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[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1828 Introduced in House (IH)]

110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1828

   To establish a national teaching fellowship program to encourage 
  individuals to enter and remain in the field of teaching at public 
                                schools.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 29, 2007

 Mr. Price of North Carolina (for himself, Mr. Etheridge, Ms. Corrine 
   Brown of Florida, Mr. Hinojosa, Mr. Miller of North Carolina, Mr. 
 McIntyre, Mr. Klein of Florida, Mr. Butterfield, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Walz 
of Minnesota, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Watt, Mr. Gutierrez, Mr. Scott of Georgia, 
 and Mr. Shuler) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                  the Committee on Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To establish a national teaching fellowship program to encourage 
  individuals to enter and remain in the field of teaching at public 
                                schools.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Teaching Fellows Act of 2007''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The United States faces an increasing need for high-
        quality educators.
            (2) Up to 1,000,000 of the country's 3,000,000 teachers 
        will retire in the next 5 years. Schools in the United States 
        will have to hire 2,200,000 teachers by 2010.
            (3) The Congress desires to inspire promising high school 
        seniors and accomplished persons currently involved in the 
        field of education to become certified teachers.
            (4) The opportunity created by a fellowship program would 
        allow persons in the field of education the financial 
        opportunity to obtain a quality education which they would use 
        to teach America's youth.
            (5) The Congress desires to motivate those who go into the 
        field of teaching to become career educators.
            (6) Many paraprofessionals have received their training at 
        community colleges and have the potential and desire to obtain 
        degrees in education and certification as teachers.
            (7) Rural and inner-city communities could greatly benefit 
        from encouraging those in the community who already have an 
        interest in teaching to pursue a degree in education and become 
        career educators.

SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.

    Title II of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1021 et 
seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating Part B as Part C; and
            (2) by inserting after Part A the following new part:

               ``PART B--TEACHING AND PARTNERSHIP FELLOWS

``SEC. 211. STATE TEACHING FELLOWS PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to encourage 
promising high school seniors and undergraduate students to enter the 
field of teaching and become career educators.
    ``(b) Establishment of State Teaching Fellows Program.--
            ``(1) Use of funds for scholarships.--From the funds 
        appropriated under subsection (h), the Secretary shall make 
        grants available to States for the purpose of establishing 
        State Teaching Fellows Programs to provide scholarships for 
        Teaching Fellows. Such scholarships shall be used to pay for 
        tuition, fees, and other costs of attendance at institutions of 
        higher education incurred by such Teaching Fellows.
            ``(2) Scholarship amounts.--Scholarships to Teaching 
        Fellows made available under this section shall be no less than 
        $6,500 per year--
                    ``(A) for each of 4 years of undergraduate 
                education, in the case of a Teaching Fellow who, at the 
                time of application, was a high school senior;
                    ``(B) for the third and fourth year of 
                undergraduate education, in the case of a Teaching 
                Fellow who, at the time of application, was in the 
                second year of undergraduate education; and
                    ``(C) for a fifth year of undergraduate education, 
                in the case of a Teaching Fellow described in 
                subparagraph (A) or (B), if such year is required in 
                order to obtain a bachelor's degree with a State 
                license or certificate to teach.
            ``(3) Selection of fellows.--Teaching Fellows shall be 
        selected from individuals who--
                    ``(A) at the time of application, are high school 
                seniors or are in the second academic year of a program 
                of undergraduate education at a two- or four-year 
                degree-granting institution of higher education;
                    ``(B) are United States citizens or aliens lawfully 
                residing in the United States (other than as a 
                nonimmigrant);
                    ``(C) are residents of the State sponsoring the 
                State Teaching Fellows Program to which they are 
                applying;
                    ``(D) meet the criteria established under 
                subsection (c)(2)(C); and
                    ``(E) enter into a written agreement with the State 
                agency to fulfill the service requirement under 
                subsection (e) in exchange for receipt of the 
                scholarship made available under this section.
    ``(c) Competition for Federal Funds.--
            ``(1) Administration of state program.--The governor (or 
        chief executive officer) of each State desiring to participate 
        in the State Teaching Fellows Program shall designate a single 
        State agency to administer the State Teaching Fellows Program. 
