[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2116 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







106th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2116

To amend title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
       to support teacher corps programs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 29, 2000

 Mr. Wellstone (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, and Mr. Schumer) introduced 
the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 
               on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 
       to support teacher corps programs, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. TEACHER CORPS PROGRAMS.

    Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 
U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating part E (20 U.S.C. 6701 et seq.) as 
        part F;
            (2) by redesignating sections 2401 and 2402 (20 U.S.C. 
        6701, 6702) as sections 2501 and 2502, respectively; and
            (3) by inserting after part D the following:

                    ``PART E--TEACHER CORPS PROGRAMS

``SEC. 2401. PURPOSES.

    ``The purposes of this part are as follows:
            ``(1) To reduce the shortage of qualified teachers in high 
        poverty urban and rural public elementary schools and secondary 
        schools.
            ``(2) To attract high-quality candidates to teach in 
        geographic and academic subjects of highest need.
            ``(3) To retain the highest quality teachers in the high 
        poverty urban and rural schools.
            ``(4) To establish a program of intensive, sustained 
        support for new teachers in areas of high need and high 
        poverty.

``SEC. 2402. DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE APPLICANT.

    ``(a) In General.--In this part, the term `eligible applicant' 
means a Teacher Corps Collaborative (referred to in this part as a 
`Collaborative') that contains at least 1 agency or institution, 
located in the State in which the Collaborative is established, in each 
of the following categories:
            ``(1) The State educational agency, or the State agency 
        responsible for teacher licensure or certification.
            ``(2) A local educational agency that, or a consortia of 
        local educational agencies in which each participating local 
        educational agency, serves elementary schools and secondary 
        schools (referred to individually in this part as a `high-need 
        school')--
                    ``(A)(i) for which a minimum of 50 percent of the 
                student population is eligible for a free or reduced 
                price lunch under the Richard B. Russell National 
                School Lunch Act; and
                    ``(ii) that have an average rate that is greater 
                than the State average rate with respect to--
                            ``(I) the number of teacher vacancies, 
                        uncertified or unlicensed teachers, or teachers 
                        placed in teaching positions outside of the 
                        teachers' area of certification or licensing; 
                        or
                            ``(II) teacher turnover; or
                    ``(B)(i) for which the combined student population 
                is not greater than 800 students, of whom--
                            ``(I) not less than 15 percent of the 
                        students are students from families with 
                        incomes at or below the poverty line (as 
                        defined by the Office of Management and Budget, 
                        and revised annually in accordance with section 
                        673(2) of the Community Services Block Grant 
                        Act (42 U.S.C. 9902(2)) applicable to a family 
                        of the size involved); or
                            ``(II) the percentage of the student 
                        population from families at or below such 
                        poverty line is greater than the median such 
                        percentage for all local educational agencies 
                        in the State; and
                    ``(ii) that have an average rate that is greater 
                than the State average rate with respect to--
                            ``(I) the number of teacher vacancies, 
                        uncertified or unlicensed teachers, or teachers 
                        placed in teaching positions outside of the 
                        teachers' area of certification or licensing; 
                        or
                            ``(II) teacher turnover.
            ``(3) An institution of higher education that has 
        documented success in teacher preparation.
    ``(b) Additional Members.--A Collaborative may include other 
members, such as a tribal college, community college, nonprofit 
organization, or professional education organization.

``SEC. 2403. GRANTS AUTHORIZED.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants, on a 
competitive basis, to eligible applicants submitting applications under 
section 2404(a) to establish teacher corps programs under this part.
    ``(b) Peer Review.--The Secretary shall establish a peer review 
system to review applications submitted under section 2404(a). The peer 
review shall be conducted by peer review panels established by the 
Secretary, comprised of professional educators, representatives of 
parent, teacher, and community groups, and such other individuals as 
the Secretary determines to be necessary.
    ``(c) Priority.--The Secretary shall give priority to an 
application submitted by an eligible applicant--
            ``(1) in a State that has developed, or is in the process 
        of developing, a system of incentives to encourage effective 
        teachers and strong teaching candidates to teach in high 
        poverty urban or rural areas (as determined by the Secretary); 
        and
            ``(2) that has documented evidence of experience with a 
        high-quality preservice or inservice teacher training program.
    ``(d) Equitable Distribution.--The Secretary shall ensure an 
equitable geographic distribution of grants among the regions of the 
United States and among Collaboratives that represent local educational 
agencies described in section 2402(a)(2).
    ``(e) Duration of Grant.--A grant awarded under this part shall be 
awarded for a period of 5 years.

