School-based Speech-language Pathologist Funding Amendments
What changed between versions
Speech-language pathologists and speech-language technicians are now explicitly included as eligible for the Salary Supplement for Highly Needed Educators program.
The definition of 'Eligible teacher' was updated to include licensed education professionals such as speech-language pathologists and technicians.
The definition of 'Qualifying assignment' was revised to focus on the assignment itself rather than the teacher, removing the circular reference that previously defined a qualifying assignment as a teacher assigned to a high-needs area.
The appeals process was updated to allow individuals to appeal eligibility based on having a teaching assignment substantially equivalent to a high-needs area, rather than requiring the assignment to be designated as high-needs.
The requirement for documentation was changed from requiring a 'qualifying teaching background' to requiring documentation to determine if an individual is an eligible teacher with a qualifying background.
Several sections were renumbered and minor text corrections were made to align the statute with the new eligibility criteria and definitions.
