I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1964
To empower our educators.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MAY 26, 1999
Mr. LAZIO (for himself, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. GILCHREST, Mr. HORN, and Mrs.
WILSON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Education and the Workforce
A BILL
To empower our educators.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Empowering Our Edu-
cators Act’’.
TITLE I—ALTERNATIVE CERTIFI-
CATION AND LICENSURE OF
TEACHERS
SEC. 101. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) the measure of a good teacher is how much
and how well the teacher’s students learn and
achieve;
(2) one of the primary problems regarding
teacher quality is the lack of subject matter knowl-
edge, particularly for teachers who receive emer-
gency credentials and are assigned to teach subject
matter for which they lack knowledge or adequate
preparation;
(3) knowledgeable and eager individuals of
sound character and various professional back-
grounds should be encouraged to enter the pre-
kindergarten through grade 12 classrooms as teach-
ers;
(4) many talented professionals who have dem-
onstrated a high level of subject area competence
outside the education profession wish to pursue ca-
reers in education, but have not fulfilled the tradi-
tional requirements to be certified or licensed as
teachers;
(5) States should have maximum flexibility and
be provided with incentives to create alternative
teacher certification and licensure programs in order
to recruit well-educated people and talented profes-
sionals into the teaching profession; and
(6) alternative routes should enable qualified in-
dividuals to fulfill State teacher certification or licen-
sure requirements and allow school systems to utilize
the expertise of professionals and thereby improve
and expand the pool of qualified individuals available
to local educational agencies as teachers.
(b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this title to im-
prove the supply of well-qualified elementary and sec-
ondary school teachers by encouraging and assisting
States to develop and implement programs for alternative
routes to teacher certification and licensure requirements.
SEC. 102. ALLOTMENTS.
(a) ALLOTMENTS TO STATES.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—From the amount appro-
priated to carry out this title for each fiscal year,
the Secretary shall allot to each State the lesser of—
(A) the amount the State applies for under
section 103; or
(B) an amount that bears the same rela-
tion to the amount so appropriated as the total
population of children ages 5 through 17 in the
State bears to the total population of such chil-
dren in all the States (based on the most recent
data available that is satisfactory to the Sec-
retary).
(2) REALLOCATION.—If a State does not apply
for the State’s allotment, or the full amount of the
State’s allotment, under paragraph (1), the Sec-
retary may reallocate the excess funds to 1 or more
other States that demonstrate, to the satisfaction of
the Secretary, a current need for the funds.
(b) SPECIAL RULE.—Notwithstanding section 421(b)
of the General Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C.
1225(b)), funds awarded under this title shall remain
available for obligation by a recipient for a period of 2
calendar years from the date of the grant.
SEC. 103. STATE APPLICATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any State desiring to receive an
allotment under this title shall, through the State edu-
cational agency, submit an application at such time, in
such manner, and containing such information, as the Sec-
retary may reasonably require.
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—Each application shall—
(1) describe the programs, projects, and activi-
ties to be undertaken with assistance provided under
this title; and
(2) contain such assurances as the Secretary
considers necessary, including assurances that—
(A) assistance provided to the State edu-
cational agency under this title will be used to
supplement, and not to supplant, any State or
local funds available for the development and
implementation of programs to provide alter-
native routes to fulfilling teacher certification or
licensure requirements;
(B) the State educational agency has, in
developing and designing the application, con-
sulted with—
(i) representatives of local educational
agencies, including superintendents and
school board members, including represent-
atives of their professional organizations if
appropriate;
(ii) elementary school and secondary
school teachers, including representatives
of their professional organizations;
(iii) schools or departments of edu-
cation within institutions of higher edu-
cation;
(iv) parents; and
(v) other interested individuals and
organizations; and
(C) the State educational agency shall sub-
mit to the Secretary, at such time as the Sec-
retary may specify, a final report describing the
activities carried out with assistance provided
under this title and the results achieved with
respect to such activities.
(c) GEPA PROVISIONS
INAPPLICABLE.—Sections
441 and 442 of the General Education Provisions Act (20
U.S.C. 1232d and 1232e), except to the extent that such
sections relate to fiscal control and fund accounting proce-
dures, shall not apply to this title.
SEC. 104. USE OF FUNDS.
