1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to education; clarifying conditions for teacher licensure and employment; 
1.3 	amending alternative teacher licensure; providing for teacher licensure 
1.4 	reciprocity with adjoining states; clarifying the license via portfolio option; 
1.5 	clarifying the exemption for technical education instructors; clarifying decisions 
1.6 	affecting teachers' unrequested leaves of absence and teaching assignments; 
1.7 	prohibiting school administrators from placing students with ineffective teachers; 
1.8 	clarifying teacher skills examination requirements;amending Minnesota Statutes 
1.9 	2014, sections 122A.09, subdivision 4; 122A.18, subdivision 2; 122A.20, 
1.10 	subdivision 1; 122A.21, subdivision 2; 122A.23; 122A.245, subdivisions 1, 3, 7; 
1.11 	122A.25; 122A.30; 122A.40, subdivisions 5, 8, 10, 11; 122A.41, subdivisions 
1.12 	2, 5, 14; 123A.75, subdivision 1; 179A.20, by adding a subdivision; repealing 
1.13 	Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 11.
1.14 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.15 	Section 1. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.09, subdivision 4, is amended to read:
1.16 		Subd. 4.License and rules. (a) The board must adopt rules to license public school 
1.17 	teachers and interns subject to chapter 14.
1.18 	(b) The board must adopt rules requiring a person to pass a college-level skills 
1.19 	examination in reading, writing, and mathematics or attain either a composite score 
1.20 	composed of theaverage of theessentially equivalent passing scores in English and 
1.21 	writing, reading, and mathematics on the ACT Plus Writing recommended by the board, 
1.22 	or an equivalent composite score composedof the average of theessentially equivalent 
1.23 	passing scores in critical reading, mathematics, and writing on the SAT recommended 
1.24 	by the board, as a requirement for initial teacher licensure, except that the board may 
1.25 	issue up to two temporary, one-year teaching licenses to an otherwise qualified candidate 
1.26 	who has not yet passed the college-level skills exam or attained the requisite composite 
1.27 	scoreessentially equivalent passing scores on the ACT Plus Writing or SAT. Such rules 
1.28 	must require college and universities offering a board-approved teacher preparation 
2.1 	program to provide remedial assistance to persons who did not achieve a qualifying 
2.2 	score on the college-level skills examination or attain the requisite composite score
2.3 	essentially equivalent passing scores on the ACT Plus Writing or SAT, including those 
2.4 	for whom English is a second language. The requirement to pass a reading, writing, 
2.5 	and mathematics college-level skills examination or attain the requisite composite score
2.6 	essentially equivalent passing scores on the ACT Plus Writing or SAT does not apply to 
2.7 	nonnative English speakers, as verified by qualified Minnesota school district personnel 
2.8 	or Minnesota higher education faculty, who, after meeting the content and pedagogy 
2.9 	requirements under this subdivision, apply for a teaching license to provide direct 
2.10 	instruction in their native language or world language instruction under section 120B.022, 
2.11 	subdivision 1. A teacher candidate's official ACT Plus Writing or SAT composite score 
2.12 	report to the board must not be more than ten years old at the time of licensure.
2.13 	(c) The board must adopt rules to approve teacher preparation programs. The board, 
2.14 	upon the request of a postsecondary student preparing for teacher licensure or a licensed 
2.15 	graduate of a teacher preparation program, shall assist in resolving a dispute between the 
2.16 	person and a postsecondary institution providing a teacher preparation program when the 
2.17 	dispute involves an institution's recommendation for licensure affecting the person or the 
2.18 	person's credentials. At the board's discretion, assistance may include the application 
2.19 	of chapter 14.
2.20 	(d) The board must provide the leadership and adopt rules for the redesign of teacher 
2.21 	education programs to implement a research based, results-oriented curriculum that 
2.22 	focuses on the skills teachers need in order to be effective. The board shall implement new 
2.23 	systems of teacher preparation program evaluation to assure program effectiveness based 
2.24 	on proficiency of graduates in demonstrating attainment of program outcomes. Teacher 
2.25 	preparation programs including alternative teacher preparation programs under section 
2.26 	122A.245, among other programs, must include a content-specific, board-approved, 
2.27 	performance-based assessment that measures teacher candidates in three areas: planning 
2.28 	for instruction and assessment; engaging students and supporting learning; and assessing 
2.29 	student learning. The board's redesign rules must include creating flexible, specialized 
2.30 	teaching licenses, credentials, and other endorsement forms to increase students' 
2.31 	participation in language immersion programs, world language instruction, career 
2.32 	development opportunities, work-based learning, early college courses and careers, career 
2.33 	and technical programs, Montessori schools, and project and place-based learning, among 
2.34 	other career and college ready learning offerings.
2.35 	(e) The board must adopt rules requiring candidates for initial licenses to pass an 
2.36 	examination of general pedagogical knowledge and examinations of licensure-specific 
3.1 	teaching skills. The rules shall be effective by September 1, 2001. The rules under this 
3.2 	paragraph also must require candidates for initial licenses to teach prekindergarten or 
3.3 	elementary students to pass, as part of the examination of licensure-specific teaching 
3.4 	skills, test items assessing the candidates' knowledge, skill, and ability in comprehensive, 
3.5 	scientifically based reading instruction under section 122A.06, subdivision 4, and their 
3.6 	knowledge and understanding of the foundations of reading development, the development 
3.7 	of reading comprehension, and reading assessment and instruction, and their ability to 
3.8 	integrate that knowledge and understanding.
3.9 	(f) The board must adopt rules requiring teacher educators to work directly with 
3.10 	elementary or secondary school teachers in elementary or secondary schools to obtain 
3.11 	periodic exposure to the elementary or secondary teaching environment.
3.12 	(g) The board must grant licenses to interns and to candidates for initial licenses 
3.13 	based on appropriate professional competencies that are aligned with the board's licensing 
3.14 	system and students' diverse learning needs. All teacher candidates must have preparation 
3.15 	in English language development and content instruction for English learners in order to be 
3.16 	able to effectively instruct the English learners in their classrooms. The board must include 
3.17 	these licenses in a statewide differentiated licensing system that creates new leadership 
3.18 	roles for successful experienced teachers premised on a collaborative professional culture 
3.19 	dedicated to meeting students' diverse learning needs in the 21st century, recognizes the 
3.20 	importance of cultural and linguistic competencies, including the ability to teach and 
3.21 	communicate in culturally competent and aware ways, and formalizes mentoring and 
3.22 	induction for newly licensed teachers provided through a teacher support framework.
3.23 	(h) The board must design and implement an assessment system which requires a 
3.24 	candidate for an initial license and first continuing license to demonstrate the abilities 
3.25 	necessary to perform selected, representative teaching tasks at appropriate levels.
3.26 	(i) The board must receive recommendations from local committees as established 
3.27 	by the board for the renewal of teaching licenses. The board must require licensed teachers 
3.28 	who are renewing a continuing license to include in the renewal requirements further 
3.29 	preparation in English language development and specially designed content instruction 
3.30 	in English for English learners.
3.31 	(j) The board must grant life licenses to those who qualify according to requirements 
3.32 	established by the board, and suspend or revoke licenses pursuant to sections 122A.20 and 
3.33 	214.10. The board must not establish any expiration date for application for life licenses.
3.34 	(k) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed teachers who are renewing 
3.35 	their continuing license to include in their renewal requirements further preparation in 
3.36 	the areas of using positive behavior interventions and in accommodating, modifying, and 
4.1 	adapting curricula, materials, and strategies to appropriately meet the needs of individual 
4.2 	students and ensure adequate progress toward the state's graduation rule.
4.3 	(l) In adopting rules to license public school teachers who provide health-related 
4.4 	services for disabled children, the board shall adopt rules consistent with license or 
4.5 	registration requirements of the commissioner of health and the health-related boards who 
4.6 	license personnel who perform similar services outside of the school.
4.7 	(m) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed teachers who are renewing 
4.8 	their continuing license to include in their renewal requirements further reading 
4.9 	preparation, consistent with section 122A.06, subdivision 4. The rules do not take effect 
4.10 	until they are approved by law. Teachers who do not provide direct instruction including, at 
4.11 	least, counselors, school psychologists, school nurses, school social workers, audiovisual 
4.12 	directors and coordinators, and recreation personnel are exempt from this section.
4.13 	(n) The board must adopt rules that require all licensed teachers who are renewing 
4.14 	their continuing license to include in their renewal requirements further preparation, 
4.15 	first, in understanding the key warning signs of early-onset mental illness in children 
4.16 	and adolescents and then, during subsequent licensure renewal periods, preparation may 
4.17 	include providing a more in-depth understanding of students' mental illness trauma, 
4.18 	accommodations for students' mental illness, parents' role in addressing students' mental 
4.19 	illness, Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, autism, the requirements of section 125A.0942 
4.20 	governing restrictive procedures, and de-escalation methods, among other similar topics.
4.21 	(o) The board must adopt rules by January 1, 2016, to license applicants under 
4.22 	sections 122A.23 and 122A.245. The rules must permit applicants to demonstrate their 
4.23 	qualifications through the board's recognition of a teaching license from another state 
4.24 	in a similar content field, completion of a state-approved teacher preparation program, 
4.25 	teaching experience as the teacher of record in a similar licensure field, depth of content 
4.26 	knowledge, depth of content methods or general pedagogy, subject-specific professional 
4.27 	development and contribution to the field, or classroom performance as determined by 
4.28 	documented student growth on normed assessments or documented effectiveness on 
4.29 	evaluations. The rules must adopt criteria for determining a "similar content field" and 
4.30 	"similar licensure area."

