Frequently Asked Questions

The After School Professional Development Program (ASPDP) reimagines professional learning in service of equity by offering critically conscious professional learning that equips educators to confront race, power, and privilege, and to disrupt inequities in order to maximize outcomes for all students, particularly Black, Indigenous, and other students of color, students experiencing economic hardship, Students with Disabilities, Multilingual Learners, LGBTQI+, and other students who have been marginalized by systemic inequities.

ASPDP offers NYC educators in-service courses which teachers can count for A+ or P credit toward salary differential and towards the New York State (NYS) 100 hours of Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) requirement. All courses are aligned with the Danielson Framework for Teaching and the NYC DOE’s Equity for All priority. Courses are offered by partner organizations, including non-profits, cultural institutions, online providers, DOE teams, the United Federation of Teachers, institutes of higher education, and internal, full-time NYC DOE instructors. A+ is a new credit designation created in partnership between the DOE and the United Federation of Teachers (UFT). A+ credits are approved by a committee of UFT and DOE representatives, and are aligned with DOE educational priorities to promote teachers’ development of skills, knowledge, and methods aligned to the needs of the school system and students. All ASPDP courses are approved for A+ credit as of the Fall 2019 semester (beginning September 23, 2019).

A participant will not be eligible to receive credit for passing a course that he/she has previously taken and passed. Please note that a duplicate course will not be accepted on your transcript by the Office of Salary Services and will not count toward your A+/P credit as well as your New York State (NYS) hours. 

All educators and school staff may take ASPDP courses to further their own knowledge and develop their instructional practices. Teachers may take any approved A+ course, even if it is not in the subject area or grade level they are certified for.

Fully-appointed NYC DOE teachers may receive A+ or P credit towards salary differential requirements.

Guidance counselors may receive P credit for Guidance or Special Education courses.

You may also receive Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) credit if you are:

• A full-time NYC DOE teacher • A guidance counselor • A paraprofessional • A New York State private or parochial school teacher • A New York State charter school teacher

You can find more information about the CTLE requirements and certification at the following sites:

NYSED Resources on New Registration and CTLE Requirements NYSUT Teacher Registration Regulations Fact Sheet TEACH Online Services

If you have any further questions regarding CTLE requirements, please contact the New York State Education Department (NYSED) at CTLE@nysed.gov or call 518-474-3901.

If you have questions about certification that are unrelated to ASPDP, please contact the Office of Certification via HR Connect at 718-935-4000.

If you are a fully appointed teacher hired on or after September 1, 2019 then you must obtain a minimum of 18 A+ credits in order to earn your salary differential, unless you have already attained an additional Doctorate, or an additional Master’s in an approved related area as determined by the Joint Accreditation Committee (JAC).

If you are a fully appointed teacher hired on or after September 1, 2017 but before September 1, 2019, then you must obtain a minimum of 6 A+ credits, unless you have already earned your salary differential before September 1, 2019.

If you are a fully appointed teacher hired before September 1, 2017, then you are not required to use A+ credits to obtain your salary differential. If you choose to submit A+ credits towards your salary differential, you must obtain a minimum of 6 A+ credits.

You can find information on all ASPDP courses on the ASPDP website’s course catalog, all of which are eligible for A+ or P credit: https://pci.nycenet.edu/aspdp/Course/Search 

To create your account, please visit https://pci.nycenet.edu/aspdp/Account/Register. Once you have an account, you can register and pay course fees both on the ASPDP website and directly to the partner organization offering that course in order to earn A+/P credit.

We believe that all teachers must partner with students and continually engage with their school communities to develop their pedagogical practices in support of equity and justice for students who have been historically and are currently pushed to the margins. As part of educators’ ongoing development of effective pedagogical practices, they must also work to disrupt and replace any beliefs and practices that may contribute to inequitable learning environments and experiences for students. All courses approved by ASPDP endeavor to embody the guiding principles below:

Critical awareness of and reflection on one's identity, sociopolitical context, and the influences of these entities on teaching and learning are key components for all adults engaged in this work, including instructors and course designers. 

• This builds critical consciousness, a mindset that prompts the individual to:

• Disrupt existing narratives. 
• Confront issues of race, power, and privilege in society and within their sphere of influence
• Become an agent for institutional and social change. (Center for Strategic Solutions, 2015) 

• Students are valuable partners in the learning process and bring an abundance of personal knowledge and experience. Teachers should co-construct learning experiences with their students by integrating student voices in the design and implementation of instruction.

• Teachers must continually engage with their ever-evolving climate, context, and the individuals in their school communities, as a necessary part of their professional responsibilities. 

Given the above-mentioned guiding principles, you can expect ASPDP courses to:

• Engage you in rigorous, cognitively engaging instruction with opportunities to collaborate and co-construct knowledge with peers.

• Aid you in developing competency in Danielson Framework for Teaching components by applying your new learning to and assessing the impact on student outcomes, with opportunity to plan appropriate modifications.

Develop the mindsets, knowledge, and skills necessary to design and implement effective, culturally responsive-sustaining instruction, including:

• Engagement in brave conversations that examine and challenge beliefs and practices that contribute to inequitable learning environments.

• Exploration of resources and research that reflect racially and culturally diverse experiences and perspectives.

• Support in designing and implementing equitable learning environments that affirm students’ multiple identities and build their critical consciousness.

ASPDP offers both online and in-person classroom courses, as well as a limited number of blended classes, which combine both online and in-person sessions. To determine if a course is held online or in person, look under the location section of the course details page. You can also search for courses by location by selecting Online, In Person, or Blended from the "Course Type" drop down menu of the online catalog.

Course lengths vary based on the number of credits of the course.

