Addressing Teacher Shortages Act of 2019

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 2367 To support the preparation and retention of outstanding educators in all fields to ensure a bright future for children and youth in under-resourced and underserved communities in the United States, and for other pur- poses. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JULY 31, 2019 Ms. SMITH (for herself and Mr. JONES) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To support the preparation and retention of outstanding educators in all fields to ensure a bright future for children and youth in under-resourced and underserved communities in the United States, and for other pur- poses. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Addressing Teacher 4 Shortages Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •S 2367 IS (1) Currently, there are not enough teachers to 1 meet the demand for teachers in all locations and in 2 all fields, creating a teacher shortage. The teacher 3 shortage is a result of growing student enrollment, 4 shrinking pupil-teacher ratios, declining enrollment 5 in teacher preparation programs, and high levels of 6 attrition from the field. Teacher shortages are par- 7 ticularly acute in rural schools and in certain subject 8 areas, such as the fields of STEM, special education, 9 and English as a second language. Additionally, 10 there is a lack of racial diversity in the teaching 11 workforce. 12 (2) Rural schools serve 18 percent of all stu- 13 dents in the United States, including over 9,000,000 14 students in rural public elementary and secondary 15 schools. More than 40 percent of all small, rural 16 local educational agencies in the United States 17 struggle with adequately staffing their schools. 18 These personnel shortages include difficulties both in 19 recruiting and retaining educators. Shortages are es- 20 pecially pronounced in special education and STEM 21 fields, when compared to urban teacher labor mar- 22 kets. 23 (3) Rural communities face unique challenges 24 in recruiting and retaining teachers for reasons such 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •S 2367 IS as funding, limited teacher supply, and geographic 1 isolation. Rural schools often experience difficulty 2 hiring and high turnover due to inadequate re- 3 sources, lower salaries, and poor working conditions. 4 (4) The demand for teachers is going unmet in 5 some subject areas more so than others. In 2017– 6 2018, 48 States reported shortages in mathematics, 7 46 in special education, 43 in science, 41 in foreign 8 language, and 31 in English as a second language. 9 (5) Although the share of teachers of color has 10 been increasing, there is a gap in racial diversity be- 11 tween teachers of color who comprise 20 percent of 12 the teacher workforce and students of color who ac- 13 count for 50 percent of students. 14 (6) Data from the 2015–2016 National Teacher 15 and Principal Survey show that millennial teachers 16 are less likely to be racially diverse than the previous 17 generation of Generation X teachers, suggesting that 18 racial diversity in the teaching workforce could be 19 declining in the future. 20 (7) Research shows that better prepared teach- 21 ers stay longer in the profession and are more effec- 22 tive in improving student achievement. For example, 23 an analysis of the nationally representative Schools 24 and Staffing Survey found that new recruits who 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •S 2367 IS had a semester or more of practice teaching prior to 1 employment were more than 3 times less likely to 2 leave teaching after a year than those who had no 3 practice teaching. 4 (8) Data from the 2012–2013 Schools and 5 Staffing Survey show that the attrition rate for 6 teachers is approximately 8 percent. It was higher 7 for rural teachers, at 8.4 percent, than for suburban 8 and urban teachers, at 7.3 and 7.9 percent, respec- 9 tively. This high attrition rate is costly for local edu- 10 cational agencies, with the savings of replacing high- 11 er-earning, more experienced teachers mitigated by 12 replacement costs. 13 (9) High-quality mentoring and induction pro- 14 grams can offer support to teacher candidates and 15 novice teachers throughout the teacher preparation 16 and school placement experience, improving the like- 17 lihood that they will complete the training and cer- 18 tification process and remain in the profession. Evi- 19 dence-based mentoring and induction programs have 20 been shown to increase retention, accelerate the pro- 21 fessional learning of novice teachers, and improve 22 student achievement. 