4.31 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment 
4.32 	and applies to all candidates seeking initial teacher licensure, including those holding a 
4.33 	temporary, one-year teaching license.

4.34 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.18, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
5.1 		Subd. 2.Teacher and support personnel qualifications. (a) The Board of 
5.2 	Teaching must issue licenses under its jurisdiction to persons the board finds to be 
5.3 	qualified and competent for their respective positions, including those who meet the 
5.4 	standards adopted under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (o).
5.5 	(b) The board must require a person to pass an examination of college-level skills 
5.6 	in reading, writing, and mathematics or attain either a composite score composed of the
5.7 	average of the passing scores in English and writing, reading, and mathematics on the ACT 
5.8 	Plus Writing recommended by the board, or an equivalent composite score composedof 
5.9 	the average of thepassing scores in critical reading, mathematics, and writing on the SAT 
5.10 	recommended by the board, before being granted an initial teaching license to provide 
5.11 	direct instruction to pupils in prekindergarten, elementary, secondary, or special education 
5.12 	programs, except that the board may issue up to two temporary, one-year teaching licenses 
5.13 	to an otherwise qualified candidate who has not yet passed the college-level skills exam or 
5.14 	attained the requisite composite scoreessentially equivalent passing scores on the ACT 
5.15 	Plus Writing or SAT. The board must require colleges and universities offering a board 
5.16 	approved teacher preparation program to make available upon request remedial assistance 
5.17 	that includes a formal diagnostic component to persons enrolled in their institution who 
5.18 	did not achieve a qualifying score on the college-level skills examination or attain the 
5.19 	requisite composite ACT Plus Writing or SAT scoreessentially equivalent passing scores, 
5.20 	including those for whom English is a second language. The colleges and universities 
5.21 	must make available assistance in the specific academic areas of candidates' deficiency. 
5.22 	School districts may make available upon request similar, appropriate, and timely remedial 
5.23 	assistance that includes a formal diagnostic component to those persons employed by the 
5.24 	district who completed their teacher education program, who did not achieve a qualifying 
5.25 	score on the college-level skills examination, or attain the requisite composite ACT Plus 
5.26 	Writing or SAT scoreessentially equivalent passing scores, and who received a temporary 
5.27 	license to teach in Minnesota. The Board of Teaching shall report annually to the education 
5.28 	committees of the legislature on the total number of teacher candidates during the most 
5.29 	recent school year taking the college-level skills examination, the number who achieve a 
5.30 	qualifying score on the examination, the number who do not achieve a qualifying score 
5.31 	on the examination, the distribution of all candidates' scores, the number of candidates 
5.32 	who have taken the examination at least once before, and the number of candidates who 
5.33 	have taken the examination at least once before and achieve a qualifying score, and the 
5.34 	candidates who have not attained the requisitecomposite ACT Plus Writing or SAT score
5.35 	essentially equivalent passing scores or have not passed a content or pedagogy exam, 
5.36 	disaggregated by categories of race, ethnicity, and eligibility for financial aid.
6.1 	(c) The Board of Teaching must grant continuing licenses only to those persons 
6.2 	who have met meet board criteria for granting a continuing license, which includes 
6.3 	passing the college-level skills examination in reading, writing, and mathematics or 
6.4 	attaining the requisite composite ACT Plus Writing or SAT scoreessentially equivalent 
6.5 	passing scores consistent with paragraph (b), and the exceptions in section 122A.09, 
6.6 	subdivision 4, paragraph (b), that are consistent with this paragraph. The requirement to 
6.7 	pass a reading, writing, and mathematics college-level skills examination, or attain the 
6.8 	requisite composite scoreessentially equivalent passing scores on the ACT Plus Writing 
6.9 	or SAT does not apply to nonnative English speakers, as verified by qualified Minnesota 
6.10 	school district personnel or Minnesota higher education faculty, who, after meeting the 
6.11 	content and pedagogy requirements under this subdivision, apply for a teaching license to 
6.12 	provide direct instruction in their native language or world language instruction under 
6.13 	section 120B.022, subdivision 1. A teacher candidate's official ACT Plus Writing or SAT 
6.14 	composite scorepassing scores report to the board must not be more than ten years old 
6.15 	at the time of licensure.
6.16 	(d) All colleges and universities approved by the board of teaching to prepare persons 
6.17 	for teacher licensure must include in their teacher preparation programs a common core 
6.18 	of teaching knowledge and skills to be acquired by all persons recommended for teacher 
6.19 	licensure. Among other requirements, teacher candidates must demonstrate the knowledge 
6.20 	and skills needed to provide appropriate instruction to English learners to support and 
6.21 	accelerate their academic literacy, including oral academic language, and achievement in 
6.22 	content areas in a regular classroom setting. This common core shall meet the standards 
6.23 	developed by the interstate new teacher assessment and support consortium in its 1992 
6.24 	"model standards for beginning teacher licensing and development." Amendments to 
6.25 	standards adopted under this paragraph are covered by chapter 14. The board of teaching 
6.26 	shall report annually to the education committees of the legislature on the performance 
6.27 	of teacher candidates on common core assessments of knowledge and skills under this 
6.28 	paragraph during the most recent school year.

6.29 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment 
6.30 	and applies to all candidates seeking initial teacher licensure, including those holding a 
6.31 	temporary, one-year teaching license.