3 credit courses are designed to include at least 45 hours of instruction.

2 credit courses include approximately 30 hours of instruction.

1 credit courses include approximately 15 hours of instruction.

Fall and spring courses may last up to 16 weeks; summer courses generally last one to eight weeks. Please review the course start and end dates in the syllabus before registering. Note that some online courses are “self-paced” and run the length of the full semester, meaning that you may complete the course at your own pace within that semester’s time window, as long as you finish all coursework before the final date of the course.

To enroll in a course, participants must first log into their ASPDP account. Once you have successfully logged in, please click on the Course Registration button on the home screen. This will take you to the course catalog where you can search for courses by Education Partner, course name, category, Danielson components, grade level, or number of credits. Enter the relevant information into any of the search boxes and click the “Search” button, which will show you a selection of courses. Click “Add to Course Cart” for any desired courses. You can also add a course to your cart directly from individual courses’ course details pages.

You may then continue to search for courses, or check out and pay by clicking “View Course Cart” (located in the top right corner of the screen).

Note that if you are trying to register for the class after the registration deadline, or if you are trying to register for more than 12 credits in a given semester, the website will not permit you to complete your registration.

Please note that you must also complete registration with the Education Partner and pay any additional Education Partner fees. Education Partner payment instructions are located on the ASPDP course details page.

Participants may enroll in 12 credits per a semester. This policy is set as the maximum course load for each semester, and we are unable to make exceptions.

Courses may be offered for 1, 2, or 3 credits depending on the number of hours of instruction, so please check carefully to ensure your desired course load does not exceed the 12-credit maximum limit with ASPDP and the education partner.

ASPDP offers courses over three semesters: Fall (September – January), Spring (February – May), and Summer (June – August). The course catalog for each semester is published shortly before the semester begins. You can sign up to receive the ASPDP newsletter for updates on when the catalog is published.

In order to ensure that we are providing the highest quality and most relevant courses aligned with current Chancellor’s priorities, course offerings will change from semester to semester and we cannot guarantee that a course approved for A+ will be approved every semester in the future.

To view current courses, you can search for courses from the course catalog page using the dropdown menus at the top of the search screen. You can view specific courses categorized by Education Partner, category, components of the Danielson Framework, grade level, course type (online, in-person, or blended), or number of credits. You can also search for a specific course by its title in the Course Name search bar.

Once you click on the course code in the course catalog, you can view the course details page for that class, which includes a description of the course, dates and times offered, instructor's contact information, and payment instructions, along with a downloadable syllabus for the class.

In addition to ASPDP courses, teachers may also qualify for A+ credit for coursework taken to achieve additional certification in one or more of the following designated areas:

• Special Education
• Health
• Bilingual extension
• TESOL certificate inclusive of additional content area certification
• Secondary Content Area Additional Certification for those who hold a Special Education or ESL Certificate
• *18 credits in content areas for those teachers with a SWD generalist seeking a content extension
• School Building Leader

These courses may have been taken at any time but must meet the additional requirements to qualify for the second differential (i.e. completed after the Bachelor’s program and not part of the required courses for the Master’s degree used to qualify for the first differential), and may only be counted if the certificate has been earned.

You may continue to count university courses and CLEP tests towards the salary differential, in addition to A+ courses. After you have earned the minimum number of A+ credits needed for your salary differential (see Who needs to take A+ courses?), you are free to complete the remaining credits needed for the differential through any other approved means. For more information on which credits will be approved, you can log in to HR Connect (https://doehrconnect.custhelp.com/app/home) using your DOE log in. On the left side menu, select “Paychecks and Salary” and then click on “Salary Differentials, Steps, and Upgrades”.

In addition to earning a second Master’s degree, the following certifications are currently approved for A+ credit:

• Special Education
• Health
• Bilingual extension
• TESOL certificate inclusive of additional content area certification
• Secondary Content Area Additional Certification for those who hold a Special Education or ESL Certificate
• *18 credits in content areas for those teachers with a SWD generalist seeking a content extension
• School Building Leader

These courses may have been taken at any time but must meet the additional requirements to qualify for the second differential (i.e. completed after the Bachelor’s program and not part of the required courses for the Master’s degree used to qualify for the first differential), and may only be counted if the certificate has been earned.

You may contact the Office of Salary Services at 718-935-4000 for further information about salary differential applications.

No, as a guidance counselor or paraprofessional or secretary, your salary differential options have not changed. A+ courses may only be taken for credit towards the salary differential by teachers. You may still choose to take P credit courses through ASPDP.

Only courses taken during the Fall 2019 semester (which began on September 23, 2019) and after are counted towards the A+ credit requirements. Any ASPDP courses that you completed in earlier semesters with start dates before September 23, 2019 can still be counted for P credit and CTLE hours, provided that you completed registration with ASPDP by the deadline.

No, you do not have to specify on your salary differential application if your ASPDP course should be counted as A+ or P credit. The course can be counted for either type of credit. For more information on filing your salary differential application, please see “How do I file my salary differential?”.

Courses can only be retroactively approved for A+ credits if they were taken as part of a program that resulted in state certification in the following areas: Special Education, Health, Bilingual Extension, TESOL, or School Building Leader. In addition, TESOL licensed teachers who obtain an additional certification in a content area will be able to use those credits towards their A+ requirement. No other courses may be retroactively counted toward A+.       

ASPDP courses taken prior to the Fall 2019 semester (beginning on or after September 23, 2019) are not eligible for A+ credit.