23 (10) Teacher residencies create long-term bene- 24 fits for local educational agencies, schools, and stu- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •S 2367 IS dents. Research suggests that residencies bring 1 greater gender and racial diversity into the teaching 2 workforce and have significantly higher retention 3 rates for graduates than traditional preparation pro- 4 grams. 5 (11) Grow Your Own teacher preparation mod- 6 els provide a promising solution for hard-to-staff 7 schools, such as those in rural communities. These 8 models help to recruit graduates of local schools and 9 members of the school’s community into the teach- 10 ing profession. 11 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 12 In this Act: 13 (1) GENERAL ESEA DEFINITIONS.—The terms 14 ‘‘dual or concurrent enrollment program’’, ‘‘elemen- 15 tary school’’, ‘‘local educational agency’’, and ‘‘sec- 16 ondary school’’ have the meanings given the terms 17 in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary 18 Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801). 19 (2) 2+2 PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘2+2 program’’ 20 means a partnership between a junior or community 21 college, as defined in section 312 of the Higher Edu- 22 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1058), and a 4-year 23 degree-granting institution of higher education in 24 which teacher candidates can begin teacher prepara- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •S 2367 IS tion in the junior or community college and fully 1 transfer their credits to the 4-year institution of 2 higher education, where the students complete their 3 teacher preparation. 4 (3) CERTIFIED TEACHER.—The term ‘‘certified 5 teacher’’ means an individual who possesses a docu- 6 ment certifying that the individual has met the full 7 requirements of a State for employment as a teacher 8 in the public schools of that State. 9 (4) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti- 10 ty’’ means a local educational agency (including an 11 entity described in subparagraph (B), (C), (D), or 12 (E) of section 8101(30) of the Elementary and Sec- 13 ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 14 7801(30))) or a consortium of such agencies. 15 (5) GROW YOUR OWN PROGRAM.—The term 16 ‘‘Grow Your Own program’’ means a program that 17 works to recruit graduates of local schools and mem- 18 bers of the school’s community into the teaching 19 profession of a school. 20 (6) HISTORICALLY BLACK COLLEGE OR UNI- 21 VERSITY.—The term ‘‘historically Black college or 22 university’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘part B 23 institution’’ under section 322 of the Higher Edu- 24 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1061). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •S 2367 IS (7) INDUCTION PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘induc- 1 tion program’’ has the meaning given the term in 2 section 200(14) of the Higher Education Act of 3 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021(14)), except that— 4 (A) the high-quality and structured teacher 5 mentoring component described in subpara- 6 graph (A) of such section shall be led by a 7 qualified mentor who teaches in the same or 8 similar field, grade, or subject as the mentee; 9 (B) the opportunities for new teachers de- 10 scribed in subparagraph (D) of such section 11 shall include opportunities for observation of, 12 and feedback from, teacher mentors, faculty, 13 and researchers; 14 (C) the faculty included in the program, as 15 described in subparagraph (F) of such section, 16 shall also model personalized instruction; 17 (D) the interdisciplinary collaboration de- 18 scribed in subparagraph (G) of such section 19 shall include preparation regarding the develop- 20 ment, analysis, and use of formative, interim, 21 and summative assessments; 22 (E) the assistance provided under subpara- 23 graph (H) of such section with respect to stu- 24 dent achievement data shall also include assist- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •S 2367 IS ance with understanding classroom engagement 1 data (such as attendance and discipline rates 2 and other measures of school climate), and with 3 understanding the applicability of both types of 4 data to classroom instruction and design; and 5 (F) the observation and evaluation oppor- 6 tunities under subparagraph (I) of such section 7 shall be conducted in order to inform efforts to 8 support new teachers and improve their prac- 9 tice. 10 (8) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The 11 term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the 12 meaning given the term in section 101(a) of the 13 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)). 