6.32 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.20, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
6.33 		Subdivision 1.Grounds for revocation, suspension, or denial. (a) The Board of 
6.34 	Teaching or Board of School Administrators, whichever has jurisdiction over a teacher's 
6.35 	licensure, may, on the written complaint of the school board employing a teacher, a teacher 
7.1 	organization, or any other interested person, refuse to issue, refuse to renew, suspend, or 
7.2 	revoke a teacher's license to teach for any of the following causes:
7.3 	(1) immoral character or conduct;
7.4 	(2) failure, without justifiable cause, to teach for the term of the teacher's contract;
7.5 	(3) gross inefficiency or willful neglect of duty;
7.6 	(4) failure to meet licensure requirements; or
7.7 	(5) fraud or misrepresentation in obtaining a license.
7.8 	The written complaint must specify the nature and character of the charges.
7.9 	(b) The Board of Teaching or Board of School Administrators, whichever 
7.10 	has jurisdiction over a teacher's licensure, shall refuse to issue, refuse to renew, or 
7.11 	automatically revoke a teacher's license to teach without the right to a hearing upon 
7.12 	receiving a certified copy of a conviction showing that the teacher has been convicted 
7.13 	of child abuse, as defined in section 609.185, sex trafficking in the first degree under 
7.14 	section 609.322, subdivision 1, sex trafficking in the second degree under section 609.322, 
7.15 	subdivision 1a, engaging in hiring or agreeing to hire a minor to engage in prostitution 
7.16 	under section 609.324, subdivision 1, sexual abuse under section 609.342, 609.343, 
7.17 	609.344, 609.345, 609.3451, subdivision 3, or 617.23, subdivision 3, solicitation of 
7.18 	children to engage in sexual conduct or communication of sexually explicit materials 
7.19 	to children under section 609.352, interference with privacy under section 609.746 or 
7.20 	stalking under section 609.749 and the victim was a minor, using minors in a sexual 
7.21 	performance under section 617.246, or possessing pornographic works involving a minor 
7.22 	under section 617.247, or any other offense not listed in this paragraph that requires the 
7.23 	person to register as a predatory offender under section 243.166, or a crime under a similar 
7.24 	law of another state or the United States. The board shall send notice of this licensing 
7.25 	action to the district in which the teacher is currently employed.
7.26 	(c) A person whose license to teach has been revoked, not issued, or not renewed 
7.27 	under paragraph (b), may petition the board to reconsider the licensing action if the 
7.28 	person's conviction for child abuse or sexual abuse is reversed by a final decision of the 
7.29 	Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court or if the person has received a pardon for the 
7.30 	offense. The petitioner shall attach a certified copy of the appellate court's final decision or 
7.31 	the pardon to the petition. Upon receiving the petition and its attachment, the board shall 
7.32 	schedule and hold a disciplinary hearing on the matter under section 214.10, subdivision 2, 
7.33 	unless the petitioner waives the right to a hearing. If the board finds that, notwithstanding 
7.34 	the reversal of the petitioner's criminal conviction or the issuance of a pardon, the 
7.35 	petitioner is disqualified from teaching under paragraph (a), clause (1), the board shall 
8.1 	affirm its previous licensing action. If the board finds that the petitioner is not disqualified 
8.2 	from teaching under paragraph (a), clause (1), it shall reverse its previous licensing action.
8.3 	(d) For purposes of this subdivision, the Board of Teaching is delegated the authority 
8.4 	to suspend or revoke coaching licenses.

8.5 	Sec. 4. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.21, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
8.6 		Subd. 2.Licensure via portfolio. (a) An eligible candidate may use licensure 
8.7 	via portfolio to obtain an initial licensure or to add a licensure field, consistent with the
8.8 	applicable Board of Teaching licensure rules.
8.9 	(b) A candidate for initial licensure must submit to the Educator Licensing Division 
8.10 	at the department one portfolio demonstrating pedagogical competence and one portfolio 
8.11 	demonstrating content competence.
8.12 	(c) A candidate seeking to add a licensure field must submit to the Educator 
8.13 	Licensing Division at the department one portfolio demonstrating content competence.
8.14 	(d) The Board of Teaching must notify a candidate who submits a portfolio under 
8.15 	paragraph (b) or (c) within 90 calendar days after the portfolio is received whether or not 
8.16 	the portfolio was approved. If the portfolio was not approved, the board must immediately 
8.17 	inform the candidate how to revise the portfolio to successfully demonstrate the requisite 
8.18 	competence. The candidate may resubmit a revised portfolio at any time and the Educator 
8.19 	Licensing Division at the department must approve or disapprove the portfolio within 
8.20 	60 calendar days of receiving it.
8.21 	(e) A candidate must pay to the executive secretary of the Board of Teaching a 
8.22 	$300 fee for the first portfolio submitted for review and a $200 fee for any portfolio 
8.23 	submitted subsequently. The fees must be paid to the executive secretary of the Board of 
8.24 	Teaching. The revenue generated from the fee must be deposited in an education licensure 
8.25 	portfolio account in the special revenue fund. The fees set by the Board of Teaching are 
8.26 	nonrefundable for applicants not qualifying for a license. The Board of Teaching may 
8.27 	waive or reduce fees for candidates based on financial need.

8.28 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment and 
8.29 	applies to all portfolios submitted to the Educator Licensing Division at the department 
8.30 	after that date.

8.31 	Sec. 5. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.23, is amended to read:
8.32 	122A.23 APPLICANTS TRAINED IN OTHER STATES.
9.1 		Subdivision 1.Preparation equivalency. When a license to teach is authorized to 
9.2 	be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree of a Minnesota state university, or of the 
9.3 	University of Minnesota, or of a liberal arts university, or a technical training institution, 
9.4 	such license may also, in the discretion of the Board of Teaching or the commissioner of 
9.5 	education, whichever has jurisdiction, be issued to any holder of a diploma or a degree 
9.6 	of a teacher training institution of equivalent rank and standing of any other state. The 
9.7 	diploma or degree must be granted by virtue of completing a coursecoursework in teacher 
9.8 	preparation essentially equivalent in content to that required by such Minnesota state 
9.9 	university or the University of Minnesota or a liberal arts university in Minnesota or a 
9.10 	technical training institution as preliminary to the granting of a diploma or a degree of the 
9.11 	same rank and class. For purposes of granting a Minnesota teaching license to a person 
9.12 	who receives a diploma or degree from a state-accredited, out-of-state teacher training 
9.13 	program leading to licensure, the Board of Teaching must establish criteria and streamlined 
9.14 	procedures by January 1, 2016, to recognize the experience and professional credentials of 
9.15 	the person holding the out-of-state diploma or degree and allow that person to demonstrate 
9.16 	to the board the person's qualifications for receiving a Minnesota teaching license based 
9.17 	on performance measures the board adopts by January 1, 2016, under this section.
9.18 		Subd. 2.Applicants licensed in other states. (a) Subject to the requirements 
9.19 	of sections 122A.18, subdivision 8, and 123B.03, the Board of Teaching must issue a 
9.20 	teaching license or a temporary teaching license under paragraphs (b) (c) to (e)(f) to an 
9.21 	applicant who holds at least a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited college 
9.22 	or university and holds or held a similaran out-of-state teaching license that requires the 
9.23 	applicant to successfully complete a teacher preparation program approved by the issuing 
9.24 	state, which includes either (1) field-specific teaching methods and, student teaching, or 
9.25 	essentially equivalent experience, or (2) at least two years of teaching experience as the 
9.26 	teacher of record in a similar licensure field.
9.27 	(b) The Board of Teaching may issue a standard license on the basis of teaching 
9.28 	experience and examination requirements only.
9.29 	(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a teaching license to an applicant who:
9.30 	(1) successfully completed all exams and human relations preparation components 
9.31 	required by the Board of Teaching; and
9.32 	(2) holds or held an out-of-state teaching license to teach the samea similar content 
9.33 	field and grade levels if the scope of the out-of-state license is no more than two grade 
9.34 	levels less than a similar Minnesota license, and either (i) has completed field-specific 
9.35 	teaching methods, student teaching, or equivalent experience, or (ii) has at least two years 
9.36 	of teaching experience as the teacher of record in a similar licensure field.
10.1 	(c)(d) The Board of Teaching, consistent with board rules and paragraph (h) (i), 
10.2 	must issue up to three one-year temporary teaching licenses to an applicant who holds or 
10.3 	held an out-of-state teaching license to teach the samea similar content field and grade 
10.4 	levels, where the scope of the out-of-state license is no more than two grade levels less 
10.5 	than a similar Minnesota license, but has not successfully completed all exams and human 
10.6 	relations preparation components required by the Board of Teaching.
10.7 	(d)(e) The Board of Teaching, consistent with board rules, must issue up to three 
10.8 	one-year temporary teaching licenses to an applicant who:
10.9 	(1) successfully completed all exams and human relations preparation components 
10.10 	required by the Board of Teaching; and
10.11 	(2) holds or held an out-of-state teaching license to teach the samea similar content 
10.12 	field and grade levels, where the scope of the out-of-state license is no more than two 
10.13 	grade levels less than a similar Minnesota license, but has not completed field-specific 
10.14 	teaching methods or student teaching or equivalent experience.
10.15 	The applicant may complete field-specific teaching methods and student teaching 
10.16 	or equivalent experience by successfully participating in a one-year school district 
10.17 	mentorship program consistent with board-adopted standards of effective practice and 
10.18 	Minnesota graduation requirements.
10.19 	(e)(f) The Board of Teaching must issue a temporary teaching license for a term 
10.20 	of up to three years only in the content field or grade levels specified in the out-of-state 
10.21 	license to an applicant who:
10.22 	(1) successfully completed all exams and human relations preparation components 
10.23 	required by the Board of Teaching; and
10.24 	(2) holds or held an out-of-state teaching license where the out-of-state license is 
10.25 	more limited in the content field or grade levels than a similar Minnesota license.
10.26 	(f)(g) The Board of Teaching must not issue to an applicant more than three 
10.27 	one-year temporary teaching licenses under this subdivision.
10.28 	(g)(h) The Board of Teaching must notmay issue a license under this subdivision if 
10.29 	the applicant has not attained the additional degrees, credentials, or licenses required in 
10.30 	a particular licensure field and the applicant can demonstrate competency by obtaining 
10.31 	qualifying scores on the college-level skills examination in reading, writing, and 
10.32 	mathematics or demonstrating attainment of essentially equivalent passing scores on the 
10.33 	ACT Plus Writing or SAT, and on applicable board-approved rigorous content area and 
10.34 	pedagogy examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraphs (a) and (e).
10.35 	(h)(i) The Board of Teaching must require an applicant for a teaching license or a 
10.36 	temporary teaching license under this subdivision to pass a college-level skills examination 
11.1 	in reading, writing, and mathematics or, if the applicant does not pass the college-level skills 
11.2 	examination, demonstrate, consistent with section 122A.09, subdivision 4, the applicant's 
11.3 	attainment of either the requisite composite ACT Plus Writing or SAT scoreessentially 
11.4 	equivalent passing scores before the board issues the license unless, notwithstanding other 
11.5 	provisions of this subdivision, an applicable board-approved National Association of State 
11.6 	Directors of Teacher Education interstate reciprocity agreement exists to allow fully 
11.7 	certified teachers from other states to transfer their certification to Minnesota.
11.8 		Subd. 3.Teacher licensure agreements with adjoining states. (a) Notwithstanding 
11.9 	other law to the contrary, the Board of Teaching must enter into interstate agreements for 
11.10 	teacher licensure to allow fully certified teachers from adjoining states to transfer their 
11.11 	certification to Minnesota and receive a full, five-year continuing teaching license without 
11.12 	having to complete any additional exams or other preparation requirements. The board 
11.13 	must enter into these interstate agreements only after determining that the rigor of the 
11.14 	teacher licensure or certification requirements in the adjoining state is commensurate with 
11.15 	the rigor of Minnesota's teacher licensure requirements. The board may limit an interstate 
11.16 	agreement to particular content fields or grade levels based on established priorities or 
11.17 	identified shortages. This subdivision does not apply to out-of-state applicants holding 
11.18 	only a provisional teaching license.
11.19 	(b) The Board of Teaching is strongly encouraged to work with designated 
11.20 	authorities in adjoining states to establish reciprocal interstate teacher licensure 
11.21 	agreements under this section.

