachelor's degree, planned individually with a teacher education institution approved for graduate programs and tied to your certificate.

Within Plan II, up to 12 of the semester hours can be replaced by professional development at "twenty-four (24) clock hours" per semester hour, but only with the institution's prior approval of the specific activities. The continuing education option in 16 KAR 8:030 is a separate route to Rank II or Rank I, built on a job-embedded professional development plan with a scored portfolio (Plan I) or an EPSB-approved program with a capstone project (Plan II), each taking one to four years. For the trade-offs between a degree and loose credits, see master's degree versus credits, and for other states, the license renewal hub.

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Plan the 15 hours before you take them. The first renewal counts hours "applicable to" a planned fifth-year program, which is set up with a college. Courses chosen at random may not fit a program later. See will my district accept it.

How do Kentucky teachers move to a higher salary rank?

Kentucky's columns are certification ranks set in statute. KRS 161.1211 has the EPSB rank teachers this way:

  • Rank III: a regular certificate and an approved four-year degree.
  • Rank II: a master's degree in an approved field, initial National Board certification, or equivalent continuing education.
  • Rank I: Rank II plus a master's in an approved field or equivalent continuing education, initial National Board certification, or 30 additional semester hours of approved graduate work.

Ranks IV and V apply to emergency certificates. 16 KAR 8:010 spells out Rank I: 30 semester hours of approved graduate-level credit beyond Rank II, 60 hours including a master's, National Board certification, or the continuing education option. At least 15 of a 30-hour program must be taken at the recommending college, and teacher-institute equivalency credit is capped at 15 hours.

On the pay side, KRS 157.390 places teachers on the state teacher salary schedule by rank and by five experience bands (0-3, 4-9, 10-14, 15-19 and 20 or more years), with rank and experience fixed on September 15 each year. Each district then adopts a "single salary schedule" under KRS 157.320, based on training and experience. When the budget bill sets a minimum statewide schedule, no teacher can be paid below it. Districts can add their own levels between ranks, as Fayette County does. Our guide to salary lane names lines up ranks with the lanes other states use.

What do some of the largest Kentucky districts require?

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Jefferson County Public Schools

Jefferson County, the Louisville district, publishes its teacher pay as the Job Family III salary schedule for 2026-27, built on a 187-day, seven-hour work year with steps 0 through 25. It splits the state ranks into six columns: Rank III (Bachelor's), Rank III+15 (Bachelor's+15 hrs.), Rank II (Master's), Rank II+15 (Master's+15 hrs.), Rank I (Master's+30 hrs.) and Doctorate.

  • Plus-15 columns: Jefferson pays for 15 hours between the bachelor's and master's ranks and again between Rank II and Rank I, so partial progress can move pay before a full rank change.
  • Which hours count: the schedule does not define the hours behind the plus-15 columns. Ask Human Resources in writing which courses qualify before you enroll.
  • Rank columns: Rank II and Rank I follow the state definitions above, so a rank change still runs through the EPSB.
Source: JCPS Salaries and Schedules, Teachers—Certified (Job Family III)
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Fayette County Public Schools

Read the full Fayette County guide →

Fayette County, in Lexington, uses the same idea with its own labels. Its 2025-26 salary schedule splits the ranks into six certified levels: Rank 3.1 (AB), Rank 3.2 (AB+15), Rank 2.1 (MA), Rank 2.2 (MA+15), Rank 1.1 (MA+30) and Rank 1.2 (Doctoral).

  • Plus-15 levels: each is "based on graduate semester hours" that cannot be part of a previous degree or rank. Coursework taken during your master's program does not count toward MA+15.
  • Proof: an official transcript of 15 graduate hours for AB+15 or MA+15. Rank moves need the new Kentucky rank certificate on file.
  • Timing: credits and rank changes must be completed before September 15, with documents to Human Resources by the last day of school before winter break. A rank certified after September 15 pays from the next school year.
  • National Board: the approval letter is due before the last day of school in the first semester to count for the current year.
Source: FCPS Budget & Financial Planning, 2025-26 Salary Schedule
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Warren County Public Schools

Warren County shows the simpler model. Its 2026-27 certified salary schedule keeps the state's three ranks: Rank III (bachelor's), Rank II (master's) and Rank I (master's plus 30 hours), by years of experience up to 30 or more.

