Teachers: Teacher Residency Grant Program: Local Solutions Grant Program: evaluation.

Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary education in this state. Existing law establishes local educational agencies, including school districts and county offices of education, throughout the state, and authorizes these agencies to provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Existing law requires the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, among other duties, to establish standards for the issuance and renewal of credentials, certificates, and permits. Existing law appropriates $75,000,000 from the General Fund to the commission for the 2018–19 fiscal year to establish the Teacher Residency Grant Program, including $50,000,000 to provide one-time competitive grants to develop new, or expand existing, teacher residency programs that recruit and support the preparation of special education teachers, and $25,000,000 to provide one-time competitive grants to develop new, or expand existing, teacher residency programs that recruit and support the preparation of bilingual education teachers, and science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) teachers. Existing law appropriates $50,000,000 from the General Fund to the commission for the 2018–19 fiscal year to establish the Local Solutions Grant Program to provide one-time competitive grants to specified types of local educational agencies to develop and implement new, or expand existing, locally identified solutions that address a local need for special education teachers. Existing law requires the commission to conduct an evaluation of the Teacher Residency Grant Program and the Local Solutions Grant Program to determine the effectiveness of these programs in recruiting, developing support systems for, and retaining special education and bilingual education teachers and teachers in the STEM subjects. Existing law requires the commission to provide a report on the evaluation to the Department of Finance and the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature by December 1, 2023. Existing law repeals the above-described provisions on January 1, 2027. This bill would instead require the commission, with respect to this evaluation, to provide an initial implementation report to the Department of Finance and the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature on or before December 1, 2023, and a final report to these entities on or before December 31, 2026. The bill would specify various topics and types of data that would be required to be included in the evaluation. The bill would also delay the repeal of these programs until January 1, 2029.