11.22 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective August 1, 2015.

11.23 	Sec. 6. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.245, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
11.24 		Subdivision 1.Requirements. (a) To improve academic excellence, improve ethnic 
11.25 	and cultural diversity in the classroom, and close the academic achievement gap, the 
11.26 	Board of Teaching must approve qualified teacher preparation programs under this section 
11.27 	that are a means to acquire a two-year limited-term license, which the board may renew 
11.28 	one time for an additional one-year term, and to prepare for acquiring a standard license. 
11.29 	The following entities are eligible to participate under this section:
11.30 	(1) a school district or, charter school, or nonprofit corporation organized under 
11.31 	chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that forms a partnership with a college or 
11.32 	university that has a board-approved alternative teacher preparation program; or
11.33 	(2) a school district or, charter school, or nonprofit corporation organized under 
11.34 	chapter 317A for an education-related purpose after consulting with a college or university 
11.35 	with a board-approved teacher preparation program, that forms a partnership with a 
12.1 	nonprofit corporation organized under chapter 317A for an education-related purpose that 
12.2 	has a board-approved teacher preparation program.
12.3 	(b) Before participating in this program becoming a teacher of record, a candidate 
12.4 	must:
12.5 	(1) have a bachelor's degree with a 3.0 or higher grade point average unless the 
12.6 	board waives the grade point average requirement based on board-adopted criteria adopted 
12.7 	by January 1, 2016;
12.8 	(2) pass the reading, writing, and mathematics college-level skills examination under 
12.9 	section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (b), or demonstrate attainment of either ACT 
12.10 	Plus Writing or SAT essentially equivalent passing scores; and
12.11 	(3) obtain qualifying scores on applicable board-approved rigorous content area and 
12.12 	pedagogy examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraph (e).
12.13 	(c) The Board of Teaching must issue a two-year limited-term license to a person 
12.14 	who enrolls in an alternative teacher preparation program. This limited term license is not 
12.15 	a provisional license under section 122A.40 or 122A.41.

12.16 	Sec. 7. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.245, subdivision 3, is amended to read:
12.17 		Subd. 3.Program approval; disapproval. (a) The Board of Teaching must approve 
12.18 	alternative teacher preparation programs under this section based on board-adopted 
12.19 	criteria that reflect best practices for alternative teacher preparation programs, consistent 
12.20 	with this section. 
12.21 	(b) The board must permit teacher candidates to demonstrate mastery of pedagogy 
12.22 	and content standards in school-based settings and through other nontraditional means.
12.23 	"Nontraditional means" must include a portfolio of previous experiences, teaching 
12.24 	experience, educator evaluations, certifications marking the completion of education 
12.25 	training programs, and essentially equivalent demonstrations. 
12.26 	(c) The board must use nontraditional criteria to determine the qualifications of 
12.27 	program instructors.
12.28 	(d) The board may permit instructors to hold a baccalaureate degree only.
12.29 	(b)(e) If the Board of Teaching determines that a teacher preparation program under 
12.30 	this section does not meet the requirements of this section, it may revoke its approval 
12.31 	of the program after it notifies the program provider of any deficiencies and gives the 
12.32 	program provider an opportunity to remedy the deficiencies.

12.33 	Sec. 8. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.245, subdivision 7, is amended to read:
13.1 		Subd. 7.Standard license. The Board of Teaching must issue a standard license 
13.2 	to an otherwise qualified teacher candidate under this section who successfully performs 
13.3 	throughout a program under this section, successfully completes all requiredobtains 
13.4 	qualifying scores on applicable board-approved rigorous college-level skills, pedagogy, 
13.5 	and content area examinations under section 122A.09, subdivision 4, paragraphs (a) and 
13.6 	(e), and is recommended for licensure under subdivision 5 or successfully demonstrates to 
13.7 	the board qualifications for licensure under subdivision 6.

13.8 	Sec. 9. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.25, is amended to read:
13.9 	122A.25 NONLICENSED COMMUNITY EXPERTS; VARIANCE.
13.10 		Subdivision 1.Authorization. Notwithstanding any law, Board of Teaching rule, 
13.11 	or commissioner of education rule to the contrary, the Board of Teaching may allow
13.12 	school districts or charter schools to may hire nonlicensed community experts to teach 
13.13 	in the public schools or charter schools on a limited basis according to this section after 
13.14 	making efforts to obtain acceptable licensed teachers for the particular course or subject 
13.15 	area, consistent with subdivision 2, clause (3).
13.16 		Subd. 2.Applications Reports; criteria. The school district or charter school 
13.17 	shall apply report to the Board of Teaching for approval when it uses a variance to hire 
13.18 	nonlicensed teaching personnel from the community. In approving or disapproving the 
13.19 	application for each community expert, The board report shall consider include:
13.20 	(1) the qualifications of the community person whom the district or charter school 
13.21 	proposes to employ employs;
13.22 	(2) the unique and compelling reasons for the need for a variance from the teacher 
13.23 	licensure requirements;
13.24 	(3) the district's efforts to obtain licensed teachers, who are acceptable to the school 
13.25 	board, for the particular course or subject area or the charter school's efforts to obtain 
13.26 	licensed teachers for the particular course or subject area;
13.27 	(4) the amount of teaching time for which the community expert would be is hired;
13.28 	(5) the extent to which the district or charter school is utilizing uses other 
13.29 	nonlicensed community experts under this section;
13.30 	(6) the nature of the community expert's proposed teaching responsibility; and
13.31 	(7) the proposed level of compensation to be paid to the community expert.
13.32 		Subd. 3.Approval of plan Comment on variance. The Board of Teaching shall 
13.33 	approve or disapprove an application may comment on a district or charter school report
13.34 	within 60 days of receiving it from a school and the district or charter school must post the 
13.35 	comment on its official Web site.
14.1 		Subd. 4.Background check. A school district or charter school shall provide
14.2 	confirm to the Board of Teaching with confirmation that criminal background checks have 
14.3 	been were completed for all nonlicensed community experts employed by the district or 
14.4 	charter school and approved by the Board of Teaching under this section.

