Bill Text: CA SB933 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

---

Bill Title: Teachers: California Teacher Corps Act of 2016: teacher residency programs.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)

Status: (Failed) 2016-11-30 - From Assembly without further action. [SB933 Detail]

Download: California-2015-SB933-Amended.html

---

BILL NUMBER: SB 933	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  JUNE 1, 2016
	AMENDED IN SENATE  MARCH 29, 2016

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Allen

                        FEBRUARY 2, 2016

   An act to add Chapter 3.9 (commencing with Section 44790) to Part
25 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Education Code, relating to
 teachers.   teach   ers, and making an
appropriation therefor. 



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 933, as amended, Allen. Teachers: California Teacher Corps Act
of 2016: teacher residency programs.
   Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and
secondary education in this state. Existing law establishes local
educational agencies, including school districts and county offices
of education, throughout the state, and authorizes these agencies to
provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12,
inclusive.
   This bill would enact the California Teacher Corps Act of 2016,
under which the Superintendent of Public Instruction would make
grants to applicant local educational agencies and consortia of local
educational agencies to assist these agencies in establishing and
maintaining teacher residency programs, as defined. The teacher
residency programs established by the bill would be defined as
school-based teacher preparation programs in which a prospective
teacher would teach alongside an experienced mentor teacher, as
defined, while also receiving teacher training instruction in a
teacher credentialing program in a qualified institution of higher
education. The bill would establish eligibility standards for persons
who apply for participation in the teacher residency programs
established by the bill. 
   The bill would provide that its provisions would not be
implemented unless funding for its purposes is provided in the annual
Budget Act or in another statute.  
   This bill would appropriate the sum of $60,000,000 from the
General Fund to the Superintendent on a one-time basis, available for
the 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19 fiscal years, to make grants to
applicant local educational agencies and consortia of local
educational agencies, as described above.  
   Funds appropriated by this bill would be applied toward the
minimum funding requirements for school districts and community
college districts for the 2015-16 fiscal year imposed by Section 8 of
Article XVI of the California Constitution. 
   Vote: majority. Appropriation:  no   yes
 . Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Chapter 3.9 (commencing with Section 44790) is added to
Part 25 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Education Code, to read:
      CHAPTER 3.9.  CALIFORNIA TEACHER CORPS