``SEC. 2404. APPLICATION AND PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.

    ``(a) Application.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this 
part, members of a Collaborative shall jointly prepare and submit an 
application to the Secretary, at such time, in such manner, and 
accompanied by such information as the Secretary shall require. At a 
minimum, the application shall--
            ``(1) describe how the Collaborative will meet the teacher 
        corps program requirements described in subsection (b); and
            ``(2) describe the individual and collective 
        responsibilities of members of the Collaborative in meeting the 
        requirements and goals of the teacher corps program.
    ``(b) Teacher Corps Program Requirements.--
            ``(1) Recruitment.--A Collaborative shall broadly recruit 
        and screen a highly qualified pool of candidates who 
        demonstrate the potential to become effective teachers. Each 
        candidate shall meet--
                    ``(A) the requirements described in section 
                2405(b); and
                    ``(B) any additional standard that the 
                Collaborative establishes to enhance the quality and 
                diversity of candidates and to meet the academic and 
                grade level needs of the Collaborative.
            ``(2) Required curriculum and placement.--Members of the 
        Collaborative shall work together to plan and develop a teacher 
        corps program that includes--
                    ``(A) a curriculum that includes a preservice 
                training program, for a period not to exceed 1 year, 
                that provides participants in the teacher corps program 
                (referred to individually in this part as a `corps 
                member') with the skills and knowledge necessary to 
                become effective teachers, by--
                            ``(i) requiring completed hours of study in 
                        basic areas of teaching, such as principles of 
                        learning and child development, effective 
                        teaching strategies, assessments, and classroom 
                        management, and in pedagogy related to the 
                        academic subjects in which a corps member 
                        intends to teach;
                            ``(ii) providing extensive preparation in 
                        the pedagogy of reading to corps members that 
                        intend to teach in the early elementary grades, 
                        including preparation components that focus 
                        on--
                                    ``(I) understanding reading 
                                psychology and development;
                                    ``(II) understanding the structure 
                                of the English language; and
                                    ``(III) learning and applying the 
                                best teaching methods to all aspects of 
                                reading instruction;
                            ``(iii) providing training in the use of 
                        technology as a tool to enhance a corps 
                        member's effectiveness as a teacher and improve 
                        the achievement of the corps member's students; 
                        and
                            ``(iv) focusing on the pedagogical skills 
                        and knowledge that corps members need to enable 
                        all students to meet the State's highest 
                        challenging content and student performance 
                        standards;
                    ``(B) placement of a corps member with a local 
                educational agency participating in the Collaborative 
                in a teaching internship that--
                            ``(i) is heavily mentored;
                            ``(ii) provides a reduced teaching load;
                            ``(iii) provides regular opportunities for 
                        the corps member to co-teach with a mentor 
                        teacher, observe other teachers, and be 
                        observed and coached by other teachers; and
                            ``(iv) pays participating corps members a 
                        salary that is lower than a first-year teacher 
                        salary;
                    ``(C) individualized inservice training over the 
                course of the corps member's first 2 years of full-time 
                teaching that provides--
                            ``(i) high-quality professional 
                        development, coordinated jointly by members of 
                        the Collaborative, and the hours of study 
                        necessary to provide additional or 
                        supplementary knowledge to meet the specific 
                        needs of the corps member; and
                            ``(ii) ongoing mentoring by a teacher who 
                        meets the criteria for a mentor teacher 