14.5 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment 
14.6 	and applies to all nonlicensed community experts hired after that date.

14.7 	Sec. 10. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.30, is amended to read:
14.8 	122A.30 EXEMPTION FOR TECHNICAL COLLEGE EDUCATION
14.9 	INSTRUCTORS.
14.10 	Notwithstanding section 122A.15, subdivision 1, and upon approval of the local 
14.11 	employer school board, a person who teaches in a part-time vocational or career and 
14.12 	technical education program not more than 61 hours per fiscal year is exempt from a 
14.13 	license requirement.

14.14 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment 
14.15 	and applies to all technical education instructors hired after that date.

14.16 	Sec. 11. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
14.17 		Subd. 5.Probationary period. (a) The first three consecutive years of a teacher's 
14.18 	first teaching experience in Minnesota in a single district is deemed to be a probationary 
14.19 	period of employment, and, the probationary period in each district in which the teacher is 
14.20 	thereafter employed shall be one year. The school board must adopt a plan for written 
14.21 	evaluation of teachers during the probationary period that is consistent with subdivision 
14.22 	8. Evaluation must occur at least three times periodically throughout each school year 
14.23 	for a teacher performing services during that school year; the first evaluation must occur 
14.24 	within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, 
14.25 	teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a 
14.26 	teacher is absent from school must not be included in determining the number of school 
14.27 	days on which a teacher performs services. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph 
14.28 	(b), during the probationary period any annual contract with any teacher may or may not 
14.29 	be renewed (1) as the school board shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated 
14.30 	unrequested leave of absence plan in effect under subdivision 10. However, the board 
14.31 	must give any such teacher whose contract it declines to renew for the following school 
14.32 	year written notice to that effect before July 1. If the teacher requests reasons for any 
14.33 	nonrenewal of a teaching contract, the board must give the teacher its reason in writing, 
15.1 	including a statement that appropriate supervision was furnished describing the nature and 
15.2 	the extent of such supervision furnished the teacher during the employment by the board, 
15.3 	within ten days after receiving such request. The school board may, after a hearing held 
15.4 	upon due notice, discharge a teacher during the probationary period for cause, effective 
15.5 	immediately, under section 122A.44.
15.6 	(b) A board must discharge a probationary teacher, effective immediately, upon 
15.7 	receipt of notice under section 122A.20, subdivision 1, paragraph (b), that the teacher's 
15.8 	license has been revoked due to a conviction for child abuse or sexual abuse.
15.9 	(c) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are 
15.10 	interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with 
15.11 	federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States 
15.12 	Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience 
15.13 	for purposes of paragraph (a).
15.14 	(d) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are 
15.15 	interrupted for maternity, paternity, or medical leave and who resumes teaching within 12 
15.16 	months of when the leave began is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience 
15.17 	for purposes of paragraph (a) if the probationary teacher completes a combined total of 
15.18 	three years of teaching service immediately before and after the leave.
15.19 	(e) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each 
15.20 	year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers' 
15.21 	workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is 
15.22 	absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.

15.23 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

15.24 	Sec. 12. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 8, is amended to read:
15.25 		Subd. 8.Development, evaluation, and peer coaching for continuing contract 
15.26 	teachers. (a) To improve student learning and success, a school board and an exclusive 
15.27 	representative of the teachers in the district, consistent with paragraph (b), may develop 
15.28 	a teacher evaluation and peer review process for probationary and continuing contract 
15.29 	teachers through joint agreement. If a school board and the exclusive representative of the 
15.30 	teachers do not agree to an annual teacher evaluation and peer review process, then the 
15.31 	school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must implement the state 
15.32 	teacher evaluation plan under paragraph (c). The process must include having trained 
15.33 	observers serve as peer coaches or having teachers participate in professional learning 
15.34 	communities, consistent with paragraph (b).
16.1 	(b) To develop, improve, and support qualified teachers and effective teaching 
16.2 	practices and improve student learning and success, the annual evaluation process for 
16.3 	teachers:
16.4 	(1) must, for probationary teachers, provide for all evaluations required under 
16.5 	subdivision 5;
16.6 	(2) must establish a three-year professional review cycle for each teacher that 
16.7 	includes an individual growth and development plan, a peer review process, and at least 
16.8 	one summative evaluation performed by a qualified and trained evaluator such as a school 
16.9 	administrator. For the years when a tenured teacher is not evaluated by a qualified and 
16.10 	trained evaluator, the teacher must be evaluated by a peer review;
16.11 	(3) must be based on professional teaching standards established in rule;
16.12 	(4) must coordinate staff development activities under sections 122A.60 and 
16.13 	122A.61 with this evaluation process and teachers' evaluation outcomes;
16.14 	(5) may provide time during the school day and school year for peer coaching and 
16.15 	teacher collaboration;
16.16 	(6) may include job-embedded learning opportunities such as professional learning 
16.17 	communities;
16.18 	(7) may include mentoring and induction programs;
16.19 	(8) must include an option for teachers to develop and present a portfolio 
16.20 	demonstrating evidence of reflection and professional growth, consistent with section 
16.21 	122A.18, subdivision 4, paragraph (b), and include teachers' own performance assessment 
16.22 	based on student work samples and examples of teachers' work, which may include video 
16.23 	among other activities for the summative evaluation;
16.24 	(9) must use data from valid and reliable assessments aligned to state and local 
16.25 	academic standards and must use state and local measures of student growth and literacy 
16.26 	that may include value-added models or student learning goals to determine 35 percent of 
16.27 	teacher evaluation results;
16.28 	(10) must use longitudinal data on student engagement and connection, and other 
16.29 	student outcome measures explicitly aligned with the elements of curriculum for which 
16.30 	teachers are responsible, including academic literacy, oral academic language, and 
16.31 	achievement of content areas of English learners;
16.32 	(11) must require qualified and trained evaluators such as school administrators to 
16.33 	perform summative evaluations and ensure school districts and charter schools provide for 
16.34 	effective evaluator training specific to teacher development and evaluation;
17.1 	(12) must give teachers not meeting professional teaching standards under clauses 
17.2 	(3) through (11) support to improve through a teacher improvement process that includes 
17.3 	established goals and timelines; and
17.4 	(13) must discipline a teacher for not making adequate progress in the teacher 
17.5 	improvement process under clause (12) that may include a last chance warning, 
17.6 	termination, discharge, nonrenewal, transfer to a different position, a leave of absence, or 
17.7 	other discipline a school administrator determines is appropriate.
17.8 	Data on individual teachers generated under this subdivision are personnel data 
17.9 	under section 13.43. The observation and interview notes of peer coaches may only be 
17.10 	disclosed to other school officials with the consent of the teacher being coached.
17.11 	(c) The department, in consultation with parents who may represent parent 
17.12 	organizations and teacher and administrator representatives appointed by their respective 
17.13 	organizations, representing the Board of Teaching, the Minnesota Association of School 
17.14 	Administrators, the Minnesota School Boards Association, the Minnesota Elementary 
17.15 	and Secondary Principals Associations, Education Minnesota, and representatives of 
17.16 	the Minnesota Assessment Group, the Minnesota Business Partnership, the Minnesota 
17.17 	Chamber of Commerce, and Minnesota postsecondary institutions with research expertise 
17.18 	in teacher evaluation, must create and publish a teacher evaluation process that complies 
17.19 	with the requirements in paragraph (b) and applies to all teachers under this section and 
17.20 	section 122A.41 for whom no agreement exists under paragraph (a) for an annual teacher 
17.21 	evaluation and peer review process. The teacher evaluation process created under this 
17.22 	subdivision does not create additional due process rights for probationary teachers under 
17.23 	subdivision 5.
17.24 	(d) Consistent with the measures of teacher effectiveness under this subdivision:
17.25 	(1) for students in kindergarten through grade 4, a school administrator must not 
17.26 	place a student in consecutive school years in the classroom of a teacher with the lowest 
17.27 	evaluation rating in the previous school year unless no other teacher at the school teaches 
17.28 	that grade; and
17.29 	(2) for students in grades 5 through 12, a school administrator must not place 
17.30 	students in consecutive school years in the classroom of a teacher with the lowest 
17.31 	evaluation rating in the previous school year unless no other teacher at the school teaches 
17.32 	that subject area and grade.

