H.B. 1045
GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
May 2, 2024
SESSION 2023 HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK
H D
HOUSE BILL DRH30473-MTa-230
Short Title: Enhance Teacher Pipeline/Increase TF Program. (Public)
Sponsors: Representative Ball.
Referred to:
1 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
2 AN ACT TO EXPAND AND ENHANCE THE NORTH CAROLINA TEACHING FELLOWS
3 PROGRAM.
4 Whereas, the pursuit of teaching is the pursuit of excellence, and excellent teachers
5 are not just born, they are developed, equipped, trained, and valued; and
6 Whereas, all students in North Carolina deserve to be taught by excellent teachers;
7 and
8 Whereas, the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program has an important legacy in
9 North Carolina, providing the best and brightest students the opportunity to have a place of
10 influence and distinction by elevating them to a vital role – the role of a teacher; and
11 Whereas, based on the sorely inadequate and regularly declining enrollment in teacher
12 preparation programs and an accelerating teacher turnover rate, North Carolina is facing an
13 overwhelming teacher shortage across the State, especially in rural counties; and
14 Whereas, the teacher shortage is a growing crisis for our entire educational system as
15 well as the future of our State; and
16 Whereas, to solve this problem and provide stable, talented, motivated, and excellent
17 teachers in our classrooms, we need to continue to rebuild the North Carolina Teaching Fellows
18 Program; Now, therefore,
19 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
20 SECTION 1.(a) Part 3 of Article 23 of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes reads as
21 rewritten:
22 "Part 3. North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program.
23 "§ 116-209.60. Definitions.
24 The following definitions apply in this Part:
25 (1) Commission. – The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Commission.
26 (2) Director. – The Director of the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program.
27 (3) Forgivable loan. – A forgivable loan made under the Program.
28 (4) Program. – The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program.
29 (5) Public school. – An elementary or secondary school located in North Carolina
30 that is governed by a local board of education, charter school board of
31 directors, regional school board of directors, or University of North Carolina
32 laboratory school board of trustees.
33 (5a) Qualifying licensure area. – A teacher licensure area in one of the following
34 subjects:
35 a. Either of the following, as identified pursuant to G.S. 116-209.62(h):
36 1. Special education.
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 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2023
1 2. STEM.
2 b. Elementary education (K-6).
3 (5b) Qualifying teacher. – A teacher in a North Carolina public school who meets
4 the following criteria:
5 a. Received a forgivable loan under the Program.
6 b. Graduated within 10 years from an educator preparation program
7 leading to teacher licensure, excluding any authorized deferment for
8 extenuating circumstances.
9 (6) STEM. – Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
10 (7) Trust Fund. – The North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program Trust Fund.
11 …
12 "§ 116-209.62. North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program established; administration.
13 (a) Program. – There is established the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program to be
14 administered by the System Office of The University of North Carolina, in conjunction with the
15 Authority and the Commission. The purpose of the Program is to recruit, prepare, and support
16 students residing in or attending institutions of higher education located in North Carolina for
17 preparation as highly effective teachers in qualifying licensure areas in the State's public schools.
18 The Program shall be used to provide a forgivable loan to individuals interested in preparing to
19 teach in the public schools of the State in qualifying licensure areas.State.
20 (b) Trust Fund. – There is established the North Carolina Teaching Fellows Program
21 Trust Fund to be administered by the Authority, in conjunction with the System Office of The
22 University of North Carolina. All funds (i) appropriated to, or otherwise received by, the Program
23 for forgivable loans and other Program purposes, (ii) received as repayment of forgivable loans,
24 and (iii) earned as interest on these funds shall be placed in the Trust Fund. The purpose of the
25 Trust Fund is to provide financial assistance to qualified students for completion of teacher
26 education and licensure programs to fill qualifying licensure areas teach in the public schools of
27 the State.
