1.This Act may be cited as
the STEM Master Teacher Corps Act of
2011
.
2.Congress finds the following:
(1)Numerous recent
reports by national advisory groups, including the President’s Council of
Advisors on Science and Technology and National Academies' committees, have
highlighted the need to raise student achievement in STEM fields to enable the
United States to maintain its competitive edge in the global economy.
(2)Nearly all of the
top 30 fastest growing occupations require science, technology, engineering, or
mathematics skills, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
(3)Recent
standardized tests show United States students’ mathematics and science
performance is only average or below average compared with their international
peers. American students placed 25th in mathematics and 17th in science out of
34 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries in the 2009
Program for International Student Assessment.
(4)Too few American
students graduate from high school with the interest and the preparation to
successfully pursue STEM degrees in college. Well over half of college students
in China and Japan major in STEM fields, compared with only a third of U.S.
students.
(5)Several
researchers, including at Stanford University, have found that the effects of
well-prepared teachers on student achievement can be stronger than the
influences of student background factors, such as poverty, language background,
and minority status.
(6)The Harvard
Graduate School of Education report Who Stays in Teaching and
Why
cites research that shows more young people would consider teaching
if it offered more opportunities for advancement, and that if schools fail to
offer teachers these opportunities throughout their teaching careers, they may
risk losing them permanently. It also reports that well implemented mentoring
and induction programs provide the support novices need to feel satisfied and
remain in their schools.
(7)Researchers at
the University of Pennsylvania have found that STEM teachers migrate within the
teaching profession to better paying jobs at better-funded schools, resulting
in local imbalances and leaving schools in high-poverty communities struggling
to find knowledgeable teachers.
(8)Individuals with
strong STEM skills have opportunities for more lucrative careers outside of
teaching. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and
Development (OECD), the United States ranks in the bottom third of OECD
countries in terms of teacher salary relative to per capita GDP. Furthermore,
data from the National Association of Colleges and Employers show the median
salary offered to recent college graduates in certain STEM-related fields,
including physics, computer science, accounting, and engineering, is $24,000
higher than that offered to new secondary school teachers and $30,000 higher
than that offered to new elementary school teachers.
3.STEM Master
Teacher CorpsSubpart 5 of
part A of title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 6651 et seq.) is amended—
(1)by inserting
before section 2151 the following:
ANational activities of demonstrated
effectiveness
;
and(2)by adding at the
end the following:
BSTEM Master Teacher Corps
2155.The purpose of this chapter is to establish
a STEM Master Teacher Corps program that—
(1)elevates the
status of the STEM teaching profession by recognizing and rewarding outstanding
STEM teachers;
(2)attracts and
retains effective STEM teachers, particularly in high-need schools, by offering
them additional compensation, instructional resources, and instructional
leadership roles; and
(3)creates a network
of outstanding STEM teacher-leaders who will—
(A)share best
practices and resources;
(B)take on
leadership responsibilities in their schools, districts, States (if part of the
participating area), or consortia with the authority to provide professional
support to their STEM colleagues not participating in the STEM Master Teacher
Corps;
(C)aid in the
development and retention of beginning teachers by serving as their role models
and providing them with instructional support; and
(D)inform the
development of STEM education policy.
2156.In this chapter:
(1)The term eligible entity means a consortium
of local educational agencies or 1 or more State educational agencies, acting
in partnership with 1 or more—
(A)institutions of
higher education; or
(B)nonprofit
organizations with a demonstrated record of success in preparing or improving
the effectiveness of STEM teachers.
(2)The term high-need school means a public
school, which may be a public charter school, that meets 1 or more of the
following criteria:
(A)Not less than 40
percent of the students enrolled at the school—
(i)receive or are
eligible to receive a free or reduced price lunch under the Richard B. Russell
National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751 et seq.); or
(ii)are from
low-income families, as determined using 1 of the measures of poverty specified
under section 1113(a)(5).
(B)The school is
among the lowest performing 10 percent of schools in the State in which it is
located.
(C)In the case of a
public high school, the school has a graduation rate of 65 percent or
less.
(D)In the case of a
public school containing middle grades, the school feeds into a public high
school that has a graduation rate of 65 percent or less.
(3)The term participating area means—
(A)in the case of an
eligible entity that includes a State educational agency or consortium of State
educational agencies, the State or States; or
(B)in the case of an
eligible entity that includes a consortium of local educational agencies, the
area served by such agencies.
(4)The term rural school means a public
school—
(A)designated with a
school locale code of Distant Town, Remote Town, Fringe Rural, Distant Rural,
or Remote Rural; and
(B)served by a local
educational agency in which not less than two-thirds of the students served by
the agency attend a school designated with 1 of the school locale codes listed
in subparagraph (A).
