Full Text of SB2975 99th General Assembly
SB2975enr 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | SB2975 Enrolled | | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 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 School Code is amended by adding Section | 5 | | 2-3.80b as follows: | 6 | | (105 ILCS 5/2-3.80b new) | 7 | | Sec. 2-3.80b. Agriculture education teacher grant program. | 8 | | (a) As used in this Section: | 9 | | "New agriculture education program" means an agriculture | 10 | | education program approved by the State Board of Education in a | 11 | | school district that has not had an agriculture education | 12 | | program for a period of 10 years or more prior to the date of | 13 | | application for a grant under this Section. | 14 | | "Personal services cost" means the cost of a teacher | 15 | | providing 60 additional days, which shall mean 400 additional | 16 | | hours, outside the teacher's regularly scheduled teaching | 17 | | duties for the benefit of agriculture education. The 400 | 18 | | additional hours shall be any activity that is to the benefit | 19 | | of agriculture education, as defined by the State Board of | 20 | | Education by rule, regardless of the time of year the activity | 21 | | occurs. | 22 | | (b) Subject to appropriation to the State Board of | 23 | | Education, there is created an agriculture education teacher |
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 2 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | grant program to fund personal services costs for agriculture | 2 | | education teachers in school districts. The grants shall be for | 3 | | the purpose of assisting school districts with paying for | 4 | | personal services costs of agriculture education teachers. | 5 | | (c) A school district may apply for a grant to fund an | 6 | | amount not to exceed 50% of the personal services cost for an | 7 | | agriculture education teacher under this Section. However, a | 8 | | school district that is creating a new agriculture education | 9 | | program may apply for a grant to fund an amount not to exceed | 10 | | 100% of an agriculture teacher's personal services cost in the | 11 | | first and second year of the new agriculture education program | 12 | | and an amount not to exceed 80% of an agriculture teacher's | 13 | | personal services cost in the third and fourth years of the new | 14 | | agriculture education program. A school district may apply for | 15 | | a grant for more than one teacher under this Section. | 16 | | (d) A school district that applies for a grant under this | 17 | | Section or offers any extended contract for agriculture | 18 | | education shall base its personal services costs on the | 19 | | reasonably expected personal services cost for the teacher | 20 | | based on the cost of the teacher's regularly scheduled teaching | 21 | | duties. | 22 | | (e) The State Board of Education shall create a statewide | 23 | | system for an agriculture education teacher to track his or her | 24 | | additional hours completed pursuant to a grant under this | 25 | | Section. | 26 | | (f) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules as |
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 3 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | necessary to implement this Section.
| 2 | | Section 10. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is | 3 | | amended by changing Section 65.25 as follows:
| 4 | | (110 ILCS 947/65.25)
| 5 | | Sec. 65.25. Teacher shortage scholarships.
| 6 | | (a) The Commission may annually award a number of | 7 | | scholarships
to persons preparing to teach in areas of | 8 | | identified staff shortages. Such
scholarships shall be issued | 9 | | to individuals who make application to the
Commission and who | 10 | | agree to take courses at qualified institutions of
higher | 11 | | learning which will prepare them to teach in areas of | 12 | | identified staff
shortages.
| 13 | | (b) Scholarships awarded under this Section shall be issued | 14 | | pursuant to
regulations promulgated by the Commission;
| 15 | | provided that no rule or regulation promulgated by the State | 16 | | Board of
Education prior to the effective date of this | 17 | | amendatory Act of 1993 pursuant
to the exercise of any right, | 18 | | power, duty, responsibility or matter of pending
business | 19 | | transferred from the State Board of Education to the Commission | 20 | | under
this Section shall be affected thereby, and all such | 21 | | rules and regulations
shall become the rules and regulations of | 22 | | the Commission until modified or
changed by the Commission in | 23 | | accordance with law. The Commission
shall allocate the | 24 | | scholarships awarded between persons
initially preparing to |
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 4 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | teach, persons holding valid teaching
certificates issued | 2 | | under Articles 21 and 34 of the School Code, and persons
| 3 | | holding a bachelor's degree from any accredited college or | 4 | | university who
have been employed for a minimum of 10 years in | 5 | | a field other than teaching.
| 6 | | (c) Each scholarship shall be utilized by its holder for | 7 | | the payment of
tuition and non-revenue bond fees at any | 8 | | qualified institution of higher
learning. Such tuition and fees | 9 | | shall be available only for courses that
will enable the | 10 | | individual to be certified to teach in areas of identified
| 11 | | staff shortages. The Commission shall determine which
courses | 12 | | are eligible for tuition payments under this Section.
| 13 | | (d) The Commission may make tuition payments directly to
| 14 | | the qualified institution of higher learning which the | 15 | | individual attends for
the courses prescribed or may make | 16 | | payments to the teacher. Any teacher
who received payments and | 17 | | who fails to enroll in the courses prescribed
shall refund the | 18 | | payments to the Commission.
| 19 | | (e) Following the completion of the program of study, | 20 | | persons who held
valid teaching certificates and persons | 21 | | holding a bachelor's degree from
any accredited college or | 22 | | university who have been employed for a minimum
of 10 years in | 23 | | a field other than teaching prior to
receiving a teacher | 24 | | shortage scholarship must accept employment within
2 years in a | 25 | | school in Illinois within 60 miles of the person's
residence to | 26 | | teach in an area of identified staff shortage for a period of
|
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 5 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | at least 3 years; provided, however that any such person | 2 | | instead may
elect to accept employment within such 2 year | 3 | | period to teach in an area
of identified staff shortage for a | 4 | | period of at least 3 years in a school
in Illinois which is | 5 | | more than 60 miles from such person's residence.