                        described in paragraph (5)(B); and
                    ``(D) collaboration between the Collaborative, and 
                local community, student, or parent groups, to assist 
                corps members in enhancing their understanding of the 
                community in which the members are placed.
            ``(3) Discretionary activities.--In addition to the 
        activities described in paragraph (2), a teacher corps program 
        may include a program of intensive course work, prior to a 
        corps member's second year in the teacher corps program, that 
        will provide additional or supplementary knowledge to meet the 
        specific needs of the corps member.
            ``(4) Evaluation.--A Collaborative shall evaluate a corps 
        member and the corps member's course work at regular intervals 
        during the 2-year period beginning on the first date of the 
        corps member's participation in the teacher corps program.
            ``(5) Mentor teachers.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A Collaborative shall develop a 
                plan for the program, which shall include strategies 
                for identifying, recruiting, training, and providing 
                ongoing support to individuals who will serve as mentor 
                teachers to corps members.
                    ``(B) Mentor teacher requirements.--The plan 
                described in subparagraph (A) shall specify the 
                criteria that the Collaborative will use to identify 
                and select mentor teachers, and at a minimum, shall--
                            ``(i) require a mentor teacher--
                                    ``(I) to meet the requirements of 
                                section 2405;
                                    ``(II) to have not less than 5 
                                years of teaching experience in a 
                                school located in a school district of 
                                a local educational agency described in 
                                section 2402(a)(2);
                                    ``(III) to provide substantial 
                                evidence that the mentor teacher has 
                                been consistently effective in helping 
                                students from school districts referred 
                                to in subclause (II) make substantial 
                                achievement gains; and
                                    ``(IV) to be selected for the 
                                program by a peer review process; and
                            ``(ii) require that consideration be given 
                        to a mentor teacher with national board 
                        certification.
                    ``(C) Compensation.--The plan shall specify the 
                compensation--
                            ``(i) for mentor teachers, including 
                        release time and a reduced work load to ensure 
                        that mentor teachers can provide ongoing 
                        support for corps members; and
                            ``(ii) for corps members, including salary 
                        levels and any stipends that will be provided 
                        during a corps member's summer or preservice 
                        training.
            ``(6) Assurances.--The plan shall include assurances that--
                    ``(A) the Collaborative will make every effort to 
                place corps members in elementary schools and secondary 
                schools with the highest need (as determined by the 
                Collaborative) in the area served by the participating 
                local educational agency or consortia of local 
                educational agencies;
                    ``(B) a corps member will be assigned to teach only 
                academic subjects and grade levels for which the member 
                is fully qualified;
                    ``(C) corps members, to the extent practicable, 
                will be placed in schools with teams of corps members; 
                and
                    ``(D) no mentor teacher will be assigned to mentor 
                more than 12 corps members.
            ``(7) Project evaluation.--In order for the Collaborative 
        to determine progress toward the Collaborative's program goals 
        identified in the Collaborative's application submitted under 
        subsection (a), the plan shall describe how the Collaborative 
        will conduct evaluations and put in place a system of 
        accountability, including mechanisms to track corps members, 
        and to determine the members' effectiveness, progress toward 
        certification or licensing, and service longevity in the 
        districts or schools served by the Collaborative.
            ``(8) Ensuring permanency.--The plan shall demonstrate how 
        the Collaborative will support and institutionalize the teacher 
        corps program beyond the duration of the grant period.