If the courses were part of a bilingual extension certificate program or one of the other approved certifications (see “What are my other options for earning credit toward my salary differential besides A+?”), you must apply for and receive the certificate in order for them to count retroactively as A+ credits. Courses that do not culminate in a completed state certification may be used towards the non-A+ component of the differential requirement.

Most participants use their file numbers as their user ID. Your file number is 7 digits, beginning with a leading 0 or 2. If you do not know your file number, you may ask the payroll secretary in your school for this information.

Participants who do not have file numbers use the first initial of their first name and the first initial of your last name (in all lower-case letters) as their user ID. For example, if your name is Jane Smith, your username would be Jsmith.

If you forget your password, you may change it by clicking on "Forgot Password/Problems Logging in?" from the main home page and filling in your User ID, the email address in your profile, and last name. You will receive a new temporary password at the email address on your profile within 24 hours; be sure to check your spam/junk folder if you do not see the message within 24 hours. Please follow the email instructions to change your password after you log in successfully.

You may also change your password at any time by hovering over your name in the top right corner of the page and selecting “Change Password” from the drop down menu. You will then be prompted to change your password by entering your current password and creating a new password. If you still experience issues logging in, please email ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov with a description of your situation and the steps you have tried.

To update your ASPDP account information, hover over your name in the top right corner of the page and select “My Account” from the drop down menu. To update your email address, address, or phone number, enter the new information and press “Save”. Your ASPDP account is the same as your A+ account.

If you need to make a change to your name, please email ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov with your current file number/user ID and the information that you wish to change and we will assist with updating your profile.

There are a few reasons you may be having trouble creating an account. First, check that you are entering your correct file number. Your file number is 7 digits and begins with a 0 or 2. If you do not know your file number, you may ask your school’s payroll secretary for this information. Please be sure you are also entering your name as it appears on your paystub without any hyphens; use a single space between hyphenated names.

Please note that if you are a retired DOE employee or have resigned from the NYC DOE, you will be unable to create a new ASPDP account with your old DOE file number. To create an ASPDP account as a retired DOE employee, please sign up as a non-DOE employee.

An ASPDP participant account may be disabled for a few reasons. If you have retired or resigned from the DOE, or if you are currently on leave without pay, your account may be disabled. Former/retired DOE employees may only reactivate their accounts to register for classes for 24 hour periods, and ASPDP must approve each reactivation period. Please contact ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov for support if this applies to you.

If you have violated ASPDP policies such as plagiarism, or if you have an HR-related problem code on your account, then your account may have been disabled; please see our Participant Policies for more details.

Course registration deadlines vary by course. You can find the course start date and end date on the course details page of the course by clicking on the hyperlinked course code from the course catalog.

Typically, registration closes the day before the first day of an in-person or guided online class. For self-paced online classes that run the full semester, registration closes about halfway through the semester. Please make sure to register before the registration deadline as indicated on the course details page. Please note ASPDP participant policies prevents us from registering participants after the registration deadline has already passed as indicated on the course details page of the website for that semester and the for that year.

If a course is marked as “Closed,” this indicates either that the registration deadline has passed or that the course has already reached maximum enrollment. Once the catalog has closed, our program does not reopen the catalog to register any participants in the courses.

Participants are responsible for ensuring that they have the necessary hardware/software needed to complete the course prior to registration. We encourage you to check the Education Partner’s website for hardware/software requirements.

We cannot issue refunds for hardware/software issues. If you experience any other difficulties with technology components as part of your class, please contact the instructor directly as soon as possible.

You can find instructors’ names and contact information when you review the “Course Details” page when you click on a specific course code in the online course catalog.

To find contact information for the organization offering the course, click on the Education Partner name next to a course in the course catalog. On the Education Partner page you will find the name and contact information for the Education Partner administrator, a link to the website, a description of the organization, and the current or past courses offered.

Please submit your concern directly to the provider or instructor of the course. If you are not satisfied with the resolution, please contact ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov. Any inquiry about a provider/instructor concern is taken seriously. Please be advised that we will do our best to support with a resolution but cannot guarantee a particular outcome.

Most ASPDP courses are offered through Education Partner organizations. ASPDP charges a fee depending on the number of credits of the individual course. This fee ranges from $45 for a 1-credit course to $125 for 3-credit courses offered through the Education Partners. Additionally, the Education Partner typically charges a fee ranging from $0-400.

If a course is offered through a DOE instructor, the ASPDP course fee is $225 for a three-credit class and with no additional Education Partner fee. For some courses, there may be additional materials fees of up to $50. Please read and review the course payment details section of the course carefully prior to registering.

We accept these credit cards, Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and Amex on the ASPDP website.

For information about how to pay the Education Partner fee, please check the course details section on the ASPDP website. Depending on the partner, you will likely need to access a second website to complete the payment or mail a money order. Your registration will not be complete if you do not click on confirm payment and you will not be eligible to earn your A+/P credit until you have registered both with ASPDP and with the Education Partner.

Please see the chart below for more information on course fees:

You will receive a confirmation email of your ASPDP course registration once you complete your payment with ASPDP and you have confirmed it. Your payment will also be displayed on your credit card monthly statement under "Volunteer After School Program" or "After School Prof Dev Pg". If for some reason you have a problem with your credit card or if you have any question about ASPDP not receiving your payment, please contact ASPDP and the partner organization immediately before the course ends.

If you are interested in obtaining a receipt for your payment to the Education Partner, please contact the Education Partner directly. Your transcripts will serve as your record for salary differential; you do not need to submit any payment confirmations.

No, quick reminder, please be aware that if you fail to register and if you do not pay the ASPDP registration fee by the registration deadline, you will not earn your P/A+ credit toward your Salary Differential. It is important that you ensure that you have successfully enrolled with ASPDP and with the Education Partner before the registration deadline in order to receive your P/A+ credits.