14 (9) QUALIFIED MENTOR TEACHER.—The term 15 ‘‘qualified mentor teacher’’ means an educator 16 who— 17 (A) meets a minimum set of qualification 18 standards based in part on State-determined 19 measures of teacher effectiveness; and 20 (B) is selected by the grantee to— 21 (i) host a teacher candidate mentee 22 during clinical practice or residency in the 23 classroom of the educator during a teacher 24 preparation program, or provide induction 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •S 2367 IS support to a newly certified teacher mentee 1 during the first 2 years of employment 2 after completion of a teacher preparation 3 program (including clinical practice); 4 (ii) provide support for a teacher can- 5 didate mentee during clinical practice or a 6 teacher residency program, or a beginning 7 teacher mentee during an induction pro- 8 gram, including information on the re- 9 sources and support based at the school 10 and the local educational agency serving 11 the school; 12 (iii) establish a role model relationship 13 for a mentee; 14 (iv) observe the mentee’s teaching 15 methods in classroom settings and be ob- 16 served modeling best practices; 17 (v) provide mentoring to a mentee 18 teaching in the same field, grade, or sub- 19 ject; and 20 (vi) promote empirically based prac- 21 tice of, and scientifically valid research on, 22 where applicable— 23 (I) teaching and learning; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •S 2367 IS (II) assessment of student learn- 1 ing; 2 (III) the development of teaching 3 skills through the use of instructional 4 and behavioral interventions; and 5 (IV) the improvement of the ca- 6 pacity of the mentees to create inclu- 7 sive learning environments and meas- 8 urably advance student learning 9 among diverse learners. 10 (10) RURAL AREA.—The term ‘‘rural area’’ has 11 the meaning given the term in section 343(a)(13)(A) 12 of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development 13 Act (7 U.S.C. 1991(a)(13)(A)). 14 (11) RURAL SCHOOL DISTRICT.—The term 15 ‘‘rural school district’’ means a school district that 16 serves one or more schools located in a rural area. 17 (12) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 18 means the Secretary of Education. 19 (13) STEM.—The term ‘‘STEM’’ means 20 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. 21 (14) TEACHING RESIDENCY PROGRAM.—The 22 term ‘‘teaching residency program’’ has the meaning 23 given the term in section 200 of the Higher Edu- 24 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021), except that 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •S 2367 IS such term shall not include the requirement that the 1 prospective teacher acquire a master’s degree prior 2 to completion of the program, but instead shall earn 3 a bachelor’s or a master’s degree prior to completion 4 of the program. 5 SEC. 4. ADDRESSING TEACHER SHORTAGES PROGRAM. 6 (a) ADDRESSING TEACHER SHORTAGES PROGRAM 7 ESTABLISHED.— 8 (1) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 9 (A) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made 10 available to carry out this Act, the Secretary 11 shall establish an Addressing Teacher Short- 12 ages Program, through which the Secretary 13 shall award grants, on a competitive basis, to 14 eligible entities to enable the eligible entities to 15 carry out activities described in subsection (d) 16 in continuous consultation with the schools 17 served by the eligible entity. 18 (B) PLANNING GRANTS.—Notwithstanding 19 subparagraph (A), the Secretary may use funds 20 made available under this section, and not re- 21 quired for purposes of subsection (c)(2), to 22 award, on a competitive basis, 1-year planning 23 grants to eligible entities that have not received 24 grants under subparagraph (A), to assist with 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:03 Aug 08, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S2367.IS S2367 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •S 2367 IS the costs of preparing and submitting an appli- 1 cation under subsection (b). 2 (2) DURATION.—A grant awarded under para- 3 graph (1)(A)— 4 (A) shall be for a period of at least 5 5 years; and 6 (B) may be renewed if the eligible entity 7 demonstrates sufficient positive outcomes as de- 8 scribed in section 5 and evidence of potential 9 for continued success in achieving the goals of 10 the initial grant. 11 (b) APPLICATION.— 12 (1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible entity desiring a 13 grant under subsection [Text truncated for display. 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