II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1250 

To create and expand innovative teacher and principal preparation programs 

known as teacher and principal preparation academies. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 22, 2011 

Mr. BENNET (for himself, Mr. ALEXANDER, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. KIRK, and 

Ms. LANDRIEU) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To create and expand innovative teacher and principal preparation programs known as teacher and principal preparation academies. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Growing Education Achievement Training Academies for 

6 Teachers and Principals Act’’ or the ‘‘GREAT Teachers 

7 and Principals Act’’. 

8 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

9 this Act is as follows: 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 1250 IS

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Purpose. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 

Sec. 4. State grants. 

Sec. 5. Subgrants to teacher or principal preparation academies. 

Sec. 6. Coordination with the Corporation for National and Community Service. 

Sec. 7. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

2 The purpose of this Act is to encourage innovation 

3 in the field of teacher and principal preparation by cre4 ating and expanding teacher or principal preparation 

5 academies that will increase the number of effective teach6 ers and principals serving in high-needs schools and hard7 to-staff subjects. 

8 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) PRINCIPAL PREPARATION ACADEMY.—The 

11 term ‘‘principal preparation academy’’ means a pub12 lic or other nonprofit institution for preparing prin13 cipals that— 

14 (A) enters into a charter with a State au15 thorizer that specifies the goals and outcomes 

16 expected of the principal preparation academy 

17 and the obligations of the State authorizer, in18 cluding— 

19 (i) a requirement that— 

20 (I) principal candidates, or prin21 cipals serving on alternative certifi22 cates, licenses, or credentials, who are 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 1250 IS

1 enrolled in the principal preparation 

2 academy receive a significant part of 

3 their training through clinical prepa4 ration that partners the principal can5 didate with a mentor principal; and 

6 (II) the academy will provide in7 struction to the principal candidate 

8 that links to the clinical preparation 

9 experience; 

10 (ii) the number of principals the prin11 cipal preparation academy will produce and 

12 the minimum number and percentage of 

13 effective principals with a demonstrated 

14 track record of success in getting a 

15 school’s students on track to being career 

16 and college ready; 

17 (iii) a requirement that a certificate of 

18 completion (or degree, if the principal 

19 preparation academy is, or is affiliated 

20 with, an institution of higher education) 

21 will be conferred upon a graduate from the 

22 principal preparation academy only after 

23 the graduate demonstrates a track record 

24 of success in getting a school’s students on 

25 track to being college and career ready; 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 1250 IS

1 (iv) a requirement that the principal 

2 preparation academy survey the academy’s 

3 alumni not less than once every 3 years to 

4 track the number of alumni employed as 

5 principals and in education; and 

6 (v) timelines for producing cohorts of 

7 graduates and conferring certificates of 

8 completion (or degrees, if the principal 

9 preparation academy is, or is affiliated 

10 with, an institution of higher education) 

11 from the principal preparation academy; 

12 (B) shall not have unnecessary restrictions 

13 on the methods the principal preparation acad14 emy will use to train principal candidates, in15 cluding restrictions or requirements— 

16 (i) obligating the faculty of the prin17 cipal preparation academy faculty to hold 

18 advanced degrees; 

19 (ii) obligating such faculty to conduct 

20 academic research; 

21 (iii) related to the physical infrastruc22 ture of the principal preparation academy; 

23 or 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 1250 IS

1 (iv) related to the number of course 

2 credits required as part of the program of 

3 study; and 

4 (C) limits admission to its program to can5 didates who demonstrate strong potential to be 

6 effective principals, based on a rigorous, com7 petency-based selection process that reviews a 

8 candidate’s prior academic achievement or 

9 record of professional accomplishment. 

10 (2) STATE AUTHORIZER.—The term ‘‘State au11 thorizer’’ means an entity designated by the State to 

12 recognize teacher or principal preparation academies 

13 within the State that— 

14 (A) may be a nonprofit organization, State 

15 educational agency, or other public entity, or 

16 consortium of such entities (including a consor17 tium of States); and 

18 (B) does not renew a teacher or principal 

19 preparation academy’s charter if the academy 

20 fails to produce the minimum number or per21 centage of effective teachers or principals, re22 spectively, identified in the academy’s charter. 

23 (3) TEACHER PREPARATION ACADEMY.—The 

24 term ‘‘teacher preparation academy’’ means a public 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 1250 IS

1 or other nonprofit institution for preparing teachers 

2 that— 

3 (A) enters into a charter with a State au4 thorizer that specifies the goals and outcomes 

5 expected of the teacher preparation academy 

6 and the obligations of the State authorizer, in7 cluding— 

8 (i) a requirement that— 

9 (I) teacher candidates, or teach10 ers teaching on alternative certifi11 cates, licenses, or credentials, who are 

12 enrolled in the teacher preparation 

13 academy receive a significant part of 

14 their training through clinical prepa15 ration that partners teacher can16 didates with mentor teachers with a 

