Rep. Esther Golar

Filed: 4/2/2014

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 3948

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 3948 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Grow Your Own Teacher Education Act is
5amended by changing Sections 5, 10, 13, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, and
690 as follows:
 
7    (110 ILCS 48/5)
8    Sec. 5. Purpose. The Grow Your Own Teacher preparation
9programs established under this Act shall comprise a major new
10statewide initiative, known as the Grow Your Own Teacher
11Education Initiative, to prepare highly skilled, committed
12teachers who will teach in hard-to-staff schools, including
13within the Department of Juvenile Justice School District, and
14hard-to-staff teaching positions and who will remain in these
15schools for substantial periods of time.
16     The Grow Your Own Teacher Education Initiative shall help

 

 

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1to create a statewide pipeline of teachers who are likely
2effectively recruit and prepare parent and community leaders
3and paraeducators to become effective teachers statewide in
4hard-to-staff schools serving a substantial percentage of
5low-income students and hard-to-staff teaching positions in
6schools serving a substantial percentage of low-income
7students. Further, the Initiative shall increase the diversity
8of teachers, including diversity based on race and ethnicity.
9    The Grow Your Own Teacher Education Initiative shall ensure
10educational rigor by effectively preparing candidates in
11accredited bachelor's degree programs in teaching, through
12which graduates shall meet the requirements to secure an
13Illinois initial teaching certificate.
14    The goal of the Grow Your Own Teacher Education Initiative
15is to add 1,000 teachers to low-income, hard-to-staff Illinois
16schools by 2016.
17(Source: P.A. 95-476, eff. 1-1-08; 96-144, eff. 8-7-09; 96-414,
18eff. 1-1-10; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10.)
 
19    (110 ILCS 48/10)
20    Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act:
21    "Accredited teacher preparation program" means a
22regionally accredited, Illinois approved teacher education
23program authorized to prepare individuals to fulfill all of the
24requirements to receive an Illinois initial teaching
25certificate.

 

 

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1    "Cohort" means a group of teacher education candidates who
2are enrolled in and share experiences in the same program and
3are linked by their desire to become Illinois teachers in
4hard-to-staff schools and by their need for the services and
5supports offered by the Initiative.
6    "Community organization" means a nonprofit organization
7that has a demonstrated capacity to train, develop, and
8organize parents and community leaders into a constituency that
9will hold the school and the school district accountable for
10achieving high academic standards; in addition to
11organizations with a geographic focus, "community
12organization" includes general parent organizations,
13organizations of special education or bilingual education
14parents, and school employee unions.
15    "Developmental classes" means classes in basic skill
16areas, such as mathematics and language arts that are
17prerequisite to, but not counted towards, degree requirements
18of a teacher preparation program.
19    "Eligible school" means a public elementary, middle, or
20secondary school in this State that serves a substantial
21percentage of low-income students and that is either hard to
22staff or has hard-to-staff teaching positions.
23    "Hard-to-staff school" means a public elementary, middle,
24or secondary school in this State that, based on data compiled
25by the State Board of Education in conjunction with the Board
26of Higher Education, serves a substantial percentage of

 

 

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1low-income students, as defined by the Board of Higher
2Education State Board.
3    "Hard-to-staff teaching position" means a teaching
4category (such as special education, bilingual education,
5mathematics, or science) in which statewide data compiled by
6the State Board of Education in conjunction with the Board of
7Higher Education indicates a multi-year pattern of substantial
8teacher shortage or that has been identified as a critical need
9by the local school board.
10    "Initiative" means the Grow Your Own Teacher Education
11Initiative created under this Act.
12    "Para educator" "Paraeducator" means an individual with a
13history of demonstrated accomplishments in school staff
14positions (such as teacher assistants, school-community
15liaisons, school clerks, and security aides) in schools that
16meet the definition of a hard-to-staff school under this
17Section.
18    "Parent and community leader" means an individual who has
19or had a child enrolled in a school or schools that meet the
20definition of a hard-to-staff school under this Section and who
21has a history of active involvement in the school or who has a
22history of working to improve schools serving a substantial
23percentage of low-income students, including membership in a
24community organization.
25    "Program" means a Grow Your Own Teacher preparation program
26established by a consortium under this Act.

