Full Text of SB2356 100th General Assembly
SB2356eng 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning education.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Grow
Your Own Teacher Education Act is | 5 | | amended by changing Sections 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 as follows: | 6 | | (110 ILCS 48/10) | 7 | | Sec. 10. Definitions. In this Act: | 8 | | "Accredited teacher preparation program" means a
| 9 | | regionally accredited, Illinois approved teacher education | 10 | | program authorized to
prepare individuals to fulfill all of the | 11 | | requirements to
receive an Illinois initial teaching | 12 | | certificate. | 13 | | "Cohort" means a group of teacher education candidates who | 14 | | are enrolled in and share experiences in the same program and | 15 | | are linked by their desire to become Illinois teachers in | 16 | | hard-to-staff schools and by their need for the services and | 17 | | supports offered by the Initiative. | 18 | | "Community organization" means a nonprofit organization | 19 | | that has a demonstrated capacity to train, develop, and | 20 | | organize parents and community leaders into a constituency that | 21 | | will hold the school and the school district accountable for | 22 | | achieving high academic standards; in addition to | 23 | | organizations with a geographic focus, "community |
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| 1 | | organization" includes general parent organizations, | 2 | | organizations of special education or bilingual education | 3 | | parents, and school employee unions. | 4 | | "Developmental classes" means classes in basic skill | 5 | | areas, such as mathematics and language arts that are | 6 | | prerequisite to, but not counted towards, degree requirements | 7 | | of a teacher preparation program.
| 8 | | "Eligible school" means a public elementary, middle, or | 9 | | secondary school in this State that serves a substantial | 10 | | percentage of low-income students and that is either hard to | 11 | | staff or has hard-to-staff teaching positions , including, but | 12 | | not limited to, an early childhood program licensed by the | 13 | | Department of Children and Family Services in which no less | 14 | | than 60% of the children it serves are receiving subsidized | 15 | | care under the Department of Human Services' Child Care | 16 | | Assistance Program, Head Start or Early Head Start Program, | 17 | | Preschool for All Program, or a prevention initiative .
| 18 | | "Hard-to-staff school" means a public elementary, middle, | 19 | | or secondary school in this State that, based on data compiled | 20 | | by the State Board of Education in conjunction with the Board | 21 | | of Higher Education, serves a substantial percentage of | 22 | | low-income students, as defined by the Board of Higher | 23 | | Education. | 24 | | "Hard-to-staff teaching position" means a teaching
| 25 | | category (such as special education, bilingual education, | 26 | | mathematics, or science)
in which statewide data compiled by |
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| 1 | | the State Board of Education
in conjunction with the Board of | 2 | | Higher Education indicates a multi-year pattern of substantial
| 3 | | teacher shortage or that has been identified as a critical need | 4 | | by the local school board.
| 5 | | "Initiative" means the Grow Your Own Teacher Education
| 6 | | Initiative created under this Act. | 7 | | "Para educator" means an individual with a history of
| 8 | | demonstrated accomplishments in school staff positions (such
| 9 | | as teacher assistants, school-community liaisons, school
| 10 | | clerks, and security aides) in schools that meet the definition | 11 | | of a hard-to-staff school under this Section.
| 12 | | "Parent and community leader" means an individual who has | 13 | | or had a child enrolled in a school or schools that meet the | 14 | | definition of a hard-to-staff school under this Section and who | 15 | | has a history of active involvement in the school or who has a | 16 | | history of working to improve schools serving a
substantial | 17 | | percentage of low-income students, including membership in a | 18 | | community organization. | 19 | | "Program" means a Grow Your Own Teacher preparation program
| 20 | | established by a consortium under this Act.
| 21 | | "Schools serving a substantial percentage of low-income
| 22 | | students" means schools that maintain any of grades | 23 | | pre-kindergarten through 8, in which at least 35% of the | 24 | | students are eligible to receive free or reduced-price lunches | 25 | | and schools that maintain any of grades 9 through 12, in which | 26 | | at least 25% of the students are eligible to receive free or |
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| 1 | | reduced price lunches. | 2 | | (Source: P.A. 98-1036, eff. 1-1-15 .) | 3 | | (110 ILCS 48/15) | 4 | | Sec. 15. Creation of Initiative. The Grow Your Own Teacher | 5 | | Education Initiative is created. Grow Your Own Illinois The | 6 | | Board of Higher Education shall administer the Initiative as a | 7 | | grant competition to fund consortia that will carry out Grow | 8 | | Your Own Teacher preparation programs.
