Florida Senate - 2016 SENATOR AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS for HB 7043
Ì882832.Î882832
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
.
.
.
.
.
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
Senator Bullard moved the following:
1 Senate Amendment to Amendment (420294) (with title
2 amendment)
3
4 Delete lines 761 - 817
5 and insert:
6 (1) The Legislature recognizes that, second only to
7 parents, instructional personnel play the most critical role
8 within schools in preparing students to achieve a high level of
9 academic performance. The Legislature further recognizes that
10 research has linked student outcomes to an instructor’s own
11 academic achievement. Therefore, it is the intent of the
12 Legislature to designate instructional personnel who have
13 achieved high academic standards during their own education as
14 Florida’s best and brightest teacher scholars.
15 (2) There is created the Florida Best and Brightest Teacher
16 Scholarship Program to be administered by the Department of
17 Education. The scholarship program shall provide categorical
18 funding for scholarships to be awarded to instructional
19 personnel, as defined in s. 1012.01(2), who have demonstrated a
20 high level of academic achievement.
21 (3)(a) To be eligible for a scholarship, an instructor must
22 have achieved a composite score at or above the 80th percentile
23 on either the SAT or the ACT based on the National Percentile
24 Ranks in effect when the instructor took the assessment and have
25 been evaluated as highly effective pursuant to s. 1012.34 in the
26 school year immediately preceding the year in which the
27 scholarship will be awarded, unless the instructor is newly
28 hired by the district school board and has not been evaluated
29 pursuant to s. 1012.34.
30 (b) In order to demonstrate eligibility for an award, an
31 eligible instructor must submit to the school district, no later
32 than November 1, an official record of his or her SAT or ACT
33 score demonstrating that the instructor scored at or above the
34 80th percentile based on the National Percentile Ranks in effect
35 when the instructor took the assessment. Once an instructor is
36 deemed eligible by the school district, including instructors
37 deemed eligible in the 2015-2016 fiscal year, the instructor
38 shall remain eligible as long as he or she remains employed by
39 the school district as an instructor at the time of the award
40 and receives an annual performance evaluation rating of highly
41 effective pursuant to s. 1012.34.
42 (4) Annually, by December 1, each school district shall
43 submit to the department the number of eligible instructional
44 personnel who qualify for the scholarship.
45 (5) Annually, by February 1, the department shall disburse
46 scholarship funds to each school district for each eligible
47 instructor to receive a scholarship as provided in the General
48 Appropriations Act. The amount disbursed shall include a
49 scholarship award of $1,000, from the total amount of funds
50 appropriated, for each eligible instructor in a Title I school.
51 Of the remaining funds, a scholarship in the amount provided in
52 the General Appropriations Act shall be awarded to every
53 eligible instructor, including those in Title I schools. If the
54 number of eligible instructional personnel exceeds the total
55 appropriation authorized in the General Appropriations Act, the
56 department shall prorate the per-teacher scholarship amount.
57 (6) Annually, by April 1, each school district shall award
58 the scholarship to each eligible instructor.
59 (7) For purposes of this section, the term “school
60 district” includes the Florida School for the Deaf and the Blind
61 and charter school governing boards.
62
63 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
64 And the title is amended as follows:
65 Delete line 1615
66 and insert:
67 submit the number of eligible instructional personnel
68 to the