Massachusetts 2023-2024 Regular Session

Massachusetts Senate Bill S311 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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1	1	1 of 1
2	2	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1831 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
3	3	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 311
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Jason M. Lewis
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to educator diversity.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Jason M. LewisFifth MiddlesexManny Cruz7th Essex1/23/2023Joanne M. ComerfordHampshire, Franklin and Worcester1/26/2023Jack Patrick Lewis7th Middlesex1/26/2023Thomas M. Stanley9th Middlesex2/3/2023Sal N. DiDomenicoMiddlesex and Suffolk2/13/2023Michael O. MooreSecond Worcester2/15/2023Vanna Howard17th Middlesex2/27/2023 1 of 6
16	16	SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1831 FILED ON: 1/20/2023
17	17	SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 311
18	18	By Mr. Lewis, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 311) of Jason M. Lewis, Manny
19	19	Cruz, Joanne M. Comerford, Jack Patrick Lewis and other members of the General Court for
20	20	legislation relative to educator diversity. Education.
21	21	[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
22	22	SEE HOUSE, NO. 4539 OF 2021-2022.]
23	23	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
24	24	_______________
25	25	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
26	26	(2023-2024)
27	27	_______________
28	28	An Act relative to educator diversity.
29	29	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
30	30	of the same, as follows:
31	31	1 SECTION 1. Section 38G of chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by
32	32	2inserting after paragraph 13, ending with the words “approved provisional educator preparation
33	33	3program”, the following paragraph:-
34	34	4 The department shall, in consultation with relevant stakeholders, develop an additional
35	35	5process for granting educator certification that may be used as an alternative to the testing
36	36	6requirements contained in this section. This process shall include consideration of factors such as
37	37	7whether a candidate has: obtained certification in another state approved by the department;
38	38	8completed a satisfactory portfolio of items that may include student feedback or competency-
39	39	9based projects; or obtained a master’s degree or doctorate from an accredited institution. The
40	40	10department may use the results of the alternative assessment pilot authorized by 603 CMR 2 of 6
41	41	117.04(e) to inform the development of the alternative licensure process required by this paragraph.
42	42	12The department shall conduct an annual evaluation of the alternative licensure process to
43	43	13determine its effects on candidates of diverse backgrounds. This section shall take effect no later
44	44	14than June 1, 2024.
45	45	15 SECTION 2. Said chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
46	46	16section 38G ½ the following section:-
47	47	17 Section 38G ¾ (a) To promote a diverse educator workforce, the department shall:
48	48	18 (i) Establish guidelines for plans to increase racial and ethnic diversity among teaching,
49	49	19administration and staff positions in public schools and districts. These guidelines shall include,
50	50	20at a minimum, recommended policies designed to help schools or districts: (1) identify and
51	51	21eliminate discriminatory barriers to hiring and learning in a school or district; (2) remedy the
52	52	22effects of past discriminatory practices; (3) identify, recruit, and hire employees who are
53	53	23members of under-represented groups; (4) develop, promote, and retain employees who are
54	54	24members of under-represented groups; and (5) ensure equal opportunity in employment for
55	55	25educators. In developing these guidelines, the department shall consult with experts and school
56	56	26leaders from public schools or districts that have experienced significant increases in hiring and
57	57	27retaining racially and ethnically diverse educators.
58	58	28 Each public school or district shall set a corresponding policy that conforms with the
59	59	29department's guidelines. Such plans shall set forth specific goals and timetables for achievement,
60	60	30shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws, and shall be updated, at a minimum,
61	61	31every 3 years. 3 of 6
62	62	32 (ii) Establish a process for reviewing plans based on clearly defined criteria. A public
63	63	33school or district shall amend any plan deemed not to conform with the requirements of this
64	64	34section. A public school or district shall be deemed to have satisfied the requirements of this
65	65	35section if it has prioritized diversity in its 3-year plan required by section 1S of chapter 69 of the
66	66	36General Laws, as amended by chapter 132 of the acts of 2019, or in any other strategic plan
67	67	37developed by the district.
68	68	38 (iii) Establish periodic reporting requirements for schools and districts concerning the
69	69	39implementation of their plans and all actions taken to ensure compliance with this section and
70	70	40applicable state and federal laws. These reporting requirements shall be incorporated into
71	71	41existing reporting mechanisms and schedules where feasible.
72	72	42 (iv) Assist schools and districts in complying with their plans and applicable federal and
73	73	43state laws.
74	74	44 (v) Require approved educator preparation programs to implement plans to increase the
75	75	45racial and ethnic diversity of program completers. These plans shall be required as part of the
76	76	46educator preparation program approval process and the department shall make each program’s
77	77	47plan publicly available. The department shall establish guidelines for educator preparation
78	78	48program diversity plans.