17.33 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for the 2017-2018 school year and 
17.34 	later.

17.35 	Sec. 13. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 10, is amended to read:
18.1 		Subd. 10.Negotiated unrequested leave of absence. (a) The school board 
18.2 	and the exclusive bargaining representative of the teachers may must negotiate a plan, 
18.3 	consistent with subdivision 8, providing for unrequested leave of absence without pay or 
18.4 	fringe benefits for as many teachers as may be necessary because of discontinuance of 
18.5 	position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger of classes caused by consolidation 
18.6 	of districts. Failing to successfully negotiate such a plan, the provisions of subdivision 
18.7 	11 shall apply. The negotiated plan must not include provisions which would result in 
18.8 	the exercise of seniority by a teacher holding only a provisional license, other than a 
18.9 	vocational education license, contrary to the provisions of subdivision 11, paragraph (c)
18.10 	if required for the position, or the reinstatement of a teacher holding only a provisional 
18.11 	license, other than a vocational education license, contrary to the provisions of subdivision 
18.12 	11, paragraph (e) required for the position. The provisions of section 179A.16 do not 
18.13 	apply for the purposes of this subdivision.
18.14 	(b) Beginning in the 2017-2018 school year and later, and notwithstanding any 
18.15 	law to the contrary, a school board must place teachers on unrequested leave of absence 
18.16 	based on their subject matter licensure fields, most recent evaluation outcomes and 
18.17 	effectiveness category or rating under subdivision 8, and other, locally determined criteria 
18.18 	such as teacher seniority, and may include both probationary teachers and continuing 
18.19 	contract teachers within an effectiveness category or rating. Notwithstanding section 
18.20 	13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (5), or any other law to the contrary, a 
18.21 	teacher's effectiveness category or rating and the underlying data on the individual teacher 
18.22 	generated under the teacher evaluation process in subdivision 8, paragraph (b), used to 
18.23 	determine a teacher's effectiveness category or rating for purposes of this subdivision  are 
18.24 	private data on individuals. For purposes of placing a teacher on unrequested leave of 
18.25 	absence or recalling a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, a school board is not 
18.26 	required to reassign a teacher with more seniority to accommodate the seniority claims of 
18.27 	a teacher who is similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority. Nothing in this 
18.28 	paragraph permits a school board to use a teacher's remuneration as a basis for making 
18.29 	unrequested leave of absence decisions. Any executed employment contract between the 
18.30 	school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must contain the negotiated 
18.31 	unrequested leave of absence plan. The school board must publish in a readily accessible 
18.32 	format the unrequested leave of absence plan it negotiates under this paragraph.
18.33 	(c) A teacher who receives notice of being placed on unrequested leave of absence 
18.34 	under paragraph (b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a 
18.35 	written request for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the 
18.36 	district met the following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 8: if the 
19.1 	teacher is a probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 5 were 
19.2 	provided; a three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any 
19.3 	summative evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; 
19.4 	a peer review evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a 
19.5 	qualified and trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching 
19.6 	standards, a teacher improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The 
19.7 	school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of 
19.8 	people and a process to select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue 
19.9 	a decision within 14 days of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this subdivision 
19.10 	prevents a school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a 
19.11 	different process for determining whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in 
19.12 	this subdivision were met.
19.13 	(d) For purposes of this subdivision, a provisional license is a license to teach issued 
19.14 	by the Board of Teaching under a waiver or variance.

19.15 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment and 
19.16 	applies to negotiated plans for unrequested leave of absence agreed to on or after that date.

19.17 	Sec. 14. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is amended to read:
19.18 		Subd. 11.Unrequested leave of absence. (a) The board may place on unrequested 
19.19 	leave of absence, without pay or fringe benefits, as many teachers as may be necessary 
19.20 	because of discontinuance of position, lack of pupils, financial limitations, or merger of 
19.21 	classes caused by consolidation or reorganization of districts under chapter 123A. The 
19.22 	unrequested leave is effective at the close of the school year.
19.23 	(b) In placing teachers on unrequested leave in the 2014-2015 through 2016-2017 
19.24 	school years only, the board is governed by the following provisions: in this subdivision.
19.25 	(a) (c) The board may place probationary teachers on unrequested leave first in the 
19.26 	inverse order of their employment. A teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights 
19.27 	must not be placed on unrequested leave of absence while probationary teachers are retained 
19.28 	in positions for which the teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights is licensed;.
19.29 	(b) (d) Teachers who have acquired continuing contract rights shall be placed on 
19.30 	unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed in the inverse order 
19.31 	in which they were employed by the school district. In the case of equal seniority, the 
19.32 	order in which teachers who have acquired continuing contract rights shall be placed on 
19.33 	unrequested leave of absence in fields in which they are licensed is negotiable;.
19.34 	(c) (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (b) (d), a teacher is not entitled 
19.35 	to exercise any seniority when that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the 
20.1 	district in a field for which the teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the 
20.2 	board of teaching, unless that exercise of seniority results in the placement on unrequested 
20.3 	leave of absence of another teacher who also holds a provisional license in the same field. 
20.4 	The provisions of this paragraph do not apply to vocational education licenses; required 
20.5 	for the available positions.
20.6 	(d) (f) Notwithstanding paragraphs (a), (b), and (c), (d), and (e), if the placing of a 
20.7 	probationary teacher on unrequested leave before a teacher who has acquired continuing 
20.8 	rights, the placing of a teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights on unrequested 
20.9 	leave before another teacher who has acquired continuing contract rights but who has 
20.10 	greater seniority, or the restriction imposed by the provisions of paragraph (c) (e) would 
20.11 	place the district in violation of its affirmative action program, the district may retain the 
20.12 	probationary teacher, the teacher with less seniority, or the provisionally licensed teacher;.
20.13 	(e) (g) For purposes of placing a teacher on unrequested leave of absence or 
20.14 	recalling a teacher from unrequested leave of absence, nothing in this subdivision requires 
20.15 	a school board to reassign a teacher to accommodate the seniority claims of a teacher who 
20.16 	is similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority.
20.17 	(h) Teachers placed on unrequested leave of absence must be reinstated to the 
20.18 	positions from which they have been given leaves of absence or, if not available, to 
20.19 	other available positions in the school district in fields in which they are licensed. 
20.20 	Reinstatement must be in the inverse order of placement on leave of absence. A teacher 
20.21 	must not be reinstated to a position in a field in which the teacher holds only a provisional 
20.22 	license, other than a vocational education license, while another teacher who holds a 
20.23 	nonprovisional license in the same field remains on unrequested leave. The order of 
20.24 	reinstatement of teachers who have equal seniority and who are placed on unrequested 
20.25 	leave in the same school year is negotiable;.
20.26 	(f) (i) Appointment of a new teacher must not be made while there is available, on 
20.27 	unrequested leave, a teacher who is properly licensed to fill such vacancy, unless the 
20.28 	teacher fails to advise the school board within 30 days of the date of notification that a 
20.29 	position is available to that teacher who may return to employment and assume the duties 
20.30 	of the position to which appointed on a future date determined by the board;.
20.31 	(g) (j) A teacher placed on unrequested leave of absence may engage in teaching 
20.32 	or any other occupation during the period of this leave;.
20.33 	(h) (k) The unrequested leave of absence must not impair the continuing contract 
20.34 	rights of a teacher or result in a loss of credit for previous years of service;.
20.35 	(i) (l) Consistent with subdivision 10, the unrequested leave of absence of a teacher 
20.36 	who is categorized as effective or better under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested 
21.1 	leave of absence, and who is not reinstated shall continue for a period of five years, 
21.2 	after which the right to reinstatement shall terminate terminates. The teacher's right to 
21.3 	reinstatement shall also terminate terminates if the teacher fails to file with the board by 
21.4 	April 1 of any each year a written statement requesting reinstatement;.
21.5 	(m) Consistent with subdivision 10, the unrequested leave of absence of a teacher 
21.6 	who is categorized as ineffective or less under subdivision 8, who is placed on unrequested 
21.7 	leave of absence, and who is not reinstated continues for the following school year 
21.8 	only, after which the teacher's right to reinstatement terminates. The teacher's right to 
21.9 	reinstatement also terminates if the teacher fails to file with the board by April 1 in that 
21.10 	following school year a written statement requesting reinstatement.
21.11 	(j) (n) The same provisions applicable to terminations of probationary or continuing 
21.12 	contracts in subdivisions 5 and 7 must apply to placement on unrequested leave of absence;.
21.13 	(k) (o) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to impair the rights of teachers 
21.14 	placed on unrequested leave of absence to receive unemployment benefits if otherwise 
21.15 	eligible.

