00                            SENATE BILL NO. 101                                                                         
01 "An Act establishing a teacher cadet program."                                                                          
02 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                                
03    * Section 1.  The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section                         
04 to read:                                                                                                                
05       FINDINGS AND INTENT.  (a)  The legislature finds that                                                             
06            (1)  the influence of a student's teacher is one of the most important factors in                            
07 promoting student achievement and is essential to successful education reform;                                          
08            (2)  there is a shortage of teachers in certain specializations and high teacher                             
09 turnover in certain geographic locations in Alaska; as a state, Alaska is not supplying                                 
10 sufficient numbers of new teachers to meet the demand in Alaska; universities and colleges in                           
11 Alaska supply only 30 percent of the required annual number of teachers hired in Alaska, with                           
12 the remaining 70 percent coming from other states;                                                                      
13            (3)  too often, on the first day of school, teaching positions go unfilled, and                              
14 remain unfilled for months;                                                                                             
15            (4)  teacher turnover is an issue of concern in all schools; however, the rate of                            

01 teacher turnover in rural school districts is more than double that in urban school districts; all                      
02 those school districts with a greater than 30 percent teacher turnover rate in the 2000 school                          
03 year were rural school districts;                                                                                       
04            (5)  Alaska Natives make up a substantial share of the student populations in                                
05 school districts with high teacher turnover rates;                                                                      
06            (6)  research suggests that there is a link between teacher turnover and student                             
07 achievement; low teacher turnover is associated with higher student achievement;                                        
08            (7)  there are not enough teachers in Alaska who are also Alaska Natives; 23                                 
09 percent of the student population consists of Alaska Natives, but only 4.8 percent of teachers                          
10 in the public school system are Alaska Natives; there is also an observable disparity between                           
11 the student populations of American Indians, Asian-Pacific Islanders, African-Americans, and                            
12 Hispanics and the teacher populations of these groups;                                                                  
13            (8)  the benchmark tests given to public school students reveal that there is a                              
14 significant achievement gap between Caucasian and Alaska Native students; in reading,                                   
15 writing, and mathematics tests given in grades three, six, and eight, a significantly lower                             
16 percentage of Alaska Native students meet the minimum student achievement requirements of                               
17 the curriculum; the benchmark tests also reveal an observable achievement gap between                                   
18 Caucasian and American Indian, Asian-Pacific Islander, African-American, and Hispanic                                   
19 students;                                                                                                               
20       (b)  It is the intent of this Act to                                                                              
21            (1)  recruit Alaska students into the profession of teaching as a career in Alaska                           
22 and to enhance the school environment;                                                                                  
23            (2)  recruit more Alaska Native, American Indian, Asian-Pacific Islander,                                    
24 African-American, and Hispanic students into the profession of teaching;                                                
25            (3)  reduce the level of teacher turnover in Alaska schools; and                                             
26            (4)  eliminate the achievement gap between all student groups in the public                                  
27 school system.                                                                                                          
28    * Sec. 2.  AS 14.30 is amended by adding a new section to read:                                                    
29                     Article 12.  Teacher Cadet Program.                                                               
30            Sec. 14.30.750.  Teacher cadet program.  The Department of Education and                                   
31       Early Development shall, beginning September 1, 2004, prepare and implement a                                     

01       teacher cadet program for students in grades nine through 12 who are interested in                                
02       becoming teachers.  The program must include a curriculum with field and                                          
03       observation components.  The Department of Education and Early Development shall                                  
04                 (1)  implement the program in at least four schools in the public school                                
05       system; two of the schools shall be rural schools with higher than average teacher                                
06       turnover rates during the previous school year;                                                                   
07                 (2)  work with the University of Alaska to develop ways in which                                        
08       university credit may be given for successful completion of the teacher cadet program;                            
09       and                                                                                                               
10                 (3)  work with the University of Alaska, the education community, the                                   
11       private sector, and the federal government to identify funds to lessen the effect on the                          
12       state general fund.