SF 1555

as introduced - 90th Legislature (2017 - 2018) Posted on 03/07/2017 09:51am

A bill for an act
relating to education finance; providing funding for the Increase Teachers of Color
Act; seeking to double the number of teachers of color and teachers who are
American Indian in Minnesota from four percent to eight percent while ensuring
that by 2020 at least 20 percent of candidates in pathways to becoming a teacher
are of color or are American Indian; requiring a report; appropriating money;
amending Minnesota Statutes 2016, sections 122A.414, subdivision 2; 122A.70,
subdivision 1; 124D.09, subdivision 10; 136A.1791; Laws 2015, First Special
Session chapter 3, article 2, section 70, subdivision 12, as amended; Laws 2016,
chapter 189, article 25, section 62, subdivision 5.

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

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 122A.414, subdivision 2, is amended to read:

Subd. 2.

Alternative teacher professional pay system.

(a) To participate in this program,
a school district, an intermediate school district consistent with paragraph (d), a school site,
or a charter school must have a world's best workforce plan under section 120B.11 and an
alternative teacher professional pay system agreement under paragraph (b). A charter school
participant also must comply with subdivision 2a.

(b) The alternative teacher professional pay system agreement must:

(1) describe how teachers can achieve career advancement and additional compensation;

(2) describe how the school district, intermediate school district, school site, or charter
school will provide teachers with career advancement options that allow teachers to retain
primary roles in student instruction and facilitate site-focused professional development
that helps other teachers improve their skills;

(3) reform the "steps and lanes" salary schedule, prevent any teacher's compensation
paid before implementing the pay system from being reduced as a result of participating in
this system, base at least 60 percent of any compensation increase on teacher performance
using:

(i) schoolwide student achievement gains under section 120B.35 or locally selected
standardized assessment outcomes, or both;

(ii) measures of student growth and literacy that may include value-added models or
student learning goals, consistent with section 122A.40, subdivision 8, paragraph (b), clause
(9), or 122A.41, subdivision 5, paragraph (b), clause (9), and other measures that include
the academic literacy, oral academic language, and achievement of English learners under
section 122A.40, subdivision 8, paragraph (b), clause (10), or 122A.41, subdivision 5,
paragraph (b), clause (10); and

(iii) an objective evaluation program under section 122A.40, subdivision 8, paragraph
(b), clause (2), or 122A.41, subdivision 5, paragraph (b), clause (2);

(4) provide for participation in job-embedded learning opportunities such as professional
learning communities to improve instructional skills and learning that are aligned with
student needs under section 120B.11, consistent with the staff development plan under
section 122A.60 and led during the school day by trained teacher leaders such as master or
mentor teachers;

(5) allow any teacher in a participating school district, intermediate school district, school
site, or charter school that implements an alternative pay system to participate in that system
without any quota or other limit; and

(6) encourage collaboration rather than competition among teachers.

(c) The alternative teacher professional pay system may:

(1) include a hiring bonus or other added compensation for to provide students with
equitable access to teachers who, consistent with section 120B.11, subdivision 2, clause
(3):

(i) are identified as effective or highly effective under the local teacher professional
review cycle and or, when being considered for hire as first-year teachers, have demonstrated
skills during student teaching for being highly effective at closing achievement gaps;

(ii) work in a high-need or hard-to-fill position; or

(iii) are hired to work in a hard-to-staff school such as a school with a majority of students
whose families meet federal poverty guidelines, a geographically isolated school, or a school
identified by the state as eligible for targeted programs or services for its students; and

(2) include incentives for teachers to obtain a master's degree or other advanced
certification with at least 18 credits in their content field of licensure required for teaching
concurrent enrollment or college in the schools courses, or to pursue the training or education
necessary to obtain an additional licensure in shortage areas identified by the district or
charter school,; or

(3) help fund a "grow your own" Grow Your Own new teacher initiative involving
nonlicensed educational professionals, including paraprofessionals and cultural liaisons,
who are of color or who are American Indian.