Please make sure that you carefully review the course details page and the payment information for any courses you have plan to enroll in with our program. Please note that it is your responsibility to use the registration link provided in the ASPDP catalog to register for an ASPDP-approved course. If you register for non-ASPDP-approved courses with the Education Partner, ASPDP cannot provide you with a refund and you will not receive your P/A+ credit for completing a non-ASPDP-approved course with the Education Partner. 

We strongly recommend that you have confirm the course(s) that you have selected and that they are eligible for NYCPS P/A+ credit for that semester before completing registration with the Education Partner.

After completing your ASPDP payment, you will receive an email from the ASPDP with the course registration confirmation transaction receipt, at the bottom of the page you will see the link to the Education Partner website with the registration information. Additionally, you can find information on all payment instructions on the course details page; by clicking on the hyperlinked course code in the catalog to reach the course details page for each ASPDP class, you will find more detailed information about the course. Should information on how to pay the Education Partner fee are not provided and guidance, please refer to the course syllabus and reach out to the course instructor for assistance.

Note that some courses do not charge additional Education Partner fees, such as courses led by DOE offices or instructors. Please see “What are the fees for ASPDP/A+ courses and how do I pay them?” for more details.

You can locate the contact detail information for the Education Partner on the course details page/syllabus or on the Education Partner profile page (by clicking on the hyperlinked Education Partner name in the ASPDP course catalog listing). Please ensure to contact the Education Partner administrator to verify and confirm the Education Partner payment(s). 

Yes, but only if you request the transfer at least one week prior to the registration deadline of the original course. To request a course transfers, it must take place within the same semester, and the desired course must still have open registration. If you would like to request a course transfer within that time window for an open course within the same semester. You must submit a withdrawal request by pressing the withdrawal button next to the course that you wish to withdraw from.

If you are requesting a transfer request after this grace period (one week prior to the registration deadline of the original course), ASPDP will not be able to complete your course transfer.

Once your transfer has been completed and processed, it is important to note that you cannot request to be transferred to a different course. However, should you wish to request to be withdrawn from the course, you may still submit your request to withdraw. If you want to withdraw from a course and you are no longer eligible for a refund or a course transfer, you may submit a withdrawal request on or before the last day of the class. For further detailed information on withdrawal policies, please refer to "May I withdraw from a class and receive a refund?"

Refunds will only be issued if you withdraw at least one week before the registration deadline of the course. All registration deadlines are listed on the course details page for the class; note that the registration deadline is not the same as the start or end date of the course. Please review “When does the registration window close for the course?”

To withdraw from a course, please log in to the ASPDP website and click on “My Courses.” A “withdraw” button will be next to each course for the current semester. Click on the button to withdraw. Please note that withdrawals are only granted if you submitted your request one week prior to the last day of the course. Withdrawal requests after the last day of the course will not be processed.

If you have withdrawn from your course at least one week before the registration deadline, you can submit your refund request in writing to ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov. Please include your full name, file number, course name and course code, date of credit card transaction, amount of the payment, and the first four digits and last four digits of your credit card.

Participants are also responsible for emailing the instructor when withdrawing from our course(s). ASPDP can only grant refunds of the ASPDP fee. We cannot guarantee that the Education Partner will refund their fees; please check the Education Partner’s registration and fee policies before registering for a course.

Generally, if approved, ASPDP fee refunds are processed 7 – 10 business days after you submit all required information. As noted above, this required information includes your full name, file number, course name and code, date of credit card transaction, amount of the payment, and the first four digits and last four digits of your credit card. As a reminder, you must submit refund requests at least one week before the registration deadline of the course.

It is at your instructor’s discretion whether or not to grant extensions to complete coursework. Grades are due no later than two weeks after the final day of the course. The instructor is not required to grant extensions.

ASPDP cannot transfer your fee to a future semester if you are not able to complete your course on time.

If your course is cancelled, you will receive an email from the Education Partner and ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov giving you the option to either transfer your ASPDP course fee to another ASPDP course within the same semester or to receive a refund for the ASPDP course fee you must follow the instructions that you received on the email so that we can process your refund as per your request.

Please note that you will need to transfer the same fee to your new course. Refunds are typically processed within 7-10 business days.

For information on weather and other emergency announcements, call the New York City 311 Information Line, check the NYC Public Schools Twitter or Facebook page, and/or go to the New York City Department of Education website home page for course cancellations announced by the Chancellor.

An in-person course session is cancelled due to weather conditions only if your school/district/Borough Field Support office receives notification that after-school activities have been suspended as per a Central Department of Education directive. It is up to the partner organization to schedule make-up sessions or provide other alternatives to participants.

In the event of either occurrence, you will not be marked absent for a course cancellation announced by the Department of Education, however you will still be expected to complete any course assignments necessary.

Participants, in consultation with their instructor, are responsible for making up the time and content missed from the cancelled session, including by attending an additional session. Make-up sessions vary, so we recommend that you contact the instructor or Education Partner for this information.

Your feedback is integral in helping us improve the quality of our course offerings for participants. Your survey will appear in your course profile one week before the last day of the course. Please log in to your ASPDP account, click on “My Courses,” and then click the “Survey” button.

You will be asked to complete one survey for each course you took for that semester. Note that you will not be able to complete your survey more than three weeks after the final day of the course. 

Each survey will be available on the last day of each course when you log in to the ASPDP website. The survey for the course(s) will be available for 21 days including weekends.  

Approved ASPDP/A+ courses are graded according to the grading policy of the provider. Courses must be passed in order to count towards the second differential.

