II 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1240 

To support the establishment and operation of Teachers Professional 

Development Institutes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 21 (legislative day, JUNE 16), 2011 

Mr. LIEBERMAN (for himself and Mr. BLUMENTHAL) introduced the following 

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To support the establishment and operation of Teachers 

Professional Development Institutes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. TEACHERS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT IN4 STITUTES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part A of title II of the Elemen6 tary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

7 6601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘Subpart 6—Teachers Professional Development 

2 Institutes 

3 ‘‘SEC. 2161. SHORT TITLE. 

4 ‘‘This subpart may be cited as the ‘Teachers Profes5 sional Development Institutes Act’. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 2162. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE. 

7 ‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following find8 ings: 

9 ‘‘(1) Teaching is central to the educational 

10 process and the ongoing professional development of 

11 teachers in the subjects they teach is essential for 

12 improved student learning. 

13 ‘‘(2) Attaining the goal of the No Child Left 

14 Behind Act of 2001 (Public Law 107–110)—having 

15 a classroom teacher who is highly effective in every 

16 academic subject the teacher teaches—will require 

17 innovative approaches to improve the effectiveness of 

18 teachers in the classroom. 

19 ‘‘(3) The Teachers Institute Model focuses on 

20 the continuing academic preparation of school21 teachers and the application of what the teachers 

22 study to their classrooms and potentially to the 

23 classrooms of other teachers. 

24 ‘‘(4) The Teachers Institute Model was devel25 oped initially by the Yale-New Haven Teachers InVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:51 Jun 22, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1240.IS S1240

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1 stitute and has successfully operated in New Haven, 

2 Connecticut, for more than 30 years. 

3 ‘‘(5) The Teachers Institute Model has also 

4 been successfully implemented in cities larger than 

5 New Haven. 

6 ‘‘(6) In the spring of 2009, a report entitled 

7 ‘An Evaluation of Teachers Institute Experiences’ 

8 concluded that— 

9 ‘‘(A) Teachers Institutes enhance precisely 

10 those teacher qualities known to improve stu11 dent achievement; 

12 ‘‘(B) Teachers Institutes exemplify the 

13 crucial characteristics of high-quality teacher 

14 professional development; and 

15 ‘‘(C) Teachers Institute participation is 

16 strongly related to teacher retention in high17 poverty schools. 

18 ‘‘(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this subpart is to 

19 provide Federal assistance to support the establishment 

20 and operation of Teachers Institutes for local educational 

21 agencies that serve significant low-income student popu22 lations in States throughout the Nation, in order to— 

23 ‘‘(1) improve student learning; and 

24 ‘‘(2) enhance the quality and effectiveness of 

25 teaching and strengthen the subject matter mastery 


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1 and the pedagogical skills of current teachers 

2 through continuing teacher preparation. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 2163. DEFINITIONS. 

4 ‘‘In this subpart: 

5 ‘‘(1) SIGNIFICANT LOW-INCOME STUDENT POP6 ULATION.—The term ‘significant low-income student 

7 population’ means a student population of which not 

8 less than 40 percent of the students included are eli9 gible for free or reduced price lunches under the 

10 Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act. 

11 ‘‘(2) TEACHERS INSTITUTE.—The term ‘Teach12 ers Institute’ means a partnership or joint venture— 

13 ‘‘(A) between or among— 

14 ‘‘(i) 1 or more institutions of higher 

15 education; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) 1 or more local educational agen17 cies that serve 1 or more schools with sig18 nificant low-income student populations; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(B) that improves the effectiveness of 

21 teachers in the classroom, and the quality of 

22 teaching and learning, through collaborative 

23 seminars designed to enhance both the subject 

24 matter and the pedagogical resources of the 

25 seminar participants. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 2164. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 

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

3 award grants under this subpart in order to encourage the 

4 establishment and operation of Teachers Institutes. 

5 ‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may 

6 reserve not more than 50 percent of the funds appro7 priated to carry out this subpart to provide technical as8 sistance to facilitate the establishment and operation of 

9 Teachers Institutes. The Secretary may contract with the 

10 Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute to provide all or part 

11 of the technical assistance under this subsection. 

