Lexington, KY (Sept. 16, 2025) — Licensing barriers create economic hardship and career instability for military spouses, who are often forced to navigate complex and varying state requirements due to frequent relocations.
Recognizing these obstacles, The Council of State Governments and the National Center for Interstate Compacts partnered with the Department of Defense and the National Association of School Psychologists to develop compact legislation for the school psychologist profession, among other professional disciplines.
“Relocation is a part of military life. With the DoD’s support, the ICSP ensures military spouses who are licensed school psychologists can more easily maintain their professional standing across state lines, providing vital, consistent support to students and families no matter where they are located.” said Tammie Perreault, Occupational Licensure Compact Program Manager with the Defense-State Liaison Office.
Model legislation to join the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists was released to states in November 2023 after more than a year of development, public comment and stakeholder review. On September 2nd, Delaware joined six other states — Alabama, Colorado, Georgia, Kansas, Nebraska, and West Virginia — in fully enacting the compact legislation. With the addition of this seventh state, the compact became active.
“The work of the technical assistance group and drafting team allowed us to build on existing compacts to better support military spouses and the school psychologist profession. We are excited to continue working with the commission as they begin implementing the ICSP” said Dan Logsdon, Executive Director of the National Center for Interstate Compacts.
Maintaining state sovereignty is one of the cornerstones of the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists. The compact does not alter member states’ ability to regulate the school psychologist profession or licensure. Member states take on some responsibility to grant licenses to out-of-state school psychologists, but any standing pathways and fees associated with licensure within the state will remain in place.
Addressing Shortages
School psychologists provide critical services for children across the country to better support learning, mental health, and behavior in schools. NASP recommends a ratio of 500 students per school psychologist, but national averages are closer to double that mark. School psychologist shortages not only harm students, but also further stretch thin the ability for teachers and administrators to focus directly on their roles. The ICSP provides an additional tool in the toolbox for states in addressing these shortages.
“The Interstate Compact for School Psychologists is a critical tool for supporting the mobility of licensed school psychologists, and thereby, the ability for young people to receive access to critical mental and behavioral services in schools. Thanks to NASP’s multi-year partnership with the Council of State Governments, the National Center for Interstate Compacts, and the Department of Defense, the states that have enacted legislation to join this compact will be better able to reduce barriers to licensure, including for individuals and their families in high mobility professions such as the military, and help to address the nationwide shortage of school psychologists,” said Eric Rossen, NASP Executive Director.
Next Steps
Later this year, the compact member states will nominate their commissioners, and the first meeting of the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists will be held to draft the bylaws and rules of the compact.
Currently, several states are still considering legislation to join the compact. Those who join will also be included in this meeting if the legislation is passed before the first convening.
For more information about the Interstate Compact for School Psychologists or to view the model legislation, visit schoolpsychcompact.org. To learn more about the National Center for Interstate Compacts and other occupational licensure compacts, visit compacts.csg.org.
About Occupational Licensure Interstate Compacts
Occupational licensure compacts create reciprocity between states while maintaining the quality and safety of services and protecting state sovereignty. Compacts result in a more efficient distribution of licensed workers by supporting practitioner mobility.
In addition to its work with the Department of Defense, the CSG National Center for Interstate Compacts led the development of interstate compacts for physicians, nurses, emergency medical services personnel, physical therapists, psychologists, occupational therapists, licensed professional counselors and audiologists/speech-language pathologists. More than 40 states and territories have adopted at least one of the compacts and over half have adopted three or more.