BILL ANALYSIS �
SB 1385
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Date of Hearing: June 27, 2012
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Julia Brownley, Chair
SB 1385 (Hancock) - As Amended: June 19, 2012
SENATE VOTE : 39-0
SUBJECT : After school programs: California After School
Teacher Pipeline Program.
SUMMARY : Establishes the California After School Teacher
Pipeline (CASTP) pilot program. Specifically, this bill :
1)Provides definitions for the implementation of the CASTP as a
pilot program that are similar to those under the existing
California School Paraprofessional Teacher Training Program
(PTTP). Defines an "after school instructor" as an employee
who meets the minimum standards of the paraprofessional job
classification as defined by the local education agency (LEA)
and who is employed in an after school program by a school
district, city, county, or nonprofit organization that
receives specified state or federal after school program
funds. Defines "pilot" as the CASTP program, and "pilot
participant" as an after school instructor who elects to
participate in the PTTP and the CASTP.
2)Establishes the CASTP program for the purposes of improving
the quality and retention of after school personnel and
recruiting qualified after school instructors to participate
on a pilot basis in the PTTP and requires the Commission on
Teacher Credentialing (CTC), in consultation with the
California Department of Education (CDE), to do the following
to implement the program:
a) Select up to four applicants who already participate in
the PTTP program to participate in the CASTP program.
b) In addition to satisfying all of the PTTP requirements,
applicants for the pilot program must demonstrate all of
the following:
i) A screening process to determine the participant's
after school instruction experience ensures readiness for
the CASTP;
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ii) How the applicant will ensure professional support
for pilot participants, such as mentor teacher oversight,
classroom experience, and academic content instruction
experience;
iii) How the applicant will track CASTP participants
within the PTTP program, including tracking each pilot
participant's after school site, school district and
county office of education location changes during the
pilot; and,
iv) How applicants and CASTP participants will meet all
PTTP requirements, including, but not limited to,
participant eligibility and commitments, program design,
repayment requirements, the need for specified
certificated staff, and program reporting.
c) Provide grant funding of up to $3,500 per pilot
participant per year only to the extent that allocated
funds cover all of the costs associated with instructor
participation in CASTP and any costs incurred by the CTC in
administering the program.
d) Require that an applicant's administrative costs be
limited to the applicant's indirect cost rate, as approved
by the CDE for the applicable fiscal year.
e) Include information regarding the CASTP and pilot
participants in all existing PTTP reporting requirements by
including statistics regarding the duration of time pilot
participants work at individual after school sites;
f) Submit the annual report required by the PTTP program,
including CASTP statistics, to the Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI).
g) Submit a report before January 1, 2017 to the
Legislature and SPI regarding the CASTP, including the
ability of applicants to successfully integrate the pilot
into their existing programs, the number of participants in
the pilot who receive teaching credentials and each pilot
participant's after school site, school district or county
office of education location changes tracked during the
pilot.
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3)Requires, beginning with the 2013-2014 fiscal year, the CDE to
transfer $150,000 from funds used to provide After School
Education and Safety (ASES) Program technical assistance,
evaluation, training services and local assistance to the CTC
through an interagency agreement for purposes of implementing
the CASTP program.
4)Expresses the intent of the Legislature that the CTC and the
pilot applicants minimize administrative costs to ensure the
greatest number of pilot participant grants.
5)Provides that the provisions establishing the CASTP pilot
program sunset on July 1, 2020 and are repealed as of January
1, 2021.
6)Makes Legislative findings and declarations that this act
furthers the purposes of the After School Education and Safety
Program Act of 2002.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the ASES program through the 2002 voter approved
initiative, Proposition 49. The ASES program funds the
establishment of local after school education and enrichment
programs, which are created through partnerships between
schools and local community resources to provide literacy,
academic enrichment and safe constructive alternatives for
students in kindergarten through ninth grade (Education Code
(EC) Section 8482).
2)Establishes the PTTP for the purpose of helping
paraprofessionals become teachers. The CTC allocates funds to
LEAs based on criteria established in law and adopted by the
CTC. Local programs use the funds to help participants defray
costs associated with completing requirements for a
preliminary teaching credential (EC Section 44393).
