81R1852 KKA-D
By: Strama H.B. No. 517
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to annual stipends provided to public school teachers who
serve as mentors to other public school teachers.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 21.458, Education Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsections (b-1), (c-1), (c-2),
and (c-3) to read as follows:
(b-1) The board of trustees of a school district that
assigns teachers to serve as mentors under this section shall:
(1) adopt a policy, consistent with any rules adopted
by the commissioner under this section, that governs the selection
and duties of teachers assigned to serve as mentors; and
(2) ensure that a mentor teacher stipend under this
section is provided only to a teacher who fulfills the duties
specified in the policy required by Subdivision (1).
(c) From the funds allocated under Section 21.703 or other
funds appropriated to the agency for purposes of this section, the
commissioner shall adopt rules and provide funding to school
districts that assign mentor teachers under this section. Funding
provided to districts under this section may be used only for
providing:
(1) mentor teacher stipends in the amount of $1,000
per teacher for each school year during which the teacher serves as
a mentor;
(2) scheduled time for mentor teachers to provide
mentoring to assigned classroom teachers; and
(3) mentoring support through providers of mentor
training.
(c-1) Notwithstanding Subsection (c), a school district may
use funds provided under that subsection for a purpose authorized
by Subsection (c)(2) or (3) only to the extent that funds remain
after fully funding the stipends authorized by Subsection (c)(1).
(c-2) Subsection (c-1) does not create a property right of a
teacher to receive a stipend. If a school district receives
insufficient funds to fully fund the stipends, the district shall
reduce the stipend the district pays to each teacher serving as a
mentor proportionately so that each teacher serving as a mentor
receives the same amount of money.
(c-3) A stipend a teacher receives under this section is not
considered in determining whether the district is paying the
teacher the minimum monthly salary under Section 21.402.
SECTION 2. Section 21.703(a), Education Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) Each state fiscal year, the commissioner shall deposit
the sum of $1,000 multiplied by the number of classroom teachers in
this state to the credit of the educator excellence fund in the
general revenue fund. Each state fiscal year, the agency shall use:
(1) from the funds in the educator excellence fund,
the amount necessary to fund stipends under Section 21.458 for
teachers who serve as mentors to other teachers, provided that not
more than $70 million may be used for this purpose each fiscal year;
(2) not more than $100 million of any remaining [the]
funds in the educator excellence fund to provide grant awards under
the awards for student achievement program established under
Subchapter N; and
(3) [(2)] any remaining funds in the educator
excellence fund to provide a qualifying school district a grant in
an amount determined by:
(A) dividing the amount of remaining money
available for distribution in the educator excellence fund by the
total number of students in average daily attendance in qualifying
districts for that fiscal year; and
(B) multiplying the amount determined under
Paragraph (A) by the number of students in average daily attendance
in the district.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.