California Senate Bill SB517 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: SB 517AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 1, 2013 INTRODUCED BY Senator Wyland FEBRUARY 21, 2013 An act to  amend Section 69564   add Article 10 (commencing with Section 69700) to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5 of Title 3  of the Education Code, relating to  postsecondary education   student financial aid  . LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 517, as amended, Wyland.  Student Opportunity and Access Program.   Invigorating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (iSTEM) Teacher Preparation Grant Program.   Existing law establishes various programs that provide financial aid for qualifying students attending postsecondary educational institutions, including, among others, the Cal Grant T Program, which provides for the award of funds for tuition and student fees for attendance in a program of professional preparation. As a condition of receiving a Cal Grant T award, a recipient is required to teach for one year in a high-priority school, as defined.  This bill would establish the Invigorating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (iSTEM) Teacher Preparation Grant Program, to be administered by the Student Aid Commission, to award grants to eligible applicants for tuition and student fees for programs of professional preparation to the extent that funds are appropriated for this purpose in the annual Budget Act. The bill would require an applicant to meet eligibility requirements, including, among others, obtaining a baccalaureate degree in a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics field, as defined by the commission, and agreeing to teach in a high-priority school, as defined, for 2 years after the person obtains a teaching credential. The bill would require a recipient who fails to meet the requirements for receiving the grant to repay the commission the amount of the grant, and would authorize the commission to initiate a civil action against the recipient for repayment of the grant plus interest and costs incurred in recovering the funds.   Existing law establishes the Student Opportunity and Access Program administered by the Student Aid Commission to apportion funds on a progress payment schedule for the support of projects designed to increase the accessibility of postsecondary educational opportunities for specified elementary and secondary school pupils and community college students. Existing law requires allocation of funds appropriated for this program to be limited to those consortia meeting requirements of the program that will provide equal matching resources from existing or budgeted increases in federal, state, local, and private funds.   This bill would make nonsubstantive changes to that provision.  Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  no   yes  . State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:  SECTION 1.   Article 10 (commencing with Section 69700) is added to Chapter 2 of Part 42 of   Division 5 of Title 3 of the   Education Code   , to read:   Article 10. Invigorating Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (iSTEM) Teacher Preparation Grant Program. 69700. The Invigorating Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (iSTEM) Teacher Preparation Grant Program is hereby established to award grants to eligible applicants for tuition and student fees for programs of professional preparation, and shall be administered by the Student Aid Commission. 69701. For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply: (a) "Commission" means the Student Aid Commission. (b) "STEM" means science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. (c) "High-priority school" means any school ranked in deciles 1 to 5, inclusive, of the Academic Performance Index, pursuant to Section 52056. (d) "Program of professional preparation" means a program that has been accredited by the committee on accreditation on the basis of standards of program quality and effectiveness that have been adopted by the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, as described in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 44259. 69702. The duties of the commission shall be as follows: (a) To adopt rules and regulations necessary for the administration of the program, including, but not limited to, the following: (1) Identify STEM fields for qualifying baccalaureate degrees, as described in subdivision (a) of Section 69704. (2) Identify STEM subjects that qualify for obtaining a single subject teaching credential, as described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 69704, and for identifying classes that qualify under subparagraph (B) of paragraph (3) of subdivision (d) of Section 69704. (b) Make applications for grants available to applicants by March 15, 2015. (c) Commencing with the 2015-16 academic year, to the extent that funds have been appropriated for this purpose in the annual Budget Act, award grants of four thousand dollars ($4,000) to eligible applicants. 69703. A grant awarded pursuant to this article shall be paid to the program of professional preparation in which the recipient of the grant is enrolled, and shall be used only for tuition and student fees. 69704. To be eligible to receive a grant pursuant to this article, a person shall meet all of the following requirements: (a) The person has obtained, or is in the process of obtaining a baccalaureate degree in an eligible STEM field, as established by the commission, from an accredited postsecondary educational institution. (b) The person has a college grade point average, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 69432.7, of at least 2.75. (c) The person has been accepted into an accredited program of professional preparation in the state. (d) The person agrees to all of the following: (1) To complete the program of professional preparation within one academic year. (2) Within six months of completing the program of professional preparation, to receive a multiple subject teaching credential or a single subject teaching credential in a STEM subject, as identified by the commission. (3) To teach at a high-priority school in the state for the first two consecutive years after the person receives a teaching credential as follows: (A) He or she shall teach any subject in any of grades 4 to 6, inclusive. (B) He or she shall teach a STEM subject, as identified by the commission, in any of grades 7 to 12, inclusive. 69705. (a) If the recipient of a grant awarded pursuant to this article fails to meet any of the conditions for the receipt of funds pursuant to this article, the recipient shall repay to the commission the amount of the grant within a period of time specified by the commission. (b) If a person fails to repay the commission the amount of the grant within the allocated period of time, the commission may initiate a civil action against the person for repayment of the grant plus interest and costs incurred in recovering the funds. (c) Any money recovered pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the General Fund.   SECTION 1.   Section 69564 of the Education Code is amended to read: 69564. Allocation of funds appropriated for purposes of this article shall be limited to those consortia meeting requirements of this article that will provide equal matching resources from existing or budgeted increases in federal, state, local, and private funds. The goal of this program shall be that the total resources provided by the Student Opportunity and Access Program shall match state funding on at least a 1.5 to 1 ratio. Any new projects approved through expansion of the program shall provide equal matching resources for the first three years of operation and shall be encouraged to increase the matching resources to a 1.5 to 1 ratio with the state grant thereafter.