Teen Driver Education

The Teen Driver Education Courses are for teens, ages 15-18 years old, who want to get their driver's permit and license.

Instructor Stats:

All instructors are Licensed State of Minnesota educators
Continuously trained and certified for up-to-date information and statewide changes
Background checks performed

Vehicle Stats:

All vehicles are equipped with dual brake systems and additional mirrors
Compact cars under 2 years old

Safety Topics Covered:

Street signs
Street laws
Braking
Decision making
Awareness
Car maintenance

Skills Taught:

Technique
Driver etiquette
Merging
Timing
Accident prevention
Navigation

The Licensing Process

Licensing process for students ages 15-18

18+ year olds? You are not required by MN State Law to take the Driver Education course. Learn More.

Step 1 – 30-hour Driver Education Class

The State-required 30-hour driver education class is for teens 15-18 years old who want to get their permit and license.
The 30-hour driver education class is designed to prepare students for the permit test.
For classes conducted through Saint Paul Community Education, students must be 15 years old or older by the first day of the class.
Students are required by MN State Law to attend all 30-hours of the driver education course in entirety. Do not enroll in a course unless you can attend all class sessions.

Step 2 – Instruction Permit

Once the student has successfully completed the 30-hour driver education class and has paid the full course fee, the student is issued an E-card of completion *.
Students will make an appointment at the Department of Vehicle Services or walk-in to an authorized Third-party proctor location to take the permit test. This is done on the students’ own time.
The Class D Instruction Permit is valid for 2 years and there is a fee of $29.50, payable to the Department of Vehicle Services at the time the permit test is completed. A parent/guardian must also be present to sign the permit application.

Step 3 – Behind-the-Wheel Instruction

6 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction is included in the fee when you register for the Driver Education In Person + Behind-the-Wheel and the Driver Education Online Class +Behind-the-Wheel course
Students can begin the behind-the-wheel portion of the program once they have passed the permit test and have received their hard, plastic permit in the mail.
To be assigned to a behind-the-wheel instructor, sign up online once you have received your plastic instruction permit with your photo (click on "State-required 6 hours BTW (took class with Community Education)").
Students must have their permit with them in the vehicle for all behind-the-wheel lessons.
Each behind-the-wheel lessons is 2-hours.
Students typically begin their lesson from school or from home and end their lesson at home. Students who live outside of St. Paul need to make arrangements to begin and end their lesson in St. Paul.
Students have 18 months, starting from the last day of the 30-hour driver education class, to complete their behind-the-wheel lessons. Please allow several weeks to complete the behind-the-wheel lessons once assigned to an instructor. (Instructors are unable to accommodate 'last minute' or 'rush' requests.)
Driving a vehicle will take a long time to master, so the more practice the better. We recommend students practice driving right away after obtaining their paper permit with a parent/guardian to learn and perfect the basics. Then use the 6 hours of behind-the-wheel with an instructor to practice more complicated techniques.
See behind-the-wheel FAQs here.

Step 4 – Driver’s License

To be eligible to take the license exam student must be 16 years old or older, have had their permit for at least 6 months, have completed the 40-50 hour supervised driving log, and have completed the 6 hours of behind-the-wheel instruction.
Supervised Driving Log: Drivers under the age of 18 must submit a driving log at the time of the license exam. Parents/guardians have two options regarding the supervised driving log-
Complete a supplemental parent class provided by a driver education program approved in Minnesota, and then submit a supervised driving log showing their teen has completed at least 40 hours of supervised driving, 15 of which are nighttime hours.
If the parent/guardian chooses not to complete the supplemental parent class, the driving log must show that their teen has completed at least 50 hours of supervised driving, 15 of which are nighttime hours.
Once the student has successfully completed the 6 hours of behind-the wheel instruction the student is issued an E-card of completion.
Students will take the E-card email confirmation to the Department of Vehicle Services to take the road skill's test. This is done on the students’ own time. Appointments are required.
The Class D Provisional Driver License is valid until you are 21 years of age. A parent/guardian must also be present to sign the license application. For more information on license fees visit Minnesota DVS.