        Such State agency shall have a full-time staff and may be a 
        division of the State's education department, a coordinating or 
        governing board of higher education, an independent government 
        agency, or a non-profit organization.
            ``(2) Application.--A State agency designated under 
        paragraph (1) shall submit an application to the Secretary at 
        such time, in such a manner, and containing such information, 
        as the Secretary may require. Such application shall--
                    ``(A) identify the private and public institutions 
                of higher education within the State that will 
                participate in the State Teaching Fellows Program;
                    ``(B) describe any step the State agency will take 
                to encourage the involvement of Hispanic Serving 
                Institutions and Historically Black Colleges and 
                Universities in such program;
                    ``(C) describe the specific, rigorous criteria to 
                be used in selecting Teaching Fellows;
                    ``(D) describe the procedures the State agency will 
                use for the distribution of scholarships and 
                administration of service obligation oversight;
                    ``(E) provide assurances that each participating 
                institution will be required to provide a full-time 
                faculty member or administrator to serve as the State 
                Teaching Fellows Program director at that institution, 
                and to work closely with the State agency to administer 
                the campus program and to create and execute the 
                mandatory extracurricular enrichment programs and 
                activities required by subparagraph (F); and
                    ``(F) describe the mandatory extracurricular 
                enrichment programs and activities that will be part of 
                such program that--
                            ``(i) are designed to motivate Teaching 
                        Fellows to become career educators;
                            ``(ii) provide Teaching Fellows with a 
                        multidisciplinary education;
                            ``(iii) are offered regularly during each 
                        year of schooling (including during intervals 
                        between periods of enrollment); and
                            ``(iv) expose Teaching Fellows to the 
                        business, political, demographic, cultural, and 
                        economic climates of the State, and help 
                        Teaching Fellows develop leadership qualities.
            ``(3) Competitive selection.--From the applications 
        submitted by State agencies designated under paragraph (1), the 
        Secretary shall approve those applications that the Secretary 
        determines to be the most promising in carrying out the 
        purposes of the State Teaching Fellows Program. Each such State 
        agency whose application is selected by the Secretary to 
        participate in the State Teaching Fellows Program shall receive 
        funds to offer scholarships under this section. The Secretary 
        shall determine the amount of funds to award to each such State 
        agency based on the amount of the total appropriation for the 
        State Teaching Fellows Program, the relative size of the 
        State's student population, and the cost of administering a 
        viable State Teaching Fellows Program, as estimated by the 
        Secretary.
    ``(d) Requirements for State Receipt of Federal Funds.--Each State 
participating in the State Teaching Fellows Program shall provide 
assurances that--
            ``(1) the State agency and participating institutions 
        shall, collectively, match the Federal funds provided under 
        this section by providing at least 25 percent of the total cost 
        of the State Teaching Fellows Program; and
            ``(2) funds received under this section will only be used 
        to supplement the amount of funds that would, in the absence of 
        such Federal funds, be made available from non-Federal sources 
        for the purposes of this section, and not to supplant such 
        funds.
    ``(e) Service Requirement for Teaching Fellows.--Each individual 
selected as a Teaching Fellow and receiving scholarship assistance 
under this section shall, within 7 years after graduation--
            ``(1) teach for 4 qualifying years at one or more public 
        schools within the State that awarded such scholarship; or
            ``(2) teach for 3 consecutive qualifying years (unless the 
        recipient takes leave of absence, approved by the State agency 
        on a case-by-case basis), at one or more public schools within 
        such State that, at the time the recipient accepts employment, 
        the local educational agency in which such school is located 
        has identified for school improvement under section 1116(b) of 
        the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
    ``(f) Failure To Meet Service Requirement.--
            ``(1) Obligation to repay.--The State agency administering 
        the State Teaching Fellows Program shall require that any 
        Teaching Fellow who fails to meet the service requirement under 
        subsection (e) shall repay a pro rata amount, as determined by 
        such State agency, of the scholarship received from the State 
        Teaching Fellows Program, and to pay interest on such pro rata 
        amount at an annual rate of 10 percent until such pro rata 
        amount is repaid.