(5)The
term STEM means science, technology, engineering, and
mathematics.
2157.STEM Master
Teacher Corps Program
(a)
(1)The Secretary, in consultation with the Director of
the National Science Foundation and the heads of other appropriate Federal
agencies, as determined by the Secretary, shall establish a STEM Master Teacher
Corps program by awarding, on a competitive basis, 1 or more grants of not less
than $15,000,000 each to eligible entities to enable the eligible entities to
establish the program, in accordance with section 2159.
(2)The Secretary may award planning grants to eligible
entities to enable the entities to make plans to establish the program, in
accordance with section 2159.
(b)
(1)A grant awarded under this chapter shall be for a period
of not more than 5 years.
(2)The
Secretary shall—
(A)review, 3 years
after an eligible entity is awarded a grant under this chapter, the performance
of the entity during the 3-year period; and
(B)fund the
remaining grant period for such entity if the Secretary determines, based on
such review, that the entity is achieving satisfactory results.
(c)
(1)Except as provided in paragraph (2), an eligible entity
that receives a grant under this chapter shall provide, from non-Federal
sources, an amount equal to not less than 50 percent of the amount of the
grant, which may be provided in cash or in-kind, to carry out the activities
supported by the grant.
(2)
(A)The Secretary may waive the 50 percent matching
requirement under paragraph (1) for an eligible entity that the Secretary
determines is unable to meet such requirement. The Secretary shall set a
matching requirement for such eligible entities according to the sliding scale
described in subparagraph (B).
(B)The amount of a match under subparagraph (A) shall be
established based on a sliding fee scale that takes into account—
(i)the relative
poverty of the population to be targeted by the eligible entity; and
(ii)the ability of
the eligible entity to obtain such matching funds.
(3)The
Secretary shall not consider an eligible entity's ability to match funds when
determining which eligible entities will receive grant awards under this
chapter.
2158.
(a)An eligible entity desiring a grant under this chapter
shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and
containing such information as the Secretary may require.
(b)An
application submitted under this section shall include—
(1)a description of
the STEM Master Teacher Corps program that the eligible entity intends to carry
out, including the number of Corps members the entity intends to select, the
intended distribution of subjects and grade levels taught, the geographic and
economic characteristics of the local educational agencies that are part of the
participating area, such as the rural-urban continuum codes and proportion of
high-need schools served, and the type of activities proposed for recruitment
of Corps members;
(2)a description of
the roles and responsibilities that each participating local educational
agency, State, institution of higher education, or nonprofit organization, as
applicable, will have;
(3)a demonstration
that the entity has sufficient capacity to carry out the activities described
in section 2159;
(4)a description of
the member selection process and criteria that the applicant will use to select
members of the STEM Master Teacher Corps, in accordance with section
2159(b);
(5)a description of
how the eligible entity intends to facilitate networking and sharing of best
practices and educational resources relating to STEM education among Corps
members, particularly at rural schools, if applicable, and make a selection of
these best practices and resources more widely available to other teachers and
the STEM educational community, including through electronic means;
(6)a demonstration
that the entity has a clear plan for—
(A)offering
research-based professional development to Corps members, including training on
instructional leadership, mentoring, engaging and effectively teaching
historically underachieving or underrepresented groups in STEM fields, such as
girls, minorities, low-income students, English language learners, and students
with disabilities, and effective STEM teaching methods, such as incorporating
hands-on STEM projects into their lesson plans; and
(B)tracking the
effectiveness of such professional development;
(7)a demonstration
that the entity has a clear plan for evaluating the impact of the professional
support provided by STEM Master Teacher Corps members to other teachers in
their school, district, State (if part of the participating area), or
consortium;
(8)a description of
how the local educational agencies and schools served by the eligible entity
intend to align STEM Master Teacher Corps members’ duties with school systems
and activities already in place, if applicable, such as professional
development and mentoring;
(9)an explanation of
how STEM Master Teacher Corps members will be afforded the time, authority, and
resources to fulfill requirements under the program, and how other teachers
will be afforded the time to receive professional support from Corps
members;
(10)a demonstration
that the entity has a clear plan for oversight to ensure that STEM Master
Teacher Corps members carry out the responsibilities described in section
2159(c) to the fullest extent practicable, and a description of the actions to
be taken if a member does not carry out such responsibilities; and
(11)a description of
how the grant funds will be financially managed.
