SENATE BILL 470

52nd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2015

INTRODUCED BY

William P. Soules

AN ACT

RELATING TO HIGHER EDUCATION; ENACTING THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE LEARNERS TEACHER PREPARATION ACT; PROVIDING POWERS AND DUTIES; PROVIDING FOR APPLICANT QUALIFICATIONS; ALLOWING FOR FELLOWSHIPS; PROVIDING FOR REPAYMENT THROUGH SERVICE FOR FELLOWSHIP STIPENDS; CREATING A FUND; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

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

     SECTION 1. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act"."

     SECTION 2. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] PURPOSE.--The purpose of the English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act is to provide for the establishment, operation, expansion and improvement of training programs for college of education students or educational personnel who are or will be teaching English language learners or bilingual multicultural education."

     SECTION 3. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] DEFINITIONS.--As used in the English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act:

          A. "bilingual multicultural education program" means a program using two languages, including English and the home or heritage language of a student, as a medium of instruction in the teaching and learning process;

          B. "department" means the higher education department;

          C. "educational personnel" includes teachers, instructional assistants, instructional support personnel, principals, program administrators, counselors and paraprofessionals;

          D. "English language learner" means a student whose first or heritage language is not English and who is unable to read, write, speak or understand English at a level comparable to grade level English proficient peers and native English speakers;

          E. "in-service training program" means a professional development program for educational personnel in teaching English language learners or bilingual multicultural education or for educational personnel working with culturally and linguistically diverse student populations;

          F. "teacher preparation program" means a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree program at a public post-secondary educational institution that leads to license endorsements in teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual education; and

          G. "training programs" means both teacher preparation programs and in-service training programs."

     SECTION 4. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] DEPARTMENT POWERS--GRANTS--ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS--PREFERENCES.--

          A. The department may make grants for:

                (1) the establishment, operation, expansion or improvement of training programs. In-service training programs shall emphasize opportunities for career development, advancement and lateral mobility for educational personnel;

                (2) the training of persons to teach and counsel teacher preparation students or educational personnel;

                (3) public post-secondary educational institutions to provide fellowships to teacher preparation students seeking license endorsements or degrees in teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual multicultural education;

                (4) the operation of short-term training institutes designed to improve the skills of teacher preparation students or educational personnel in teaching English language learners or bilingual multicultural education, which may include programs designed to improve the instructional competence of educational personnel in the languages used in a bilingual multicultural program; and

                (5) the provision of in-service training and technical assistance for educational personnel teaching or supporting English language learners or bilingual multicultural students and the provision of training and assistance to parents of culturally and linguistically diverse students.

          B. The department shall promulgate rules to implement the provisions of the English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act, including the grant application process and forms to be used for that process.

          C. A grant may be made upon the individual or joint application of:

                (1) a public post-secondary educational institution that applies:

                     (a) to improve its English language learner and bilingual multicultural teacher preparation programming;

                     (b) to provide fellowships to teacher preparation program students at the baccalaureate or graduate level who are studying to teach English language learners or bilingual multicultural education; or

                     (c) with a school district, charter school, regional education cooperative or a New Mexico-based nonprofit with expertise in teaching English language learners or bilingual multicultural education, to offer training programs for persons other than education students; or

                (2) a school district, charter school or regional education cooperative that applies with a public post-secondary educational institution or New Mexico-based nonprofit organization, or both, with expertise in teaching English language learners or bilingual multicultural education to provide in-service training for educational personnel.

          D. In making grants for training programs, the department, in consultation with the public education department, shall give preference to programs that contain coursework in:

                (1) teaching English as a second language;

                (2) use of a language other than English for instructional purposes;

                (3) the development of cultural proficiency in working with New Mexico's majority-minority public school population, particularly American Indian and Hispanic students;

                (4) educational leadership for teachers who hold English language learner or bilingual license endorsement; and

                (5) instructional methods and techniques that have proven effective in second-language acquisition that meet rigorous content standards and effective in teacher preparation program students successfully completing college with English language learner or bilingual license endorsement.

          E. Training programs that focus on bilingual multicultural education shall be designed to ensure that participants become proficient in English and a second language of instruction and develop proficiency to work with culturally and linguistically diverse students in New Mexico."