In order to view your grades, you must submit your course survey while logged in to the ASPDP website within three weeks of the final day of the course.

Grades will be available 4-6 weeks after the course ends; the course provider is responsible for entering the grades on the website within two weeks of the last day of the course. If you do not see your grade on the website and it has been more than two weeks since the last day of the course, please contact your course instructor directly.

You will be able to download a copy of your transcript from the ASPDP registration website by clicking the "Print Transcript" button at the top right corner of your "My Courses" page. Grades will be listed as either Pass, Fail or Never Attended. You can submit this transcript directly to the Office of Salary Services along with your salary differential application.

Your instructor should submit your grade within two weeks of the end of the semester. Once your grades have been submitted, the ASPDP team may take up to 6 weeks to verify and finalize your credits. Click the “Print Transcript” button to view your complete transcript with grades and credit validation status.

Note: the timing of your grade validation will not impact your eligibility for salary differential, since the differential is applied retroactively, as long as you submit your salary differential application by the deadline for that semester. For more information, please see “These are my last credits before I file for my salary differential. What are the deadlines for filing?”

Yes, but you must re-enroll and pay the ASPDP course fees again. ASPDP cannot transfer your course fee(s) to future semesters.

You can print your official transcript for ASPDP courses directly from the ASPDP website. To print your transcript, please log in to the ASPDP website and click on “My Courses” on the homepage. On the top right of the screen, you will see a button that says “Print Transcripts”. Once you click on this button, a second screen will appear with an Internet Explorer Security warning. After you click “Allow,” your transcript will display in Adobe Acrobat. 

Please note that our program does not send email notices to other offices or through regular mail to other departments with your information "transcript". Please note that we only maintain records for courses completed in Summer 2008 and beyond.

If you are experiencing issues on the website, we recommend that you download a free version of Microsoft Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox for the best browser compatibility; you will also need Adobe Reader to view posted documents.

Please be advised that A+/P credits are unique and specific to the New York City Department of Education. ASPDP transcripts and related credits may not be accepted by colleges and universities as continuing education credits, counting towards an undergraduate or graduate degree, or other certificate program.

You must file your salary differential via the salary application system. Please consult the chart below for deadlines for filing the salary differential application.

As of Fall 2019, the Office of Salary Services requires all educators to upload transcripts with their salary differential application.

For more guidance on the application process, you can log in to HR Connect (https://doehrconnect.custhelp.com/app/home) using your DOE log in. On the left side menu, select “Paychecks and Salary” and then click on “Salary Differentials, Steps, and Upgrades”.

Additional Resources

• Applying for a Salary Step
• Applying for a Salary Differential
• Master's Degree Plus 30 Credit Differential and A+ Credits
• Direct Deposit

If you have additional questions about the salary differential process, you may contact the Office of Salary Services at (718) 935-4000.

No, you may only use a course once toward your salary differential. It does not matter if it is applied toward the first, intermediate or second differential.

ASPDP courses cannot be applied to license certification or used towards university or college credit, unless they are independently certified by the National College Credit Recommendation Service (NCCRS) through the partner organization. For questions regarding license certification, please contact the Office of Certification at (718) 935-4842 or the education partner who is offering your course(s) to determine whether the course is NCCRS approved.

ASPDP only maintains records for courses completed in the Summer 2008 semester and later and we cannot guarantee replacement certificates for courses completed prior to the Summer 2008 semester (which began on July 7, 2008).

If you completed an ASPDP course prior to July 7, 2008, you received a paper certificate of completion from ASPDP. You must use that certificate of completion as your official record/transcript and keep a copy for yourself. 

We do not have access to our records during the COVID-19 pandemic and cannot generate a replacement certificate if you are not able to provide us with the original proof of your ASPDP course certificate of completion. If you have a copy or proof of your ASPDP certificate of completion (not the certificate from the partner organization) and you need a replacement certificate, please make your replacement certificate request in writing by scanning your certificate and providing us with your phone number, and current mailing address.

Each replacement certificate is typically $5.00 payable to "ASPDP”. Please note that there will be delays in processing.

It is at the instructor’s discretion whether or not to grant extensions to complete coursework, and what documentation is required. Grades are due no later than two weeks after the final day of the course, so the extension cannot be longer than two weeks after the final day of the course. 

The instructor is not required to grant extensions. They may use this two-week window to collect and grade any missing assignments and to submit grades and CTLE documents. Instructors may also request additional information and/or documentation before making a decision about any extensions; this is at their discretion as well.  

If participants are still not able to complete the course on time due to personal or familial COVID-19 related illness, we recommend contacting the partner organization to see if you are able to transfer your course fee to a future semester.  

Some partner organizations may choose to offer in person courses and they are responsible for setting and communicating their own safety regulations (e.g. mask use, social distancing) to participants. If you have questions about these safety guidelines, please contact the partner organization directly. You can find contact details on the course posting page for that specific course, or by downloading the syllabus (click the green “View Syllabus” button at the bottom of the course listing when logged in).

You can use the “Course Type” filter in the ASPDP course catalog to search for in-person, blended, or fully online courses, depending on your personal preference.  

All educators, potential educators, and other school staff may take ASPDP courses to further their own knowledge and develop their instructional practices. You may still participate in the program even if you are not fully certified as an educator or employed full-time in the NYC DOE.  

All teachers except for O-Status (Per Diem) teachers are potentially eligible for salary differentials, which may include those holding an Emergency COVID-19 Certificate, although the guidelines depend on your specific position. For more details or further inquiries, please review the Salary Overview in the HR Connect Portal for more info on Salary Differentials, or contact HR Connect directly at 718-935-4000. ASPDP does not have access to specific information about your position or eligibility. 

