CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.





                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    

                            CHAMBER ACTION
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11  Senator Cowin moved the following amendment:

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13         Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 

14         On page 144, between lines 16 and 17,

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16  insert:

17         Section 65.  There is created the Subject Area Teacher

18  Recruitment and Retention Program for areas of critical state

19  concern.--

20         (1)  In any year in which the Legislature appropriates

21  funds for the program, full-time middle and high school

22  teachers in the following areas may be eligible for a bonus

23  from the Subject Area Teacher Recruitment and Retention

24  Program:

25         (a)  Foreign language.

26         (b)  Science.

27         (c)  Mathematics.

28         (d)  Computer science.

29         (e)  Exceptional student education.

30         (2)  The Department of Education shall allocate funds

31  to each school district based on each district's total

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1  proportion of the state total number of teachers in these

 2  areas of critical state concern.

 3         (3)  For the recruitment segment of the program,

 4  district and school officials shall use funds provided as an

 5  incentive for employment.

 6         (a)  Newly employed classroom teachers qualified and

 7  assigned to teach in an area of critical state concern are

 8  eligible for a bonus of up to $1,200 from the program.

 9         (b)  The school district may define purposes for the

10  funds, such as payment of moving expenses for a newly employed

11  teacher or purchase of a computer for the teacher's use.

12         (4)  For the retention segment of the program, a

13  teacher qualified and assigned to teach in an area of critical

14  state concern is eligible for a bonus of up to $1,200.

15         (a)  To receive a bonus, a teacher must have received a

16  favorable performance appraisal for the previous school year

17  and must agree to maintain employment as a classroom teacher

18  in an area of critical state concern for the 2000-2001 school

19  year.

20         (b)  To receive funds for the program, a school

21  district must require an exit interview with every teacher who

22  leaves the district's employment and must report the results

23  of the interviews to the Department of Education every 6

24  months.

25         (c)  The Department of Education shall annually

26  summarize and forward the results of the exit interviews to

27  the Governor and the Legislature.

28         Section 66.  (1)  There is created the Teacher

29  Recruitment Program to encourage the transfer of teachers with

30  demonstrated teaching mastery to failing schools.

31         (2)  By July 1 of each year, each school district that

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1  contains a school in grade category "D" or "F" or an

 2  alternative school that serves disruptive or violent youths

 3  shall develop a plan that authorizes principals of schools in

 4  those categories to recruit master teachers as provided by the

 5  program.

 6         (a)  The plan must provide for an annual salary bonus,

 7  or it must give evidence of contract negotiations that provide

 8  an addition to the salary of teachers recruited for the

 9  program. The plan must state the amount of the bonus or salary

10  addition and the maximum number of years a teacher may be

11  eligible for the annual bonus, which must be at least $1,000.

12  If the plan authorizes a teacher to earn a bonus for more than

13  1 year, a teacher may be eligible for a bonus for teaching at

14  a school graded "C" or better, provided that the teacher was

15  recruited to the school when the grade was "D" or "F."

16         (b)  The plan must authorize the school principal to

17  determine which teachers meet the performance requirements for

18  the program; however, the principal must supply performance

19  data to support the recruitment of each teacher. The district

20  school board shall review the performance data and approve

21  each selection. If the Legislature appropriates funds for

22  bonus payments in an appropriations act, they must be made no

23  later than October 1 of the year in which they are

24  appropriated.

25         (c)  The plan must describe the action the school

26  district will take to make it possible for teachers to

27  transfer into and out of the school.

28         (3)  A principal may not select a teacher for the

29  program who is already employed at a school in any year in

30  which it receives a grade of "F," unless the teacher is

31  nationally certified or has been selected as district or state

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1  Teacher of the Year. However, if a school improves its grade

 2  from an "F" to a "C" or better, all teachers assigned to the

 3  school may receive a bonus of an amount provided in the plan.

 4  For purposes of allocating funds provided by Specific

 5  Appropriation 110B in the Conference Report on House Bill

 6  2145, General Appropriations Act FY 2000-2001, the term

 7  "outstanding teacher" applies to a teacher who is currently

 8  assigned to a school with performance grade designation "F"

 9  only if the teacher has been named Teacher of the Year or is

10  nationally certified.

11         (4)  The district school board shall evaluate the

12  principal's performance in administering the program and shall

13  consider the performance of students and faculty in its

14  evaluation. If the school fails to improve its grade in the

15  year following implementation of the program, the school

16  district shall recommend corrective action and submit the

17  recommendation to the State Board of Education for approval.

18  This recommendation must include a statement of how well the

19  principal used the recruitment program to the advantage of the

20  school and whether the principal should be retained. It must

21  describe the measures taken by the district to facilitate the

22  transfer of teachers recruited for the program by the

23  principal.

24         Section 67.  (1)  There is created the Public School

25  Equipment Matching Grants Program to provide equipment for

26  low-performing schools.

27         (2)  A school is eligible for the program if it is

28  graded "F" in any year. The amount of each grant is equal to

29  the private contribution made to an eligible school, but the

30  maximum amount that any qualifying school may receive from the

31  program is $50,000.

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1         (3)  In-kind contributions may qualify for state match

 2  at a value equal to one-half of the fair market value of the

 3  in-kind contribution.

 4         (4)  Before any funds provided for the program may be

 5  released to any district for any school, the district school

 6  board must, through formal action taken in a public board

 7  meeting, certify to the Commissioner of Education that private

 8  cash or in-kind contributions have been received by the school

 9  seeking a matching grant.

10

11  (Redesignate subsequent sections.)

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13

14  ================ T I T L E   A M E N D M E N T ===============

15  And the title is amended as follows:

16         On page 11, line 21, following the semicolon

17

18  insert:

19         creating the Teacher Recruitment and Retention

20         Program for areas of critical state concern;

21         identifying the areas of critical state

22         concern; providing eligibility criteria for

23         teachers; providing for allocation of funds;

24         providing for use of funds for employment

25         incentives; requiring certain agreements for

26         receipt of a retention bonus; requiring exit

27         interviews and a report, as a condition for

28         receiving funds from the program; creating the

29         Teacher Recruitment Program for low-performing

30         schools; requiring a school district with a

31         school in grade category "D" or "F" to submit

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                                                  SENATE AMENDMENT

    Bill No. CS/CS/HBs 63 & 77 and 891, 995, 2009 and 2135, 2nd Eng.

    Amendment No.    





 1         to the Department of Education a plan for

 2         recruitment of certain teachers to failing

 3         schools; requiring a salary bonus or increase

 4         for selected teachers; authorizing principals

 5         to determine eligible teachers; requiring

 6         performance criteria to be submitted to and

 7         reviewed by the district school board;

 8         requiring review of a principal's

 9         administration of the program; creating the

10         Public School Equipment Matching Grants Program

11         for failing schools; authorizing state matching

12         of certain amounts of private donations;

13         requiring a school board to certify the receipt

14         of certain contributions;

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