| 9 | | (Source: P.A. 98-1036, eff. 1-1-15 .) | 10 | | (110 ILCS 48/20) | 11 | | Sec. 20. Selection of grantees. The Board of Higher | 12 | | Education shall , subject to appropriation, allocate funds to | 13 | | Grow Your Own Illinois for the purpose of administering the | 14 | | program and awarding award grants as needed to qualified | 15 | | consortia that reflect the distribution and diversity of | 16 | | hard-to-staff schools and hard-to-staff positions across this | 17 | | State. In awarding grants, Grow Your Own Illinois the Board of | 18 | | Higher Education shall select programs that successfully | 19 | | address Initiative criteria and that reflect a diversity of | 20 | | strategies in terms of serving urban areas, serving rural | 21 | | areas, the nature of the participating institutions of higher | 22 | | education, and the nature of hard-to-staff schools and
| 23 | | hard-to-staff teaching positions on which a program is focused.
| 24 | | Grow Your Own Illinois The Board of Higher Education shall |
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| 1 | | select , manage, and oversee consortia that meet the following | 2 | | requirements:
| 3 | | (1) A consortium shall be composed of at least one | 4 | | 4-year institution of higher education with an Illinois | 5 | | approved teacher preparation program, at least one school | 6 | | district or group of schools, and one or more community | 7 | | organizations. The consortium membership may also include | 8 | | a 2-year institution of higher education, a school employee | 9 | | union, or a regional office of education.
| 10 | | (2) The 4-year institution of higher education | 11 | | participating in the consortium shall have past, | 12 | | demonstrated success in preparing teachers for elementary | 13 | | or secondary schools serving a substantial percentage of | 14 | | low-income students. | 15 | | (3) The consortium shall focus on a clearly defined set | 16 | | of eligible schools that will participate in the program. | 17 | | The consortium shall articulate the steps that it will | 18 | | carry out in preparing teachers for its participating
| 19 | | schools and in preparing teachers for one or more | 20 | | hard-to-staff teaching positions in those
schools. | 21 | | (4) The consortium shall recruit potential candidates | 22 | | for the program and shall take into consideration when | 23 | | selecting a candidate whether the candidate: | 24 | | (A) holds a high school diploma or its equivalent; | 25 | | (B) meets either the definition of "parent and | 26 | | community leader" or the definition of "para educator" |
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| 1 | | contained in Section 10 of this Act; | 2 | | (C) has experienced an interruption in his or her | 3 | | college education; | 4 | | (D) exhibits a willingness to be a teacher in a | 5 | | hard-to-staff school with the goal of maintaining | 6 | | academic excellence; | 7 | | (E) shows an interest in postsecondary education | 8 | | and may hold an associate's degree, a bachelor's | 9 | | degree, or another postsecondary degree, but a | 10 | | postsecondary education is not required; | 11 | | (F) is a parent, a para educator, a community | 12 | | leader, or any other individual from a community with a | 13 | | hard-to-staff school; | 14 | | (G) commits to completing and passing all State | 15 | | standards, including the licensure test to obtain an | 16 | | educator license; | 17 | | (H) shows a willingness to set high standards of | 18 | | performance for himself or herself and students; and | 19 | | (I) demonstrates commitment to the program by: | 20 | | (i) maintaining a cumulative grade point | 21 | | average of at least a 2.5 on a 4.0 scale (or the | 22 | | equivalent as determined by the Board of Higher | 23 | | Education); | 24 | | (ii) attending monthly cohort meetings; and | 25 | | (iii) applying for financial aid from all | 26 | | other financial aid resources before applying for |
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| 1 | | assistance from the program. | 2 | | (5) The consortium shall employ effective procedures | 3 | | for teaching the skills and knowledge needed to prepare | 4 | | highly competent teachers. Professional preparation shall | 5 | | include on-going direct experience in target schools and | 6 | | evaluation of this experience. | 7 | | (6) The consortium shall offer the program to cohorts | 8 | | of candidates, as defined in Section 10 of this Act, on a | 9 | | schedule that enables candidates to work full time while | 10 | | participating in the program and allows para educators to | 11 | | continue in their current positions. In any fiscal year in | 12 | | which an appropriation for the Initiative is made, the