Yes, ASPDP is an approved Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) sponsor with the New York State Education Department (NYSED). Holders of professional classroom teaching certificates, educational leadership certificates, and Level III teaching assistant certificates may use ASPDP/A+ courses towards the 100 hours of CTLE requirements.

If you take a course through ASPDP then you may apply it to the CTLE requirements. You should ensure that the courses you select will support your classroom practice in the certificate title that you hold.

All ASPDP courses taken after July 1, 2016 (Summer 2016 semester and later) can be counted towards the CTLE requirements, as long as you registered and paid the ASPDP fee by the registration deadline.

Note that some ASPDP partners may be independent CTLE providers, however, you cannot count the same courses twice (i.e. for credit from ASPDP and from the partner organization).

For more information on the CTLE requirements, please refer to the NYSED Resources on New Registration and CTLE Requirements or contact the NYSED at CTLE@nysed.gov or 518-474-3901.

The total number of CTLE hours varies by the number of credits earned through the course. Each credit from ASPDP equates to 15 CTLE clock hours. Therefore, a 1-credit course will earn 15 hours, a 2-credit course will earn 30 hours, and a 3-credit course will earn 45 hours. Course hours and credit information can be found on the course details page for the course or on your ASPDP transcript after registering for the course.

Yes. Any course registered for credit with ASPDP can be applied both to the NYC DOE salary differential requirements and the NYSED 100 hours of CTLE requirements. Note that you cannot count the same course twice for CTLE hours, even if the provider is independently approved for CTLE.

For more information about the salary differential application, please contact the Office of Salary Services at 718-935-4000. For more information on the CTLE requirements, please refer to the NYSED Resources on New Registration and CTLE Requirements or contact the NYSED at CTLE@nysed.gov or 518-474-3901.

Yes. ASPDP offers multiple courses that meet the CTLE language acquisition requirements, as specified by the New York State Education Department, that 15% of the required CTLE clock hours be dedicated to language acquisition addressing the needs of multilingual learners, or 50% for those holding professional certification in the certificate title of English to Speakers of other Languages (all grades) or a holder of a bilingual extension.

To browse ASPDP courses that meet the CTLE language acquisition requirements, filter by selecting “Multilingual Learners” from the Category dropdown menu in our online course catalog.

If the Education Partner is an approved CTLE sponsor, you may choose to register for the course solely through the Education Partner to count the hours towards the CTLE requirements. Note that this only applies to the CTLE requirements. You must register with ASPDP to use the credits toward A+ or P credit for your salary differential.

If the Education Partner is not an approved CTLE sponsor, you must register with ASPDP and the Education Partner for credit to be counted towards the CTLE requirements.

Your ASPDP transcript will serve as your record of your completed CTLE hours through ASPDP. You can access and print your ASPDP transcript on the “My Courses” page of the ASPDP website. ASPDP transcripts are CTLE compliant as of Fall 2017.

As per the NYSED, certificate holders must attest to the completion of the 100 hours. You must also be responsible for retaining records of completed CTLE, and must provide documentation if requested showing that you have complied with the CTLE requirement.

For more information on the CTLE requirements, please refer to the NYSED Resources on New Registration and CTLE Requirements or contact the NYSED at CTLE@nysed.gov or 518-474-3901.

According to NYSED CTLE guidelines, educators who hold one or more of the following certificates are subject to the continuing teacher and leader certification (CTLE) requirement:

1. Professional certificate in the classroom teaching service
2. Professional certificate in leadership service (i.e. School Building Leader, School District Leader, and School District Business Leader)
3. Teaching Assistant Level III certificate

Partnership with ASPDP allows you to expand access to your courses to educators across New York City who are interested in furthering their professional learning and advancing their careers.

All ASPDP courses are approved for A+ and P credit. Educators seeking their salary differential are required to take a certain number of A+ credits, depending on when they entered the NYC DOE (see “Who needs to take A+ courses?”). ASPDP is currently the only option besides approved Masters’ degrees and certifications for teachers to earn A+ credit.

ASPDP courses are also approved for CTLE hours, which teachers can count toward maintaining their certification. You do not need to be separately approved for CTLE if your courses are approved by ASPDP.

In addition, the ASPDP team provides regular feedback (from participant surveys, proposal reviews, and/or observations), and organizes professional learning events to support partners in aligning their courses with the Chancellor’s priorities and program needs.

Please review the A+ priorities, A+ rubric, and the NYSED CRSE Framework for guidance on offering professional development that will support New York City’s educators. You can find additional resources on the “Partner Resources” page of our website.

ASPDP reserves the right to limit the number of proposals that partner organizations may submit, due to capacity constraints and/or shifts in NYC DOE priorities, and may limit review to only those course categories that are most aligned with current NYC DOE priorities and teachers’ needs. ASPDP also reserves the right to change the selected course category to one that more accurately reflects the course’s focus.

As of August 20, 2021, ASPDP has notified partner organizations that they may only propose four new courses across the spring and summer 2022 semesters. Any new course proposals should specifically focus on and address social-emotional learning according to the following definition:

Courses should: 1) develop and deepen the knowledge, mindsets, and skills necessary to foster an environment in which adults and students display self-awareness and social awareness; 2) help participants recognize and identify emotions, their root cause(s), and their impact on the larger community; set and achieve positive goals; encourage participants to feel and show empathy for others; make responsible decisions; and establish and maintain positive relationships within a culturally responsive-sustaining and loving instructional context.

