Educational Psychology
Self-paced online Educational Psychology course (Psychology 120). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →OhioTeachers
LPDC approval: ask before you enrol
By the team. Checked 15 Nov 2026.
The short answer
For Ohio teachers employed in a school, renewal coursework under OAC 3301-24-08 must be approved by the district's Local Professional Development Committee. The LPDC checks that each course fits your Individual Professional Development Plan and relates to classroom teaching or your licence area. Ask in writing before you enrol; approval after the fact is not certain.
What the LPDC does
Each Ohio district or school has a Local Professional Development Committee made up mostly of teachers. It reviews every educator's Individual Professional Development Plan, approves the activities in it, and verifies completion when the licence comes up for renewal.
OAC 3301-24-08 ties renewal to that approval: six semester hours or eighteen CEUs, as approved by the LPDC of the employing school or district. Without the LPDC's sign-off, completed hours may not count.
LPDC approval is local. Two districts can reach different answers on the same course, and moving to a new district means a new committee. If you change jobs part way through a renewal cycle, ask the new LPDC to review the plan and the hours you have already finished.
What LPDCs look for
LPDCs usually check three things. First, that the course relates to classroom teaching and/or your licence area. Second, that it supports a goal in your IPDP. Third, that the evidence will be right: a college transcript for semester hours, or certificates showing contact hours for CEUs.
Some LPDCs have their own forms and deadlines, such as asking for pre-approval a set number of weeks before a course starts. Read your district's LPDC handbook.
- Relates to teaching or your licence area
- Supports an IPDP goal
- Right evidence: transcript or contact-hour certificate
- Submitted on the district's form and timeline
The request to send
Write a short request: course title, provider, credit hours, the college transcript it will appear on, start and finish dates, and two sentences linking it to your IPDP goal. Attach the syllabus or course description. Ask the LPDC to confirm in writing that the course counts toward your renewal.
If the committee says no, ask what would fit. Many LPDCs will suggest course types they see often.
Send the request early. Committees often meet monthly or less, and some pause over the summer. A course that starts before the committee meets may be reviewed only after you have already paid for it, which is the situation the request is meant to avoid.
Where UPI Study fits
UPI Study courses carry ACE or NCCRS credit recommendations, and credit becomes semester hours only once a college posts it via a college transcript. TESU and UoPeople are partner colleges that consider ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended credit, and Newlane is a third.
Courses such as Educational Psychology, Psychology of Diversity or Research Methods in Psychology relate to teaching for many licence areas. They are undergraduate courses, so if your district wants graduate credit, they do not meet that need. Your LPDC decides.
A typical plan uses two 3-credit courses, which gives the six semester hours the rule asks for. Pick courses that link clearly to a goal in your IPDP, such as understanding how students learn or supporting students from different backgrounds, and say so in the request to the committee.
Keep a paper trail
Save the LPDC's written answer, your syllabus and the official transcript together. If committee members change before your renewal, the record shows what was agreed. Submit completion evidence well before your licence expires so the LPDC can verify it and you can apply through OH|ID on time.
If anything about your plan changes, such as swapping one course for another, send a short update to the LPDC and ask it to confirm the change in writing too. A plan that matches the transcript makes the final review quick.
What to ask in writing
Before you enrol
Ask your LPDC (or, if you are not employed in an Ohio school, the Office of Educator Licensure) in writing whether each course counts toward renewal, before you enrol.
UPI Study is not a college and is not accredited. ACE and NCCRS review our courses and recommend credit; a college decides whether to give that credit and records it on its own transcript.
ACE and NCCRS have over 2,100 cooperating colleges that will consider accepting credits; the final decision is with the universities.
Questions people ask
Can my LPDC reject a course after I finish it?
It can, if the course was not part of an approved plan or does not relate to your teaching or licence area. That is why asking in writing before you enrol matters.
Does the LPDC need a transcript?
For semester hours, LPDCs typically ask for an official college transcript. For CEUs, they ask for certificates showing contact hours. Each district sets its own forms, so check your district's LPDC handbook before you start.
Who is my LPDC?
Your employing district's or school's committee. Ask your principal or HR office. If you are not employed in an Ohio school, the state route or a regional provider LPDC applies instead.
Courses that fit
ACE-recommended or NCCRS-recommended courses, studied online at your own pace.
Research Methods in Psychology
Self-paced online Research Methods in Psychology course (Psychology 111). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →
Psychology of Diversity
Self-paced online Psychology of Diversity course (Psychology 112). NCCRS recommends 3 semester credits; each college decides how it applies them.
See the course →Start when you have it in writing
Take two related courses with ACE or NCCRS credit recommendations, then have a college post the six semester hours, after your LPDC confirms in writing that they fit your plan.
Sources
- Ohio Administrative Code 3301-24-08: Professional or associate license renewal (official)Five-year licence; renewal with six semester hours related to classroom teaching and/or the licence area, or 18 CEUs (180 contact hours), as approved by the LPDC; educators not employed in Ohio schools may apply directly with six semester hours, or use other options under a plan reviewed by a regional provider; 9 semester hours to reinstate a licence lapsed up to five years, 12 if more; effective 4 Nov 2021; authority ORC 3319.22(A) and 3319.29(H). Checked on 15 Nov 2026.