| 13 | | consortium shall guarantee that support will be available | 14 | | to an admitted cohort for the cohort's education for that | 15 | | fiscal year. At the beginning of the Initiative, programs | 16 | | that are already operating and existing cohorts of | 17 | | candidates under this model shall be eligible for funding. | 18 | | (7) The institutions of higher education participating | 19 | | in the consortium shall document and agree to expend the | 20 | | same amount of funds in implementing the program that these | 21 | | institutions spend per student on similar educational | 22 | | programs. Grants received by the consortium shall | 23 | | supplement and not supplant these amounts. | 24 | | (8) Grow Your Own Illinois The Board of Higher | 25 | | Education shall establish and oversee additional criteria | 26 | | for review of proposals, including criteria that address |
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| 1 | | the following issues: | 2 | | (A) Previous experience of the institutions of | 3 | | higher education in preparing candidates for | 4 | | hard-to-staff schools and positions and in working | 5 | | with students with non-traditional backgrounds. | 6 | | (B) The quality of the implementation plan, | 7 | | including strategies for overcoming institutional | 8 | | barriers to the progress of non-traditional | 9 | | candidates. | 10 | | (C) If a community college is a participant, the | 11 | | nature and extent of existing articulation agreements | 12 | | and guarantees between the community college and the | 13 | | 4-year institution of higher education. | 14 | | (D) The number of candidates to be educated in the | 15 | | planned cohort or cohorts and the capacity of the | 16 | | consortium for adding cohorts in future cycles. | 17 | | (E) Experience of the community organization or | 18 | | organizations in organizing parents and community | 19 | | leaders to achieve school improvement and a strong | 20 | | relational school culture. | 21 | | (F) The qualifications of the person or persons | 22 | | designated by the 4-year institution of higher | 23 | | education to be responsible for cohort support and the | 24 | | development of a shared learning and social | 25 | | environment among candidates. | 26 | | (G) The consortium's plan for collective |
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| 1 | | consortium decision-making, involving all consortium | 2 | | members, including mechanisms for candidate input. | 3 | | (H) The consortium's plan for direct impact of the | 4 | | program on the quality of education in the eligible | 5 | | schools. | 6 | | (I) The relevance of the curriculum to the needs of | 7 | | the eligible schools and positions, and the use in | 8 | | curriculum and instructional planning of principles | 9 | | for effective education for adults. | 10 | | (J) The availability of classes under the program | 11 | | in places and times accessible to the candidates. | 12 | | (K) Provision of a level of performance to be | 13 | | maintained by candidates as a condition of continuing | 14 | | in the program. | 15 | | (L) The plan of the 4-year institution of higher | 16 | | education to ensure that candidates take advantage of | 17 | | existing financial aid resources before using the loan | 18 | | funds described in Section 25 of this Act. | 19 | | (M) The availability of supportive services, | 20 | | including, but not limited to, counseling, tutoring, | 21 | | transportation, technology and technology support, and | 22 | | child care. | 23 | | (N) A plan for continued participation of | 24 | | graduates of the program in a program of support for at | 25 | | least 2 years, including mentoring and group meetings. | 26 | | (O) A plan for testing and qualitative evaluation |
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| 1 | | of candidates' teaching skills that ensures that | 2 | | graduates of the program are as prepared for teaching | 3 | | as other individuals completing the institution of | 4 | | higher education's preparation program for the | 5 | | certificate sought. | 6 | | (P) A plan for internal evaluation that provides | 7 | | reports at least yearly on the progress of candidates | 8 | | towards graduation and the impact of the program on the | 9 | | target schools and their communities. | 10 | | (Q) Contributions from schools, school districts, | 11 | | and other consortia members to the program, including | 12 | | stipends for candidates during their student teaching. | 13 | | (R) Consortium commitment for sustaining the | 14 | | program over time, as evidenced by plans for reduced | 15 | | requirements for external funding, in subsequent | 16 | | cycles.
