Bill Text: HI SB647 | 2017 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To Teachers.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-02-17 - Report adopted; Passed Second Reading, as amended (SD 1) and referred to JDL/WAM. [SB647 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2017-SB647-Amended.html
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THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
647 |
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TWENTY-NINTH LEGISLATURE, 2017 |
S.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO TEACHERS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION 1. The legislature finds that there is a growing shortage of qualified teachers in Hawaii's public school system. The department of education reports a personnel shortage of three hundred ninety-two positions in school year 2015-2016 and an estimated personnel shortage of four hundred forty-nine positions through school year 2016-2017. These shortfalls affect student learning.
The legislature finds that it is necessary to provide support to innovative, non-traditional programs to immediately address the teacher shortage, especially in rural and designated hard-to-fill schools.
The purpose of this Act is to provide support to non-traditional programs for recruitment and development of teachers, including special education licensure coursework; opportunities for teacher mentorship programs to support new and first-time teachers; and investigation of which programs provide the most stable bases for teacher retention in our communities, to immediately address the teacher shortage.
SECTION 2. (a) The auditor shall perform a study of:
(1) The number of first-year teachers hired by the department of education annually, on a school-by-school basis;
(2) The five-year retention rates of first-year teachers, on a school-by-school basis, for all public schools, starting with first-year teachers hired in 2012; and
(3) Statistics, on a school-by-school basis, of teachers who transferred to teach at other schools, transferred to teach at other complex areas, changed positions within the department of education, or left the department of education.
(b) The auditor shall submit a report of the study to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session of 2018.
SECTION 3. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $650,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2017-2018 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2018-2019 for special education coursework for teacher licensure at leeward community college.
The sums appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $870,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2017-2018 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2018-2019 for alternate teacher licensing route contracts.
The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 5. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the following sums or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2017-2018 and the same sums or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2018-2019 for the following purposes:
(1) $104,200 to convert three full-time temporary positions in the teacher induction and mentoring program of the department of education into three full-time permanent (3.0 FTE) positions; and
(2) $341,216 to establish six full-time permanent (6.0 FTE) positions in the teacher induction and mentoring program of the department of education.
The sums appropriated shall be expended by the department of education for the purposes of this Act.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2017.
Report Title:
Innovative Teacher Preparation Programs; Teacher Retention Study; Appropriations
Description:
Makes appropriations to Leeward Community College for its special education coursework for teacher licensure and to the Department of Education's Alternate Teacher Route Contract and Teacher Induction and Mentoring programs. Requires the Auditor to report on teacher retention statistics on a school-by-school basis. (SD1)
The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