Our Education Partners include external organizations (e.g. non-profits, cultural institutions, online providers), DOE teams, the United Federation of Teachers, institutes of higher education, and internal, full-time NYC DOE instructors. All partners offer professional development courses to teachers that are aligned with A+ and citywide priorities, and approved courses yield A+ credit and CTLE hours for eligible participants.

ASPDP seeks to partner with organizations that will help realize our vision by equipping educators to confront race, power, and privilege and disrupt inequity in order to maximize outcomes for all students, particularly Black, Indigenous, and Students of Color.

If you are interested in offering courses through ASPDP, you can submit a proposal application for each course that you wish to teach during one of our two submission periods (Fall or Spring/Summer). Once we review your proposal(s), we will share feedback and let you know whether your proposal has been accepted, rejected, or whether we have requested revisions (“revise and resubmit”).

Please email ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov to receive information about upcoming proposal deadlines, a course proposal application (including the syllabus template), and instructions on how to submit the application through Surveymonkey Apply.

Courses may offer between 15 and 45 hours of instruction and coursework. Courses with 45 hours of instruction will be offered for 3 credits; 30 hours for 2 credits; or 15 hours for 1 credit. Currently, we are not able to offer more than 3 credits per class, and proposals should not require participants to complete more than 45 hours of work.

Education Partners may offer more than one section of a course within a semester when the sections are identical in course content, and should indicate their intention to offer multiple sections on the Course Profile Survey in SurveyMonkey Apply during the course application process. Education Partners should submit separate proposal applications for courses taking place in the same semester that are not identical in content/course structure.

All in-person course sessions must take place after contractual school hours and must not interfere with significant DOE events such as parent/teacher conferences. Please see the DOE school calendar to ensure there are no conflicts. Please also ensure that your course dates fall within ASPDP’s semester dates so that participants are able to register and receive grades in a timely manner. Your course should not begin before the first day of the semester or end after the last date of that semester.

Beginning in the Fall 2020 semester, courses will typically be approved for three semesters (e.g. fall, spring, and summer), if they meet/exceed all applicable rubric criteria. You must indicate on your application whether you plan to offer your course over multiple semesters.

ASPDP reserves the right to request revisions or reject a course that has previously been offered on the basis of participant feedback, proposal review, enrollment data, alignment to A+ priorities, observation feedback, or other metrics.

For each application, you will be asked to include a syllabus formatted in ASPDP’s current syllabus template and course profile information through Surveymonkey Apply. New Education Partners are also asked to submit instructor resumes and letters of recommendation. You can find more guidance about the application, including the rubric used to evaluate proposals, in the Application Guide and A+ Rubric.

Application materials can be found on our website once logged in as an instructor or Education Partner administrator, under the “Education Partner Documents” or “Instructor Documents” in the Resources drop down menu. Please be sure to use the most up-to-date application materials when submitting your proposal.

To create your SurveyMonkey Apply account, please go to https://aspdp.fluidreview.com/ and click “Sign Up”. Education Partners who have previously submitted courses will find their names under a drop down list; first-time partners may select “New” as their Education Partner name.

Proposal submission dates are in April (for the Fall semester) and October (for the Spring and Summer semesters). Please check SurveyMonkey Apply for specific deadlines.

Yes. Please utilize the following naming conventions for all documents. These will help us process and review your applications in a timelier manner. We may ask you to re-submit documents if they do not follow the guidelines below:

• Each document title should be structured as follows: “OrganizationName_TypeofDocument_ClassTitle_SemesterYear.” For example, the syllabus for a fall 2022 course that is titled “Next Generation Standards in ELA: Instructional Shifts for Effective Implementation, Grades 6-8” from an organization called Teachers Learning for Students’ Learning could be abbreviated “TLSL_Syllabus_NextGenELA6-8_Spr22”.

• Use abbreviations to keep file names shorter. Do not exceed 40 characters in file names, including spaces. o Please abbreviate “Fall” as “F”, “Spring” as “S”, and “Summer” as “SS” for consistency in our record-keeping.

• All documents should be submitted in Microsoft Word (.doc). Please do not submit documents as PDFs.

• Please note that applicants may offer up to four sections of an individual course through ASPDP, however, for each section a separate application must be submitted each semester.

Even for courses that have previously been approved and/or offered, Education Partners are still required to submit an updated syllabus with new course dates and any other changes highlighted prior to the proposal deadline for the semester in which they wish to repeat the class. ASPDP reserves the right to request revisions or reject a course even for a course that has previously been offered based the outcomes of course observations, participant feedback, enrollment data, and other key metrics.

External partner organizations may set their own registration fees in addition to the required ASPDP fees. (For more information on participant fees, see “What are the fees for ASPDP courses and how do I pay them?”) Your course fee should be noted on the proposal submission, and we recommend not exceeding $400 for a three-credit course. If you charge a fee for your course, you are responsible for collecting the payments from participants.

External partner organizations may set their own registration fees in addition to the required ASPDP fees. (For more information on participant fees, see “What are the fees for ASPDP courses and how do I pay them?”) Your course fee should be noted on the proposal submission, and we recommend not exceeding $400 for a three-credit course. If you charge a fee for your course, you are responsible for collecting the payments from participants.

NYC DOE Teachers: To receive full CTLE and salary differential A+/P credit for this course you must register with ASPDP on their website. If you do not complete the ASPDP registration by the registration deadline, you will not be eligible for A+ or P credits towards your salary differential. If you have questions about using ASPDP courses towards the salary differential, please email ASPDP at ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov.

Active, full-time NYC DOE instructors who are not affiliated with a partner organization do not set a separate education partner fee as they will be paid a standard DOE stipend at the end of the semester. For more information about policies for full-time NYC DOE employees in pedagogical titles, please see the Education Partner and Instructor Policies.

