STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 7153 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY April 23, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. RICHARDSON, SIMON, COLTON, EPSTEIN, DICKENS, TAYLOR, DE LA ROSA, REYES, PICHARDO -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. COOK, DURSO, GRIFFIN, HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Higher Education AN ACT to amend the education law, in relation to providing for the enhancement of the quality of teaching in the public schools in New York city The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. The education law is amended by adding a new article 125-C 2 to read as follows: 3 ARTICLE 125-C 4 CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK 5 CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE 6 IN URBAN EDUCATION 7 Section 6284. City university of New York center for excellence in urban 8 education. 9 § 6284. City university of New York center for excellence in urban 10 education. 1. The legislature hereby finds and determines that there is 11 a looming shortage of qualified teachers willing to consider teaching 12 positions in urban schools. This shortage is evident in the state's five 13 largest city school districts and has reached critical proportions in 14 New York city. 15 2. There is hereby established the city university of New York center 16 for excellence in urban education. The center shall be located at a 17 city university of New York college accredited by the national council 18 for accreditation of teacher education. 19 3. The center shall: 20 a. Collaborate with teachers from the city's urban centers to develop 21 and deliver programs to address the particular needs of urban education, 22 including, but not limited to, dealing with severe classroom management EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD04768-01-1A. 7153 2 1 problems; issues of conflict and racial sensitivities; understanding the 2 central role schools play in community development; and coping with and 3 compensating for a myriad of family and social issues that impact school 4 performance. 5 b. Partner with urban school districts to (i) ensure high quality 6 clinical education for preservice teacher education students in urban 7 locations; (ii) design and implement programs to recruit children into 8 careers of teaching; (iii) increase the number of minority candidates in 9 teacher preparation programs and increase productivity in teaching 10 fields of critical need including, but not limited to, childhood educa- 11 tion with emphasis in science, mathematics, and reading; early adoles- 12 cence education with emphasis in integrated science-mathematics-technol- 13 ogy; adolescent education in science and mathematics; special education; 14 bilingual special education; and bilingual speech pathology; (iv) 15 attract teacher education students to jobs in urban locations of crit- 16 ical need; and (v) systematically renew both the school and collegiate 17 environments through joint professional development and scholarly activ- 18 ities. 19 c. Provide special capstone programs for students from other 20 colleges/universities in the state to recruit and qualify preservice 21 educators for service in urban settings. 22 § 2. Section 605 of the education law is amended by adding a new 23 subdivision 13 to read as follows: 24 13. Regents teacher loan forgiveness program. Regents teacher loan 25 forgiveness awards shall be awarded annually to teachers who agree to 26 teach public school in an area of New York state designated by the 27 regents as having a shortage of public school teachers. Such awards 28 shall be classified and allocated in accordance with regents rules. 29 a. Eligibility. (1) The applicant must be a resident of New York state 30 and certified. 31 (2) The applicant must agree to teach public school in an area in New 32 York state designated as having a shortage of public school teachers. 33 b. Selection. The commissioner shall establish criteria for the 34 selection of participants in the program. An applicant must satisfy at 35 least one of the criteria established. A priority shall be accorded to 36 any applicant who is completing the second year of the service require- 37 ment and is reapplying for a new award. The criteria shall include but 38 not be limited to the following: 39 (1) reapplication for a new award by a person who is completing the 40 second year of a service requirement; 41 (2) receipt of specific training in an area of certification deter- 42 mined by the regents to be in short supply; 43 (3) receipt of specific training or experience in serving a shortage 44 area; 45 (4) receipt of specific training or experience matching a specific 46 educational need existing in a shortage area; and 47 (5) agreement pursuant to subdivision d of this section to teach 48 public school in an area determined by the regents to have a severe 49 shortage of public school teachers. 