Every five years, all public school educators in Maryland are required to renew their licenses to teach. This process is meant to ensure that teachers maintain competent practice and engage in career-long learning, development, and growth. Given the ambiguous relationship between licensure renewal and teacher effectiveness in the classroom--and that it is largely a publicly funded effort, unlike many other regulated, licensed professions--recertification in the state warrants a reexamination. Generally, to renew or advance a license, Maryland teachers must (1) provide evidence of effective classroom practice through satisfactory performance evaluations; and (2) engage in continued professional learning through either state-approved professional development opportunities or state-approved credit-bearing coursework at colleges and universities. Districts throughout the state are investing at least $52.8 million each year in professional development activities. Accounting for the time teachers and other school staff invest in professional learning and development and the direct costs borne by districts, Maryland is likely spending between $86.28 million and $1.08 billion on professional development annually. The report examines the current system for recertification and questions Maryland's overreliance on state-approved professional development trainings or graduate-level coursework despite research largely not bearing out the impact and value of these trainings and degrees on teacher effectiveness.