SENATE BILL 36

54th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2020

INTRODUCED BY

William P. Soules

 

 

 

FOR THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO SCHOOL PERSONNEL; CREATING THE TEACHER PREPARATION TASK FORCE; PROVIDING DUTIES; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. A new section of the Public School Code is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] TEACHER PREPARATION TASK FORCE--DUTIES--REPORTING.--

          A. As used in this section, "teacher preparation programs" means all public post-secondary undergraduate and graduate teacher and school administrator preparation programs, including those programs that prepare their students for alternative or provisional licenses.

          B. The "teacher preparation task force" is created to:

                (1) study how to improve the quality of teacher preparation in the state;

                (2) study how to increase accountability for teacher preparation programs in the state; and

                (3) develop a statewide strategic plan to prepare teachers to meet needs of students in the state such as ensuring that teacher preparation includes culturally and linguistically relevant curriculum and pedagogy.

          C. The task force shall be representative of the geographical, linguistic, cultural and ethnic diversity of the state. The task force consists of:

                (1) three members from the house of representatives and three members from the senate appointed by the New Mexico legislative council;

                (2) the secretary of public education or the secretary's designee;

                (3) the secretary of higher education or the secretary's designee;

                (4) two local superintendents, two school principals and two teachers appointed by the New Mexico legislative council; provided that when these members are appointed, the New Mexico legislative council shall ensure that the following school districts are adequately represented:

                     (a) small school districts;

                     (b) mid-sized school districts;

                     (c) large school districts;

                     (d) majority Hispanic student school districts; and

                     (e) majority Native American student school districts;

                (5) two representatives of a statewide teacher organization appointed by the governor;

                (6) three faculty of teacher preparation programs at the four-year public post-secondary educational institutions appointed by the governor; and

                (7) two faculty of teacher preparation programs at the two-year public post-secondary educational institutions appointed by the governor.

          D. The New Mexico legislative council shall appoint a legislator and the governor shall appoint one of the governor's appointees to be co-chairs of the task force.

          E. Vacancies on the task force shall be filled by appointment by the original appointing authority. The co-chairs of the task force may request the appointing authority to replace a member who misses more than three meetings without being excused.

          F. Staff for the task force shall be provided by the legislative education study committee, the legislative finance committee and the department.

          G. The task force may create subcommittees and may appoint topical experts to those subcommittees. Subcommittee members who are not task force members may vote on subcommittee motions but shall not vote on task force motions.

          H. Members of the task force or its subcommittees who are not paid with public money are entitled to per diem and mileage as provided in the Per Diem and Mileage Act for state employees and shall receive no other compensation, perquisite or allowance.

          I. In addition to other tasks, the task force shall analyze and evaluate:

                (1) the current capacity of teacher preparation programs in the state, including how many students each program can support and how many students graduate from each program each year;

                (2) the current need for teachers in the state, including mapping of teacher shortages by license level and license endorsement; and short- and long-range needs for teachers by license level and each license endorsement;

                (3) teacher recruitment and retention, including:

                     (a) the roles of both teacher preparation programs and the public school system in recruitment and retention;

                     (b) the efficacy of financial incentives and other types of support on recruitment and retention; and

                     (c) successful efforts in other jurisdictions;

                (4) current teacher preparation programs, including an evaluation of curriculum, pedagogy and programmatic specialties at each program; duration and quality of student teaching opportunities; and efficacy of financial assistance and incentives on program completion, and how well each teacher preparation program meets the needs of the students in the state;

                (5) professional learning and development opportunities available to new and returning teachers; and

                (6) teacher preparation program data needs and gaps, including an analysis of the usefulness of current data and recommendations for other data that would be useful to collect so educator preparation programs are held accountable, including measurements of recruitment, candidate performance, employment and placement, retention, graduate performance and perceptions.

          J. The task force shall develop a "teacher preparation strategic plan" that looks at one-to-two-, five- and ten-year planning horizons and provides recommendations for state and institutional policies and actions required to establish New Mexico in a leading position for teacher preparation.

          K. The task force shall provide an interim report on its analyses, evaluations and initial recommendations to the appropriate legislative interim committees and the governor by November 1, 2020 and shall deliver a final report with its findings and recommendations, the teacher preparation strategic plan and final legislative recommendations to the legislature and the governor by November 1, 2021."

     SECTION 2. APPROPRIATION.--Fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the legislative education study committee for expenditure in fiscal years 2021 and 2022 to pay the expenses of the teacher preparation task force. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2022 shall revert to the general fund.

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