Classes and Offerings

Before enrolling in a Driver Education course, please read over the licensing process above.

Driver Education Online Class - ONLY
This course includes online 30-hour classroom instruction.

Parent/guardian permission is required for students to enroll in this class.

Course Policies:

Students are required by MN State Law to attend all 30-hours of the driver education course in entirety. Do not enroll in a course unless you can attend all class sessions.
We understand that emergencies can happen at any time; in the case of an extenuating circumstance ONLY, students may miss up to one class period (3 hours). Any amount of missed class time must be made up. Students will not receive their Letter of Completion until all 30 hours have been completed. If a student misses more than 3 hours of class time, student will be un-enrolled from the class and will not receive a refund or credit for class time.
The Driver Education Online Class- ONLY class is offered using Google Meet.
MN State Law requires instructors to be able to see you and hear you during the entire online class session. Students should be in a quiet location free from distraction and noise. Make sure your device has both a camera and microphone. View the minimum device requirements for the Google Meet platform here: https://support.google.com/meet/answer/7317473?hl=en
Once the student has successfully completed the 30-hour driver education class and has paid the full course fee, the student will be issued a letter of completion. Please allow 2-3 business days for processing and to receive your letter of completion email.
Refunds minus a $25 cancellation fee will be issued upon request for the Driver Education Online Class -ONLY course. Refunds will not be issued if requested less than three business days prior to the class start date.
Students must be 15 years old by the first day of class to enroll.

Course Fee: $75

Driver Education In Person + Behind-the-Wheel
This course includes in-person 30-hour class and 6 hours behind-the-wheel lessons.

Parent/guardian permission is required for students to enroll in this class.

Course Policies:

Students are required by MN State Law to attend all 30-hours of the driver education course in entirety. Do not enroll in a course unless you can attend all class sessions.
We understand that emergencies can happen at any time; in the case of an extenuating circumstance ONLY, students may miss up to one class period (3 hours). Any amount of missed class time must be made up. Students will not receive their E- card of completion until all 30 hours have been completed. If a student misses more than 3 hours of class time, student will be un-enrolled from the class and will not receive a refund or credit for class time.
Refunds minus a $100 cancellation fee will be issued upon request for the Driver Education – Full Course. Refunds will not be issued if requested less than three business days prior to the class start date.
Once the student has successfully completed the 30-hour driver education class and has paid the full course fee, the student will be issued an E-card of completion. Please allow 2-3 business days for processing and to receive your email confirmation.
Students must be 15 years old by the first day of class to enroll.

Course Fee: $450

Payment Options:

Full payment ($450) at time of registration
Half payment ($225) at time of registration and the remaining balance due before the last day of the 30-hour driver education class.
If you register online or use a credit card for payment and choose the half payment option, the remaining balance will be automatically charged to your credit card on the 6th scheduled day of the driver education class.
Sliding Fee Scale options are also available at the time of registration.

Driver Education Online Class + Behind-the-Wheel
This course includes online 30-hour class and 6 hours behind-the-wheel lessons.

Parent/guardian permission is required for students to enroll in this class.

Course Policies:

Students are required by MN State Law to attend all 30-hours of the driver education course in entirety. Do not enroll in a course unless you can attend all class sessions.
We understand that emergencies can happen at any time; in the case of an extenuating circumstance ONLY, students may miss up to one class period (3 hours). Any amount of missed class time must be made up. Students will not receive their E-card of completion until all 30 hours have been completed. If a student misses more than 3 hours of class time, student will be un-enrolled from the class and will not receive a refund or credit for class time.
The Online Driver Education class is offered using Google Meet.
MN State Law requires instructors to be able to see you and hear you during the entire online class session. Students should be in a quiet location free from distraction and noise. Make sure your device has both a camera and microphone. View the minimum device requirements for the Google Meet platform here: https://support.google.com/meet/answer/7317473?hl=en
Once the student has successfully completed the 30-hour driver education class and has paid the full course fee, the student will be issued an E-card of completion. Please allow 2-3 business days for processing and to receive your email confirmation.
Refunds minus a $100 cancellation fee will be issued upon request for the Driver Education – Online Class + BTW course. Refunds will not be issued if requested less than three business days prior to the class start date.
Students must be 15 years old by the first day of class to enroll.