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, this bill annually reallocates $150,000 of existing
Proposition 49 professional development funds to begin the CASTP
Program, for the duration of the program. The CTC estimates that
it will incur one-time costs of $25,000 to develop and
administer the grants, and to produce the first year report. The
CTC estimates on-going program support to be $5,000 per year,
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with an additional $5,000 needed in 2018-19 to produce the final
report for the pilot program. The remaining funds would be used
to award grants of up to $3,500 to individual program
participants, as specified; the minimal remaining funding is
unlikely to yield more than 40-50 grant awards. The Senate
Appropriations Committee further estimates that the CASTP pilot
will likely create cost pressure to continue and expand the
program beyond the four pilot sites.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "SB 1385 aims to broaden and
diversify the teacher applicant pool and address the teacher
shortage by creating a career ladder for after school program
instructors through the existing California Paraprofessional
Teacher Training Program." The author further states that recent
"retirement and attrition rates indicate that California will
have to recruit, train, and retain over 100,000 new teachers in
the next ten years to off-set the teacher shortage in
California. Research shows that 20% of new teachers will leave
within the first 3 years, up to 50% of new teachers in high-need
urban districts will leave during the first 5 years, and often
high-need schools have less qualified teachers."
The CASTP pilot program . This bill establishes a pilot program
to enable after school instructors employed by a school
district, city, county, or nonprofit organization that receives
state ASES or federal 21st Century funds to participate in the
PTTP. Supporters of the bill contend that extending the program
to include after school instructors could help provide a
stronger career ladder for after school instructors. This
stronger career ladder could help increase retention of after
school instructors and provide a necessary source of future
teachers. The CASTP pilot program created by this bill would
sunset on July 1, 2020.
The PTTP program: The existing PTTP is a long term program that
assists paraprofessionals who work in public schools to become
teachers. According to the CTC, more than 2,175
paraprofessionals have become credentialed teachers as a result
of the financial, academic, and mentoring support provided
through the PTTP. The PTTP was designed as a "grow-your-own"
career ladder program to meet local teacher supply needs.
Programs provide participants with financial assistance to help
defray the costs of meeting credential requirements (e.g.,
tuition, fees, books). Participants work as instructional aides
while they complete subject matter requirements and continue to
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receive assistance in the program through the completion of the
professional preparation requirements (typically completed in an
intern program). The CTC serves as the budgetary and
administrative agent for this program disbursing grant funds to
applicant school districts and county offices of education. In
2010-11, the CTC funded 22 PTTP sites, serving 858 participants.
The CTC reports that of the 858 participants, 146 are enrolled
at the community college level; 323 are working on completing
their B.A. degrees at a California four-year college or
university; and the remaining 389 are enrolled in a teacher
preparation program at a California four-year college or
university and/or a district or university intern program. SB
193 (Scott), Chapter 554, Statutes of 2007, increased per
participant funding from $3,000 to $3,500 per year. While
tuition costs have since risen in recent years, the funding
allocation to the PTTP has declined. The allocation for the PTTP
is currently $4.9 million.
Expanding the PTTP program: This bill expands the PTTP to include
an estimated 40 after-school instructors, including those employed
by non-LEA after school programs, who meet the classification of
paraprofessional as established by the LEA and who participate in
the CASTP pilot program. Current law, under the PTTP, defines a
"school paraprofessional" as an educational aide, instructional
aide, special education aide, special education assistant, teacher
associate, teacher assistant, teacher aide, pupil service aide,
library aide, child development aide, child development assistant,
or physical education aide. The $150,000 allocation for the CASTP
pilot program derives from the $8.25 million CDE receives to
administer the ASES and to provide technical assistance, evaluation,
and training. The CDE contracts with various entities such as West
Ed and UC Berkeley's Lawrence Hall of Science to provide youth
training and to develop literacy, math and science programs with
those funds. A memorandum of understanding between the CDE and the
CTC has been arranged to facilitate the transfer of funds for the
CASTP pilot program.