28 (c) Uses of Monies in the Trust Fund. – The monies in the Trust Fund may be used only
29 for (i) forgivable loans granted under the Program, (ii) administrative costs associated with the
30 Program, including recruitment and recovery of funds advanced under the Program, (iii)
31 mentoring and coaching support to forgivable loan recipients, and (iv) extracurricular
32 enhancement activities of the Program in accordance with the following:
33 (1) The Authority shall transfer the greater of six hundred thousand dollars
34 ($600,000) or ten percent (10%) following amounts of the available funds
35 from the Trust Fund to the General Administration of The University of North
36 Carolina System Office at the beginning of each fiscal year year:
37 a. The greater of six hundred thousand dollars ($600,000) or ten percent
38 (10%) for the Program's administrative costs, the salary of the Director
39 of the Program and other Program staff, expenses of the Commission,
40 and to provide the Commission with funds to use for the
41 extracurricular enhancement activities of the Program.and expenses of
42 the Commission.
43 b. The sum of up to six hundred thousand dollars ($600,000) for
44 extracurricular enhancement activities of the Program, including (i)
45 summer programs to maintain year-round connections and (ii) alumni
46 programs to foster continued engagement after graduation. These
47 activities should be geared to instilling a strong motivation not only to
48 remain in teaching but to provide leadership for tomorrow's schools.
49 c. The sum of up to five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) for the
50 Director of the Program to implement the recruitment activities
51 identified in subsection (d) of this section.
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1 (2) The Authority may use the greater of two hundred fifty thousand dollars
2 ($250,000) or four percent (4%) of the funds appropriated to the Trust Fund
3 each fiscal year for administrative costs associated with the Program.
4 (3) The Authority shall provide the Commission with up to six hundred thousand
5 dollars ($600,000) from the Trust Fund in each fiscal year for the Commission
6 to provide mentoring and coaching support to forgivable loan recipients
7 through the North Carolina New Teacher Support Program in an amount of
8 up to two thousand two hundred dollars ($2,200) for each Program recipient.
9 Funds shall be prioritized for teachers serving in North Carolina public
10 schools identified as low-performing under G.S. 115C-105.37.
11 (d) Director of the Program. – The Board of Governors of The University of North
12 Carolina shall appoint a Director of the Program. The Director shall appoint staff to the
13 Commission and shall be responsible for recruitment and coordination of the Program, including
14 proactive, aggressive, and strategic recruitment of potential recipients. Recruitment activities
15 shall include (i) targeting regions of the State with the highest teacher attrition rates and teacher
16 recruitment challenges, (ii) actively engaging with educators, business leaders, experts in human
17 resources, elected officials, and other community leaders throughout the State, and (iii) attracting
18 candidates in qualifying licensure areas to the Program. The Director shall report to the President
19 of The University of North Carolina. The Authority shall provide office space and clerical
20 support staff, as necessary, to the Director for the Program.
21 (e) Student Selection Criteria for Forgivable Loans. – The Commission shall adopt
22 stringent standards for awarding forgivable loans based on multiple measures to ensure that only
23 the strongest applicants receive them, including the following:
24 (1) Grade point averages.
25 (2) Performance on relevant career and college readiness assessments.
26 (3) Experience, accomplishments, and other criteria demonstrating qualities
27 positively correlated with highly effective teachers, including excellent verbal
28 and communication skills.
29 (4) Demonstrated commitment to serve in a qualifying licensure area in North
30 Carolina public schools.
31 (f) Program Selection Criteria. – The Authority shall administer the Program in
32 cooperation with up to 10 institutions of higher education with approved educator preparation
33 programs selected by the Commission that represent a diverse selection of both postsecondary
34 constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina and private postsecondary
35 institutions operating in the State. The Commission shall adopt stringent standards for selection
36 of the most effective educator preparation programs, including the following:
37 (1) Demonstrates high rates of educator effectiveness on value-added models and
38 teacher evaluations, including using performance-based, subject-specific
39 assessment and support systems, such as edTPA or other metrics of evaluating
40 candidate effectiveness that have predictive validity.
41 (2) Demonstrates measurable impact of prior graduates on student learning,
42 including impact of graduates teaching in qualifying licensure areas.
