The following organizations are eligible to become an approved clock hour provider (WAC 181-85-045)

• Accredited college or university (WAC 181-85-025)
• Nonprofit or not-for-profit organizations, with the exception of 501(c)4 organizations. These organizations must provide documentation of current non-profit or not-for-profit status. 501(c)4 organizations are prohibited from becoming an approved provider.
• Educational Service Districts (ESDs)
• State-approved private schools (WAC 180-90-112)
• Local, state, or federal agencies
• Educator preparation programs approved by the Professional Educator Standards Board

Note: All school districts, charter schools, and compact schools in Washington are automatically approved as clock hour providers; automatically approved providers are required to follow clock hour provider regulations.

Clock hour providers are responsible for knowing and adhering to all applicable rules governing Washington State approved clock hour providers. Rules are laid out in WAC 181-85; selected rules are highlighted on this page.

If an organization is interested in using pdEnroller to offer clock hour courses, visit the pdEnroller – ESD 112 webpage for more details.

Clock hour providers are approved for a period of one year and must apply annually for approval.

In the annual approval process:

• Clock hour committee members, the designated administrator, and the website must be identified.
• Applicants must describe how they will meet the program standards and recordkeeping requirements.
• Applicants will provide other information as requested by PESB.

Some providers must include additional information:

• Equity providers must include their mission and vision statements. They must also state their experience and expertise in providing professional development to educators generally, as well as specific experience and expertise in equity-based practices;
• Nonprofit or not-for-profit providers must include proof of their current nonprofit status.

Each clock hour provider must have a committee or board of directors that provides prior approval for clock hour offerings (WAC 181-85-045). This group is referred to as the clock hour committee.

The clock hour committee will be composed of individuals who may include:

• Teachers
• Educational staff associates (ESAs)
• Administrators
• Paraeducators
• Community members, or
• Representatives from colleges and universities

An organization’s board of directors may serve as its clock hour committee.

Before offering a course, the clock hour committee must approve the:

• Date of course
• Number of clock hours being offered
• Course objectives and program agenda
• Instructors and their qualifications
• Relation of course to clock hour standards (181-85-200, 181-85-202)

Clock hours may not be issued retroactively.

• Approval by the clock hour committee must happen prior to the course. (181-85-045)
• Participants must register prior to taking courses. Providers must keep records of this. (181-85-205)
• When partnering with another organization, an approved clock hour provider cannot provide blanket approval of all courses from that organization. The approved clock hour provider must follow all relevant policy for approving each individual course from another organization. (181-85-200)

Clock hours may not be offered for:

• Individuals serving as the instructor for a course for which that individual is the only participant
• Routine staff meetings to discuss or explain operational policies or administrative practices
• Business meetings of professional associations to discuss operational policies or practices
• Social hours or actual mealtime. (181-85-030)

Clock hour providers are subject to audit. Providers found not to be in compliance with WAC chapter 181-85 will no longer be eligible to provide clock hours. (181-85-220) Appeals may be filed with PESB (181-85-225).

Beginning on October 1, 2025, approved providers of equity based school practices, leadership, and government-to-government clock hour courses will also be subject to a complaint process, which may include an investigation. The draft complaint process is available here.

Clock hour providers must align their clock hour offerings to one or more applicable standards.

• Cultural competency, diversity, equity, and inclusion (CCDEI) standards
• Social Emotional Learning (SEL) standards, benchmarks, and indicators
• Professional educator role standards
• Paraeducator standards of practice

Clock hour providers must provide course evaluations to all participants and collect responses.

The designated administrator must periodically report summaries of evaluations to the clock hour committee. Summaries of evaluations must be available to OSPI and/or PESB staff for review upon request.

Course evaluations must include, but are not limited to, the following:

• • The extent to which the written objectives have been met
  • Participant perception of relevance and quality of the course
  • The extent to which the activities identified in the clock hour standards addressed by the course have been met
  • The extent to which the course provided the opportunity for participants to reflect on next steps or implementation of the learning in their practice
  • Suggestions for improving the course if repeated

Providers must keep the following for seven years (181-85-205):

• Documentation that the clock hour committee approved a course’s date, number of hours, objectives, relation to clock hour standards, and instructors and their qualifications before the course was offered
• Summary of course evaluations, and minutes showing that the committee reviewed these evaluations
• Participant registration list

The clock hour form must provide a space for the participant to indicate they are requesting fewer than the total number of clock hours offered due to partial attendance.

Upon request, providers must provide clock hour documentation to participants for seven years following the course.

Clock hour providers will give participants specific instructions regarding the need to retain clock hour documentation.

The following people and organizations are eligible to file complaints:

• Washington state educators
• Local education agencies (eg. school districts, charter schools, etc.)
• The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI)
• Organizations representing principals
• Organizations representing school board members
• Organizations representing school administrators
• Labor organizations representing classified instructional staff
• Labor organizations representing teachers

The complaint form is available here. Please download the form, complete it, and then email it to clockhoursPESB@k12.wa.us.

Approved equity and leadership providers are noted in PESB’s list of approved clock hour providers. In addition to those organizations, all school districts, tribal compact schools, and OSPI are approved equity and leadership providers.

For complaints related to general clock hour providers, please contact OSPI’s Professional Certification office at Cert@k12.wa.us.

The complaint process is designed to ensure that approved equity and leadership clock hour providers are held accountable to applicable standards so educators, students, and families benefit from high-quality continuing education.

First, when possible, complainants should contact the clock hour provider directly to resolve issues prior to filing a complaint.

If the issue has not been resolved with the provider, the educator may submit a complaint to PESB no more than 90 days after the date of the alleged infraction. PESB staff may extend this deadline if the complainant was in direct communication with the provider regarding the complaint during those 90 days.

Once a complaint is received, the complaint process has four parts:

1. Determining validity. Once a complaint is received, PESB staff must determine whether the complaint meets the minimum requirements of a valid complaint. For instance, it must be made by an educator or educational group as listed in WAC 181-85-222.
2. Determining severity. Valid complaints are sorted into three tiers based on the severity of the allegation. These tiers determine whether a remediation plan is likely to be needed as well as whether the provider must pause its clock hour course(s) during the investigation.
3. Investigation: PESB staff will review evidence provided by the complainant and the clock hour provider to determine whether the provider is meeting applicable standards.
4. Remediation: If the provider is not meeting standards, PESB staff will create a remediation plan. Providers who fulfill the remediation plan will retain their approval status.

For more information, read the full complaint process.