     SECTION 5. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] FELLOWSHIPS--SPECIAL PREFERENCE--PRIORITIES--STIPENDS--REPAYMENT.--

          A. A public post-secondary educational institution may use all or a portion of its grant as fellowships for teacher preparation students at the baccalaureate or graduate level studying to teach English language learners or bilingual multicultural education who agree to teach English language learners or bilingual multicultural education in a New Mexico public school.

          B. Fellowships shall be sufficient to pay the cost of tuition, fees and instructional materials. Students shall enter into a contract with the department once the public post-secondary educational institution has granted the fellowship. The contract shall be in the same form and follow the same procedures as contracts for teacher loans for service pursuant to the Teacher Loan For Service Act. As part of the contract with the fellowship-granting public post-secondary educational institution, the fellowship recipient shall agree to repay the amount of the fellowship, plus interest, or agree to work for a period the equivalent of which is one public school year of service for two consecutive semesters of college, not including summer sessions.

          C. Fellowships shall be awarded, to the extent feasible, in proportion to the needs of various groups of English language learners or bilingual multicultural education students and to college of education students.

          D. Priority for fellowships shall be given to students who are taking coursework toward license endorsement in teaching English to speakers of other languages or in bilingual multicultural education. Special preference shall be given to persons from school districts, charter schools or regional education cooperatives that are already providing financial support to endorsement candidates; in which case, fellowship grants shall be matched one-to-one with those sponsoring public schools or regional education cooperatives.

          E. The next priorities shall be to:

                (1) students entering teacher preparation programs who received the New Mexico seal of bilingualism- biliteracy on their high school diploma of excellence;

                (2) students who are currently employed as teachers, instructional assistants or other support staff in classrooms serving predominantly American Indian students or classrooms of bilingual multicultural education programs; and

                (3) students who have demonstrated proficiency in one of New Mexico's indigenous languages or the Spanish language."

     SECTION 6. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] FUND CREATED--METHOD OF PAYMENT.--The "English language learners teacher preparation fund" is created as a nonreverting fund in the state treasury. The fund consists of appropriations, gifts, grants, donations, bequests and income from investment of the fund. The fund shall be administered by the department, and money in the fund is appropriated to the department for making grants pursuant to the English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act. Payments from the fund shall be on warrant issued by the secretary of finance and administration pursuant to vouchers signed by the secretary of higher education or the secretary's designated representative."

     SECTION 7. A new section of Chapter 21 NMSA 1978 is enacted to read:

     "[NEW MATERIAL] REPORTS.--

          A. The public education department, in consultation with the higher education department, shall conduct and publish a biennial survey of all local education agencies in the state to report on the number of teachers and other school-based professionals they currently employ who are:

                (1) endorsed in teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual multicultural education or both; and

                (2) for educational personnel with certification in bilingual multicultural education, the languages other than English in which they are certified.

          B. The survey shall also ask public schools and regional educational cooperatives to report the number of additional teachers and other school-based professionals they currently need, if any, and expect to need in the following year in each of these endorsement categories and languages to effectively serve all of the English language learner students they enroll or expect to enroll in the following year.

          C. The higher education department, in consultation with the public education department, shall conduct and publish a biennial survey of all public post-secondary educational institutions that offer courses, certificates or degrees in education. The report shall include:

                (1) the number of students enrolled in the past two years in all education classes and programs;

                (2) the number of students completing requirements for a degree in education or teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual multicultural education license endorsement in the past two years; and

                (3) the number of students completing requirements for a degree or state teaching license endorsement in the past two years in teaching English to speakers of other languages or teaching bilingual multicultural education.

          D. Each public post-secondary educational institution shall submit to the higher education department and the professional licensure bureau of the public education department an annual plan to meet the needs of New Mexico's culturally and linguistically diverse student population, by including:

                (1) measureable goals to fill the gap between the number of teacher education students who have graduated and have a teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual multicultural education license endorsement and the number of kindergarten through twelfth grade public school students identified as English language learners or who participate in bilingual multicultural education programs; and

                (2) specific strategies to recruit, counsel and retain teacher education students who are working toward license endorsement for teaching English to speakers of other languages or bilingual multicultural education."

     SECTION 8. APPROPRIATION.--Seven hundred fifty thousand dollars ($750,000) is appropriated from the general fund to the English language learners teacher preparation fund for expenditure in fiscal year 2016 and subsequent fiscal years to provide grants as provided in the English Language Learners Teacher Preparation Act. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of a fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund.

     SECTION 9. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2015.

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