43 (3) Demonstrates high rates of graduates passing exams required for teacher
44 licensure.
45 (4) Provides curricular and co-curricular enhancements in leadership, facilitates
46 learning for diverse learners, and promotes community engagement,
47 classroom management, and reflection and assessment.
48 (5) Requires at least a minor concentration of study in the subject area that the
49 candidate may teach.
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1 (6) Provides early and frequent internship or practical experiences, including the
2 opportunity for participants to perform practicums in diverse school
3 environments.
4 (7) Is approved by the State Board of Education as an educator preparation
5 program.
6 (8) For an educator preparation program enrolling loan recipients in a program of
7 study leading to licensure in elementary education (K-6), provides training
8 that is aligned with the Science of Reading in accordance with
9 G.S. 115C-269.20. The Commission shall contract with a third-party entity to
10 biennially evaluate whether a program identified in this subdivision is
11 providing training that is aligned with the Science of Reading.
12 any institution of higher education with an approved educator preparation program. An
13 educator preparation program enrolling loan recipients in a program of study that leads to
14 licensure in elementary education (K-6) shall provide training that is aligned with the Science of
15 Reading in accordance with G.S. 115C-269.20. The Commission shall contract with a third-party
16 entity to biennially evaluate whether a program identified in this subdivision is providing training
17 that is aligned with the Science of Reading.
18 (g) Awards of Forgivable Loans. – The Program shall provide forgivable loans to selected
19 students to be used at up to 10 selected institutions for completion of a program leading to initial
20 teacher licensure as follows:
21 (1) North Carolina high school seniors. – Forgivable loans of up to five thousand
22 dollars ($5,000) per semester for up to eight semesters.twelve thousand dollars
23 ($12,000) per year for up to four years.
24 (2) Students applying for transfer to a selected educator preparation program at
25 an institution of higher education. – Forgivable loans of up to five thousand
26 dollars ($5,000) per semester for up to six semesters.twelve thousand dollars
27 ($12,000) per year for up to four years.
28 (3) Individuals currently holding a bachelor's degree seeking preparation for
29 teacher licensure. – Forgivable loans of up to five thousand dollars ($5,000)
30 per semester for up to four semesters.twelve thousand dollars ($12,000) per
31 year for up to two years.
32 (4) Students matriculating at institutions of higher education who are changing to
33 an approved program of study at a selected educator preparation program. –
34 Forgivable loans of up to five thousand dollars ($5,000) per semester for up
35 to four semesters.twelve thousand dollars ($12,000) per year for up to four
36 years.
37 Forgivable loans may be used for tuition, fees, the cost of books, room and board, and any
38 other education expenses related to obtaining licensure.
39 (h) Identification of STEM and Special Education Licensure Areas. – The Superintendent
40 of Public Instruction shall identify and provide to the Commission and the Authority a list of
41 STEM and special education licensure areas and shall annually provide to the Commission the
42 number of available positions in each qualifying licensure area relative to the number of current
43 and anticipated teachers in that area of licensure. The Commission shall make the list of STEM
44 and special education licensure areas readily available to applicants.
45 …
46 (j) Annual Report. – The Commission, in coordination with the Authority, the
47 Department of Public Instruction, each constituent institution of The University of North
48 Carolina, and the selected private educator education programs participating in the Program shall
49 report no later than January 1, 2019, and annually thereafter, to the Joint Legislative Education
50 Oversight Committee regarding the following:
51 (1) Forgivable loans awarded from the Trust Fund, including the following:
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1 a. Demographic information regarding recipients.
2 b. Number of recipients by institution of higher education and program.
3 c. Information on number of recipients by anticipated qualifying
4 licensure area.
5 (2) Placement and repayment rates, including the following:
6 a. Number of graduates who have been employed in a qualifying
7 licensure area as a public school teacher in North Carolina within
8 two years of program completion.
9 b. Number of graduates who accepted employment at a low-performing
10 school identified under G.S. 115C-105.37 as part of their years of
11 service.
12 c. Number of graduates who have electe