21.16 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

21.17 	Sec. 15. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.41, subdivision 2, is amended to read:
21.18 		Subd. 2.Probationary period; discharge or demotion. (a) All teachers in 
21.19 	the public schools in cities of the first class during the first three years of consecutive 
21.20 	employment shall be deemed to be in a probationary period of employment during which 
21.21 	period any annual contract with any teacher may, or may not, be renewed (1) as the school 
21.22 	board, after consulting with the peer review committee charged with evaluating the 
21.23 	probationary teachers under subdivision 3, shall see fit, or (2) consistent with the negotiated 
21.24 	plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers in effect under subdivision 14. The school 
21.25 	site management team or the school board if there is no school site management team, shall 
21.26 	adopt a plan for a written evaluation of teachers during the probationary period according 
21.27 	to subdivisions 3 and 5. Evaluation by the peer review committee charged with evaluating 
21.28 	probationary teachers under subdivision 3 shall occur at least three times periodically 
21.29 	throughout each school year for a teacher performing services during that school year; the 
21.30 	first evaluation must occur within the first 90 days of teaching service. Days devoted to 
21.31 	parent-teacher conferences, teachers' workshops, and other staff development opportunities 
21.32 	and days on which a teacher is absent from school shall not be included in determining the 
21.33 	number of school days on which a teacher performs services. The school board may, during 
21.34 	such probationary period, discharge or demote a teacher for any of the causes as specified 
21.35 	in this code. A written statement of the cause of such discharge or demotion shall be given 
22.1 	to the teacher by the school board at least 30 days before such removal or demotion shall 
22.2 	become effective, and the teacher so notified shall have no right of appeal therefrom.
22.3 	(b) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are 
22.4 	interrupted for active military service and who promptly resumes teaching consistent with 
22.5 	federal reemployment timelines for uniformed service personnel under United States 
22.6 	Code, title 38, section 4312(e), is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience 
22.7 	for purposes of paragraph (a).
22.8 	(c) A probationary teacher whose first three years of consecutive employment are 
22.9 	interrupted for maternity, paternity, or medical leave and who resumes teaching within 12 
22.10 	months of when the leave began is considered to have a consecutive teaching experience 
22.11 	for purposes of paragraph (a) if the probationary teacher completes a combined total of 
22.12 	three years of teaching service immediately before and after the leave.
22.13 	(d) A probationary teacher must complete at least 120 days of teaching service each 
22.14 	year during the probationary period. Days devoted to parent-teacher conferences, teachers' 
22.15 	workshops, and other staff development opportunities and days on which a teacher is 
22.16 	absent from school do not count as days of teaching service under this paragraph.

22.17 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

22.18 	Sec. 16. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.41, subdivision 5, is amended to read:
22.19 		Subd. 5.Development, evaluation, and peer coaching for continuing contract 
22.20 	teachers. (a) To improve student learning and success, a school board and an exclusive 
22.21 	representative of the teachers in the district, consistent with paragraph (b), may develop an 
22.22 	annual teacher evaluation and peer review process for probationary and nonprobationary 
22.23 	teachers through joint agreement. If a school board and the exclusive representative of 
22.24 	the teachers in the district do not agree to an annual teacher evaluation and peer review 
22.25 	process, then the school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must 
22.26 	implement the state teacher evaluation plan developed under paragraph (c). The process 
22.27 	must include having trained observers serve as peer coaches or having teachers participate 
22.28 	in professional learning communities, consistent with paragraph (b).
22.29 	(b) To develop, improve, and support qualified teachers and effective teaching 
22.30 	practices and improve student learning and success, the annual evaluation process for 
22.31 	teachers:
22.32 	(1) must, for probationary teachers, provide for all evaluations required under 
22.33 	subdivision 2;
22.34 	(2) must establish a three-year professional review cycle for each teacher that 
22.35 	includes an individual growth and development plan, a peer review process, and at least 
23.1 	one summative evaluation performed by a qualified and trained evaluator such as a school 
23.2 	administrator;
23.3 	(3) must be based on professional teaching standards established in rule;
23.4 	(4) must coordinate staff development activities under sections 122A.60 and 
23.5 	122A.61 with this evaluation process and teachers' evaluation outcomes;
23.6 	(5) may provide time during the school day and school year for peer coaching and 
23.7 	teacher collaboration;
23.8 	(6) may include job-embedded learning opportunities such as professional learning 
23.9 	communities;
23.10 	(7) may include mentoring and induction programs;
23.11 	(8) must include an option for teachers to develop and present a portfolio 
23.12 	demonstrating evidence of reflection and professional growth, consistent with section 
23.13 	122A.18, subdivision 4, paragraph (b), and include teachers' own performance assessment 
23.14 	based on student work samples and examples of teachers' work, which may include video 
23.15 	among other activities for the summative evaluation;
23.16 	(9) must use data from valid and reliable assessments aligned to state and local 
23.17 	academic standards and must use state and local measures of student growth and literacy 
23.18 	that may include value-added models or student learning goals to determine 35 percent of 
23.19 	teacher evaluation results;
23.20 	(10) must use longitudinal data on student engagement and connection and other 
23.21 	student outcome measures explicitly aligned with the elements of curriculum for which 
23.22 	teachers are responsible, including academic literacy, oral academic language, and 
23.23 	achievement of English learners;
23.24 	(11) must require qualified and trained evaluators such as school administrators to 
23.25 	perform summative evaluations and ensure school districts and charter schools provide for 
23.26 	effective evaluator training specific to teacher development and evaluation;
23.27 	(12) must give teachers not meeting professional teaching standards under clauses 
23.28 	(3) through (11) support to improve through a teacher improvement process that includes 
23.29 	established goals and timelines; and
23.30 	(13) must discipline a teacher for not making adequate progress in the teacher 
23.31 	improvement process under clause (12) that may include a last chance warning, 
23.32 	termination, discharge, nonrenewal, transfer to a different position, a leave of absence, or 
23.33 	other discipline a school administrator determines is appropriate.
23.34 	Data on individual teachers generated under this subdivision are personnel data 
23.35 	under section 13.43. The observation and interview notes of peer coaches may only be 
23.36 	disclosed to other school officials with the consent of the teacher being coached.
24.1 	(c) The department, in consultation with parents who may represent parent 
24.2 	organizations and teacher and administrator representatives appointed by their respective 
24.3 	organizations, representing the Board of Teaching, the Minnesota Association of School 
24.4 	Administrators, the Minnesota School Boards Association, the Minnesota Elementary 
24.5 	and Secondary Principals Associations, Education Minnesota, and representatives of 
24.6 	the Minnesota Assessment Group, the Minnesota Business Partnership, the Minnesota 
24.7 	Chamber of Commerce, and Minnesota postsecondary institutions with research expertise 
24.8 	in teacher evaluation, must create and publish a teacher evaluation process that complies 
24.9 	with the requirements in paragraph (b) and applies to all teachers under this section and 
24.10 	section 122A.40 for whom no agreement exists under paragraph (a) for an annual teacher 
24.11 	evaluation and peer review process. The teacher evaluation process created under this 
24.12 	subdivision does not create additional due process rights for probationary teachers under 
24.13 	subdivision 2.
24.14 	(d) Consistent with the measures of teacher effectiveness under this subdivision:
24.15 	(1) for students in kindergarten through grade 4, a school administrator must not 
24.16 	place a student in consecutive school years in the classroom of a teacher with the lowest 
24.17 	evaluation rating in the previous school year unless no other teacher at the school teaches 
24.18 	that grade; and
24.19 	(2) for students in grades 5 through 12, a school administrator must not place 
24.20 	students in consecutive school years in the classroom of a teacher with the lowest 
24.21 	evaluation rating in the previous school year unless no other teacher at the school teaches 
24.22 	that subject area and grade.