17 demonstrated track record of success 

18 in improving academic achievement in 

19 the classroom; and 

20 (II) the academy will provide in21 struction to teacher candidates that 

22 links to the clinical preparation expe23 rience; 

24 (ii) the number of teachers the teach25 er preparation academy will produce and 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 1250 IS

1 the minimum number and percentage of 

2 effective teachers with a demonstrated 

3 track record of success in getting students 

4 on track to being college and career ready, 

5 based on multiple measures of student 

6 achievement; 

7 (iii) a requirement that a teacher 

8 preparation academy will only award a cer9 tificate of completion (or degree, if the 

10 teacher preparation academy is, or is affili11 ated with, an institution of higher edu12 cation) after the graduate demonstrates 

13 the track record of success described in 

14 clause (ii), either as a student teacher or 

15 teacher-of-record on an alternative certifi16 cate, license, or credential; 

17 (iv) a requirement that the teacher 

18 preparation academy survey the academy’s 

19 alumni not less than once every 3 years to 

20 track the number of alumni employed as 

21 teachers and in education; and 

22 (v) timelines for producing cohorts of 

23 graduates and conferring certificates of 

24 completion (or degrees, if the teacher prep25 aration academy is, or is affiliated with, an 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 1250 IS

1 institution of higher education) from the 

2 teacher preparation academy; 

3 (B) shall not have unnecessary restrictions 

4 on the methods or inputs the teacher prepara5 tion academy will use to train teacher can6 didates or teachers teaching on alternative cer7 tificates, licenses, or credentials, including re8 strictions or requirements— 

9 (i) obligating the faculty of the teach10 er preparation academy to hold advanced 

11 degrees; 

12 (ii) obligating such faculty to conduct 

13 academic research; 

14 (iii) related to the physical infrastruc15 ture of the teacher preparation academy; 

16 (iv) related to the number of course 

17 credits required as part of the program of 

18 study; 

19 (v) related to the undergraduate 

20 coursework completed by teachers teaching 

21 on alternative certificates, licenses, or cre22 dentials, as long as such teachers have suc23 cessfully passed all relevant State-approved 

24 content area examinations; or 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 1250 IS

1 (vi) related to obtaining additional ac2 creditation from a national accrediting 

3 body; and 

4 (C) limits admission to its program to can5 didates who demonstrate strong potential to be 

6 effective teachers, based on a rigorous selection 

7 process that reviews a candidate’s prior aca8 demic achievement or record of professional ac9 complishment. 

10 (4) TEACHER OR PRINCIPAL PREPARATION

11 ACADEMY.—The term ‘‘teacher or principal prepara12 tion academy’’ means a teacher preparation academy 

13 or a principal preparation academy. 

14 SEC. 4. STATE GRANTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary is authorized to 

16 award grants to States having applications approved 

17 under subsection (b) to enable such States to create or 

18 expand teacher or principal preparation academies. 

19 (b) APPLICATIONS.—Each State that desires a grant 

20 under this Act shall submit an application to the Secretary 

21 at such time, in such manner, and containing such infor22 mation as the Secretary may reasonably require. The ap23 plication shall include— 

24 (1) an assurance that the State does not have 

25 in place legal, statutory, or regulatory barriers to the 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 1250 IS

1 creation or operation of teacher or principal prepara2 tion academies; 

3 (2) a description of how the State will promote 

4 the creation and expansion of teacher or principal 

5 preparation academies; 

6 (3) a description of how the authorization and 

7 approval of teacher or principal preparation acad8 emies is separate and distinct from the requirements 

9 otherwise established by the State for approval of 

10 other teacher or principal preparation programs; 

11 (4) a description of the process the State au12 thorizer will use to authorize and approve a teacher 

13 or principal preparation academy that— 

14 (A) enables participants in the academy to 

15 be eligible for State financial aid to the same 

16 extent as participants in other State-approved 

17 teacher or principal preparation programs, in18 cluding alternative certification, licensure, or 

19 credential programs; 

20 (B) enables teachers who are teaching on 

21 alternative certificates, licenses, or credentials 

22 to teach in the State while enrolled in a teacher 

23 preparation academy; and 

24 (C) enables graduates from teacher prepa25 ration academies to be eligible to teach in such 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 1250 IS

1 State and graduates from principal preparation 

2 academies to be eligible to be a principal in a 

3 school in such State; 

4 (5) a description of the process the State au5 thorizer will use to monitor the success of— 

6 (A) a teacher preparation academy in— 

7 (i) producing effective teachers that 

8 demonstrate a track record of success in 

9 getting students on track to being college 

10 and career ready, based on multiple meas11 ures of student achievement; and 

12 (ii) preparing teachers to teach in 

13 high-needs schools or hard-to-staff sub14 jects; and 

15 (B) a principal preparation academy in— 

16 (i) producing effective principals that 

17 demonstrate a track record of success in 

18 getting students in a school on track to 

19 being career and college ready; and 

20 (ii) preparing principals to serve in 

21 high-needs schools or hard-to-staff sub22 jects; 