Course Fee: $450

Payment Options:

Full payment ($450) at time of registration
Half payment ($225) at time of registration and the remaining balance due before the last day of the 30-hour driver education class.
If you register online or use a credit card for payment and choose the half payment option, the remaining balance will be automatically charged to your credit card on the 6th scheduled day of the driver education class.
Sliding Fee Scale options are also available at the time of registration.

Parent/Guardian Awareness Class on Teen Driver Safety
This 90-minute class for the parents/guardians of teen drivers is designed to increase parental awareness and involvement with teen driving issues in order to further reduce teen involved traffic crashes, injuries, and fatalities and to explain the Minnesota graduated driver licensing process. Completion of this course allows the parent/guardian and teen driver to complete 40-hours of supervised driving instead of 50-hours. A certificate of completion will be issued to the parent/guardian at the end of the class that will need to be submitted to the driver exam staff at the time of the student's road test. The certificate is valid for one teen; for subsequent teens who complete a driver education program, another parent class is required.

This class is free but requires registration.

Behind-The-Wheel
For teens 15-18 years old who have received their plastic permit and took the Driver Education class with Saint Paul Public Schools Community Education. Ready to request Behind-the Wheel lessons? Click Here!

Registration Information

Community Education has 3 sessions a year, fall, winter, and spring/summer. Not all classes may be offered each session.

Space in all classes is limited and enrollments are accepted on a first come, first served basis.

Accepted Forms of Payment

Credit card - Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express
Check - fees will be deducted from your checking or savings account as soon as it is received
Money order
Cash - please have exact change

Sliding Scale Fee
A sliding scale fee option is available for families in need. This option is available from the drop-down menu in the "check-out" when completing your student's registration.

Cancellation Fees

Refunds, minus a $25 cancellation fee, will be issued upon request for the Driver Education Online Class- ONLY course. Refunds will not be issued if requested less than three business days prior to the class start date.
Refunds, minus a $100 cancellation fee, will be issued upon request for the Driver Education In-person + Behind-the-Wheel and Driver Education Online Class + Behind-the-Wheel course. Refunds will not be issued if requested less than three business days prior to the class start date.
A $50 cancellation fee is charged to students who cancel their behind-the-wheel appointment less than 24 hours in advance. Students cannot continue with their behind-the-wheel lessons until the fee is paid.
A $50 no-show fee is charged to students who do not show for their scheduled behind-the-wheel appointment. Students cannot continue with their behind-the-wheel lessons until the fee is paid.
A $50 cancellation fee is charged to students who do not have their instruction permit with them for their behind-the-wheel lessons. The lesson will be cancelled and students cannot continue with their behind-the-wheel lessons until the fee is paid.

To Register
Online:
Register online at www.stpaul.ce.eleyo.com. Click on Explore All Programs in the upper right, then click on Classes for Youth and select Driver Education. Note: A parent/guardian must create an account for themselves first, then add their student to their account.

In Person:
Community Education Office
1780 West 7th St.
St. Paul, MN 55116
*Please call in advance for hours and class availability - 651-767-8179.

Current Course Information

Important Information

Parent/Guardian permission required
Class space is limited, students are enrolled on a first come, first served basis.
Minnesota State law requires students to attend ALL class sessions in its entirety. DO NOT enroll in a class unless you can attend ALL class sessions.
Please see more details about the Licensing Process and about the Courses in the sections above.

Replacement Blue or White Card

A replacement Blue or White card can only be issued for past Saint Paul Public Schools Community Education-Driver Education Students.
The fee for a replacement blue or white card is $20.
You will need a replacement card if you lost the original, made a mistake when signing the card, or need to make a change to your name or birthdate.
You do NOT need a replacement card if you have never received one yet, have failed the permit or license test, or are 18 years old or older.
CLICK HERE to request a replacement card. Please allow up to 2 weeks to receive your replacement card.