``SEC. 2405. CORPS MEMBER QUALIFICATIONS.

    ``(a) In General.--Each Collaborative shall establish standards for 
the acceptance of individual corps members to ensure that--
            ``(1) each group of corps members--
                    ``(A) includes individuals who have expertise in 
                and will teach in an academic subject that meets 
                specific needs of the district served; and
                    ``(B) to the extent practicable, includes members 
                of populations that are underrepresented in the 
                teaching profession; and
            ``(2) each corps member possesses appropriate, high-level 
        credentials and presents the likelihood of becoming an 
        effective teacher.
    ``(b) Qualifications.--
            ``(1) Candidates intending to teach in elementary 
        schools.--At a minimum, to be accepted by a teacher corps 
        program, a candidate who intends to teach at the elementary 
        school level shall--
                    ``(A) in the case of a candidate who graduated from 
                an institution of higher education not more than 3 
                years prior to applying to a teacher corps program--
                            ``(i) possess a record of high academic 
                        achievement at the postsecondary level;
                            ``(ii) possess an outstanding commitment to 
                        working with children and youth; and
                            ``(iii) pass any basic skills and subject 
                        matter tests required by the State for teacher 
                        certification or licensure; and
                    ``(B) in the case of a candidate who graduated from 
                an institution of higher education more than 3 years 
                prior to applying to a teacher corps program--
                            ``(i) possess an outstanding commitment to 
                        working with children and youth; and
                            ``(ii) possess a strong professional or 
                        postsecondary record of achievement.
            ``(2) Candidates intending to teach in secondary schools.--
        At a minimum, to be accepted by a teacher corps program, a 
        candidate who intends to teach at the secondary school level 
        shall--
                    ``(A) in the case of a candidate who graduated from 
                an institution of higher education not more than 3 
                years prior to applying to a teacher corps program--
                            ``(i) meet the requirements described in 
                        paragraph (1)(A); and
                            ``(ii)(I) possess at least an academic 
                        major or postsecondary degree in each academic 
                        subject in which the candidate intends to 
                        teach; or
                            ``(II) if the candidate did not major or 
                        earn a postsecondary degree in an academic 
                        subject in which the candidate intends to 
                        teach, have completed a rigorous course of 
                        instruction in that subject that is equivalent 
                        to having majored in the subject; and
                    ``(B) in the case of a candidate who graduated from 
                an institution of higher education more than 3 years 
                prior to applying to a teacher corps program--
                            ``(i) meet the requirements described in 
                        paragraph (1)(B); and
                            ``(ii)(I) possess at least an academic 
                        major or postsecondary degree in each academic 
                        subject in which the candidate intends to 
                        teach; or
                            ``(II) if the candidate did not major or 
                        earn a postsecondary degree in an academic 
                        subject in which the candidate intends to 
                        teach, have completed a rigorous course of 
                        instruction in that subject, such as completion 
                        of a preprofessional preparation program in 
                        that subject.
    ``(c) Special Rule.--Notwithstanding subparagraphs (A)(ii)(II) and 
(B)(ii)(II) of subsection (b)(2), the Collaborative may consider the 
candidate to be an eligible corps member and accept the candidate for a 
teacher corps program if the candidate has worked successfully and 
directly in a field and in a position that provided the candidate with 
direct and substantive knowledge in the academic subject in which the 
candidate intends to teach.
    ``(d) Three-Year Commitment to Teaching in Eligible Districts.--
            ``(1) In general.--In return for acceptance to a teacher 
        corps program, a corps member shall commit to 3 years of full-
        time teaching in a school or district served by a local 
        educational agency participating in a Collaborative eligible 
        for funds under this part.
            ``(2) Reimbursement.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If a corps member leaves the 
                school district to which the corps member has been 
                assigned prior to the end of the 3-year period 
                described in paragraph (1), the corps member shall be 
                required to reimburse the Department of Education for 
                the amount of the Federal share of the cost of the 
                corps member's participation in the teacher corps 
                program.
                    ``(B) Accountability.--A Collaborative shall be 
                responsible for including in its application described 
                in section 2404(a), information on a method of 
                accountability to assure return of the Federal share.
                    ``(C) Collaborative claims.--A Collaborative that 
                provides a teacher corps program to a corps member who 
                leaves the school district as described in subparagraph 
                (A) may submit a claim to the corps member requiring 
                the corps member to reimburse the Collaborative for the 
                amount of the Collaborative's share of the cost 
                described in subparagraph (A).
                    ``(D) Reduction; waiver.--
                            ``(i) Reduction.--Reimbursements required 
                        under this paragraph may be reduced 
                        proportionally based on the amount of time a 
                        corps member remained in the teacher corps 
                        program beyond the corps member's initial 2 
                        years of service.
                            ``(ii) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the 
                        reimbursements required under this paragraph in 
                        the case of severe hardship to a corps member 
                        who leaves the school district, as described in 
                        subparagraph (A).

``SEC. 2406. LICENSING AND CERTIFICATION PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.

    ``(a) Licensing or Certification.--The State agency responsible for 
teacher licensure or certification in the State in which a 
Collaborative is established shall ensure that--
            ``(1) a corps member that successfully completes a teacher 
        corps program will have the academic requirements necessary for 
        certification or licensure as a teacher in the State; and
            ``(2) the teacher corps program provides the academic 
        credentials necessary to enable a corps member to obtain 
        permanent teacher certification or licensure.
    ``(b) Alternative Routes to Certification.--The State agency 
described in subsection (a) shall work with the Collaborative to ensure 
the Collaborative uses high-quality methods and establishes high-
quality requirements concerning alternative routes to certification, in 
order to meet State requirements for certification.
    ``(c) Priority for Hiring.--A local educational agency or consortia 
of local educational agencies participating in a Collaborative shall--
            ``(1) to the extent practicable, give hiring priority to 
        teachers who have successfully completed a teacher corps 
        program; and
            ``(2) make every effort to place a corps member in an 
        elementary school or a secondary school that has the greatest 
        need for qualified teachers.