            ``(2) Exception.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply if the 
        State agency finds that it is impossible for the Teaching 
        Fellow to meet the service requirement under subsection (e) 
        because of the death or permanent disability of the recipient.
            ``(3) Revolving funding.--Any funds repaid by a Teaching 
        Fellow pursuant to paragraph (1), together with any interest 
        thereon, may be retained by the State agency for making 
        available additional scholarships under this section, and for 
        paying costs related to the disbursement of awards under this 
        section, and the collection of payments under paragraph (1).
    ``(g) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
            ``(1) Qualified year.--The term `qualified year', with 
        respect to the service required of a Teaching Fellow under 
        subsection (e), means an academic year during which the 
        Teaching Fellow teaches a minimum of six full calendar months 
        within such academic year.
            ``(2) State.--The term `State' includes the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
            ``(3) State agency.--The term `State agency' means the 
        agency designated pursuant to subsection (c)(1).
            ``(4) Teaching fellows.--The term `Teaching Fellow' means 
        an individual selected for an award of financial assistance 
        under this section.
    ``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $200,000,000 for fiscal year 
2008, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding 
fiscal years.

``SEC. 212. PARTNERSHIP FELLOWS PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Purposes.--The purposes of this section are--
            ``(1) to encourage members of the education community, such 
        as education-related paraprofessionals and other school 
        employees who are not yet certified teachers, to obtain a 
        bachelor's degree with a State license or certificate to teach; 
        and
            ``(2) to encourage partnerships between associate's degree-
        granting institutions and bachelor's degree-granting 
        institutions to reduce and remove common barriers that prevent 
        many individuals described in paragraph (1) from completing 
        such a degree.
    ``(b) Grants for State Partnership Fellows Programs.--
            ``(1) Use of funds.--From the funds appropriated under 
        subsection (f), the Secretary shall make grants available to 
        States for the purpose of establishing State Partnership 
        Fellows Programs to--
                    ``(A) support the creation and maintenance of 
                eligible partnerships; and
                    ``(B) provide funds to eligible partnerships to 
                award scholarships to Partnership Fellows, which shall 
                be used to pay for tuition, fees, and other costs of 
                attendance incurred by Partnership Fellows at 
                institutions of higher education that are members of 
                such eligible partnerships.
            ``(2) State agency to administer program.--The governor (or 
        chief executive officer) of each State desiring to receive a 
        grant under this section shall designate a single State agency 
        to administer the State Partnership Fellows Program. Such State 
        agency shall have a full-time staff and may be a division of 
        the State's education department, a coordinating or governing 
        board of higher education, an independent government agency, or 
        a non-profit organization.
            ``(3) Application.--A State agency designated under 
        paragraph (2) shall submit an application to the Secretary at 
        such time, in such a manner, and containing such information, 
        as the Secretary may require. Such application shall--
                    ``(A) describe--
                            ``(i) the process by which the State agency 
                        solicited proposals from eligible partnerships 
                        within the State for participation in the State 
                        Partnership Fellows Program;
                            ``(ii) any criteria used, in addition to 
                        the criteria described in subsection (c), to 
                        select from such proposals eligible 
                        partnerships to participate in the State 
                        Partnership Fellows Program; and
                            ``(iii) any steps taken by the State agency 
                        to include the involvement of Hispanic Serving 
                        Institutions and Historically Black Colleges 
                        and Universities in the State Partnership 
                        Fellows Program;
                    ``(B) provide a list of the eligible partnerships 
                that have been selected for participation in the State 
                Partnership Fellows Program, which shall include the 
                names of the institutions of higher education that 
                comprise the members of each such eligible partnership, 
                and the proposals submitted by each such eligible 
                partnership;
                    ``(C) provide a detailed description of how the 
                funds provided through such grant shall be allocated 
                among eligible partnerships within the State; and
                    ``(D) provide assurances that--
                            ``(i) not less than 25 percent of the total 
                        cost of the State Partnership Fellows Program 
                        shall be from non-Federal funds;
                            ``(ii) the funds received under this 
                        section shall only be used to supplement the 
                        amount of funds that would, in the absence of 
                        such Federal funds, be made available from non-
                        Federal sources for the purposes of this 
                        section, and not to supplant such funds; and
                            ``(iii) not more than 20 percent of the 
                        funds received under this section shall be used 
                        for administrative costs to carry out the State 
                        Partnership Fellows Program, including funds 
                        made available to eligible partnerships to--
                                    ``(I) support the creation and 
                                maintenance of such partnerships;
                                    ``(II) sponsor the mandatory 
                                extracurricular enrichment programs and 
                                activities for Partnership Fellows, as 
                                required by subsection (c)(3); and
                                    ``(III) collect payments under 
                                subsection (d)(4)(A).