(c)Criteria for
awarding grants
(1)The Secretary shall award grants under this chapter on
the basis of merit considering, at a minimum, the following:
(A)The extent to
which the local educational agencies that are part of the eligible entity are
committed to integrating the program into existing school structures, policies,
operations, and budgets, such as by enabling STEM Master Teacher Corps members
to take on leadership roles in their schools, districts, States, if part of the
participating area, or consortia, in addition to their classroom duties,
including assisting in the development and implementation of professional
development activities and driving the instructional program of the
school.
(B)The quality of
the proposed professional development, teacher leadership and mentorship
activities, and networking opportunities.
(C)Demonstration
that the local educational agencies and schools they serve have removed
barriers to full participation in the program, including affording Corps
members and the teachers they mentor the time to participate in activities
required by the program.
(D)The number and
quality of the individuals that will be served by the program.
(E)The capacity of
the eligible entity to effectively carry out the program.
(2)In
awarding grants under this chapter, the Secretary shall give priority
to—
(A)eligible entities
that intend to include large numbers of teachers in the STEM Master Teacher
Corps; and
(B)eligible entities
that intend to include rural schools, particularly high-need rural schools, in
the participating area to be served.
2159.
(a)An eligible entity receiving a grant under this chapter
shall use grant funds to—
(1)administer the
selection of teachers for membership in the STEM Master Teacher Corps, in
accordance with the requirements of subsection (b);
(2)provide
compensation to each public school teacher who is selected and serves as a
member of the STEM Master Teacher Corps, in recognition of the teacher's
teaching accomplishments, leadership, and increased responsibilities, which
amount shall—
(A)supplement, and
not supplant, the teacher's base salary; and
(B)be equal
to—
(i)in the case of a
teacher who teaches at a high-need public school, including a high-need charter
school, $15,000 per year for each year the teacher serves as a member of the
Corps; and
(ii)in the case of a
teacher who teaches at a public school, including a charter school, that is not
a high-need school, $5,000 per year for each year the teacher serves as a
member of the Corps;
(3)provide
research-based professional development activities for members of the STEM
Master Teacher Corps, as described in subsection 2158(b)(6), and track the
effectiveness of such professional development in order to determine whether to
alter professional development activities;
(4)provide
discretionary resources for STEM Master Teacher Corps members at high-need
public schools to use in their classrooms and schools, including for
afterschool activities, to enrich STEM education and to facilitate
long-distance networking, mentoring, and sharing of best practices, including
equipment and technology;
(5)assist in
coordinating instructional leadership roles for STEM Master Teacher Corps
members and mentoring relationships between STEM Master Teacher Corps members
and other teachers in the same school, school district, State, if part of the
participating area, or consortium in which the Corps members serve as
instructional leaders;
(6)facilitate
efforts by STEM Master Teacher Corps members to inform STEM education policy at
the national, State, and local levels;
(7)help defray costs
associated with affording STEM Master Teacher Corps members the time to fulfill
their duties as Corps members; and
(8)support other
activities that advance the purpose of this chapter.
(b)Selecting
Members of the STEM Master Teacher Corps
(1)Selection
criteria for corps membersThe eligible entity shall select, as
members of the STEM Master Teacher Corps, exemplary STEM teachers at the
elementary school and secondary school levels who teach in the participating
area, which may also include special education teachers and teachers of English
language learners who teach a STEM subject. In selecting the members, the
eligible entity shall—
(A)make decisions
based on the teacher's—
(i)ability to
improve student academic achievement in the STEM fields, as demonstrated by, if
applicable, student academic growth in such fields;
(ii)ability to
enhance student engagement in such fields;
(iii)record of
leadership in the teacher’s school and involvement in professional and outreach
activities;
(iv)record of
teaching students not on grade level or not on track to graduate college and
career ready; and
(v)demonstrated
ability to facilitate student academic achievement growth with the students
described in clause (iv), where such measures are available; and
(B)evaluate the
teacher’s ability and record based on multiple measures, such as—
(i)teacher
evaluations of pedagogical skills;
(ii)an assessment of
content knowledge;
(iii)the performance
and improvement of the teacher’s students on tests;
(iv)demonstration of
practical professional experience in the teacher’s discipline, such as having
worked in industry or research;
(v)involvement in
STEM discipline professional societies;
(vi)STEM outreach
and community involvement; and
(vii)certification
by the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, or other similar
certification, as a high-performing teacher.
(2)Overall corps
membership requirementsAn eligible entity receiving a grant
under this chapter shall ensure that—
(A)not more than 5
percent of the STEM teachers who teach in the participating area are members of
the Corps;
(B)not less than 75
percent of the STEM Master Teacher Corps members are teachers at high-need
schools;
(C)the proportion of
STEM Master Teacher Corps members in the participating area who teach at rural
high-need schools is not less than the proportion of all teachers who teach at
rural high-need schools in the participating area;
(D)there are
multiple cohorts of STEM Master Teacher Corps members; and
(E)the STEM Master
Teacher Corps includes teachers from each of science, technology, engineering,
and mathematics, if teachers from each of these disciplines meeting the
standards of Corps membership are available in the participating area.