(d) An intermediate school district under this subdivision must demonstrate in a form
and manner determined by the commissioner that it uses the aid it receives under this section
for activities identified in the alternative teacher professional pay system agreement.

Sec. 2.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 122A.70, subdivision 1, is amended to read:

Subdivision 1.

Teacher mentoring, induction, and retention programs.

(a) School
districts are encouraged to develop teacher mentoring, induction, and retention programs
for teachers new to the profession or district, including teaching residents, teachers in
high-need fields, teachers of color, teachers who are American Indian, teachers with special
needs, or experienced teachers in need of peer coaching.

(b) Teacher mentoring programs must support districts' teacher evaluation and peer
review processes under sections 122A.40, subdivision 8, and 122A.41, subdivision 5. A
district may use staff development revenue under sections 122A.60 and 122A.61, special
grant programs established by the legislature, or another funding source to pay a stipend of
up to $500 to a mentor.

Sec. 3.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 124D.09, subdivision 10, is amended to read:

Subd. 10.

Courses according to agreements.

(a) An eligible pupil, according to
subdivision 5, may enroll in a nonsectarian course taught by a secondary teacher or a
postsecondary faculty member and offered at a secondary school, or another location,
according to an agreement between a public school board and the governing body of an
eligible public postsecondary system or an eligible private postsecondary institution, as
defined in subdivision 3. All provisions of this section shall apply to a pupil, public school
board, district, and the governing body of a postsecondary institution, except as otherwise
provided.

(b) To encourage students, especially American Indian students and students of color,
to consider teaching as a profession, participating schools, school districts, and postsecondary
institutions are encouraged to develop and offer an "introduction to teaching" or "introduction
to education" course under this subdivision.

(c) Grant recipients must annually report to the commissioner in a form and manner
determined by the commissioner on the participation rates of students in courses under
paragraph (b), including the number of students who apply for admission to colleges or
universities with teacher preparation programs.

Sec. 4.

Minnesota Statutes 2016, section 136A.1791, is amended to read:

136A.1791 TEACHER SHORTAGE LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM.

Subdivision 1.

Definitions.

(a) The terms used in this section have the meanings given
them in this subdivision.

(b) "Qualified educational loan" means a government, commercial, or foundation loan
for actual costs paid for tuition and reasonable educational and living expenses related to a
teacher's preparation or further education.

(c) "School district" means an independent school district, special school district,
intermediate district, education district, special education cooperative, service cooperative,
a cooperative center for vocational education, or a charter school located in Minnesota.

(d) "Teacher" means an individual holding a teaching license issued by the licensing
division in the Department of Education on behalf of the Board of Teaching who is employed
by a school district to provide classroom instruction in a teacher shortage area.

(e) "Teacher shortage area" means the licensure fields and, economic development
regions, and groups underrepresented in the teacher workforce as reported under section
127A.05, subdivision 6, reported by the commissioner of education as experiencing a teacher
shortage.

(f) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of the Office of Higher Education unless
indicated otherwise.

Subd. 2.

Program established; administration.

The commissioner shall establish and
administer a teacher shortage loan forgiveness program. A teacher is eligible for the program
if the teacher is teaching in a licensure field and with a shortage, in an economic development
region with an identified teacher shortage under subdivision 3, or identifies as belonging
to an underrepresented group in the teacher workforce as reported under section 127A.05,
subdivision 6, and complies with the requirements of this section.

Subd. 3.

Use of report on teacher shortage areas.

The commissioner of education
shall use the teacher supply and demand report to the legislature under section 127A.05,
subdivision 6, to identify the licensure fields and, economic development regions, and
underrepresented groups in Minnesota experiencing a teacher shortage.

Subd. 4.

Application for loan forgiveness.