| 17 | | (S) The inclusion in the planned program of | 18 | | strategies derived from community organizing that will | 19 | | help candidates develop tools for working with parents | 20 | | and other community members.
| 21 | | (Source: P.A. 98-1036, eff. 1-1-15 .) | 22 | | (110 ILCS 48/25) | 23 | | Sec. 25. Expenditures under the Initiative. | 24 | | (a) Every program under the Initiative shall implement a | 25 | | program of forgivable loans to cover any portion of tuition, |
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| 1 | | books, and fees of candidates under the program in excess of | 2 | | the candidates' grants-in-aid. All students admitted to a | 3 | | cohort shall be eligible for a forgivable student loan. Loans | 4 | | shall be fully forgiven if a graduate completes 5 years of | 5 | | service in hard-to-staff schools
or hard-to-staff teaching | 6 | | positions, with partial forgiveness for shorter periods of | 7 | | service. Grow Your Own Illinois The Board of Higher Education | 8 | | shall establish standards for the approval of requests for | 9 | | waivers or deferrals from individuals to waive this obligation | 10 | | and . The Board of Higher Education shall also define standards | 11 | | for the fiscal management of these loan funds. | 12 | | (b) Grow Your Own Illinois The Board of Higher Education | 13 | | shall award grants under the Initiative in such a way as to | 14 | | provide the required support for a cohort of candidates for any | 15 | | fiscal year in which an appropriation for the Initiative is | 16 | | made. Program budgets must show expenditures and needed funds | 17 | | for the entire period that candidates are expected to be | 18 | | enrolled. | 19 | | (c) No funds under the Initiative may be used to supplant | 20 | | the average per-capita expenditures by the institution of | 21 | | higher education for candidates. | 22 | | (d) Where necessary, program budgets shall include the | 23 | | costs of child care and other indirect expenses, such as | 24 | | transportation, tutoring, technology, and technology support, | 25 | | necessary to permit candidates to maintain their class | 26 | | schedules. Grant funds may be used by any member of a |
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| 1 | | consortium to offset such costs, and the services may be | 2 | | provided by the community organization or organizations, by any | 3 | | other member of the consortium, or by independent contractors. | 4 | | (e) The institution of higher education may expend grant | 5 | | funds to cover the additional costs of offering classes in | 6 | | community settings and for tutoring services. | 7 | | (f) The community organization or organizations may | 8 | | receive a portion of the grant money for the expenses of | 9 | | recruitment, community orientation, and counseling of | 10 | | potential candidates, for providing space in the community, and | 11 | | for working with school personnel to facilitate individual work | 12 | | experiences and support of candidates. | 13 | | (g) The school district or school employee union or both | 14 | | may receive a portion of the grant money for expenses of | 15 | | supporting the work experiences of candidates and providing | 16 | | mentors for graduates.
Notwithstanding the provisions of | 17 | | Section 10-20.15 of the School Code, school districts may also | 18 | | use these or other applicable public funds to pay participants | 19 | | in programs under the Initiative for student teaching required | 20 | | by an accredited teacher preparation program. | 21 | | (h) One or more members of the consortium may expend funds | 22 | | to cover the salary of a site-based cohort coordinator. | 23 | | (i) Grant funds may also be expended to pay directly for | 24 | | required developmental classes for candidates beginning a | 25 | | program.
| 26 | | (Source: P.A. 98-1036, eff. 1-1-15 .) |
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| 1 | | (110 ILCS 48/30) | 2 | | Sec. 30. Implementation of Initiative. Grow Your Own | 3 | | Illinois The Board of Higher Education may, if it chooses, | 4 | | award and administer a small number of planning grants during | 5 | | any
fiscal year to potential consortia. | 6 | | (Source: P.A. 98-1036, eff. 1-1-15 .)
| 7 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect July 1, | 8 | | 2018.
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