(3)Participation
of private school teachersAn eligible entity may select STEM
teachers who teach at private schools in the participating area to be members
of the STEM Master Teacher Corps, except that—
(A)not more than 5
percent of teachers selected as STEM Master Teacher Corps members shall be
teachers at private schools; and
(B)private school
teachers shall not be eligible for compensation described in subsection (a)(2),
discretionary resource funds described in subsection (a)(4), or for defrayment
funds described in subsection (a)(7).
(c)Corps member
requirementsEach teacher selected to be a member of the STEM
Master Teacher Corps who wishes to join the Corps shall enter into an agreement
with the eligible entity, under which the teacher shall, as a condition of
receiving the compensation described in subsection (a)(2) and the discretionary
resources described in subsection (a)(4), agree to carry out the
responsibilities of a master teacher as required by the eligible entity,
including—
(1)participating in
professional development activities offered by the program;
(2)networking and
sharing best practices and educational resources with other members of the STEM
Master Teacher Corps; and
(3)contributing to
the professional development of the teacher's colleagues, which may include
providing school-based professional support to other STEM teachers through
regular weekly professional development sessions and individual coaching, where
possible, leading professional learning communities, and taking on other
instructional leadership roles in the teacher's school, district, State, if
part of the participating area, or consortium.
(d)Collection for
Noncompliance
(1)Each eligible entity that receives a grant under this
chapter shall monitor whether each teacher the entity selects to be a member of
the STEM Master Teacher Corps is in compliance with the Corps member
requirements described in subsection (c).
(2)
(A)A teacher selected to be a member of the STEM Master
Teacher Corps shall repay the additional compensation provided for a school
year described in subsection (a)(2) to the eligible entity if—
(i)the entity finds
the teacher not in compliance with the Corps member requirements described in
subsection (c) and the entity determines the teacher should no longer be a
member of the Corps for such year; or
(ii)the teacher
withdraws during such year from membership in the Corps without an accepted
excuse, as determined by the eligible entity.
(B)Compensation
returned to the Treasury
(i)Except as provided in clause (ii), an eligible entity
that receives repaid compensation under subparagraph (A) shall return such
compensation to the United States Treasury.
(ii)An eligible entity that receives repaid compensation under
subparagraph (A) may retain a percentage, determined by the Secretary, of such
repayment to defray administrative costs associated with the collection.
2160.
(a)Administrative
and reporting costsOf the amounts appropriated for this chapter
for any fiscal year, the Secretary may use not more than 6 percent of the funds
appropriated for such fiscal year for administrative costs and report and
evaluation costs under this section, except that the Secretary may use not more
than 3 percent of the funds appropriated for such fiscal year for
administrative costs.
(b)
(1)Each eligible entity receiving a grant under this chapter
shall provide an annual report to the Secretary that—
(A)summarizes the
activities assisted under the grant and program outcomes; and
(B)includes, with
respect to each member of the STEM Master Teacher Corps, the following:
(i)The name of the
member.
(ii)The school at
which the member teaches and the location of such school.
(iii)The subject
area the teacher teaches.
(iv)The grade level
the teacher teaches.
(2)Each
eligible entity receiving a grant under this chapter shall publicize the
information described in paragraph (1)(B).
(c)The Secretary, acting through the Director of the
Institute of Education Sciences, shall—
(1)evaluate the
implementation and impact of the program under this chapter, particularly with
regard to the program’s success in achieving the purpose described in section
2155;
(2)identify optimal
strategies for the design, implementation, and continuing development of the
STEM Master Teacher Corps program; and
(3)identify best
practices for developing, supporting, and retaining STEM teachers based on
lessons learned from the program.
(d)The
Secretary shall disseminate findings from the evaluation conducted under
subsection (c) to the STEM education field and make the findings publicly
available.
(e)Not later than 4 years after the establishment of the
program under this chapter, and not later than 2 years thereafter, the
Secretary shall prepare and submit to the Committee on Education and the
Workforce and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate, a report
that summarizes—
(1)the activities
assisted under the program under this chapter;
(2)the outcomes of
the program; and
(3)any
recommendations regarding changes to, the termination of, or the continuation
and expansion of the program.
2161.Authorization
of appropriationsThere are
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this chapter $35,000,000 for fiscal
year 2012 and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding fiscal
years.
.