24.23 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective for the 2017-2018 school year and 
24.24 	later.

24.25 	Sec. 17. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.41, subdivision 14, is amended to read:
24.26 		Subd. 14.Services terminated by discontinuance or lack of pupils; preference 
24.27 	given. (a) A teacher whose services are terminated on account of discontinuance of 
24.28 	position or lack of pupils must receive first consideration for other positions in the district 
24.29 	for which that teacher is qualified. In the event it becomes necessary to discontinue one 
24.30 	or more positions in the 2014-2015 through the 2016-2017 school years, in making such 
24.31 	discontinuance, teachers must receive first consideration for other positions in the district 
24.32 	for which that teacher is qualified and must be discontinued in any department in the 
24.33 	inverse order in which they were employed, unless.
24.34 	(b) Beginning in the 2017-2018 school year and later, a board and the exclusive 
24.35 	representative of teachers in the district must negotiate a plan providing otherwise., 
25.1 	consistent with subdivision 5, for discontinuing and terminating teachers under this 
25.2 	subdivision based on their subject matter licensure fields, most recent evaluation outcomes 
25.3 	and effectiveness category or rating under subdivision 5, and other, locally determined 
25.4 	criteria such as teacher seniority, and may include both probationary teachers and 
25.5 	continuing contract teachers within an effectiveness category or rating. Notwithstanding 
25.6 	section 13.43, subdivision 2, paragraph (a), clause (5), or any other law to the contrary, a 
25.7 	teacher's effectiveness category or rating and the underlying data on the individual teacher 
25.8 	generated under the teacher evaluation process in subdivision 5, paragraph (b), used to 
25.9 	determine a teacher's effectiveness category or rating for purposes of this subdivision are 
25.10 	private data on individuals. For purposes of discharging, demoting, or recalling a teacher 
25.11 	whose services are discontinued or terminated under this subdivision, a school board 
25.12 	is not required to reassign a teacher with more seniority to accommodate the seniority 
25.13 	claims of a teacher who is similarly licensed and effective but with less seniority. Nothing 
25.14 	in this paragraph permits a school board to use a teacher's remuneration as a basis for 
25.15 	discontinuing or terminating a teacher. Any executed employment contract between the 
25.16 	school board and the exclusive representative of the teachers must contain the negotiated 
25.17 	plan for discontinuing or terminating teachers. The school board must publish in a readily 
25.18 	accessible format any plan it negotiates for discontinuing or terminating teachers under 
25.19 	this paragraph.
25.20 	(c) A teacher who receives notice of discontinuance or termination under paragraph 
25.21 	(b) may submit to the board, within 14 days of receiving the notice, a written request 
25.22 	for a hearing before a neutral hearing officer to establish whether the district met the 
25.23 	following teacher evaluation requirements under subdivision 5: if the teacher is a 
25.24 	probationary teacher, all evaluations required under subdivision 2 were provided; a 
25.25 	three-year professional review cycle was established for the teacher; any summative 
25.26 	evaluation of the teacher was performed by a qualified and trained evaluator; a peer review 
25.27 	evaluation occurred in any year when the teacher was not evaluated by a qualified and 
25.28 	trained evaluator; and if the teacher did not meet professional teaching standards, a teacher 
25.29 	improvement process with goals and timelines was established. The school board and the 
25.30 	exclusive representative of the teachers must agree on a panel of people and a process to 
25.31 	select the person to hear the matter. The hearing officer must issue a decision within 14 days 
25.32 	of the request for the hearing. Nothing in this subdivision prevents a school board and the 
25.33 	exclusive representative of the teachers from negotiating a different process for determining 
25.34 	whether the teacher evaluation requirements listed in this subdivision were met.
25.35 	(b) (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause paragraph (a), for the 2014-2015 
25.36 	through 2016-2017 school years, a teacher is not entitled to exercise any seniority when 
26.1 	that exercise results in that teacher being retained by the district in a field for which the 
26.2 	teacher holds only a provisional license, as defined by the Board of Teaching, unless that 
26.3 	exercise of seniority results in the termination of terminating the services, on account 
26.4 	of discontinuance of position or lack of pupils, of another teacher who also holds a 
26.5 	provisional license in the same field. The provisions of this clause paragraph do not apply 
26.6 	to vocational education licenses.
26.7 	(c) (e) Notwithstanding the provisions of clause paragraph (a), for the 2014-2015 
26.8 	through 2016-2017 school years, a teacher must not be reinstated to a position in a field 
26.9 	in which the teacher holds only a provisional license, other than a vocational education 
26.10 	license, while another teacher who holds a nonprovisional license in the same field is 
26.11 	available for reinstatement.

26.12 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment 
26.13 	and applies to negotiated plans for discontinuing or terminating teachers agreed to on or 
26.14 	after that date.

26.15 	Sec. 18. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 123A.75, subdivision 1, is amended to read:
26.16 		Subdivision 1.Teacher assignment. (a) As of the effective date of a consolidation 
26.17 	in which a district is divided or the dissolution of a district and its attachment to two or 
26.18 	more existing districts, each teacher employed by an affected district shall be assigned to 
26.19 	the newly created or enlarged district on the basis of a ratio of the pupils assigned to each 
26.20 	district according to the new district boundaries. The district receiving the greatest number 
26.21 	of pupils must be assigned the most effective teacher under section 122A.40, subdivision 8, 
26.22 	with the greatest seniority, and the remaining teachers must be alternately assigned to each 
26.23 	district from most to least effective and with most to least seniority within each category or 
26.24 	rating of effectiveness until the district receiving the fewest pupils has received its ratio of 
26.25 	teachers who will not be retiring before the effective date of the consolidation or dissolution.
26.26 	(b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the board and the exclusive representative of 
26.27 	teachers in each district involved in the consolidation or dissolution and attachment may 
26.28 	negotiate a plan for assigning teachers to each newly created or enlarged district.
26.29 	(c) Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the provisions of this section apply 
26.30 	only to the extent they are consistent with section 122A.40, subdivisions 8, 10, and 11.

26.31 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

26.32 	Sec. 19. Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 179A.20, is amended by adding a 
26.33 	subdivision to read:
27.1 		Subd. 4a.Unrequested leave of absence for teachers. A school board and the 
27.2 	exclusive representative of the teachers may not execute a contract effective for the 
27.3 	2017-2018 school year or later unless the contract contains a plan for unrequested leave of 
27.4 	absence under section 122A.40, subdivision 10, or a plan for discontinuing or terminating 
27.5 	teachers under section 122A.41, subdivision 14.

27.6 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

27.7 	Sec. 20. TEACHER LICENSURE AGREEMENTS WITH ADJOINING STATES.
 27.8 	The Board of Teaching must prepare and submit a report to the K-12 education 
27.9 	committees of the legislature by February 15, 2016, indicating the number, contracting 
27.10 	states, and extent of the interstate agreements for teacher licensure under Minnesota 
27.11 	Statutes, section 122A.23, subdivision 3, reached between August 1 and December 31, 
27.12 	2015.

27.13 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective the day following final enactment.

27.14 	Sec. 21.  REPEALER.
 27.15 	Minnesota Statutes 2014, section 122A.40, subdivision 11, is repealed.

27.16 	EFFECTIVE DATE. This section is effective beginning in the 2017-2018 school 
27.17 	year and later.