 

 

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1    "Schools serving a substantial percentage of low-income
2students" means schools that maintain any of grades
3pre-kindergarten through 8, in which at least 35% of the
4students are eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunches
5and schools that maintain any of grades 9 through 12, in which
6at least 25% of the students are eligible to receive free or
7reduced price lunches.
8    "State Board" means the Board of Higher Education.
9(Source: P.A. 95-476, eff. 1-1-08; 96-144, eff. 8-7-09;
1096-1393, eff. 7-29-10.)
 
11    (110 ILCS 48/13)
12    Sec. 13. Transfer of powers and duties to the Board of
13Higher Education. On July 1, 2010, all powers and duties of
14the State Board of Education under this Act were shall be
15transferred to the Board of Higher Education. All rules,
16standards, guidelines, and procedures adopted by the State
17Board of Education under this Act shall continue in effect as
18the rules, standards, guidelines, and procedures of the Board
19of Higher Education, until they are modified or abolished by
20the Board of Higher Education.
21(Source: P.A. 96-1393, eff. 7-29-10.)
 
22    (110 ILCS 48/15)
23    Sec. 15. Creation of Initiative. The Grow Your Own Teacher
24Education Initiative is created. The Board of Higher Education

 

 

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1State Board shall administer the Initiative as a grant
2competition to fund consortia that will carry out Grow Your Own
3Teacher preparation programs.
4(Source: P.A. 93-802, eff. 1-1-05; 94-979, eff. 6-30-06.)
 
5    (110 ILCS 48/20)
6    Sec. 20. Selection of grantees. The Board of Higher
7Education State Board shall award grants to qualified consortia
8that reflect the distribution and diversity of hard-to-staff
9schools and hard-to-staff positions across this State. In
10awarding grants, the Board of Higher Education State Board
11shall select programs that successfully address Initiative
12criteria and that reflect a diversity of strategies in terms of
13serving urban areas, serving rural areas, the nature of the
14participating institutions of higher education, and the nature
15of hard-to-staff schools and hard-to-staff teaching positions
16on which a program is focused.
17    The Board of Higher Education State Board shall select
18consortia that meet the following requirements:
19        (1) A consortium shall be composed of at least one
20    4-year institution of higher education with an Illinois
21    approved teacher preparation program, at least one school
22    district or group of schools, and one or more community
23    organizations. The consortium membership may also include
24    a 2-year institution of higher education, a school employee
25    union, or a regional office of education.

 

 

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1        (2) The 4-year institution of higher education
2    participating in the consortium shall have past,
3    demonstrated success in preparing teachers for elementary
4    or secondary schools serving a substantial percentage of
5    low-income students.
6        (3) The consortium shall focus on a clearly defined set
7    of eligible schools that will participate in the program.
8    The consortium shall articulate the steps that it will
9    carry out in preparing teachers for its participating
10    schools and in preparing teachers for one or more
11    hard-to-staff teaching positions in those schools.
12        (4) The consortium shall recruit potential candidates
13    for the program and shall take into consideration the
14    following traits when selecting a candidate: A candidate in
15    a program under the Initiative must hold a high school
16    diploma or its equivalent, must meet either the definition
17    of "parent and community leader" or the definition of
18    "paraeducator" contained in Section 10 of this Act, must
19    not have attended college right after high school or must
20    have experienced an interruption in his or her college
21    education, and does not hold a bachelor's degree.
22            (A) exhibits a strong desire to be a teacher in a
23        hard-to-staff school with the passion for academic
24        excellence and the commitment to teach;
25            (B) shows an interest in postsecondary education
26        and may hold an associate's degree, a bachelor's

 

 