  • No in-between levels: the schedule lists no steps between ranks, such as a bachelor's-plus-15 column.
  • Doctorate: a supplement is added on top of the applicable rank pay.
  • Rank rules: the 2026-27 employee handbook says rank and experience are set under Board Policy 03.121.
  • Renewal and pay: renewal documents for a June 30 expiration are due July 1. Pay reverts to the substitute schedule on July 15 if renewal is not done, and a teacher not renewed by September 1 faces demotion or termination. December 31 expirations follow the same pattern from January 1.
Source: Warren County Public Schools Human Resources, Certified Salary Schedule and Employee Handbook

The three districts show the range. Jefferson and Fayette pay for 15 hours between ranks, so partial progress shows up in a paycheck once it is on a transcript. Warren pays only at rank, and its handbook ties a lapsed certificate directly to pay. In both, the September 15 date in state law decides which school year a change takes effect.

Full district guides for Kentucky

Fayette CountyFayette County pays on six levels: Rank 3.1 (AB), 3.2 (AB+15), 2.1 (MA), 2.2 (MA+15), 1.1 (MA+30) and 1.2 (Doctoral). Fifteen graduate hours outside a degree move a teacher to a plus-15 level if completed before September 15.

Before you enroll

  1. Read your certificate. Note its expiration date and which renewal you are on: first, second or later.
  2. Set up the fifth-year plan. Plan the program with a college so your first 15 graduate hours apply to it.
  3. Get PD approved first. Clock-hour professional development replaces Plan II hours only with the institution's prior approval.
  4. Check your district's levels. Jefferson and Fayette pay at plus-15 levels between ranks; Warren pays only at Rank III, II and I.
  5. Calendar September. Renewal coursework is due September 1, and rank for pay is set on September 15.

The provider directory groups semester-credit providers by need, and the comparison table shows their costs and formats side by side.

Kentucky questions teachers ask

Do Kentucky teachers need a master's degree to renew?

Under 16 KAR 2:010, the second renewal requires a completed fifth-year program. That can be a master's (Plan I) or 32 planned graduate semester hours (Plan II), or the continuing education option.

How many hours do I need for my first Kentucky certificate renewal?

At least 15 semester hours of graduate-level coursework that apply to a planned fifth-year program, completed by September 1 of the year the certificate expires.

What is Rank I in Kentucky?

Rank I is the top rank. It takes Rank II plus 30 approved graduate hours, a 60-hour program that includes a master's, National Board certification, or the continuing education option.

When does a rank change raise my pay?

State law fixes rank and experience for the salary schedule on September 15. In Fayette County, a rank certified after that date pays from the next school year.

Can professional development hours count instead of college credit?

Within a Plan II fifth-year program, up to 12 semester hours can be professional development at 24 clock hours per hour, with the institution's prior approval.

Sources

  1. 16 KAR 2:010, Kentucky professional and provisional teacher certificates, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  2. 16 KAR 4:060, Certificate renewals and teaching experience, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  3. 16 KAR 8:020, Planned Fifth-year Program, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  4. 16 KAR 8:030, Continuing education option for rank change, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  5. 16 KAR 8:010, Rank I classification, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  6. KRS 161.1211, Classification of teachers, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  7. KRS 157.390, Determination of teachers' salaries, Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  8. KRS 157.320, Definitions (single salary schedule), Kentucky Legislative Research Commission. Checked
  9. Job Family III Salary Schedule 2026-27, Jefferson County Public Schools. Checked
  10. Salaries and Schedules, Jefferson County Public Schools. Checked
  11. 2025-26 Salary Schedule, Fayette County Public Schools. Checked
  12. Certified Salary Schedule for the 2026-27 School Year, Warren County Public Schools. Checked
  13. 2026-2027 Employee Handbook, Warren County Public Schools. Checked
  14. 2025-26 Salary Schedule, FCPS Budget & Financial Planning. Checked
  15. Certified Salary Schedule and Employee Handbook, Warren County Public Schools Human Resources. Checked

Reviewed November 11, 2026 by TeacherPayGuide editors.Report an error

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