   44790.  This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
California Teacher Corps Act of 2016.
   44791.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
   (a) The shortage of qualified teachers in California is reaching
critical levels in a number of teaching areas.
   (b) Education experts agree that shortages of effective teachers
in high-poverty schools and in specific teaching fields create a need
for high-quality teachers who will enter, stay in, and be effective
in, these areas.
   (c) At least 30 percent of new teachers leave the profession in
the first five years, and the proportions are generally higher in
low-income communities.
   (d) Teacher shortages and high teacher turnover rates have a
negative impact on pupil achievement and the quality of education.
   (e) Successful teacher preparation programs, and providing ongoing
support, can make novice teachers effective more rapidly and can
reduce teacher attrition.
   (f) Many new teachers lack such support, and, as a result, leave
the profession.
   (g) Teacher candidates must see expert practices modeled, and must
then practice them with ongoing mentoring support. Teacher
preparation often lacks adequate or sufficient opportunities to learn
under the direct supervision of expert teachers working in schools
that effectively serve high-need pupils.
   (h) It is critical to develop programs that increase the
probability that recruits will succeed and stay in the high-need
classrooms where they are needed. Because many teacher candidates
choose to teach where they grew up or went to college, it is
important to have strong programs in hard-to-staff urban and rural
locations. Teacher residency programs effectively build teacher
supply, since they recruit and prepare candidates in the school
districts that sponsor them, in partnership with local preparation
programs. Teacher residency programs have demonstrated the capacity
to recruit, prepare, retain, and provide effective support for
teachers in high-need schools.
   44792.  For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have the
following meanings:
   (a) "Experienced mentor teacher" means a teacher who meets all of
the following requirements:
   (1) Has at least three  years'   years of
 teaching experience and a clear teaching credential in the
field in which he or she will be mentoring.
   (2) Has taught in a high-need school.
   (3) Has a record of successful teaching.
   (4) Receives specific training for the mentor teacher role, and
engages in ongoing professional learning and networking with other
mentors. Compensation shall be ongoing as long as the mentor
continues to serve in the role prescribed by the program.
   (5) Receives compensation or appropriate release time, or both, to
serve as a mentor in the initial preparation or induction component
of the teacher residency program.
   (b) "Local educational agency" includes, but is not necessarily
limited to, a school district, county office of education, charter
school, or charter management organization.
   (c) (1) "Teacher residency program" means a school-based teacher
preparation program that is accredited by the Commission on Teacher
Credentialing and in which a prospective teacher does all of the
following:
   (A) Teaches at least one-half time alongside a teacher of record,
who is designated as the mentor teacher, for at least one full
academic year while engaging in initial preparation coursework.
   (B) Receives instruction in all of the following:
   (i) The teaching of the content area or areas in which the teacher
will become certified to teach.
   (ii) Planning, curriculum development, and assessment.
   (iii) Learning and child development.
   (iv) Management of the classroom environment.
   (v) The use of culturally responsive practices, supports for
language development, and supports for serving pupils with
disabilities.
   (vi) Professional responsibilities, including interaction with
families and colleagues.
   (C) Receives tuition assistance  that eliminates training
costs  and provides a living stipend.
   (D) Attains a preliminary teaching credential upon completion of
the program.
   (E) Receives mentoring and induction support following the
completion of the initial credential program necessary to obtain a
clear credential and ongoing professional development and networking
opportunities during his or her first years of teaching.
   (F) Has the option of completing a master's degree before
completion of the program.
   (2) A "teacher residency program" does all of the following:
   (A) Seeks out academically able individuals who expand the racial,
ethnic, gender, and linguistic diversity of the teaching force and
meet hiring needs of the local educational agency for teachers in
difficult-to-fill  content areas   areas, such
as chronic teacher shortage areas, including special education and
bilingual teachers,  and hard-to-staff schools. Admissions
priorities are developed in concert with the hiring objectives of the
local educational agency, which commits to hire graduates from the
teacher residency program who obtain a preliminary teaching
credential, pass the program's teacher performance assessment if that
is a condition for receiving a license, and meet the standards set
for hiring.
   (B) Allows residents to learn to teach in the same local
educational agency in which they will work, learning the
instructional initiatives and curriculum of the local educational
agency.
   (C) Groups teacher candidates in cohorts to facilitate
professional collaboration among residents, and places them in
teaching schools or professional development programs that are
organized to support a high-quality teacher learning experience in a
supportive work environment.
   (D) Assigns a high priority to the recruiting of mid-career
professionals, military veterans, and recent college graduates as
prospective participants in the teacher residency program.
   (E) Builds coursework for residents and mentors around the
classroom experience in ways that are aligned to pupil needs.
   (F) Offers structured feedback and coaching systems organized
around the California Standards for the Teaching Profession to ensure
that participants engage in a meaningful classroom teaching
experience.
   (G) Ensures that candidates are prepared to pass a teacher
performance assessment if that is required by the state as a
condition of the initial license.
   (H) Maintains a program evaluation system that focuses on
continual improvement for residents, mentors, teacher education
faculty, and the teacher residency program itself.
   (I) Is developed collaboratively with teacher representatives
within the local educational agency.
   44793.   From amounts made available to carry out this
chapter, the Superintendent shall   (a)   
 The sum of sixty million dollars ($60,000,000) is hereby
appropriated from the General Fund to the Superintendent on a
one-time basis, available for the 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19
fiscal years, to  make grants to local educational agencies or
consortia of local educational agencies to assist those agencies to
establish and maintain teacher residency programs, with 
preference   first priority given to local educational
agencies or consortia of local educational agencies with programs
