SECTION .0200 ‑ JUVENILE JUSTICE PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

12 NCAC 09D .0201         JUVENILE JUSTICE PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

(a)  Applicants who meet the qualifications set forth in this Rule shall be eligible to receive a Juvenile Justice Professional Certificate. Based on the applicant's qualifications, this Professional Certificate is defined as either an Intermediate or Advanced Certificate. Advanced Certificates shall be approved by Commission vote at regularly scheduled meetings prior to being awarded.

(b)  To be eligible for either Intermediate or Advanced Certificates, applicants shall meet the following qualifications:

(1)           The applicant shall be a full-time employee of the Division of Juvenile Justice and shall hold general Juvenile Justice Officer certification pursuant to 12 NCAC 09B .0117 or 09B .0116; or

(2)           The applicant shall have previously held the certification listed in Subparagraph (d)(1) of this Rule and, by virtue of direct promotion or transfer from a certified position, currently serve in a permanent, full-time position not subject to certification for the Division of Juvenile Justice; and

(3)           The applicant shall be in good standing with the Division of Juvenile Justice at the date of application.

(c)  An applicant subject to suspension or revocation proceedings, probation subsequent to suspension or revocation proceedings, or under investigation for possible decertification action by the Commission pursuant to 12 NCAC 09A .0206, the Company and Campus Police Program pursuant to either 12 NCAC 02I .0214 or 12 NCAC 09J .0211, or the North Carolina Sheriffs' Education and Training Standards Commission pursuant to 12 NCAC 10B .0206, shall not be eligible for professional certificates for the pendency of the proceeding or the period of probation.

(d)  Eligibility for Intermediate or Advanced Certificates shall be based upon a formula which combines formal education, Juvenile Justice training, and service as a Juvenile Justice employee pursuant to Subparagraph (d)(4) of this Rule. Eligibility shall be computed in the following manner:

(1)           The applicant's highest educational degree will be given a point value. Graduate degrees will be worth 15 points, Bachelor's degrees will be worth 12 points, and Associate's degrees will be worth 7 points;

(2)           Each semester hour of college or university credit earned in pursuit of an educational degree not yet completed by the applicant shall equal one-tenth of a point, and each quarter hour of college or university credit earned shall equal one-fifteenth of a point. The total points earned in this manner shall not equal or exceed the number of points that would be given for the degree upon completion;

(3)           Twenty classroom or practical skills assessment hours of Commission-approved Juvenile Justice training shall equal one point. No points will be awarded for the maintenance of specialized Juvenile Justice training;

(4)           Each full year of service as a full-time employee of the Division of Juvenile Justice, or equivalent service as determined by the Commission, shall fulfill a requisite year of creditable service. For the purposes of this Rule, "equivalent service" includes service in a permanent, full-time, paid position in a federal or out-of-state Juvenile Justice institution.

(e)  Applicants for the Intermediate Juvenile Justice Certificate shall have acquired a minimum of four years of full-time Juvenile Justice service and a minimum of 30 total education and training points.

(f)  Applicants for the Advanced Juvenile Justice Certificate shall have acquired a minimum of nine years of full-time criminal justice service and a minimum of 80 total education and training points.

(g)  All applicants for either Intermediate or Advanced Certificates shall submit a completed Application for Award of Professional Certificate Form F-6 (DJJ), pursuant to 12 NCAC 09I .0107, to the Division of Juvenile Justice agency head.

(h)  Documentary evidence of college or university graduation shall be submitted with the application pursuant to 12 NCAC 09B .0106.

(i)  Documentation of training submitted to the Division shall include training records, signed by the Division of Juvenile Justice agency head, that indicate the number of training contact hours.

(j)  Replacement certificates may be requested by submitting a completed Request for Replacement of Professional Certificate Form F-7, pursuant to 12 NCAC 09I .0107. An applicant shall have been previously awarded either an Intermediate or Advanced Certificate to be able to receive a replacement.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 17C-6;

Eff. August 15, 1981;

Pursuant to G.S. 150B-21.3A, rule is necessary without substantive public interest Eff. May 25, 2019;

Amended Eff. February 1, 2026.