(a) USE OF FUNDS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency
shall use funds provided under this title to support
and create programs, projects, or activities that de-
velop and implement new, or expand and improve
existing, programs that enable individuals to move to
a teaching career in elementary or secondary edu-
cation from another occupation through an alter-
native route to teacher certification or licensure that
includes taking a State licensing examination.
(2) TYPES
OF
ASSISTANCE.—A State edu-
cational agency may carry out such programs,
projects, or activities directly, through contracts, or
through grants to local educational agencies and in-
stitutions of higher education, or consortia of such
agencies or institutions.
(A) are designed to meet the purpose of
this title; and
(B) the Secretary determines appropriate.
(c) LIMITATION
FOR ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS.—A
State educational agency may use not more than 3 percent
of the amount of funds received under this title for the
administrative costs to carry out this title.
SEC. 105. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) 
ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL; 
LOCAL
EDU-
CATIONAL
AGENCY; 
SECONDARY
SCHOOL; 
SEC-
RETARY; AND STATE EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The
terms ‘‘elementary school’’, ‘‘local educational agen-
cy’’, ‘‘secondary school’’, ‘‘Secretary’’, and ‘‘State
educational agency’’ have the meanings given the
terms in section 14101 of the Elementary and Sec-
ondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the
meaning given the term in section 101 of the Higher
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001).
(3) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of
the several States of the United States, the District
of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands.
SEC. 106. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this title $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and each of
the 3 succeeding fiscal years.
TITLE II—TEACHER TRAINING
FACILITIES
SEC. 201. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—
(1) individuals entering a classroom should have
a sound grasp of the subject the individuals intend
to teach, and the individuals should know how to
teach;
(2) the quality of teachers impacts student
achievement;
(3) people who enter the teaching profession
through alternative certification programs can ben-
efit from having the opportunity to attend a teacher
training facility;
(4) teachers need to increase their subject mat-
ter knowledge, learning theory, and teaching strate-
gies;
(5) less than 40 percent of the individuals
teaching the core subjects (English, mathematics,
science, social studies, and foreign languages) ma-
jored or minored in the core subjects; and
(6) according to the Third International Mathe-
matics and Science Study, American high school
seniors finished near the bottom of the study in both
science and mathematics.
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to
strengthen teacher training programs by establishing a
private and public partnership to create the best teacher
training facilities in the world to ensure that teachers re-
ceive unlimited access to the most updated technology and
skills training in education, so that students can benefit
from the teachers’ knowledge and experience.
SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) LOCAL EDUCATIONAL AGENCY.—The term
‘‘local educational agency’’ has the meaning given
the term in section 14101 of the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Education.
SEC. 203. GRANTS.
(a) IN
GENERAL.—From amounts appropriated
under section 204 for a fiscal year the Secretary shall
award grants to local educational agencies to enable the
local educational agencies to establish teacher training fa-
cilities for elementary and secondary school teachers.
(b) COMPETITIVE BASIS.—The Secretary shall award
grants under this title on a competitive basis.
(c) PARTNERSHIP CONTRACT REQUIRED.—In order
to receive a grant under this title, a local educational agen-
cy shall enter into a contract with a nongovernmental or-
ganization to establish a teacher training facility.
(d) APPLICATIONS.—Each local educational agency
desiring a grant under this title shall submit to the Sec-
retary an application at such time, in such manner, and
accompanied by such information as the Secretary may
require. Each such application shall contain an assurance
that the local educational agency—
(1) will raise matching funds, from public or
private sources, for the support of the teacher train-
ing facility in an amount equal to the amount of
funds provided under the grant;
(2) will train the teachers employed by the local
educational agency at the teacher training facility
for a period of 10 years after the date the agency
enters into the contract described in subsection (c);
and
(3) will spend not less than 0.5 percent of the
local educational agency’s total school budget for
each fiscal year to support the teacher training facil-
ity.
(e) AMOUNT.—The Secretary shall award each grant
under this section in an amount that is not less than
$1,000,000 and not more than $4,000,000.
SEC. 204. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this title $8,000,000 for fiscal year 2000, $8,000,000 for
fiscal year 2001, $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and
$12,000,000 for fiscal year 2003.
TITLE 
III—MENTORING 
PRO-
GRAMS FOR NOVICE TEACH-
ERS
SEC. 301. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following:
(1) Only half of all novice teachers will still be
teaching in 7 years: most will depart the teaching
profession after 3 years.
(2) Better support for novice teachers is among
the top policy reforms that will help school systems
retain more teachers.