50 c. Notification. (1) The commissioner shall then forward approved 51 applications to the president and shall notify unsuccessful applicants; 52 (2) The president shall verify the approved applicants': 53 (i) eligibility; and 54 (ii) total undergraduate and graduate school student expense; 55 (3) The president shall notify applicants of their award entitlement.A. 7153 3 1 d. Service requirement. Within such time as the commissioner shall by 2 regulation provide, a recipient of an award shall have agreed to teach 3 public school in a specific area designated as having a shortage of 4 public school teachers for a period of ten months for each annual 5 payment to be received by the recipient. Teachers in training who 6 receive an award shall not receive credit toward their required service 7 for time spent in a training program. In no case shall the total number 8 of months of service required be less than twenty-four. The president 9 shall, in consultation with the commissioner, develop and secure from 10 each award recipient, a written agreement to: 11 (1) teach public school in the designated shortage area; and 12 (2) teach full-time and serve as an extra-curricular activity advisor 13 or coach. 14 If a recipient fails to comply fully with such conditions, the presi- 15 dent shall be entitled to receive from such recipient an amount to be 16 determined by the formula: 17 A = 2B (t-s) 18 ----- 19 t 20 in which "A" is the amount the president is entitled to recover; "B" 21 is the sum of all payments made to the recipient and the interest on 22 such amount which would be payable if at the times such awards were paid 23 they were loans bearing interest at the maximum prevailing rate; "t" is 24 the total number of months in the recipient's period of obligated 25 services; and "s" is the number of months of service actually rendered 26 by the recipient. Any amount which the president is entitled to recover 27 under this paragraph shall be paid within the five-year period beginning 28 on the date that the recipient failed to comply with this service condi- 29 tion. Nothing in the written agreement shall affect the terms of employ- 30 ment of the individual who shall negotiate, separate and apart from the 31 program, his or her salary and other forms of employment with an agency, 32 institution or a program in which he or she shall be employed. 33 Any obligation to comply with such provisions as outlined in this 34 section shall be cancelled upon the death of the recipient. The commis- 35 sioner shall make regulations to provide for the waiver or suspension of 36 any financial obligation which would involve extreme hardship. 37 e. Reporting. A recipient of an award shall report annually to the New 38 York state higher education services corporation, and the department on 39 forms prescribed by the president, as to the performance of the required 40 services, commencing with the calendar year in which the recipient 41 begins to teach public school in a shortage area and continuing until 42 the recipient shall have completed, or it is determined that he or she 43 shall not be obligated to complete, the required services. If the 44 recipient shall fail to file any report required hereunder within thirty 45 days of written notice to the recipient, mailed to the address shown on 46 the last application for an award or last report filed, whichever is 47 later, the president of the corporation may impose a fine of up to one 48 thousand dollars. The president shall have the discretion to waive the 49 filing of a report, excuse a delay in filing or a failure to file a 50 report, or waive or reduce any fine imposed for good cause shown. 51 f. Other awards. Award recipients shall be eligible to apply for one 52 additional award. 53 § 3. The education law is amended by adding a new section 677-b to 54 read as follows: 55 § 677-b. Regents public school teacher loan forgiveness program. 1. 56 Number and certification. Eighty regents public school teacher loanA. 7153 4 1 forgiveness awards shall be awarded each year. Such awards shall be 2 allocated as provided in article thirteen of this chapter to eligible 3 public school teachers as certified to the president by the commission- 4 er. 5 2. Calculation of award amounts. Each award shall consist of two 6 consecutive annual loan forgiveness payments. Each of the annual 7 payments shall be for an amount equal to the total of undergraduate and 8 graduate school student loan expense or ten thousand dollars whichever 9 is less. The president shall be responsible for calculating the dollar 10 amount of each award that eligible candidates may receive from this 11 program. For the purposes of this section, student loan expense shall 12 mean the cumulative total of the annual student loans covering the cost 13 of attendance at an undergraduate institution and/or graduate school. 14 Interest paid or due on student loans that an applicant has taken out 15 for use in paying for such undergraduate and/or graduate education shall 16 be considered eligible for reimbursement under this program. 17 3. Award disbursement. a. Annual award disbursements shall be the 18 responsibility of the president and shall occur prior to the beginning 19 of each of the required terms of service as specified in the service 20 contract. The board of trustees of the higher education services corpo- 21 ration shall adopt rules and regulations regarding criteria for deter- 22 mining successful completion of the service contract and any appeal 23 process that may be required to implement this paragraph upon recommen- 24 dation of the president in consultation with the commissioner. 25 b. The disbursement of the second annual award shall be dependent upon 26 successful completion of the first year requirement of the service 27 contract as defined by the president, as well as other criteria set 28 forth in this section. 29 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.