            ``(4) Competitive selection.--From applications submitted 
        by State agencies for State Partnership Fellows Program grants, 
        the Secretary shall award grants to those State agencies that 
        the Secretary determines, based on such applications, to be the 
        most promising in carrying out the purposes of this section.
    ``(c) Criteria for Proposals From Eligible Partnerships.--To be 
eligible to receive a grant under this section, a State agency shall 
require each eligible partnership selected for participation in the 
State Partnership Fellows Program to have submitted a proposal that--
            ``(1) identifies the specific, rigorous criteria to be used 
        by the eligible partnership to select Partnership Fellows, 
        including outstanding service to school-age children, a firm 
        commitment to the field of education, and aptitude to succeed 
        as a teacher;
            ``(2) designates a full-time faculty member or 
        administrator to serve as Partnership Fellows Program director 
        or coordinator for the eligible partnership, who will work 
        closely with the State agency to administer the program and to 
        create and execute the mandatory extracurricular enrichment 
        programs and activities required by paragraph (3);
            ``(3) describes the mandatory extracurricular enrichment 
        programs and activities that will be part of such program 
        that--
                    ``(A) are designed to motivate Partnership Fellows 
                to become career educators;
                    ``(B) provide Partnership Fellows with a 
                multidisciplinary education;
                    ``(C) are offered regularly during each year of 
                schooling (including during intervals between periods 
                of enrollment); and
                    ``(D) expose Partnership Fellows to the business, 
                political, demographic, cultural, and economic climates 
                of the State, and help the Partnership Fellows develop 
                leadership qualities;
            ``(4) specifically describes how the eligible partnership 
        will provide Partnership Fellows in rural or underserved 
        communities access to the curriculum and mandatory 
        extracurricular enrichment programs and activities created by 
        the eligible partnership;
            ``(5) describes how the program will accommodate 
        Partnership Fellows who maintain employment while pursuing a 
        degree, including any available distance learning methods, 
        evening and weekend programs, minimum credit requirements, or 
        other programs;
            ``(6) describes the circumstances in which, and the amount 
        with which, the eligible partnership will assist Partnership 
        Fellows during the period of student teaching, in accordance 
        with subsection (d)(2)(C), should they be financially unable 
        (as determined by the State agency) to complete such period of 
        student teaching;
            ``(7) provides an itemized account of how the eligible 
        partnership plans to use the funds received under this section; 
        and
            ``(8) provides assurances that scholarships to Partnership 
        Fellows will be administered in accordance with the 
        requirements of subsection (d).
    ``(d) Partnership Fellows Scholarship Administration.--
            ``(1) Selection of fellows.--Partnership Fellows shall be 
        selected by an eligible partnership from individuals who--
                    ``(A) are United States citizens or aliens lawfully 
                residing in the United States (other than as a 
                nonimmigrant);
                    ``(B) are residents of the State sponsoring the 
                Partnership Fellows Program to which they are applying;
                    ``(C) are--
                            ``(i) education-related paraprofessionals, 
                        as such term is defined by the State agency of 
                        such State; or
                            ``(ii) enrolled in an associate's degree-
                        granting institution;
                    ``(D) meet the criteria established by the eligible 
                partnership under subsection (c)(1); and
                    ``(E) enter into a written agreement with the 
                eligible partnership to fulfill the service requirement 
                under paragraph (3) in exchange for receipt of the 
                scholarship made available under this section.
