SF 2757

1st Engrossment - 86th Legislature (2009 - 2010) Posted on 03/17/2010 11:47am

A bill for an act
relating to education; establishing an alternative teacher preparation program
and limited-term teacher license; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota
Statutes, chapter 122A; repealing Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 122A.24.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

[122A.245] ALTERNATIVE TEACHER PREPARATION PROGRAM
AND LIMITED-TERM TEACHER LICENSE.

Subdivision 1.

Requirements.

(a) The Board of Teaching must approve qualified
teacher preparation programs under this section that are a means to acquire a two-year
limited-term license and to prepare for acquiring a standard entrance license. Programs
are partnerships composed of school districts or charter schools and either:

(1) a college or university with a board-approved alternative teacher preparation
program;

(2) a nonprofit corporation formed for an education-related purpose and subject to
chapter 317A with a board-approved teacher preparation program; or

(3) a board-approved teacher preparation program within a district.

(b) Prior to participation in this program, a candidate must:

(1) have a bachelor's degree with a minimum 3.0 grade point average, or have a
bachelor's degree and meet other board-adopted criteria;

(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics skills examination under section
122A.18; and

(3) obtain qualifying scores on board-approved content area and pedagogy tests.

Subd. 2.

Characteristics.

An alternative teacher preparation program under this
section must include:

(1) a minimum 200-hour instructional phase that provides intensive preparation
before that person assumes classroom responsibilities;

(2) a research-based and results-oriented approach focused on best teaching practices
to increase student proficiency and growth measured against state academic standards;

(3) strategies to combine pedagogy and best teaching practices to better inform
teachers' classroom instruction;

(4) assessment, supervision, and evaluation of the program participant to determine
the participant's specific needs throughout the program and to support the participant
in successfully completing the program;

(5) intensive, ongoing, and multiyear professional learning opportunities that can
accelerate initial educators' professional growth and that include developing dispositions
and practices that support student learning, orientations to the workplace, a network of
peer support, seminars and workshops, and mentoring focused on standards of professional
practice and continual professional growth; and

(6) a requirement that program participants demonstrate to the local site team under
subdivision 5 that they are making satisfactory progress toward acquiring a standard
entrance license from the Board of Teaching.

Subd. 3.

Program approval.

The Board of Teaching must approve alternative
teacher preparation programs under this section based on board-adopted criteria that reflect
best practices for alternative teacher preparation programs consistent with this section.
The board must permit licensure candidates to demonstrate licensure competencies in
school-based settings and through other nontraditional means.

Subd. 4.

Employment conditions.

Where applicable, teachers with a limited-term
license under this section are members of and subject to the terms of the local collective
bargaining agreement between the local representative of the teachers and the school
board.

Subd. 5.

Approval for standard entrance license.

A local site team that may
include teachers, school administrators, postsecondary faculty, and nonprofit staff must
evaluate the performance of the teacher candidate using the Minnesota State Standards of
Effective Practice for Teachers established in rule and submit to the board an evaluation
report recommending whether or not to issue the teacher candidate a standard entrance
license.

Subd. 6.

Standard entrance license.

The Board of Teaching must issue a standard
entrance license to a teacher candidate under this section who successfully performs
throughout the program and is recommended for licensure under subdivision 5.

Subd. 7.

Qualified teacher.

A person with a valid limited-term license under this
section is the teacher of record and a qualified teacher within the meaning of section
122A.16.

Subd. 8.

Reports.

The Board of Teaching must submit an interim report on the
efficacy of this program to the house of representatives and senate committees having
jurisdiction over kindergarten through grade 12 education by February 15, 2012, and a
final report by February 15, 2014.

EFFECTIVE DATE.

This section is effective August 1, 2010.

Sec. 2. REPEALER.

Minnesota Statutes 2008, section 122A.24, is repealed.

EFFECTIVE DATE.

This section is effective August 1, 2010.