Each applicant for loan forgiveness, according
to rules adopted by the commissioner, shall:

(1) apply for teacher shortage loan forgiveness and promptly submit any additional
information required by the commissioner; and

(2) submit to the commissioner a completed affidavit, prescribed by the commissioner,
affirming the teacher is teaching in: (i) is teaching in a licensure field identified by the
commissioner as experiencing a teacher shortage; or (ii) is teaching in an economic
development region identified by the commissioner as experiencing a teacher shortage; or
(iii) identifies as belonging to a group underrepresented in the teacher workforce as reported
under section 127A.05, subdivision 6.

Subd. 5.

Amount of loan forgiveness.

(a) To the extent funding is available, the annual
amount of teacher shortage loan forgiveness for an approved applicant shall not exceed
$1,000 $2,000 or the cumulative balance of the applicant's qualified educational loans,
including principal and interest, whichever amount is less.

(b) Recipients must secure their own qualified educational loans. Teachers who graduate
from an approved teacher preparation program or teachers who add a licensure field,
consistent with the teacher shortage requirements of this section, are eligible to apply for
the loan forgiveness program.

(c) No teacher shall receive more than five annual awards.

Subd. 6.

Disbursement.

(a) The commissioner must make annual disbursements directly
to the participant of the amount for which a participant is eligible, for each year that a
participant is eligible.

(b) Within 60 days of the disbursement date, the participant must provide the
commissioner with verification that the full amount of loan repayment disbursement has
been applied toward the designated loans. A participant that previously received funds under
this section but has not provided the commissioner with such verification is not eligible to
receive additional funds.

Subd. 7.

Penalties.

(a) A teacher who submits a false or misleading application or other
false or misleading information to the commissioner may:

(1) have his or her teaching license suspended or revoked under section 122A.20;

(2) be disciplined by the teacher's employing school district; or

(3) be required by the commissioner to repay the total amount of the loan forgiveness
he or she received under this program, plus interest at a rate established under section
270C.40.

(b) The commissioner must deposit any repayments received under paragraph (a) in the
fund established in subdivision 8.

Subd. 8.

Fund established.

A teacher shortage loan forgiveness repayment fund is
created for depositing money appropriated to or received by the commissioner for the
program. Money deposited in the fund shall not revert to any state fund at the end of any
fiscal year but remains in the loan forgiveness repayment fund and is continuously available
for loan forgiveness under this section.

Subd. 9.

Annual reporting.

By February 1 of each year, the commissioner must report
to the chairs of the K-12 kindergarten through grade 12 and higher education committees
of the legislature on the number of individuals who received loan forgiveness under this
section, the licensure areas and economic development regions in which the teachers taught,
the number of teachers by racial and ethnic group, the average amount paid to a teacher
participating in the program, and other summary data identified by the commissioner as
outcome indicators.

Subd. 10.

Rulemaking.

The commissioner shall adopt rules under chapter 14 to
administer this section.

Sec. 5.

Laws 2015, First Special Session chapter 3, article 2, section 70, subdivision 12,
as amended by Laws 2016, chapter 189, article 25, section 47, is amended to read:

Subd. 12.

Collaborative urban educator and greater Minnesota educators of color
programs.

(a) For the collaborative urban educator and greater Minnesota educators of
color grant program programs designed to address the wide gap between the demographics
of teachers and students. Grants are awarded to teacher preparation programs to develop,
expand, and maintain targeted recruitment, retention, and induction support directly to
teacher candidates who are of color or who are American Indian in collaboration with local
schools and communities:

