AN ACT Relating to assistance for future teachers; adding new sections to Title 28A RCW; and adding a new chapter to Title 28B RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that encouraging outstanding students to enter the teaching profession is of paramount importance to the state of Washington. By creating the future teachers conditional scholarship program, the legislature intends to assist in the effort to recruit as future teachers students who have distinguished themselves through outstanding academic achievement and students who can act as role models for children including those from targeted ethnic minorities. The legislature urges business, industry, and philanthropic community organizations to join with state government in making this program successful.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. The future teachers conditional scholarship program is established. The program shall be administered by the higher education coordinating board. In administering the program, the board shall have the following powers and duties:

(1) Select students to receive conditional scholarships, with the assistance of a screening committee composed of teachers and leaders in government, business, and education;

(2) Adopt necessary rules and guidelines;

(3) Publicize the program;

(4) Collect and manage repayments from students who do not meet their teaching obligations under this chapter; and

(5) Solicit and accept grants and donations from public and private sources for the program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. The higher education coordinating board shall establish a planning committee to develop criteria for the screening and selection of recipients of the conditional scholarships. These criteria shall emphasize factors demonstrating excellence including but not limited to superior scholastic achievement, leadership ability, community contributions, and an ability to act as a role model for targeted ethnic minority students.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The board may select as participants: (1) Graduating high school seniors or college freshmen or sophomores who declare an intent to teach in the public schools of the state; (2) college juniors and seniors who have a declared major in a program leading to a degree in teacher education; or (3) postgraduate students who have completed a bachelor of arts or science degree who are pursuing a program leading to a degree in teacher education.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. The board may award conditional scholarships to eligible students from the funds appropriated to the board for this purpose, or from any private donations, or any other funds given to the board for this program. The board shall award no less than fifty percent of the available funds to financially needy students and no more than thirty percent of the available funds to students in any one of the freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, or postgraduate levels of higher education. The amount of the conditional scholarship awarded an individual shall not exceed three thousand dollars or the total amount of tuition fees and services and activities fees charged to a full time undergraduate student annually at a state institution of higher education, whichever is higher. Students are eligible to receive conditional scholarships for a maximum of five years.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. (1) Participants in the conditional scholarship program incur an obligation to repay the conditional scholarship, with interest, unless they teach for ten years in the public schools of the state of Washington, under rules adopted by the board.

(2) The terms of the repayment, including deferral of the interest, shall be consistent with the terms of the federal guaranteed loan program. However, if the participant ceases to pursue a course of study leading to a degree in teacher education, the simple per annum interest charge on the outstanding principle shall be set at fourteen percent or the highest rate permissible under RCW 19.52.020, whichever is greater when the period for repayment commences under subsection (3) of this section.

(3) The period for repayment shall be ten years, with payments accruing quarterly commencing nine months from the date the participant graduates or discontinues his or her higher education.

(4) The entire principal and interest of each payment shall be forgiven for each payment period in which the participant teaches in a public school until the entire repayment obligation is satisfied or the borrower ceases to teach at a public school in this state. Should the participant cease to teach at a public school in this state before the participant's repayment obligation is completed, payments on the unsatisfied portion of the principal and interest shall begin the next payment period and continue until the remainder of the participant's repayment obligation is satisfied.

(5) The board is responsible for collection of repayments made under this section and shall exercise due diligence in such collection, maintaining all necessary records to insure that maximum repayments are made. Collection and servicing of repayments under this section shall be pursued using the full extent of the law, including wage garnishment if necessary, and shall be performed by entities approved for such servicing by the Washington student loan guaranty association or its successor agency. The board is responsible to forgive all or parts of such repayments under the criteria established in this section and shall maintain all necessary records of forgiven payments.

(6) Receipts from the payment of principal or interest or any other subsidies to which the board as administrator is entitled, which are paid by or on behalf of participants under this section, shall be deposited with the higher education coordinating board and shall be used to cover the costs of granting the conditional scholarships, maintaining necessary records, and making collections under subsection (5) of this section. The board shall maintain accurate records of these costs, and all receipts beyond those necessary to pay such costs shall be used to grant conditional scholarships to eligible students.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. After consulting with the higher education coordinating board, the governor may transfer the administration of this program to another agency with an appropriate educational mission.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.

(1) "Institution of higher education" or "institution" means a public college or university in the state of Washington or an independent college or university which is a private, nonprofit educational institution, the main campus of which is permanently situated in the state, open to residents of the state, providing programs of education beyond the high school level leading at least to the baccalaureate degree, and accredited by the northwest association of schools and colleges as of the effective date of this section and other institutions as may be developed that are approved by the higher education coordinating board as meeting equivalent standards as those institutions accredited under this section.

(2) "Board" means the higher education coordinating board.

(3) "Eligible student" means a student selected by the board to participate in the program, who: (a) Is registered for at least twelve credit hours or the equivalent; (b) demonstrates achievement of at least a 3.30 grade point average for students entering an institution of higher education directly from high school or maintains at least a 3.00 grade point average or the equivalent for each academic year in an institution of higher education; (c) is a resident student as defined by RCW 28B.15.012 through 28B.15.015; and (d) has declared an intent to major or has a declared major in a program leading to a degree in teacher education under section 4 of this act.

(4) "Public school" means an elementary school, middle school, junior high school, or high school within the public school system referred to in Article IX of the state Constitution.

(5) "Forgiven" means to collect service as a teacher at a public school in the state of Washington in lieu of monetary payment.

(6) "Satisfied" means paid-in-full.

(7) "Participant" means a recipient of a conditional scholarship under this chapter.

(8) "Targeted ethnic minority" means a group of Americans with a common ethnic or racial heritage selected by the board for program consideration due to societal concerns such as high dropout rates or low rates of college participation by members of the group.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. Sections 1 through 8 of this act shall constitute a new chapter in Title 28B RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. A pilot program to increase the number of people from targeted ethnic minority groups preparing for the teaching profession is established. The program shall be administered by the superintendent of public instruction. The program shall include the following:

(1) Encouragement of students in targeted ethnic minority groups in grades nine through twelve in public schools to acquire the academic and related skills necessary to prepare for the study of teaching at an institution of higher education;

(2) Promotion of teaching career opportunities to public school students to develop an awareness of such opportunities;

(3) Provision of opportunities for students to experience how regular high school course work applies to activities related to a teaching career;

(4) Provision for increased cooperation among institutions of higher education, programs at institutions of higher education for minority educational opportunities, the superintendent of public instruction, the state board of education, and local school districts in working toward the goals of the program.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. The superintendent of public instruction is authorized to grant funds to selected institutions of higher education and selected school districts to assist in the development and implementation of the program under section 10 of this act. The superintendent of public instruction shall consult with representatives of higher education and various education organizations having an interest in teacher recruitment issues.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. Sections 10 and 11 of this act are added to Title 28A RCW.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 13. If any provision of this act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the act or the application of the provision to other persons or circumstances is not affected.