As we move toward the May 8 crossover deadline, the deadline for bills to pass a full vote from one chamber and move to the other, over 130 K12 education bills have been filed this session in the NC General Assembly. As the legislative session continues, we will track bills that align with our Top Education Issues and highlight several policy areas each week.
The General Assembly was on break this week after the release of the Senate budget. This week, we’re highlighting several bills filed this session that focus on teacher recruitment and retention efforts beyond teacher pay.
H573/S204 (Remove Testing Requirement for Teacher Licensure) would eliminate the standardized testing requirement for teacher licensure and prohibit the State Board of Education from implementing any future policies that include standardized testing as a requirement of teacher licensure. The Forum has advocated for eliminating the Praxis Core testing requirement for entry into educator preparation programs because success on this exam is not predictive of educator effectiveness and the exam serves as a barrier to entry for many educators. However, other content-area licensure exams can be predictive of effectiveness and may need closer examination before they are eliminated to ensure that we maintain evidence-based high standards for our childrens’ educators.
H910 (DRIVE Recommendations/Teacher Diversity), introduced by Reps. Zack Hawkins, Frances Jackson, and Julie von Haefen, would implement a number of recommendations put forth by Governor Roy Cooper’s DRIVE Task Force. These include providing additional funding for educator recruitment models such as Grow-Your-Own and 2+2 programs, Teaching as a Profession, TAs to Teachers, and Troops to Teachers and expanding access to the NC Teaching Fellows Program. The bill would also provide funds for recruitment bonuses for teachers serving in low-performing or high-needs schools and would expand eligibility for Forgivable Education Loans for Service to prospective educators who already hold a bachelor’s degree and encourage participation by recipients of color pursuing teacher licensure.
H986 (Support Our Teachers), sponsored by Education Committee Chairs, Reps. Tricia Cotham and Brian Biggs, would prohibit school districts from requiring teachers to post lesson plans or objectives. The bill would also require local boards of education to compensate teachers for leading professional development to other teachers in their district, and would prohibit schools from requiring teachers to serve lunch duty.
There are many other bills filed related to teacher recruitment and retention including:
- H846 (Teacher Recruitment and Retention; Primary Sponsors: Representatives Echevarria, Willis, Schietzelt, & Campbell)
- H941 (Expand & Enhance the Teaching Fellows Program; Primary Sponsors: Representatives Ball, Prather, Johnson-Hostler, von Haefen)
- H106 (Revive High-Need Retired Teachers Program; Primary Sponsors: Representatives Carver, Scott, & Willis)
- S147 (Teacher License Reciprocity; Primary Sponsors: Senators Hanig & Moffit)
Next week’s NCGA calendar is packed, and we’ll be back next week with more analysis and updates.
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