79	79	49 (b) The board of elementary and secondary education shall review compliance with these
80	80	50plans and policies on a regular basis and may provide further recommendations regarding
81	81	51educator diversity. 4 of 6
82	82	52 SECTION 3. Section 18 of Chapter 74, as appearing in the 2018 Official Edition, is
83	83	53hereby amended by striking the first paragraph and inserting in place thereof the following
84	84	54paragraph:-
85	85	55 The state board shall establish basic competency-based vocational-technical teacher
86	86	56training standards which shall serve as the fundamental, pedagogical requirements for beginning
87	87	57vocational-technical instructors. The board shall further require that all persons seeking to meet
88	88	58the board's requirements shall have successfully passed performance and written tests in areas as
89	89	59determined by the board or shall have satisfied alternative measures of proficiency established by
90	90	60the board and shall have successfully completed an approved seminar on teaching skills and
91	91	61methods.
92	92	62 SECTION 4: (a) Notwithstanding any general or special law to the contrary, the
93	93	63department shall set measurable educator diversity goals for the state and collect and report
94	94	64publicly statewide educator diversity data. The data shall be reported in an online dashboard
95	95	65created in consultation with the board of elementary and secondary education. The data shall
96	96	66include but not be limited to the hiring and retention of diverse educators, the racial
97	97	67demographics of educators who complete Massachusetts state educator preparation programs,
98	98	68and teacher qualification data from school and district report cards. The department shall report
99	99	69annually to the board of elementary and secondary education on state educator diversity data and
100	100	70goals. The department shall also submit a report on the state of educator diversity to the clerks of
101	101	71the senate and house of representatives no later than June 30th on an annual basis.
102	102	72 (b) Each public school or district shall collect and report educator diversity data publicly
103	103	73in a manner prescribed by the department; provided that the department shall utilize existing 5 of 6
104	104	74reporting mechanisms and schedules to collect educator diversity data and outcomes and shall
105	105	75annually present both to the school committee. The data reported pursuant to this paragraph shall
106	106	76include information regarding the achievement of goals set pursuant to subsection (a)(i) of
107	107	77section 38G ¾ of chapter 71 of the General Laws.
108	108	78 SECTION 5: (a) Each public school or district shall appoint or hire a diversity, equity,
109	109	79and inclusion officer(s) or establish a diversity team, referred to in this section as a diversity
110	110	80officer or team. The role and responsibilities of a diversity officer or team may be assigned to an
111	111	81existing school employee or existing school entity. A diversity officer or team shall report
112	112	82directly to the superintendent. Diversity officers or teams shall coordinate their school district’s
113	113	83compliance with the requirements of this section and applicable federal and state laws. Should a
114	114	84district have a diversity officer or team already in place, that shall satisfy the requirement of this
115	115	85section.
116	116	86 (c) Each public school or district shall establish a process for advising the school
117	117	87committee or board of trustees on matters of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the school district.
118	118	88This process may include establishing an educator diversity council consisting of educators,
119	119	89administrators, and students, which shall meet regularly with the superintendent or the diversity
120	120	90officer or teams and the school committee or board of trustees. The school committee or board of
121	121	91trustees may appoint a member of the committee to serve as an ex-officio member of the
122	122	92educator diversity council.
123	123	93 (d) Pursuant to guidelines established by the department, all superintendents, school
124	124	94committee members, district leaders, principals and school district employees shall attend annual
125	125	95diversity and implicit bias training. 6 of 6
126	126	96 SECTION 6. The board of elementary and secondary education shall promulgate rules
127	127	97and regulations to implement the requirements of this act. Such regulations shall include a
128	128	98schedule for public schools and districts to meet the planning and reporting requirements of this
129	129	99act, provided that such schedule shall prioritize implementation for schools and districts that
130	130	100have significant disparities between educator and student demographics, according to race and
131	131	101ethnicity.
132	132	102 SECTION 7. The department of elementary and secondary education shall establish an
133	133	103educator diversity grant program, subject to appropriation, which shall provide grants to assist
134	134	104public schools and districts with the establishment of programs to increase educator diversity.
135	135	105Grant funds may be used for purposes including but not limited to the development, in
136	136	106collaboration with institutions of higher education, of in-house teacher residency programs or
137	137	107pathways focused on recruiting, developing, and supporting educators who are members of
138	138	108under-represented groups. This grant program will also support other promising practices to
139	139	109increase the recruitment and retention of diverse educators. The department shall periodically
140	140	110report to the joint committee on education and the house and senate committees on ways and
141	141	111means on the impact of the grant program, including the expenditure of funds by schools and an
142	142	112analysis of the types of programs or initiatives created by said funds.