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1        degree, or another postsecondary degree, but a
2        postsecondary education is not required;
3            (C) exhibits a passion to become a teacher and is a
4        parent, a para educator, a community leader, or any
5        other individual from a community with a hard-to-staff
6        school;
7            (D) commits to completing and passing all State
8        standards, including the licensure test to obtain an
9        educator license;
10            (E) possesses a passion for children and teaching;
11            (F) communicates effectively with students,
12        parents, and others; and
13            (G) shows a willingness to set high standards of
14        performance for himself or herself and students.
15        (5) The consortium shall employ effective procedures
16    for teaching the skills and knowledge needed to prepare
17    highly competent teachers. Professional preparation shall
18    include on-going direct experience in target schools and
19    evaluation of this experience.
20        (6) The consortium shall offer the program to cohorts
21    of candidates, as defined in Section 10 of this Act, on a
22    schedule that enables candidates to work full time while
23    participating in the program and allows para educators
24    paraeducators to continue in their current positions. In
25    any fiscal year in which an appropriation for the
26    Initiative is made, the consortium shall guarantee that

 

 

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1    support will be available to an admitted cohort for the
2    cohort's education for that fiscal year. At the beginning
3    of the Initiative, programs that are already operating and
4    existing cohorts of candidates under this model shall be
5    eligible for funding.
6        (7) The institutions of higher education participating
7    in the consortium shall document and agree to expend the
8    same amount of funds in implementing the program that these
9    institutions spend per student on similar educational
10    programs. Grants received by the consortium shall
11    supplement and not supplant these amounts.
12        (8) The Board of Higher Education State Board shall
13    establish additional criteria for review of proposals,
14    including criteria that address the following issues:
15            (A) Previous experience of the institutions of
16        higher education in preparing candidates for
17        hard-to-staff schools and positions and in working
18        with students with non-traditional backgrounds.
19            (B) The quality of the implementation plan,
20        including strategies for overcoming institutional
21        barriers to the progress of non-traditional
22        candidates.
23            (C) If a community college is a participant, the
24        nature and extent of existing articulation agreements
25        and guarantees between the community college and the
26        4-year institution of higher education.

 

 

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1            (D) The number of candidates to be educated in the
2        planned cohort or cohorts and the capacity of the
3        consortium for adding cohorts in future cycles.
4            (E) Experience of the community organization or
5        organizations in organizing parents and community
6        leaders to achieve school improvement and a strong
7        relational school culture.
8            (F) The qualifications of the person or persons
9        designated by the 4-year institution of higher
10        education to be responsible for cohort support and the
11        development of a shared learning and social
12        environment among candidates.
13            (G) The consortium's plan for collective
14        consortium decision-making, involving all consortium
15        members, including mechanisms for candidate input.
16            (H) The consortium's plan for direct impact of the
17        program on the quality of education in the eligible
18        schools.
19            (I) The relevance of the curriculum to the needs of
20        the eligible schools and positions, and the use in
21        curriculum and instructional planning of principles
22        for effective education for adults.
23            (J) The availability of classes under the program
24        in places and times accessible to the candidates.
25            (K) Provision of a level of performance to be
26        maintained by candidates as a condition of continuing

 

 

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1        in the program.
2            (L) The plan of the 4-year institution of higher
3        education to ensure that candidates take advantage of
4        existing financial aid resources before using the loan
5        funds described in Section 25 of this Act.
6            (M) The availability of supportive services,
7        including, but not limited to, counseling, tutoring,
8        transportation, technology and technology support, and
9        child care.
10            (N) A plan for continued participation of
11        graduates of the program in a program of support for at
12        least 2 years, including mentoring and group meetings.
13            (O) A plan for testing and qualitative evaluation
14        of candidates' teaching skills that ensures that
15        graduates of the program are as prepared for teaching
16        as other individuals completing the institution of
17        higher education's preparation program for the
18        certificate sought.
19            (P) A plan for internal evaluation that provides
20        reports at least yearly on the progress of candidates
21        towards graduation and the impact of the program on the
22        target schools and their communities.
23            (Q) Contributions from schools, school districts,
24        and other consortia members to the program, including
25        stipends for candidates during their student teaching.
26            (R) Consortium commitment for sustaining the

 

 

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1        program over time, as evidenced by plans for reduced
2        requirements for external funding, in subsequent
3        cycles.
4            (S) The inclusion in the planned program of
5        strategies derived from community organizing that will
6        help candidates develop tools for working with parents
7        and other community members.
8(Source: P.A. 95-476, eff. 1-1-08; 96-144, eff. 8-7-09.)
 
