ARIZONA
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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HB 2525: experienced teacher retention pilot program |
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PRIME SPONSOR: Representative Friese, LD 9 BILL STATUS: Education
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Establishes an experienced teacher
retention pilot program and requirements for evaluating this program.
History
Currently, there is only one program that is similar to the proposed pilot program. The Arizona Commission for Postsecondary Education (ACPE) operates the Arizona Teacher Student Loan Program which grants loans to qualified applicants who agree to provide instruction in mathematics, science, or special education in a public school or to provide instruction in a public school that is a low-income school, a rural school, or a school that is located on an Indian reservation. Recipients must use the loans granted by the ACPE to defray the costs of tuition, instructional materials, and mandatory fees for a teaching degree or a teaching certificate through an alternative teacher certification program at a qualifying postsecondary institution (A.R.S. § 15-1782 et seq.).
The ACPE disbursed $292,717 in program loans to 56 students in FY 2018 (Annual Report for the Arizona Teacher Student Loan Program, FY 2018). For FY 2019, this program was appropriated $426,000 from the state General Fund (Laws 2018, Ch. 276, §75).
Provisions
1. Requires the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) to conduct a five-year experienced teacher retention pilot program. (Sec. 1)
2. Establishes the following eligibility requirements participate in this program:
a. Be a certificated teacher who has been employed at one or more school districts or charter schools in Arizona for a total of at least 10 years, the teacher's spouse, or the teacher's dependent.
b. Be a certificated teacher who has been employed at one more school districts or charter schools for 3 to 10 years. (Sec. 1)
3. Allows program participants to receive a 75% discount on tuition at the state's universities for the duration of this pilot program. (Sec. 1)
4. Requires a certificated teacher who has been employed at one more school districts or charter schools for 3 to 10 years to use the discount only to obtain one or more graduate degrees from a college of education, and mandates that this teacher sign a contract with ADE to continue teaching in Arizona for at least two years after obtaining the graduate degree. (Sec. 1)
5. Specifies that any program participant who receives discounted tuition and fails to fulfill the service requirements or whose teacher certificate is revoked by the State Board of Education must repay the amount of discounted tuition to ADE. (Sec. 1)
6. Stipulates that ADE, in collaboration with the Arizona Board of Regents, will limit the number of persons who are selected to participate in this program. (Sec. 1)
7. Mandates that ADE issue a request for proposals to contract for the study of the effectiveness of this pilot program by December 31, 2021 and requires the persons/entities selected to submit a report that summarizes their findings and conclusions to the Governor, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the President of the Senate, and Speaker of the House of Representatives. (Sec. 1)
8. Appropriates the following amounts from the state General Fund to ADE for the costs of this pilot program:
a. $2.5 million in FY 2020,
b. $5.0 million in FY 2021,
c. $7.5 million in FY 2022,
d. $10 million in FY 2023, and
e. $10 million in FY 2024. (Sec. 2)
9. Allows ADE to retain up to 2% of the monies appropriated in each fiscal year to administer the pilot program. (Sec. 2)
10. Appropriates $2 million from the state General Fund in FY 2023 to ADE for distribution to the persons/entities selected to study the effectiveness of this pilot program. (Sec. 2)
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14. Fifty-fourth Legislature HB 2525
15. First Regular Session Version 1: Education
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