HB 1608-FN - AS INTRODUCED

 

 

2024 SESSION

24-2401

02/05

 

HOUSE BILL 1608-FN

 

AN ACT relative to providing an induction program for new teachers.

 

SPONSORS: Rep. Myler, Merr. 9

 

COMMITTEE: Education

 

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ANALYSIS

 

This bill creates an induction program for new teachers.

 

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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.

Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]

Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.

24-2401

02/05

 

STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

 

In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Four

 

AN ACT relative to providing an induction program for new teachers.

 

Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:

 

1  New Section; Induction Program for New Teachers.  Amend RSA 189 by inserting after section 14-h the following new section:

189:14-i  Induction Program for New Teachers.

I.  All school districts shall provide an induction program for new teachers in their first 3 years of practice.  Guidelines based on the following standards shall be provided by the department of education.

II.  All induction programs shall meet the following requirements:

(a)  An orientation program for beginning teachers and all other incoming new teachers to the district.

(b)  Assignment of all beginning teachers to a trained mentor within the first 2 weeks of teaching, continuing through the initial 3 years of teaching.

(c)  Assignment of a support team that shall consist of, but not be limited to, the mentor, who shall receive $1,000 per year and have 3 years experience of successful teaching, and an administrator qualified to evaluate teachers.

(d)  The mentor shall not have any evaluation oversight of the mentee.

(e)  Release time for the mentor and beginning teacher to engage in regular classroom observations and other mentoring activities.

III.  All programs shall submit an annual report by June 30 of the school year to the department that includes information on:

(a)  Program activities.

(b)  Number and complete list of beginning teachers served.

(c)  Number and complete list of trained mentors.

(d)  Number of classroom observations made by mentors.

(e)  Number of hours that mentors and beginning teachers spend with each other.

(f)  Hiring and retention rates for beginning teachers.

(g)  Participant satisfaction.

(h)  Partnerships developed with other districts, professional associations, and institutions of higher education to support the beginning teacher induction program.

IV.  The department of education shall adopt rules, pursuant to RSA 541-A, to implement the requirements under this section.

2  Effective Date.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2024.

 

LBA

24-2401

Revised 12/21/23

 

HB 1608-FN- FISCAL NOTE

AS INTRODUCED

 

AN ACT relative to providing an induction program for new teachers.

 

FISCAL IMPACT:      [ X ] State              [    ] County               [ X ] Local              [    ] None

Estimated State Impact - Increase / (Decrease)
		FY 2024	FY 2025		FY 2026	FY 2027
Revenue		$0	$0		$0	$0
Revenue Fund(s)		None
Expenditures		$0	$21,750+		Indeterminable
Funding Source(s)		General Fund
Appropriations		$0	$0		$0	$0
Funding Source(s)		None
• Does this bill provide sufficient funding to cover estimated expenditures? [X] No • Does this bill authorize new positions to implement this bill? [X] N/A
Estimated Political Subdivision Impact - Increase / (Decrease)
		FY 2024	FY 2025		FY 2026	FY 2027
Local Revenue		$0	$0		$0	$0
Local Expenditures		$0	Indeterminable Increase

 

METHODOLOGY:

This bill, assumed to be effective for the 2024-2025 school year, requires school districts to provide an induction program for new teachers in their first three years of practice, based on standards provided by the Department of Education. The program requirements include the assignment of a support team, that shall consist of a mentor, who shall receive $1,000 per year. Any costs to local school districts are indeterminable and would vary from district to district.

 

The Department of Education states it would incur a one-time cost to set up reporting capabilities required by this bill. The Department estimates this cost to be a minimum of $21,750, but could potentially be more depending on the vendor estimate of services. Also, the Department states it could incur additional costs relative to needing to hire a part-time staff person to oversee the program, if the duties required by this bill are not too much for existing staff to absorb in their normal workload.

 

For informational purposes, the Department did an analysis on the use of federal Title II funds for the past three years, and overall districts have utilized a total of $2,934,115 for the mentoring of new teachers and administrators (this does not include special education teachers or staff, as IDEA funds can be used for mentoring for those staff).  The Department states if this bill were to pass, there could potentially be an inability to utilize available federal funds for this work.

 

AGENCIES CONTACTED:

Department of Education