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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2019 - 2020
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | May 18, 2020 02:58 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Michael H. Schlossberg |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Pennsylvania Grow Our Own Educators Act |
| In the near future, I will be introducing legislation creating the Grow Our Own Educators Act. The teacher shortage is real and continues to grow. The shortage threatens a student’s ability to learn, reduces teacher effectiveness, and causes high teacher turnovers. Many districts struggle to find qualified teachers in mathematics, science and special education. Studies found a compelling connection between strong credentials and retention weakens in high-poverty schools. The University of Pennsylvania estimates that half of teacher turnover occurs in 25 percent of public schools, largely in high-poverty urban and rural areas. Research has shown that a method to address teacher shortages and teacher diversity is the establishment of grow-your-own programs. These programs address recruitment, development, and retainment of diverse educators. My legislation would establish the Grow Our Own Educators Program. The program would provide financial assistance, including pathways for educators to help support high-need schools in geographic areas that have hard-to-staff teaching positions. The program would equip aspiring educators with the supports necessary to ultimately become a certified educator. Recognizing the steady decline in the number of people seeking a teaching certification in this Commonwealth, and that this Commonwealth has one of the least diverse educator workforces in the country, now more than ever we need to increase the pipeline of high-quality and diverse future educators. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as HB2713