``SEC. 2407. ACCOUNTABILITY.

    ``(a) Collaborative Evaluations.--A Collaborative shall annually 
submit a report to the Secretary providing information that--
            ``(1) meets reporting requirements for alternative 
        certification programs under the Higher Education Act of 1965;
            ``(2) describes the manner and sites of the Collaborative's 
        recruiting efforts for the teacher corps program carried out by 
        the Collaborative;
            ``(3) specifies the number of candidates recruited, 
        disaggregated by race, age, and the academic subjects to which 
        the candidates were assigned;
            ``(4) specifies the number and percentage of candidates 
        receiving preliminary and permanent certification and 
        licensing;
            ``(5) specifies the number and percentage of candidates 
        assigned to high-need schools described in section 2402(2);
            ``(6) describes the quality of performance of candidates 
        described in paragraph (5);
            ``(7) specifies the percentage of corps members who are 
        student teaching for a local educational agency served by the 
        Collaborative; and
            ``(8) provides such other information as the Secretary may 
        require.
    ``(b) Ineligibility.--
            ``(1) In general.--If not more than 90 percent of the 
        graduates of a teacher corps program assisted under this part 
        for a fiscal year pass applicable State or local initial 
        teacher licensing or certification examinations, the 
        Collaborative providing the teacher corps program shall be 
        ineligible to receive grant funds for the succeeding fiscal 
        year.
            ``(2) Waiver.--The Secretary may waive the requirement 
        described in paragraph (1) for Collaboratives serving school 
        districts that have special circumstances, such as a district 
        with a small number of corps members.
    ``(c) Departmental Evaluation and Technical Assistance.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall retain not more than 
        $2,000,000 of the amount appropriated for a fiscal year under 
        section 2409--
                    ``(A) to conduct a comprehensive program evaluation 
                of teacher corps programs, not more than 4 years after 
                the date on which the Secretary first makes grant 
                awards under this part; and
                    ``(B) to provide Collaboratives with technical 
                assistance and information on exemplary programs and 
                effective practices of recruitment, training, and 
                mentoring.
            ``(2) Evaluations.--The comprehensive program evaluation 
        described in paragraph (1)(A) shall evaluate--
                    ``(A) the effectiveness of individual 
                Collaboratives in recruiting large numbers of highly 
                qualified applicants and recruiting, to the extent 
                practicable, from groups that are underrepresented in 
                the teaching profession, to meet specific academic 
                subject and grade level needs of Collaboratives;
                    ``(B) the qualifications of teachers recruited and 
                trained through the teacher corps program as compared 
                to other teachers teaching in local educational 
                agencies participating in a Collaborative;
                    ``(C) the retention rates of corps members as 
                compared to retention rates of other new teachers 
                teaching for local educational agencies participating 
                in a Collaborative; and
                    ``(D) the qualifications of mentor teachers 
                participating in teacher corps programs and the success 
                of the mentoring programs.

``SEC. 2408. FEDERAL SHARE; NON-FEDERAL SHARE.

    ``(a) Payment of Federal Share.--The Secretary shall pay to each 
eligible applicant having an application approved under section 2404 
the Federal share of the cost of the activities described in the 
application.
    ``(b) Non-Federal Share.--A Collaborative's share of the cost of 
the activities described in the Collaborative's application submitted 
under section 2404(a)--
            ``(1) may be in cash or in kind, fairly evaluated, 
        including plant, equipment, or services; and
            ``(2)(A) for the first year for which the Collaborative 
        receives assistance under this part, shall be not less than 10 
        percent;
            ``(B) for the second such year, shall be not less than 20 
        percent;
            ``(C) for the third year such year, shall be not less than 
        30 percent;
            ``(D) for the fourth such year, shall be not less than 40 
        percent; and
            ``(E) for the fifth such year, shall be not less than 50 
        percent.

``SEC. 2409. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this part 
$500,000,000 for fiscal year 2001 and such sums as may be necessary for 
each of fiscal years 2002 through 2005.''.
                                 <all>