THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA

HOUSE BILL

INTRODUCED BY ROEBUCK, COHEN, GRUCELA, HARKINS, LONGIETTI, M. O'BRIEN, BISHOP, BRENNAN, BROWN, CALTAGIRONE, DONATUCCI, FABRIZIO, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, KOTIK, McGEEHAN, MUNDY, READSHAW, SIPTROTH, WATERS AND YOUNGBLOOD, JUNE 3, 2009

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, JUNE 3, 2009  

AN ACT

Establishing and providing for the implementation and

administration of the Beginning Educator Support and Training

(BEST) Program; and providing for powers and duties of the

Department of Education.

The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

hereby enacts as follows:

Section 1.  Short title.

This act shall be known and may be cited as the Beginning

Educator Support and Training (BEST) Program Act.

Section 2.  Declaration of policy.

The General Assembly finds and declares as follows:

(1)  The beginning years of a teacher's career are a

critical time in which intensive professional development and

training must occur.

(2)  The public invests heavily in the preparation of

prospective teachers and more than half of all new teachers

leave some Pennsylvania school districts after one or two

years in the classroom.

(3)  Intensive professional development and training are

necessary to build on the preparation that precedes initial

certification, to transform academic preparation into

practical success in the classroom, to retain greater numbers

of capable beginning educators and to remove novices who show

little promise as teachers.

Section 3.  Definitions.

The following words and phrases when used in this act shall

have the meanings given to them in this section unless the

context clearly indicates otherwise:

"Beginning educator."  A first-year teacher with a valid

Pennsylvania Instructional I certificate or Educational

Specialist I certificate or who is a long-term substitute, 45

days or more, employed in an eligible school district.

"Department."  The Department of Education of the

Commonwealth.

"Eligible school district."  A school district with a high

turnover rate for beginning educators in a two-year period and

that is economically disadvantaged as determined by the

Secretary of Education.

"Performance-based assessment."  An assessment that evaluates

beginning educators in relation to student learning and teaching

behaviors that is content-specific and reveals information about

the logic and coherence of the teachers' curriculum, the

appropriateness of their instructional decisions for students,

the range of pedagogical strategies they use effectively, the

quality of their assignments, their skill in assessing student

learning and their ability to reflect on their own teaching and

make changes based on evidence of student learning.

"Program."  The Beginning Educator Support and Training

(BEST) Program established by this act.

"Program quality."  Excellence with respect to program

factors, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

(1)  Program goals.

(2)  Design resources.

(3)  Management, evaluation and improvement of the

program.

(4)  Working conditions.

(5)  Support, training and assessment services for each

beginning educator.

"Secretary."  The Secretary of Education of the Commonwealth.

Section 3.1.  Establishment.

(a)  Program established.--There is hereby established the

Beginning Educator Support and Training (BEST) Program, to be

administered by the department. The department shall provide the

program to all school districts identified as having high

teacher turnover rates for first-year and second-year teachers

and that are economically disadvantaged as determined by the

secretary and that are selected for participation by the

department. Participation in the program shall be mandatory for

beginning educators employed in eligible school districts that

apply for funding under section 5 and that are selected for

participation by the department. The department shall adopt and

implement criteria and standards for participation in the

program, including criteria regarding the eligibility of

educators and standards of local program quality and intensity

for schools, school districts, colleges, universities and other

educational and professional organizations involved in the

program. The criteria and standards shall be consistent with the

purposes of the program.

(b)  Program description.--The program shall support locally

designed, high-quality induction programs that provide

individualized support and performance-based assessment for all

participating beginning educators. The department shall develop

and implement policies to govern the support, training and

assessment of beginning educators.

(c)  Continuing professional education.--For a beginning

educator who holds an Instructional I or Educational Specialist

I certificate who is subject to the requirements of section

1205.2 of the act of March 10, 1949 (P.L.30, No.14), known as

the Public School Code of 1949, participation in the program

may, at the teacher's discretion, serve as credit towards hours

of continuing professional education programs, activities or

learning experiences.

Section 4.  Administration.

The department shall implement and administer the program for

eligible school districts pursuant to this act. In administering

the program, the department shall provide or contract for all of

the following:

(1)  Establishment of requirements for reviewing and

approving local teacher induction programs.

(2)  Development and administration of a system for

ensuring local teacher induction program quality and

effectiveness in producing excellent program outcomes.

(3)  Ensuring that an eligible school district has a

local induction plan in place for each participating

beginning educator and that the program provides intensive,

mentor-based individualized support and assistance to each

participating beginning educator that includes a performance-

based assessment.

(4)  Conducting and tracking research related to best

practices for teacher induction programs and professional

development materials and strategies for personnel involved

in implementing induction programs.

Section 5.  Funding.

(a)  General rule.--To the extent funds are appropriated for

the program, an eligible school district or consortium of

eligible school districts may apply to the department for

funding to establish a local teacher induction program pursuant

to this act. From amounts appropriated for the purposes of this

act, the department shall allocate an amount not to exceed 

$1,500 for each beginning educator participating in the program

at an eligible school district. To be eligible to receive

funding, an eligible school district shall meet all the criteria

and standards required by the department.

(b)  Participation limitation.--State funding for

participation in the program by educators who hold a first-level

certificate is limited to two years or until the teacher has

satisfied requirements for successful completion of the local

teacher induction program, whichever occurs first.

(c)  Funding limitation.--No more than 10% of the total sum

appropriated annually shall be granted to any single eligible

school district.

Section 6.  Report.

The department shall evaluate the effectiveness of the

program two years following full implementation and report the

findings to the General Assembly. An interim report shall be

provided to the General Assembly no later than July 1, 2012, if

full funding has not been provided prior to that date.

Section 7.  Effective date.

This act shall take effect July 1, 2009, or immediately,

whichever is later.