that target chronic teacher shortage areas, including special
education and bilingual teachers. Preference may also be  given
to local educational agencies or consortia  of local educational
agencies  on the basis of their per pupil allocation of funds as
high-need local educational agencies defined in Section 2102 of Part
A of Title II of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act
(Public Law 107-110) for the most recent school year. These local
educational agencies shall work with one or more teacher preparation
institutions, and may work with other community partners or nonprofit
organizations to develop and implement teacher residency programs of
preparation and mentoring for prospective teachers who will be
supported through teacher residency program funds and subsequently
employed by the sponsoring local educational agency. 
   (b) For purposes of making the computations required by Section 8
of Article XVI of the California Constitution, the appropriations
made by subdivision (a) shall be deemed to be "General Fund revenues
appropriated for school districts," as defined in subdivision (c) of
Section 41202, for the 2015-16 fiscal year, and included within the
"total allocations to school districts and community college
districts from General Fund proceeds of taxes appropriated pursuant
to Article XIII B," as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 41202,
for the 2015-16 fiscal year. 
   44794.  (a) To be eligible to participate in a teacher residency
program under this chapter, a prospective participant shall become
enrolled simultaneously in a teacher credentialing program in a
university or college or other eligible institution that satisfies
either of the following conditions:
   (1) It has entered into a written agreement relating to that
program with the local educational agency or  consortium
  consortia  of local educational agencies that is
the recipient of a grant under this chapter.
   (2) It has been determined to meet the requirements of Article 7
(commencing with Section 44320) of Chapter 2 by the Commission on
Teacher Credentialing.
   (b) A participant in a teacher residency program under this
chapter shall, under the supervision of an experienced mentor
teacher, complete not fewer than nine months of teaching a class or
set of classes in a school chosen by the local educational agency
that is the recipient of a grant under this chapter.
   (c) (1) A participant in a teacher residency program under this
chapter shall agree in writing to be placed, after successfully
completing the initial year of preparation, as a teacher of record in
a school within the high-need local educational agency.
   (2) Placement under this subdivision shall be for a period of at
least four school years beginning with the school year that begins
after the participant successfully completes the initial year of
preparation and obtains a preliminary teaching credential. Once
licensed, a participant shall be eligible to be hired as a teacher in
a high-need, underserved area or in a high-need  subject
 area. A participant who fails to complete the period of the
placement, or the first four school years of the placement if the
period is more than four school years, is required to pay back the
cost of the training on a pro rata basis, relative to the amount of
time served in proportion to the total pledged.
   (d) If a participant is unable to complete an academic year of
teaching, that academic year may still be counted toward the required
four complete and consecutive academic years if any of the following
occur:
   (1) The participant has completed at least one-half of the
academic year.
   (2) The employer deems the participant to have fulfilled his or
her contract requirements for the academic year for the purposes of
salary increases, tenure, and retirement.
   (3) The participant was not able to teach due to the financial
circumstances of the local educational agency.
   (4) The participant has a condition covered under the Family and
Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA) (Section 230.8 of the Labor Code) or
similar state law.
   (5) The participant was called or ordered to active duty status
for more than 30 days as a member of a reserve component of the Armed
Forces of the United States.
   44795.  (a) A grant under this chapter shall be  for a
period of no less than three school years, and may be  in an
 annual  amount  up to thirty 
 of twenty  thousand dollars  ($30,000) 
 ($20,000)  per resident of the jurisdiction of the local
educational agency, as matched by that local educational agency, or a
total of  up to  two million dollars ($2,000,000) over
three school years, as matched by that local educational 
agency, whichever is less.   agency.  Funding may
be applied to expenditures for any of the following: master teachers'
stipends,  living  stipends and tuition  assistance
 for residents, teacher residency program management, and costs
of mentoring and induction following initial preparation.
   (b) The Superintendent may make  ____  grants
under this chapter each fiscal year, commencing with the
2017-18   2016-17  fiscal  year until the
2018-19 fiscal  year. A local educational agency or 
consortium   consortia  of local educational
agencies shall not receive more than one  grant 
 award for an application  under this chapter in any fiscal
 year.   year, unless sufficient funds remain
after awarding all other qualified applicants. 
   (c) To receive a grant under this chapter, a high-need local
educational agency or high-need  consortium  
consortia  of local educational agencies shall submit to the
Superintendent an application at a time, in a manner, and containing
information, prescribed by the Superintendent.
   (d) The Superintendent shall award grants under this chapter on a
competitive basis, with  preference   first
priority given to applicants that target chronic teacher shortage
areas, including special education and bilingual teachers.
Preferences may also be  given to local educational agencies or
consortia  of local educational agencies  on the basis of
their per pupil allocation of funds as high-need local educational
agencies defined in Section 2102 of Part A of Title II of the federal
Elementary and Secondary Education Act (Public Law 107-110) for the
most recent school year.
   (e)  Of the amount appropriated to implement this chapter,
the   The  Superintendent shall  reserve
up to 3 percent for   conduct  an evaluation of the
program established under this chapter to determine its
effectiveness in recruiting and retaining high-quality teachers in
 high-need teaching fields   chronic teacher
shortage areas, including special education and bilingual teachers,
 and high-need schools.
   (f) A local educational agency or  consortium 
 consortia  of local educational agencies that receives a
grant under this chapter shall provide matching funds in an amount
equal to  50   100  percent of grant funds
provided to the local educational agency under this chapter to carry
out the activities supported by the grant, which may be provided by
community partners, institutions of higher education, or others.

   44796.  This chapter shall not be implemented unless funding for
its purposes is provided in the annual Budget Act or in another
statute.