23 (6) the criteria the State authorizer will apply 

24 in renewing or denying a teacher or principal prepa25 ration academy’s charter, including the minimum 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 1250 IS

1 number and percentage of effective teachers or prin2 cipals such academy must produce in order to renew 

3 its charter; and 

4 (7) an assurance that the State will recognize 

5 a certificate of completion (from a teacher or prin6 cipal preparation academy that is not, or is unaffili7 ated with, an institution of higher education), as at 

8 least the equivalent of a master’s degree in edu9 cation for the purposes of teacher or principal hir10 ing, retention, compensation, and promotion in the 

11 State. 

12 (c) USES OF FUNDS.—A State receiving a grant 

13 under this Act shall use grant funds to— 

14 (1) implement a process by which to— 

15 (A) create or designate State authorizers; 

16 and 

17 (B) create or approve teacher or principal 

18 preparation academies; 

19 (2) support, directly or through a nonprofit 

20 intermediary organization, the establishment and op21 eration of teacher or principal preparation academies 

22 by assisting entities with the planning, program de23 sign, and implementation of such programs; and 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 1250 IS

1 (3) award subgrants to teacher or principal 

2 preparation academies in the State in accordance 

3 with section 5. 

4 SEC. 5. SUBGRANTS TO TEACHER OR PRINCIPAL PREPARA5 TION ACADEMIES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—From the amounts made available 

7 under section 4(c)(3), a State shall award subgrants to 

8 nonprofit entities to carry out activities described in sub9 section (d). 

10 (b) APPLICATIONS.—Each nonprofit entity desiring a 

11 subgrant under this section from a State shall submit an 

12 application to a State authorizer designated by the State 

13 to receive such applications. The application shall include, 

14 at a minimum— 

15 (1) a description of the teacher or principal 

16 preparation academy’s proposed curriculum, training 

17 of teacher or principal candidates (including clinical 

18 training), and approach to teacher or principal de19 velopment; 

20 (2) the student achievement outcomes the entity 

21 will require of academy graduates before conferring 

22 a degree or certificate of completion from the pro23 gram, with timelines for obtaining such outcomes; 

24 (3) a multi-year financial and operating model 

25 for the entity; 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
14 

•S 1250 IS

1 (4) the qualifications of the entity’s chief execu2 tive officer or organization leader; and 

3 (5) a description of how the teacher or principal 

4 preparation academy is designed to prepare teachers 

5 or principals to serve in high-need areas (including 

6 rural areas and Native American communities), or 

7 hard-to-staff subjects. 

8 (c) PRIORITY.—In awarding subgrants under this 

9 section, a State shall give a priority to entities proposing 

10 to expand previously existing teacher or principal prepara11 tion programs, as of the date of application, with a dem12 onstrated track record of success in getting students on 

13 track to being college and career ready. 

14 (d) USES OF FUNDS.—An entity that receives a 

15 subgrant under this section shall use its subgrant— 

16 (1) to establish a teacher or principal prepara17 tion academy; 

18 (2) to expand the capacity of a teacher or prin19 cipal preparation academy; 

20 (3) to measure the effectiveness of a teacher or 

21 principal preparation academy in improving student 

22 academic achievement, as demonstrated by getting 

23 students on track to be college and career ready; or 

24 (4) to recruit candidates for a teacher or prin25 cipal preparation academy who have demonstrated 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
15 

•S 1250 IS

1 strong potential to be effective teachers or prin2 cipals, based on a rigorous, competency-based selec3 tion process that reviews a candidate’s prior aca4 demic achievement or record of professional accom5 plishment. 

6 SEC. 6. COORDINATION WITH THE CORPORATION FOR NA7 TIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE. 

8 (a) INTERAGENCY AGREEMENT.—The Secretary 

9 shall enter into an interagency agreement with the Cor10 poration for National and Community Service under sec11 tion 121(b) of the National and Community Service Act 

12 of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12571(b)) under which the Corpora13 tion shall approve positions, for candidates at each teacher 

14 or principal preparation academy that receives financial 

15 assistance under this Act, as approved national service po16 sitions, as defined in section 101 of the National and Com17 munity Service Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12511). Such 

18 interagency agreement shall specify how a degree or cer19 tificate of completion for a term of service as a participant 

20 at a teacher or principal preparation academy will be sub21 mitted to the Corporation. 

22 (b) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding section 148 of 

23 the National and Community Service Act of 1990 (42 

24 U.S.C. 12604), the Secretary and the Chief Executive Of25 ficer of the Corporation for National and Community 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
16 

•S 1250 IS

1 Service shall develop a program under which national serv2 ice educational awards may be disbursed to a teacher or 

3 principal preparation academy to cover or reimburse the 

4 costs of attending the academy. 

5 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

6 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

7 this Act such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal 

8 years 2012 through 2016. 

Æ 


rfrederick on DSKD9S0YB1PROD with BILLS