12 ‘‘(c) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In selecting Teachers 

13 Institutes to support through grants under this subpart, 

14 the Secretary shall consider— 

15 ‘‘(1) the extent to which a proposed Teachers 

16 Institute will serve schools that have significant low17 income student populations; 

18 ‘‘(2) the extent to which a proposed Teachers 

19 Institute will follow the understandings and nec20 essary procedures described in section 2166; 

21 ‘‘(3) the extent to which each local educational 

22 agency participating in the Teachers Institute has a 

23 high percentage of teachers who are unprepared or 

24 underprepared to teach the core academic subjects 

25 the teachers are assigned to teach; and 


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1 ‘‘(4) the extent to which a proposed Teachers 

2 Institute will receive a level of support from the 

3 community and other sources that will ensure the 

4 requisite long-term commitment for the success of a 

5 Teachers Institute. 

6 ‘‘(d) CONSULTATION.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In evaluating applications 

8 using the criteria under subsection (c), the Secretary 

9 may request the advice and assistance of the Yale10 New Haven Teachers Institute or other Teachers In11 stitutes. 

12 ‘‘(2) STATE AGENCIES.—If the Secretary re13 ceives 2 or more applications for grants under this 

14 subpart from local educational agencies within the 

15 same State, the Secretary shall consult with the 

16 State educational agency regarding the applications. 

17 ‘‘(e) FISCAL AGENT.—The fiscal agent for the receipt 

18 of grant funds under this subpart shall be an institution 

19 of higher education participating in the partnership or 

20 joint venture, as described in section 2163(2)(A), that is 

21 establishing or operating the Teachers Institute. 

22 ‘‘(f) LIMITATIONS.—A grant under this subpart— 

23 ‘‘(1) shall provide grant funds for a period of 

24 not more than 5 years; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) shall be in an amount that is not more 

2 than 50 percent of the total costs of the eligible ac3 tivities supported under the grant, as determined by 

4 the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 2165. ELIGIBLE ACTIVITIES. 

6 ‘‘Grant funds under this subpart may be used— 

7 ‘‘(1) for the planning, development, establish8 ment, and operation of a Teachers Institute; 

9 ‘‘(2) for additional assistance to an established 

10 Teachers Institute for its further development and 

11 for its support of the planning, development, estab12 lishment, and operation of a Teachers Institute 

13 under paragraph (1); 

14 ‘‘(3) for the salary and necessary expenses of a 

15 full-time director for a Teachers Institute to plan 

16 and manage the Teachers Institute and to act as a 

17 liaison between all local educational agencies and in18 stitutions of higher education participating in the 

19 Teachers Institute; 

20 ‘‘(4) to provide suitable office space, staff, 

21 equipment, and supplies, and to pay other operating 

22 expenses, for the Teachers Institute; 

23 ‘‘(5) to provide a stipend for teachers partici24 pating in the collaborative seminars conducted by 

25 the Institute in the sciences and humanities and to 


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1 provide remuneration for members of the faculty of 

2 the participating institution of higher education 

3 leading the seminars; and 

4 ‘‘(6) to provide for the dissemination, through 

5 print and electronic means, of curriculum units pre6 pared in the seminars conducted by the Teachers In7 stitute. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 2166. UNDERSTANDINGS AND PROCEDURES. 

9 ‘‘A grantee receiving a grant under this subpart shall 

10 abide by the following understandings and procedures: 

11 ‘‘(1) PARTNERSHIP.—The essential relationship 

12 of a Teachers Institute is a partnership between a 

13 local educational agency and an institution of higher 

14 education. A grantee shall demonstrate a long-term 

15 commitment on behalf of the participating local edu16 cational agency and institution of higher education 

17 to the support, including the financial support, of 

18 the work of the Teachers Institute. 

19 ‘‘(2) SEMINARS.—A Teachers Institute spon20 sors seminars led by faculty of the institution of 

21 higher education partner and attended by teachers 

22 from the local educational agency partner. A grantee 

23 shall provide participating teachers the ability to 

24 play an essential role in planning, organizing, conVerDate Mar 15 2010 21:51 Jun 22, 2011 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1240.IS S1240

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1 ducting, and evaluating the seminars and in encour2 aging the future participation of other teachers. 