Persons | 6 | | initially preparing to teach prior to receiving a teacher | 7 | | shortage
scholarship must accept employment within 2 years in a | 8 | | school in Illinois
to teach in an area of identified staff | 9 | | shortage for a period of at least
3 years. Individuals who fail | 10 | | to comply with this provision shall
refund all of the | 11 | | scholarships awarded to the Commission,
whether payments were | 12 | | made directly to the institutions of higher learning
or to the | 13 | | individuals, and this condition shall be agreed to in writing | 14 | | by
all scholarship recipients at the time the scholarship is | 15 | | awarded. No
individual shall be required to refund tuition | 16 | | payments if his or her
failure to obtain employment as a | 17 | | teacher in a school is the result of
financial conditions | 18 | | within school districts. The
rules and regulations promulgated | 19 | | as provided in this Section shall contain
provisions regarding | 20 | | the waiving and deferral of such
payments.
| 21 | | (f) The Commission, with the cooperation of the State Board | 22 | | of Education,
shall assist individuals who have
participated in | 23 | | the scholarship program established by this Section in
finding | 24 | | employment in areas of identified staff shortages.
| 25 | | (g) Beginning in September, 1994 and annually thereafter, | 26 | | the Commission,
using data annually supplied by the State Board |
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 6 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | of Education under procedures
developed by it to measure the | 2 | | level of shortage of qualified bilingual
personnel serving | 3 | | students with disabilities,
shall annually publish (i) the | 4 | | level of shortage of qualified
bilingual personnel serving | 5 | | students with disabilities, and (ii) allocations
of | 6 | | scholarships for personnel preparation training programs in | 7 | | the areas of
bilingual special education teacher training and | 8 | | bilingual school service
personnel.
| 9 | | (h) Appropriations for the scholarships outlined in this | 10 | | Section shall
be made to the Commission from funds appropriated | 11 | | by the General
Assembly.
| 12 | | (i) This Section is substantially the same as Section 30-4c | 13 | | of the School
Code, which Section is repealed by this | 14 | | amendatory Act of 1993, and shall be
construed as a | 15 | | continuation of the teacher shortage scholarship program
| 16 | | established under that prior law, and not as a new or different | 17 | | teacher
shortage scholarship program. The State Board of | 18 | | Education shall transfer to
the Commission, as the
successor to | 19 | | the State Board of Education for all purposes of administering
| 20 | | and implementing the provisions of this Section, all books, | 21 | | accounts, records,
papers, documents, contracts, agreements, | 22 | | and pending business in any way
relating to the teacher | 23 | | shortage scholarship program continued under this
Section;
and | 24 | | all scholarships at any time awarded under that program
by, and | 25 | | all applications for any such scholarships
at any
time made to, | 26 | | the State Board of Education shall be unaffected by the |
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 7 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | transfer
to the Commission of all responsibility for the | 2 | | administration and
implementation of the teacher shortage | 3 | | scholarship program continued under this
Section. The State | 4 | | Board of Education shall furnish to the Commission such
other | 5 | | information as the Commission may request to assist it in | 6 | | administering
this Section.
| 7 | | (j) For the purposes of this Section:
| 8 | | "Qualified institution of higher learning" means the | 9 | | University of
Illinois, Southern Illinois University, Chicago | 10 | | State University, Eastern
Illinois University, Governors State | 11 | | University, Illinois State University,
Northeastern Illinois | 12 | | University, Northern Illinois University, Western
Illinois | 13 | | University, the public community colleges subject to the Public | 14 | | Community
College Act and any Illinois privately operated | 15 | | college, community college or
university offering degrees and | 16 | | instructional programs above the high
school level either in | 17 | | residence or by correspondence. The Board of
Higher Education | 18 | | and the Commission, in consultation with the State Board of
| 19 | | Education, shall identify qualified
institutions to supply the | 20 | | demand for bilingual special education teachers
and bilingual | 21 | | school service personnel.
| 22 | | "Areas of identified staff shortages" means courses of | 23 | | study , including, but not limited to, agricultural education, | 24 | | in which the
number of teachers is insufficient to meet student | 25 | | or school district demand
for such instruction as determined by | 26 | | the State Board of Education.
|
| | | SB2975 Enrolled | - 8 - | LRB099 20370 MLM 44849 b |
|
| 1 | | (Source: P.A. 88-228; 89-4, eff. 1-1-96.)
|
|