9    (110 ILCS 48/25)
10    Sec. 25. Expenditures under the Initiative.
11    (a) Every program under the Initiative shall implement a
12program of forgivable loans to cover any portion of tuition,
13books, and fees of candidates under the program in excess of
14the candidates' grants-in-aid. All students admitted to a
15cohort shall be eligible for a forgivable student loan. Loans
16shall be fully forgiven if a graduate completes 5 years of
17service in hard-to-staff schools or hard-to-staff teaching
18positions, with partial forgiveness for shorter periods of
19service. The Board of Higher Education State Board shall
20establish standards for the approval of requests for waivers or
21deferrals from individuals to waive this obligation. The Board
22of Higher Education State Board shall also define standards for
23the fiscal management of these loan funds.
24    (b) The Board of Higher Education State Board shall award
25grants under the Initiative in such a way as to provide the

 

 

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1required support for a cohort of candidates for any fiscal year
2in which an appropriation for the Initiative is made. Program
3budgets must show expenditures and needed funds for the entire
4period that candidates are expected to be enrolled.
5    (c) No funds under the Initiative may be used to supplant
6the average per-capita expenditures by the institution of
7higher education for candidates.
8    (d) Where necessary, program budgets shall include the
9costs of child care and other indirect expenses, such as
10transportation, tutoring, technology, and technology support,
11necessary to permit candidates to maintain their class
12schedules. Grant funds may be used by any member of a
13consortium to offset such costs, and the services may be
14provided by the community organization or organizations, by any
15other member of the consortium, or by independent contractors.
16    (e) The institution of higher education may expend grant
17funds to cover the additional costs of offering classes in
18community settings and for tutoring services.
19    (f) The community organization or organizations may
20receive a portion of the grant money for the expenses of
21recruitment, community orientation, and counseling of
22potential candidates, for providing space in the community, and
23for working with school personnel to facilitate individual work
24experiences and support of candidates.
25    (g) The school district or school employee union or both
26may receive a portion of the grant money for expenses of

 

 

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1supporting the work experiences of candidates and providing
2mentors for graduates. Notwithstanding the provisions of
3Section 10-20.15 of the School Code, school districts may also
4use these or other applicable public funds to pay participants
5in programs under the Initiative for student teaching required
6by an accredited teacher preparation program.
7    (h) One or more members of the consortium may expend funds
8to cover the salary of a site-based cohort coordinator.
9    (i) Grant funds may also be expended to pay directly for
10required developmental classes for candidates beginning a
11program.
12(Source: P.A. 95-476, eff. 1-1-08; 96-144, eff. 8-7-09.)
 
13    (110 ILCS 48/30)
14    Sec. 30. Implementation of Initiative. The State Board
15shall develop guidelines and application procedures for the
16Initiative in fiscal year 2011. The Board of Higher Education
17State Board may, if it chooses, award a small number of
18planning grants during any fiscal year to potential consortia.
19Other than existing cohorts, the first programs under the
20Initiative shall be awarded grants in such a way as to allow
21candidates to begin their work at the beginning of the
222006-2007 school year.
23(Source: P.A. 96-1393, eff. 7-29-10.)
 
24    (110 ILCS 48/35)

 

 

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1    Sec. 35. Independent program evaluation. The Board of
2Higher Education State Board shall contract for an independent
3evaluation of program implementation by each of its
4participating consortia and of the impact of each program,
5including the extent of candidate persistence in program
6enrollment, acceptance as an education major in a 4-year
7institution of higher education, completion of a bachelor's
8degree in teaching, obtaining a teaching position in a target
9school or similar school, subsequent effectiveness as a
10teacher, and persistence in teaching in a target school or
11similar school. The evaluation shall assess the Initiative's
12overall effectiveness and shall identify particular program
13strategies that are especially effective.
14(Source: P.A. 93-802, eff. 1-1-05; 94-979, eff. 6-30-06.)
 
15    (110 ILCS 48/90)
16    Sec. 90. Rules. The Board of Higher Education State Board
17may adopt any rules necessary to carry out its responsibilities
18under this Act.
19(Source: P.A. 93-802, eff. 1-1-05.)".