This provision states the compact’s purpose: to make it easier for school psychologists to practice across member states while maintaining qualified, safe service delivery.
(a) The purpose of this compact is to facilitate the interstate practice of school psychology in educational or school settings, and, in doing so, to improve the availability of school psychological services to the public. This compact is intended to establish a pathway to allow school psychologists to obtain equivalent licenses to provide school psychological services in any member state. In this way, this compact shall enable the member states to ensure that safe and effective school psychological services are available and delivered by appropriately qualified professionals in their educational settings. (b) To facilitate the objectives described in subsection (a), this compact shall do the following: (1) Enable school psychologists who qualify for receipt of an equivalent license to practice in other member states without first satisfying burdensome and duplicative requirements. (2) Promote the mobility of school psychologists between and among the member states in order to address workforce shortages and to ensure that safe and reliable school psychological services are available in each member state. (3) Enhance the public accessibility of school psychological services by increasing the availability of qualified, licensed school psychologists through the establishment of an efficient and streamlined pathway for licensees to practice in other member states. (4) Preserve and respect the authority of each member state to protect the health and safety of its residents by ensuring that only qualified, licensed professionals are authorized to provide school psychological services within that state. (5) Require school psychologists practicing within a member state to comply with the scope of practice laws of the state where the school psychological services are being provided. (6) Promote cooperation between the member states in regulating the practice of school psychology within those states. (7) Facilitate the relocation of military members and their spouses who are licensed to provide school psychological services.