0001|                       HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 19
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0002|     43RD LEGISLATURE - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - SECOND SESSION, 1998
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0003|                            INTRODUCED BY
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0004|                             MIMI STEWART
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0005|     
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0006|                                   
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0007|     
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0008|     
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0009|     
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0010|                           A JOINT MEMORIAL
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0011|     REQUESTING THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE TO
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0012|     CONSIDER EXPANSION OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOL FUNDING FORMULA
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0013|     TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE INDEX.
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0014|     
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0015|          WHEREAS, the public school funding formula training and
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0016|     experience index was included in the formula to provide public
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0017|     school districts with a financial incentive for hiring and
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0018|     retaining teachers with advanced training and experience; and
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0019|          WHEREAS, the instructional staff training and experience
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0020|     index has achieved its objective of retaining teachers with
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0021|     advanced training and experience; and
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0022|          WHEREAS, teachers need additional training beyond
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0023|     completion of a bachelor's degree in order to maintain and
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0024|     improve their professional skills; and
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0025|          WHEREAS, school districts face a shortage of teachers in
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0001|     specific license and endorsement areas, including the special
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0002|     education and bilingual education areas; and
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0003|          WHEREAS, school districts often encourage their teacher
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0004|     employees to achieve additional licenses and endorsements; and
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0005|          WHEREAS, current state statutes and state board of
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0006|     education regulations discourage teachers from earning
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0007|     additional training credit hours, licenses and endorsements by
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0008|     prohibiting districts from claiming training credit on the
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0009|     index for credit hours earned by a teacher with a master's
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0010|     degree outside any degree program and taken before receiving
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0011|     the master's degree; and
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0012|          NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE
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0013|     STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the legislative education study
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0014|     committee be requested to study the current effectiveness of
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0015|     the instructional staff training and experience index and
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0016|     determine the potential financial and programmatic impacts on
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0017|     the state and school districts if school districts were
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0018|     allowed to claim training and experience index credit for
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0019|     credit hours earned by a teacher with a master's degree
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0020|     outside any degree program and taken before receiving the 
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0021|     master's degree; and
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0022|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the superintendents of each
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0023|     school district be requested to submit their cost estimates
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0024|     for training and experience index credit being claimed for
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0025|     credit hours earned at any time in a teacher's career; and
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0001|          BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
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0002|     transmitted to the legislative education study committee and
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0003|     to the superintendent of each public school district.
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0004|                              
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