An Act to Support Rural Education
Maine Legislature, Session 131, LD 1491
Committee: Education and Cultural Affairs
Sponsors: EATON, ANKELES, GRAHAM, JAUCH, WORTH
Amends: 20-A MRSA §253

Legislative Document
No. 1491
H.P. 946
House of Representatives, April 5, 2023
An Act to Support Rural Education
Reference to the Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative EATON of Deer Isle.
Cosponsored by Representatives: ANKELES of Brunswick, GRAHAM of North Yarmouth, 
JAUCH of Topsham, WORTH of Ellsworth.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  20-A MRSA §253, sub-§10 is enacted to read:
10.  Rural education coordinator.  The commissioner shall appoint, subject to the 
Civil Service Law, a rural education coordinator to increase the recruitment of teachers in 
rural areas, support and improve access to teacher preparation programs for persons willing 
to teach in rural areas and otherwise support educational needs in rural areas.  The 
coordinator shall work with institutions of higher education to support the purposes of this 
subsection.  By January 1, 2025 and annually thereafter, the coordinator shall provide an 
annual report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over 
education matters summarizing the coordinator's activities.
Sec. 2.  Rural education support programs.  The Department of Education, 
referred to in this section as "the department," shall implement the following programs to 
support rural education in this State.
1. Financial incentives for student teachers.  The department shall develop and 
implement a pilot program to provide up to 20 financial grants each year in school years 
2023-2024, 2024-2025, 2025-2026 and 2026-2027 to support qualified students that agree 
to student teach in rural school administrative units.  The program must provide up to 
$3,000 per qualified student to be paid to the institution of higher education in which the 
student is enrolled to offset the tuition of the student.  In order to qualify for a grant, a 
student must, in accordance with rules adopted by the department, be enrolled in an 
accredited institution of higher education in an educator preparation program and agree to 
student teach in a rural school administrative unit in this State. By January 1, 2027, the 
department shall report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having 
jurisdiction over education matters the results of the pilot program and any 
recommendations for continuing the program. The committee, after receiving the report, 
may report out a bill to extend the program or to otherwise support rural education in the 
State.
2. Financial incentives for teachers.  The department shall develop and implement a 
one-time program to provide up to 15 financial stipends, not to exceed $10,000 each, to 
qualified teachers in rural school administrative units to support the teachers' continuing 
education.  In order to qualify for a stipend, a teacher must, in accordance with rules 
adopted by the department, teach in a rural school administrative unit in the State, be 
engaged in continuing education to further the teacher's professional development, 
including, but not limited to, education leading to a credential to teach in a dual enrollment 
program, such as the program described in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 20-A, chapter 
208-A, and agree to continue to teach in a rural school administrative unit in the State for 
at least 4 years.  The department shall adopt routine technical rules to implement this 
subsection pursuant to Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2-A.
SUMMARY
This bill does the following.
1.  It requires the Commissioner of Education to appoint a rural education coordinator 
to increase the recruitment of teachers in rural areas, support and improve access to teacher 
preparation programs for persons willing to teach in rural areas and otherwise support 
educational needs in rural areas.
2.  It directs the Department of Education to develop and implement a pilot program to 
provide up to 20 financial grants each year in school years 2023-2024, 2024-2025, 2025-
2026 and 2026-2027 to support qualified students that agree to student teach in rural school 
administrative units.
3.  It directs the department to develop and implement a one-time program to provide 
up to 15 financial stipends to qualified teachers in rural school administrative units to 
support the teachers' continuing education.