(3) Novice teachers find that having a mentor
during the first year is an effective form of support
in adjusting to the profession.
(4) Teachers who have had a mentor are more
confident in their teaching, more able to deal with
the social and bureaucratic aspects of their profes-
sion than teachers who have not had a mentor.
(5) Teachers who have had a mentor are more
likely to remain in the profession than teachers who
have not had a mentor.
(6) Studies show that principals are more satis-
fied with the performances of teachers who have had
a mentor than with teachers who have not had a
mentor.
(7) Teachers who have had a mentor have a
higher rate of one-to-one contact with students, are
more interactive with students in general, are more
focused on academic content, handle discipline bet-
ter, and have an enhanced ability to communicate
with parents than teachers who have not had a men-
tor.
(b) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this title to in-
crease teacher retention and improve the support and per-
formance of teachers in the first few years of their employ-
ment by encouraging and assisting States and local edu-
cational agencies to develop and implement mentoring pro-
grams for novice teachers.
SEC. 302. APPLICATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any State educational agency or
local educational agency desiring to receive a grant under
this title shall submit an application at such time, in such
manner, and containing such information, as the Sec-
retary may reasonably require.
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—Each application shall—
(1) describe the programs, projects, and activi-
ties to be undertaken with assistance provided under
this title;
(2) assess the needs of novice teachers; and
(3) contain such assurances as the Secretary
considers necessary, including assurances that—
(A) assistance provided under this title will
be used to supplement, and not supplant, any
State or local funds available for the develop-
ment and implementation of programs to pro-
vide a mentoring program for novice teachers;
and
(B) the State educational agency or local
educational agency has, while developing and
before submitting the application, consulted
with—
(i) superintendents and school board
members (including representatives of their
professional organizations if appropriate);
(ii) elementary and secondary school
teachers, including representatives of their
professional organizations;
(iii) schools or departments of edu-
cation within institutions of higher edu-
cation; and
(iv) other interested individuals and
organizations.
SEC. 303. USE OF FUNDS.
(a) USE OF FUNDS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—A State educational agency
or local educational agency that receives a grant
under this title shall use such funds to develop and
implement new, or expand and improve existing, pro-
grams that support and train novice teachers
through a mentoring program.
(2) TYPES
OF
ASSISTANCE.—A State edu-
cational agency or local educational agency may
carry out such programs, projects, or activities di-
rectly, through contracts, or through grants to local
educational agencies, institutions of higher edu-
cation, or consortia of such agencies or institutions.
(b) SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES.—Funds received under
this title may be used for—
(1) the design, development, implementation,
and evaluation of programs that enable novice teach-
ers to have the support and training of other teach-
ers and administrators;
(2) the establishment of administrative struc-
tures necessary for the development and implemen-
tation of mentoring programs;
(3) training of staff, including the development
of support for mentors, workshops, and seminars for
the education and support of novice teachers; and
(4) other programs that—
(A) are designed to meet the purpose of
this title; and
(B) the Secretary determines appropriate.
SEC. 304. REPORTING.
Each State educational agency and local educational
agency that receives a grant under this title shall submit
to the Secretary, at such time as the Secretary may speci-
fy, a final report describing the mentoring programs car-
ried out with assistance provided under this title and the
results achieved with respect to such programs.
SEC. 305. DEFINITIONS.
In this title:
(1) 
ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL; 
LOCAL
EDU-
CATIONAL AGENCY; SECONDARY SCHOOL; AND STATE
EDUCATIONAL
AGENCY.—The terms ‘‘elementary
school,’’ ‘‘local educational agency,’’ ‘‘secondary
school,’’ and ‘‘State educational agency’’ have the
same meanings given such terms in section 14101 of
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 8801).
(2) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.—The
term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ has the same
meaning given such term in section 101 of the High-
er Education Act of 1965.
(3) MENTORING PROGRAMS.—The term ‘‘men-
toring program’’ means to provide professional sup-
port and development, instruction, and guidance to
novice teachers, but does not include a teacher or in-
dividual who begins to work in a supervisory posi-
tion.
(4) NOVICE
TEACHER.—The term ‘‘novice
teacher’’ means an educator in a public school who
has not yet been teaching 3 full school years.
(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Education.
(6) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means each of
the several States of the United States, the District
of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands.
SEC. 306. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
this title $2,000,000 for fiscal year 2000 and each of the
3 succeeding fiscal years.
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