This Act does the following: (1) Removes the requirement that applicants for initial and continuing educator licenses obtain a passing score on an approved performance assessment. (2) In place of the performance assessment requirement, requires professional development and mentoring activities include a focus on acquisition of pedagogical knowledge and the ability to apply that knowledge to meet student needs and requires the Department of Education (Department) to establish a committee of stakeholders to gather input and make recommendations on how to achieve professional development and mentoring activities that satisfy the requirements. (3) Removes requirements related to performance assessments, including reporting requirements and rulemaking requirements, from Chapter 12 of Title 14. (4) Allows individuals who serve in educator roles that are not teaching positions to receive their Delaware educator license by changing "teaching experience" to "experience as an educator" in § 1210(d) of Title 14 and § 1211(c) of Title 14. (5) Requires the Department to ensure there are a variety of professional development opportunities across different modes that meet a high standard of quality, including evidence-based programs. (6) In place of the performance assessment requirement for participants in alternative routes for teacher licensure and certification programs and participants in alternative routes to certification programs for teachers of students with disabilities, requires an assessment of program participants' abilities to apply pedagogical skills to meet the needs of students and requires the Department to establish a committee of stakeholders to gather input and make recommendations on how to assess the pedagogical skills of program participants. (7) In place of a performance assessment requirement, requires that educator preparation programs assess prospective educators' ability to apply pedagogical skills to meet student needs and requires the Department to establish a committee of stakeholders to gather input and make recommendations on how to assess the pedagogical skills of program participants. (8) Makes corrections, including standardizing references to the educator evaluation system and changing "certificate" to "license" in places where improperly used. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
Sen. Nicole Poore
Sponsored bills
This Act codifies the Opportunity Fund, an additional source of educational funding for Delaware public schools intended to support the increased needs of low income and English learner students, and establishes the parameters for how the funding is to be distributed to school districts and charter schools.
This Concurrent Resolution establishes the Subdivision Street Funding Task Force to study and make findings and recommendations regarding funding and implementing the needed maintenance and reconstruction of subdivision streets identified by the Department of Transportation in the “Subdivision Street Report and Analysis” provided in response to House Concurrent Resolution No. 4 (151st General Assembly).
This resolution directs the Secretary of the Department of Human Resources to cause the Department to instruct Executive agency human resources to conduct an equity review and analysis for every employee new hire or new promotion across State Executive Branch agencies, including whether there are gender or racial inequities, utilizing the State’s advanced starting salary procedure, when reviewing the starting rate on initial appointment. The Secretary and the Department are also directed to develop a plan to remedy any inequities and issue a comprehensive written progress report to the General Assembly on or before October 30, 2021.
This Act, known as the Telehealth Access Preservation and Modernization Act of 2021, continues and enhances Delawareans’ access to telehealth and telemedicine services and, through the adoption of the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, ensures that telehealth services can be provided through qualified medical practitioners in a streamlined and efficient pathway to licensure that meets the health care delivery system needs of the 21st century. With respect to telemedicine and telehealth, this Act consolidates the existing law relating to telehealth within a single new chapter applicable to all health-care providers authorized to practice telemedicine and participate in telehealth and makes permanent the telehealth flexibilities put in place for the Covid-19 pandemic. The Act carries through many of the changes embodied in the Covid-19 telehealth legislation passed by the 150th General Assembly in 2020 (HS 1 for HB 348 with HA1, signed 7/17/20), which will otherwise expire on July 1, 2021. The changes made in HB 348 that are made permanent by this Act include: 1. Removing all existing Title 24 statutory requirements that patients present in-person before telemedicine services may be provided. This Act continues the suspension of those requirements, but specifies that the requirement that a patient present in-person prior to the delivery of telemedicine services and telehealth is excused only under circumstances rendering an in-person examination impractical or when there is already an existing relationship established. 2. Modernizing the modality of permissible telemedicine and telehealth services; instead of limiting telehealth to interactions that must involve both audio and visual technology; this Act preserves flexibility for situations where patients do not have access to broadband connections or smartphones and need to consult with a physician by landline or audio-only cell phone, subject to existing professional standard of care requirements. Audio and visual visits will continue to be the preferable method for delivery of telehealth and telemedicine services. This Act also consolidates telehealth and telemedicine scope of practice, which currently appear in each separate chapters of Title 24 pertaining to regulated practitioners in order to provide consistent telehealth practice across license categories. This is increasingly important for facilitating integrated health-care services delivery, but it does not limit any of the existing authority of the State’s professional licensing boards in Title 24 to regulate their respective licensed professions and occupations. This Act adopts the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC) in Delaware, joining the 29 States that are already members of the IMLC, including many of our neighboring states (Maryland is a member; Pennsylvania is in process of implementing the Compact; New Jersey has introduced IMLC legislation). https://www.imlcc.org/participating-states/ The long-term benefits of telehealth are best realized when accompanied by cross-state medical licensure capabilities available through adoption of the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact. The Compact creates a voluntary, expedited pathway to state licensure for physicians who want to practice medicine in multiple states. An eligible physician can qualify to practice medicine in multiple states by completing one application within the Compact, and receipt of separate licenses from each state in which the physician intends to practice. The Compact does not change the scope of Delaware’s authority to regulate physician practice under the existing Medical Practice Act. It simply creates another pathway for licensure.
This resolution recognizes July 2021 as Uterine Fibroids Awareness Month in Delaware
This Concurrent Resolution directs the Delaware Department of Education to establish consistent regulations across the State’s early child care providers and programs. It also directs the Department to engage stakeholders in this process, and to make recommendations to the General Assembly by October 1, 2022, and propose necessary code revisions by January 1, 2023.
This Act requires each school district and charter school to establish and implement a curriculum on Black History for students in grades K through 12. This Act incorporates contemporary events into discussions of Black History and the tools of experience.
This Concurrent Resolution recognizes June 15, 2021, as "Delaware Elder Abuse Awareness Day" and encourages all of Delaware's citizens to learn about how to protect and nurture our elderly citizens.