	$	780,000	.....	2016
	$	1,090,000	.....	2017
	$	2,054,000	.....	2018

(b) Grants shall be awarded in equal amounts: $272,500 $273,000 each year is for the
Southeast Asian Teacher program at Concordia University, St. Paul; $272,500 $273,000
each year is for the Collaborative Urban Educator program at the University of St. Thomas;
$272,500 $273,000 each year is for the Center for Excellence in Urban Teaching at Hamline
University; and $272,500 $273,000 each year is for the East Africa Student to Teacher
program at Augsburg College.; $273,000 each year is for the Urban Teacher program at
Metropolitan State University; and $689,000 each year is for competitive grants for other
colleges and universities in Minnesota. Grant applications shall be made to the Department
of Education, which shall make award decisions. Grants may be used to provide financial
support to teacher candidates completing licensure programs but are intended to complement
scholarship and stipend programs created by the legislature for the purpose of addressing
the severe shortage of teachers in Minnesota who are of color or who are American Indian.

(c) Any balance in the first year does not cancel but is available in the second year.

(d) Each institution shall prepare for the legislature, by January 15 of each year, a detailed
report regarding the funds used to recruit, retain, and induct teacher candidates who are of
color or who are American Indian. The report must include the total number of teachers
prepared as well as the diversity for each cohort of teachers produced. teacher candidates
of color, broken down by race or ethnic group and by categories including those who: are
recruited to the institution, are newly admitted to the licensure program, are enrolled in the
licensure program, have completed student teaching, have graduated, and are licensed and
newly employed as Minnesota teachers in their licensure field. The total number of teacher
candidates who are of color or who are American Indian at each stage from recruitment to
licensed teaching must also be reported as a percentage of total candidates seeking the same
licensure at the institution. The report must also include the graduation rate for each cohort
of teacher candidates, the placement rate for each graduating cohort of teacher candidates,
and the retention rate for each graduating cohort of teacher candidates, among other program
outcomes.

(e) The base appropriation for fiscal year 2018 and later is $780,000 $2,054,000. Grants
in fiscal year 2018 shall be awarded in equal amounts: $195,000 $273,000 each year is for
the Southeast Asian Teacher program at Concordia University, St. Paul; $195,000 $273,000
each year is for the Collaborative Urban Educator program at the University of St. Thomas;
$195,000 $273,000 each year is for the Center for Excellence in Urban Teaching at Hamline
University; and $195,000 $273,000 each year is for the East Africa Student to Teacher
program at Augsburg College.; $273,000 each year is for the Urban Teacher program at
Metropolitan State University; and $689,000 each year is for competitive grants for other
colleges and universities in Minnesota to develop, expand, and maintain targeted recruitment,
retention, and induction support directly to teacher candidates who are of color or who are
American Indian in collaboration with local schools and communities. For fiscal year 2021
and later, continuing grants shall be awarded only to programs at institutions that demonstrate
success at recruiting, retaining, and inducting teacher candidates who are of color or who
are American Indian, and award amounts for maintenance and expansion of programs shall
be determined by the commissioner based on numbers of candidates supported and funds
available from the base appropriation. Development of new, innovative programs shall
continue to be awarded competitive grants from the total appropriation as determined by
the commissioner, and subsequent funding shall be determined based on the same criteria
for continuing grants.

(f) The department shall be allocated no more than five percent of the appropriation
amount for monitoring and administering the grant program.

Sec. 6.

Laws 2016, chapter 189, article 25, section 62, subdivision 5, is amended to read:

Subd. 5.

Paraprofessional pathway Expanded Grow Your Own pathways to teacher
licensure.

(a) For grants to school districts for and charter schools throughout Minnesota
to develop or expand Grow Your Own new teacher programs involving paraprofessionals,
cultural liaisons, other nonlicensed employees, and secondary school students seeking initial
teacher licensure:

	$	1,500,000	.....	2017
	$	.......	.....	2018
	$	.......	.....	2019

(b) The grants are for a first class city school district or any other school district with
districts where more than 40 25 percent minority of students are students of color or who
are American Indian to provide financial assistance, mentoring, and experiences to enable
persons who are of color or who are American Indian and working or living in the local
community to become teachers. Districts or schools providing financial support may require
a commitment as determined by the district to teach in the district or school for a reasonable
amount of time that does not exceed five years. Grants may be used for:

