|
Board of Examiners
of Shorthand Reporters
Board
of Examiners of Shorthand Reporters
Judicial
Branch Building
1111 East Court Avenue
Des Moines, Iowa 50319
(515)
725-8029
shr@iowacourts.gov
New - Notice and Instructions Issued
Regarding On-line Filing
The
Office of Professional Regulation web site will be ready to begin accepting
annual continuing education reports on October 1, 2009. Instructions regarding on-line filing of
annual CEU reports will be mailed to all active certified shorthand
reporters on October 1, 2009.
Reports are due not later than December 1, 2009.
The
cover letter to be mailed to all reporters regarding 2009 CEU reports is
available for download here: 2009
CSR Letter
The
detailed on-line filing instructions mailed to all reporters are available
for download here: 2009
CSR LOI
New - Rule Change
Rules
pertaining to certified shorthand reporters now appear at chapter 46 of the
Iowa Court Rules. Fees payable with
respect to reports and several kinds of applications were changed in
2008. The complete new chapter 46 is
available here: Chapter
46
The Board of Examiners of Shorthand
Reporters
The
Board of Examiners of Shorthand Reporters administers the examination and
certification process for shorthand reporters in Iowa.
The board also administers continuing education requirements and
disciplinary actions with respect to shorthand reporters. The board advises the court on policies regarding
shorthand reporting in Iowa. For more information contact: shr@jb.state.ia.us
Board Members
The board
is composed of five members - three certified shorthand reporters and two
members representing the general public.
Members are appointed for a term of three years unless appointed to
fill a vacancy in an unexpired term. Members shall not serve more than three
terms or nine years, whichever is less.
The following persons currently serve on the board:
Teresa A. Kordick, Chairperson, Des Moines
Theresa A. Ritland, Secretary, Ames
Sharon A. Mellon, Iowa
City
The Honorable Thomas W. Mott, Newton
Michael W. Hand, Mount Pleasant
Internet
Filing of the Annual Continuing Education Report
The online CSR reporting module is one part of
the professional regulation web site maintained by the office of Supreme
Court Commissions. Online reporting became
required commencing with the report due at the conclusion of the reporting
year ending September 30, 2008. A
tutorial for certified shorthand reporters on use of the online reporting
module is available here: Tutorial
The existing professional regulation site can be
viewed at: http://www.iacourtcommissions.org
General
Forms (click on the form name to download)
Application
for Certification as CSR
Application
for Certificate of Exemption
Application
for Reinstatement
Request
For Approval Of A Continuing Education Activity
Application
For Waiver Or Extension Of Time To Complete Educational Requirement
Examination
Process
The Iowa Certified Shorthand Reporter examination is held the
second Saturday each March and September at the American Institute of
Business (AIB), 2500 Fleur
Drive, Des Moines, Iowa.
If an applicant is a Registered Professional Reporter (RPR) in
good standing under the rules of the National Court Reporter Association
(NCRA), he or she will only be required to take and pass the written
portion of the Iowa
examination. The written portion of the test is given on the regular
testing dates in March and September. If the applicant is unable to take
the written portion on a regular testing date, he or she may contact the board's
Secretary to schedule a convenient time and place to take the exam in the
presence of a board member. When the written test is passed and verification
is made of the applicant's RPR status, the applicant will be notified by
the board of his or her certification date. The CSR certificate will be
mailed to the applicant.
If an applicant is not a Registered Professional Reporter
(RPR) applicant, he or she will be required to take and pass both the
written and skills portions of the Iowa
examination. If the applicant has taken and passed the written examination
within the past five years, it will not be necessary for that applicant to
take the written portion again. The applicant will be required to submit
written certification to the Board of Shorthand Examiners that his or her training
and experience comply with one of the following:
- Attained
proficiency of 200 wpm or more in a shorthand reporting course; or
- Had at least
two years of experience as a shorthand reporter in making verbatim
records of judicial or related proceedings; or
- Graduated
from a shorthand reporting school approved by the National Court
Reporters Association.
If the proper verification is not provided, you will not be
allowed to sit for the examination.
Further information is available from the Board's
administrative office at telephone (515) 725-8029.
Continuing
Education
Iowa Court Rule 46.8 requires that every active certified
shorthand reporter complete at least three continuing education units
within each three-year reporting period.
One actual hour of continuing education equals .1 continuing
education credit. The annual
reporting cycle runs from October 1 through September 30th. Continuing education requirements and the
three-year reporting cycle for newly certified reporters commence October 1st
of the year following the year the report is certified.
The Board's administrative office provides each active
certified shorthand reporter an annual reminder each year by regular
mail. These reminders generally are
mailed during the last week in September of the first week in October. Reporters who are NOT NCRA Registered
Professional Reporters (and any other reporter who elects to report
continuing activities actually attended instead of submitting evidence of
satisfaction of NCRA RPR requirements) must report online all CEUs earned
for attending continuing education activities during the reporting year. NCRA Registered Professional Reporters who
meet Iowa continuing education rules by complying with NCRA requirements
for retention on its Registry of Professional Reporters are allowed to certify
their continuing compliance with the NCRA requirements and provide evidence
of that compliance when they submit their report online, in lieu of
reporting individual continuing education events.
A reporter is permitted to claim credit for events approved by
the NCRA or the ICRA, in an amount not exceeding the credit approved by those
organizations. A reporter also is permitted to claim credit for events not
approved by the NCRA or the ICRA, but only in these events previously have
been approved for credit by the Board of Examiners of Shorthand
Reporters.
Iowa Court Rule 46.8(2) authorizes the Board, in individual
cases involving disability, hardship, or extenuating circumstances, to
grants waivers or extensions of time within which to fulfill the minimum
continuing education requirements. The Board does grant extensions of time
when circumstances warrant, but generally does not grant outright waivers
of the requirements. A reporter must provide a reasonably detailed and
specific statement of the hardship or extenuating circumstance upon which the
application is based, and a reasonably specific statement of the relief the
reporter is seeking.
Exemption
Certified shorthand reporters who are not actively engaged in
practice in Iowa
may obtain from the Board of Examiners of Shorthand Reporters a certificate
of exemption from continuing education requirements. A CSR who receives a
certificate of exemption may not engage in the practice of shorthand
reporting in Iowa
without first complying with the regulations regarding reinstatement from
exemption. Requirements for reinstatement are set out in Iowa Court Rule 46.8(4),
which should be reviewed carefully before submitting an application for
exemption. Reinstatement from exemption generally requires payment of a
fee, the filing of a reinstatement application, and showing satisfaction of
the continuing education requirements the reporter would have performed had
he or she remained active during the period of the exemption. In addition,
remaining in exempt status for more than three years may preclude
reinstatement and require passing the examination again unless the reporter
remains active in another state or the District of
Columbia while exempt in Iowa.
|