Reporting requirements: This bill also requires the CTC to
include the CASTP pilot program results into its annual report
on the PTTP program to be provided to the Legislature and SPI.
Further, it requires the CASTP pilot program to submit an
additional report, by January 1, 2017, to the Legislature and
SPI indicating the ability of LEAs to successfully integrate the
CASTP program into their existing PTTP and the number of
participants who receive teaching credentials.
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Tier 3 flexibility would not apply to CASTP pilot program:
There are approximately 60 categorical programs that serve
specific goals (e.g., to assist high school students in passing
the high school exit exam) or for specific programs (e.g.,
ROC/Ps, special education). There are also numerous statutes and
regulations that specify allowable use of categorical funds and
how funds are allocated. The FY 2009-10 budget had an important
impact on categorical programs. The budget agreement imposed a
20% reduction on 39 programs and gave LEAs that received those
funds in FY 2007-08 the flexibility to use the funds for any
educational purposes from FY 2008-09 through FY 2012-13 (SBX3 4
(Ducheny), Chapter 12, Statutes of the 2009-10 Third
Extraordinary Session). This flexibility was later extended
until FY 2014-2015 (SB 70 (Committee on Budget and Fiscal
Review), Statues of 2011, Chapter 7). This reduction and
flexibility provision is commonly known as "Tier 3" flexibility,
which essentially gives LEAs $4.5 billion in additional
unrestricted funds. Tier 1 protected four categorical programs
from cuts and flexibility while 11 categorical programs
sustained reductions but were given no flexibility under Tier 2.
For Tier 3 funds, school districts receive their allocations
for five years based on the applicable percentage the programs
received in FY 2007-08. As a result, until 2015, LEAs are not
required to justify or report average daily attendance (ADA) in
order to receive the specified categorical funds. Funds for
PTTP are considered a part of Tier 3 and, therefore, may be
reallocated to fund other programs at the discretion of the LEA.
According to the CTC's 2011 annual report on the PTTP, it
appears to some LEAs have chosen to do this and further reduced
funding to their individual PTTP.
Since the funds for the CASTP pilot program, as proposed in this
bill, however, would come from the ASES funds established
through Proposition 49 in 2002, the CASTP program would avoid
facing Tier 3 flexibility.
Arguments in support : The Partnership for Children and Youth
writes, "SB 1385 seeks to direct $150,000 from the Proposition
49 technical assistance funding for the purposes of fully
funding this pilot program. With the high turnover and demand
for qualified teachers in high-need schools, we believe that
after school workers are a well-suited and representative
workforce pool to serve the schools and communities most in need
across the state."
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Prior legislation: AB 364 (Torlakson), of 2009, established the
California After School Teacher Pipeline Program. AB 364 was
substantially similar to this bill and was held in the Assembly
Appropriations Committee suspense file.
SB 1674 (Torlakson), of 2008, authorized weekend activities in
the After School Education and Safety Program and established
the California After School Teacher Pipeline pilot program. SB
1674 was vetoed by the Governor with the following message:
As the primary author of Proposition 49 that created the
After School Education and Safety Program (ASES) Act, I am
very proud of the good work that after school providers
have done in serving kids over the years. While providing
students with educationally enriching activities during
weekend hours is a worthy goal, this bill takes the program
beyond the original scope of the ASES program. After school
programs are intended to provide students with access to
quality tutoring, homework assistance, and educational
enrichment during weekday non-school hours, when they are
most at risk of being involved in dangerous activities.
SB 43 (Torlakson), of 2008, would have expanded eligibility for
the Paraprofessionals Teacher Training Program by defining staff
that provide academic assistance in specified after school
programs as school paraprofessionals. SB 43 was not heard in the
Senate Education Committee at the request of the author.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Aspiranet
California After School Coalition
California School Boards Association
California Workforce Innovation Network
LA's Best
Los Angeles County Office of Education
Partnership for Children and Youth
Opposition
None on file.
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Analysis Prepared by : Mark Murphy and Sophia Kwong Kim / ED.
/ (916) 319-2087