            ``(2) Scholarship amounts.--Scholarships to Partnership 
        Fellows made available under this section--
                    ``(A) in the case of a Partnership Fellow attending 
                an institution of higher education on a full-time 
                basis, as defined by the eligible partnership, shall 
                be--
                            ``(i) not less than $6,500 per year; and
                            ``(ii) available for each year of 
                        undergraduate education required to obtain a 
                        bachelor's degree with a State license or 
                        certificate to teach that the Partnership 
                        Fellow begins after being selected as a 
                        Partnership Fellow, which may include a fifth 
                        year of undergraduate education if a fifth year 
                        is required to obtain a bachelor's degree with 
                        a State license or certificate to teach;
                    ``(B) in the case of a Partnership Fellow attending 
                an institution of higher education on less than a full-
                time basis, as defined by the eligible partnership, 
                shall be--
                            ``(i) the amount under subparagraph (A)(i), 
                        reduced in proportion to the degree to which 
                        that student is not so attending on a full-time 
                        basis; and
                            ``(ii) available for a period not to exceed 
                        six years; and
                    ``(C) in the case of a Partnership Fellow described 
                in subparagraph (A) or (B), may be awarded during the 
                period of student teaching, as permitted under 
                subsection (c)(6).
            ``(3) Service requirement for partnership fellows.--Each 
        Partnership Fellow shall, within 7 years after graduating with 
        a bachelor's degree with a State license or certificate to 
        teach--
                    ``(A) teach for 4 qualifying years at one or more 
                public schools within the State in which the eligible 
                partnership that selected the Partnership Fellow is 
                located; or
                    ``(B) teach for 3 consecutive qualifying years 
                (unless the recipient takes leave of absence, approved 
                by the State agency on a case-by-case basis), at one or 
                more public schools within such State that, at the time 
                the recipient accepts employment, the local educational 
                agency in which such school is located has identified 
                for school improvement under section 1116(b) of the 
                Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
            ``(4) Failure to meet service requirement.--
                    ``(A) Obligation to repay.--Any Partnership Fellow 
                who fails to meet the service requirement under 
                paragraph (3) shall repay to the eligible partnership 
                that selected the Partnership Fellow, a pro rata 
                amount, as determined by the State agency administering 
                the State Partnership Fellows Program, of the 
                scholarship received from the Partnership Fellows 
                Program, and to pay interest on such pro rata amount at 
                an annual rate of 10 percent until such pro rata amount 
                is repaid.
                    ``(B) Exception.--Subparagraph (A) shall not apply 
                if the State agency finds that it is impossible for the 
                Partnership Fellow to meet the service requirement 
                under paragraph (3) because of the death or permanent 
                disability of the Partnership Fellow.
                    ``(C) Revolving funding.--Any funds repaid by a 
                Partnership Fellow pursuant to subparagraph (A), 
                together with any interest thereon, shall be 
                transferred by the eligible partnership to the State 
                agency, and may be retained by the State agency for 
                making available additional scholarships under this 
                section, and for administrative costs related to the 
                disbursement of such scholarships.
    ``(e) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
            ``(1) Eligible partnership.--The term `eligible 
        partnership' means a partnership agreement between at least one 
        associate's degree-granting institution and at least one 
        bachelor's degree-granting institution in which all members of 
        the partnership agree to--
                    ``(A) establish significantly similar curricula and 
                degree requirements for individuals pursuing a 
                bachelor's degree with a State license or certification 
                to teach;
                    ``(B) ensure that credit earned by an individual at 
                any institution that is a member of the eligible 
                partnership is acceptable for full credit toward such a 
                bachelor's degree at any other member institution of 
                the same eligible partnership that offers such 
                bachelor's degrees; and
                    ``(C) jointly sponsor the mandatory extracurricular 
                enrichment programs and activities required for 
                Partnership Fellows under subsection (c)(3).
            ``(2) Partnership fellow.--The term `Partnership Fellow' 
        means an individual selected by an eligible partnership for a 
        scholarship award under this section.
            ``(3) Qualifying year.--The term `qualifying year', with 
        respect to the service required of a Partnership Fellow under 
        subsection (e), means an academic year during which the 
        Partnership Fellow teaches a minimum of six full calendar 
        months within such academic year.
            ``(4) State.--The term `State' includes the several States, 
        the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
            ``(5) State agency.--The term `State agency' means the 
        agency designated pursuant to subsection (b)(2).
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $100,000,000 for fiscal year 
2008, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the 4 succeeding 
fiscal years.''.
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