3 ‘‘(3) CURRICULUM UNIT.—A seminar described 

4 in paragraph (2) uses a collaborative process, in a 

5 collegial environment, to develop a curriculum unit 

6 for use by participating teachers that sets forth the 

7 subject matter to be presented and the pedagogical 

8 strategies to be employed. A grantee shall enable 

9 participating teachers to develop a curriculum unit, 

10 based on the subject matter presented, for use in the 

11 teachers’ classrooms. 

12 ‘‘(4) ELIGIBILITY AND REMUNERATION.—Semi13 nars are open to all partnership teachers with teach14 ing assignments relevant to the seminar topics. Sem15 inar leaders receive remuneration for their work and 

16 participating teachers receive an honorarium or sti17 pend upon the successful completion of the seminar. 

18 A grantee shall provide seminar leaders and partici19 pating teachers with remuneration to allow them to 

20 participate in the Teachers Institute. 

21 ‘‘(5) DIRECTION.—The operations of a Teach22 ers Institute are managed by a full-time director 

23 who reports to both partners but is accountable to 

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1 ee shall appoint a director to manage and coordinate 

2 the work of the Teachers Institute. 

3 ‘‘(6) EVALUATION.—A grantee shall annually 

4 review the activities of the Teachers Institute and 

5 disseminate the results to members of the Teachers 

6 Institute’s partnership community. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 2167. APPLICATION, APPROVAL, AND AGREEMENT. 

8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To receive a grant under this 

9 subpart, a Teachers Institute, or a partnership or joint 

10 venture described in section 2163(2)(A) that is proposing 

11 to establish a Teachers Institute, shall submit an applica12 tion to the Secretary that— 

13 ‘‘(1) meets the requirement of this subpart and 

14 any regulations under this subpart; 

15 ‘‘(2) includes a description of how the applicant 

16 intends to use funds provided under the grant; 

17 ‘‘(3) includes such information as the Secretary 

18 may require to apply the criteria described in section 

19 2164(c); 

20 ‘‘(4) includes measurable objectives for the use 

21 of the funds provided under the grant; and 

22 ‘‘(5) contains such other information and assur23 ances as the Secretary may require. 

24 ‘‘(b) APPROVAL.—The Secretary shall— 


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1 ‘‘(1) promptly evaluate an application received 

2 for a grant under this subpart; and 

3 ‘‘(2) notify the applicant, within 90 days of the 

4 receipt of a completed application, of the Secretary’s 

5 determination. 

6 ‘‘(c) AGREEMENT.—Upon approval of an application, 

7 the Secretary and the applicant shall enter into a com8 prehensive agreement covering the entire period of the 

9 grant. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 2168. REPORTS AND EVALUATIONS. 

11 ‘‘(a) REPORT.—Each grantee under this subpart 

12 shall report annually to the Secretary on the progress of 

13 the Teachers Institute in achieving the purpose of this 

14 subpart. 

15 ‘‘(b) EVALUATION AND DISSEMINATION.—The Sec16 retary shall evaluate the activities funded under this sub17 part and submit an annual report regarding the activities 

18 assisted under this subpart to the Committee on Health, 

19 Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the 

20 Committee on Education and the Workforce of the House 

21 of Representatives. The Secretary shall broadly dissemi22 nate successful practices developed by Teachers Institutes. 

23 ‘‘(c) REVOCATION.—If the Secretary determines that 

24 a grantee is not making substantial progress in meeting 

25 the purposes of the grant by the end of the second year 


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1 of the grant under this subpart, the Secretary may take 

2 appropriate action, including revocation of further pay3 ments under the grant, to ensure that the funds available 

4 under this subpart are used in the most effective manner. 

5 ‘‘SEC. 2169. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

6 ‘‘There are authorized to be appropriated, for grants 

7 (including planning grants) and technical assistance under 

8 this subpart, such sums as may be necessary for fiscal 

9 year 2012 and each of the 4 succeeding fiscal years.’’. 

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

11 the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is 

12 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

13 2151 the following: 

‘‘SUBPART 6—TEACHERS PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTES

‘‘Sec. 2161. Short title. 

‘‘Sec. 2162. Findings and purpose. 

‘‘Sec. 2163. Definitions. 

‘‘Sec. 2164. Program authorized. 

‘‘Sec. 2165. Eligible activities. 

‘‘Sec. 2166. Understandings and procedures. 

‘‘Sec. 2167. Application, approval, and agreement. 

‘‘Sec. 2168. Reports and evaluations.’’. 

Æ 


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