(1) tuition scholarships or stipends to eligible employees for teaching assistants or other
nonlicensed employees who are of color or who are American Indian;

(2) a nonconventional teacher residency pilot program established under Minnesota
Statutes, section 122A.09, subdivision 10, paragraph (a). The program shall provide tuition
scholarships or stipends to enable education or teaching assistants or other nonlicensed
employees of a first class city school district or any other school district with more than 40
percent minority students who hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or
university and who seek an education license to participate in a Board of Teaching-approved
nonconventional teacher residency program under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.09,
subdivision 10, paragraph (a). Any funds not awarded by June 1, 2017 2019, may be
reallocated among the remaining districts if the total cost of the program exceeds the original
allocation.; or

(3) supporting the development of residency programs at any school or district in the
state where at least 25 percent of students are students of color or are American Indian for
prospective teachers of color or who are American Indian who seek an education license
to participate in a Board of Teaching-approved program under Minnesota Statutes, section
122A.09, subdivision 10, paragraph (a).

(c) School districts and charter schools may also apply for grants to develop innovative
expanded Grow Your Own programs that encourage secondary school students to pursue
teaching, including:

(1) developing and supporting future teacher clubs focused on encouraging middle and
high school students who are of color or who are American Indian to have experiential
learning, support the success of younger students, and pursue a teaching career; and

(2) developing and offering dual-credit postsecondary course options in schools for
"introduction to teaching" or "introduction to education" courses consistent with Minnesota
Statutes, section 124D.09, subdivision 10.

(d) Programs must annually report to the commissioner by the date determined by the
commissioner on their activities under this section, including the number of participants,
the percentage of participants who are of color or who are American Indian, and an
assessment of program effectiveness, including participant feedback, areas for improvement,
the percentage of participants continuing to pursue teacher licensure, and the number of
participants hired in the school or district as teachers after completing preparation programs.

(e) The department shall be allocated no more than five percent of the appropriation
amount for monitoring and administering the grant program.

(f) The base in fiscal year 2018 2020 is $1,000,000 $.......

Sec. 7. APPROPRIATIONS.

Subdivision 1.

Department of Education.

The sums indicated in this section are
appropriated from the general fund to the Department of Education for the fiscal years
designated.

Subd. 2.

American Indian teacher preparation grants.

For joint grants to assist
American Indian people to become teachers under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.63:

	$	600,000	.....	2018
	$	600,000	.....	2019

Subd. 3.

Expanded concurrent enrollment grants.

For grants to institutions offering
"introduction to teaching" or "introduction to education" college in the schools courses
under Minnesota Statutes, section 124D.09, subdivision 10, paragraph (b):

	$	.......	.....	2018
	$	.......	.....	2019

The department shall be allocated no more than five percent of the appropriation amount
for monitoring and administering the grant program.

Subd. 4.

Mentoring, induction, and retention incentive program grants for teachers
of color.

(a) For the development and expansion of mentoring and induction programs for
teachers of color or who are American Indian under Minnesota Statutes, section 122A.70:

	$	.......	.....	2018
	$	.......	.....	2019

(b) Grant recipients must submit by June 30 of each year after receiving a grant a report
to the Board of Teaching and the commissioner on program efforts that describes mentoring
and induction activities and assesses the impact of these programs on teacher effectiveness
and retention.

(c) The department shall be allocated no more than five percent of the appropriation
amount for monitoring and administering the grant program.

(d) The base appropriation for fiscal year 2020 and later is $........

Subd. 5.

Teacher shortage loan forgiveness.

For the loan forgiveness program under
Minnesota Statutes, section 136A.1791:

$

2,500,000

.....

2018

The commissioner may use no more than five percent of the appropriation amount to
administer the program under this subdivision. The base appropriation for fiscal year 2019
and later is $2,500,000.