While there is no enrollment minimum for ASPDP courses taught by Education Partners (non-DOE instructors), we recommend a course enrollment minimum of at least five (5) participants to foster collaboration and peer feedback.

For courses taught by active, full-time NYC DOE pedagogical employees, the course enrollment minimum is eighteen (18) participants; ASPDP pays these instructors directly for teaching the class and they do not charge an additional Education Partner fee. These courses must reach the enrollment minimum of eighteen by the registration deadline for the course, or they will be canceled and participants will receive refunds. Please see the Education Partner and Instructor Guidelines for more information about policies for NYC DOE instructors. Be sure to reach out to ASPDP before submitting your proposal application if you have questions about your eligibility.

Instructors may view class enrollment by logging into their ASPDP accounts and clicking the Reports button on the homepage or selecting Participant Report from the “Reports” drop down menu at the top of the page. This report will take you to the ASPDP Participant Report Screen, where you can select the semester and the course for which you would like to see enrollment. Once you have selected the course, press the “Generate Report” button to view a list of enrolled students.

Please be sure to check your participant enrollment report via the ASPDP website to ensure that participants who are enrolled in your A+/P credit approved courses have registered correctly with both you and ASPDP so that they can receive course credit.

If you have questions about this process, please email ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov.

In-person courses and online courses that do not run for the full semester have registration deadlines set the day before the course starts, unless otherwise requested by the Education Partner. Similarly, for courses taught by active, full-time NYC DOE pedagogical employees, the registration deadline is set before the course begins so that there is enough time for the course to reach the enrollment minimum (only applicable to courses taught by NYC DOE pedagogical employees).

The deadline for self-paced online courses that run for the full semester have registration deadlines set midway through the semester in order to give participants sufficient time to register for the class and complete course requirements.

If you would like to request a change to your registration deadline, please contact us before the semester begins.

If you wish to limit course registration to a particular group of educators (for example, those who are already participating in a grant-fund opportunity or who have completed a pre-requisite course), please email ASPDP after your course is approved. You will be given an access code to distribute to participants when they register for the course on the ASPDP website.

Partners are responsible for reviewing their course listings on the ASPDP website before that semester’s catalog opens and using the course edits function to request any edits to dates, instructor names, course categories, or any other details before the course begins. ASPDP cannot make course edits more than one week after the catalog opens.

Education partners and instructors must notify ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov if making any significant changes to course topics, format, timeline, major course assignments, etc. that they did not previously indicate during the submission process.

In order to meet New York State Continuing Teacher and Leader Education (CTLE) credit requirements, instructors should keep detailed registration and attendance records for all courses. Please note time of arrival, lunch, and time of departure in attendance logs. These must be submitted to ASPDP for courses you are offering in partnership, even if you are independently approved for CTLE.

Participants who are absent from the course and do not complete make-up work for hours missed should not receive credit for the course and are not eligible for refunds. A participant may never miss the first or final session of an in-person course, barring extenuating circumstances as determined by the instructor.

It is at the instructor’s discretion to grant excused absences. In all cases, participants are expected to make up course work in order to receive full credit for courses.

If you wish to cancel your course, please contact ASPDP@schools.nyc.gov before sending notice to the participants. We strongly recommend making decisions about course cancellations before participants have begun completing any course activities.

When classes are cancelled, ASPDP offers participants the option of receiving a refund or transferring their fee to another class in that same semester. Education Partners are asked to honor participants’ requests for refunds or transfers due to course cancellations.

If you need to cancel a session of a course, please provide make-up opportunities to participants.

Instructors must report final grades online two weeks after the final day of instruction, however we encourage instructors to submit grades as soon as possible so that we may validate grades for credit in a timely fashion. Instructors are required to keep copies of the grades for seven (7) years after the completion of the course. Partner administrators should retain records in the event that the instructor leaves the organization.

It is at the instructor’s discretion whether to grant extensions to complete coursework. Instructors are responsible for informing ASPDP of any extensions granted and updating the final participant grades no later than two weeks after the final day of the course.

To submit grades, instructors should log in to the ASPDP website and click the “Course Participants” button on the homepage.

To update the grade, click the box in the “Grade” column for the participant, select the appropriate grade from the drop down menu, and then press “Save” at the bottom of the screen. A “Confirm Save” pop up box will appear; press “Yes” to save the changes. Once you’re ready to submit grades (all grades updated and CTLE records are uploaded), click “submit”.

Please be sure you have entered all grades and uploaded CTLE records before clicking “Submit,” as you will not have access to change grades afterward.

All instructors are responsible for maintaining ASPDP’s academic integrity policy for participants. Instructors who witness and/or encounter any form of cheating or plagiarism must report the infraction to ASPDP along with supporting documentation. Cheating includes and is not limited to:

• Using the work of another person as if they were one’s own without giving proper source credit; • Submission of work completed either in part or in whole by someone else; • Collaborating with another participant on assignments that are meant to be completed individually, etc.

As stated in the Participant Policies, any participant in violation of the academic integrity policy will receive a failing grade and no credit for their course, and may be barred from taking courses through ASPDP.

Yes, if you choose to partner with ASPDP so that courses are eligible for A+ credit, ASPDP is the CTLE provider and will provide the transcript and issue CTLE hours. This is why we need to keep CTLE compliant attendance records for each course. Even if you are separately approved as a CTLE sponsor, participants cannot count the same hours from the same course twice toward their CTLE.

Please review the Education Partner and Instructor Policies, the A+ Priorities, the NYSED CRSE Framework, and other materials on ASPDP’s “Partner Resources” page for more information and resources about our program.