Title: A bill to support the establishment and operations of Teachers Professional Development Institutes.
Sponsor: Sen Lieberman, Joseph I. [2] [CT] (introduced 10/19/2007) Cosponsors (1)
Latest Major Action: 10/19/2007 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.Highlights: The secretary is authorized to award grants to encourage the establishment and operation of Teachers Institutes to serve low-income populations; and to provide technical assistance, either directly or through the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute, to assist local educational agencies and institutions of higher education in preparing to establish and in operating Teachers Institutes.
Grant eligibility: Grants can be made to Teacher Institutes, which are defined as partnerships between institutes of higher education and local educational agencies with significant low-income populations, intended to improve the quality of teaching and learning through collaborative seminars designed to enhance both the subject matter and the pedagogical resources of the seminar participants.
ASPIRA Policy Position
ASPIRA supports quality professional development for teachers.
However, ASPIRA is concerned that the direct mention of the Yale-New Haven Teacher Institute (in the Senators state of CT) provides it a special status and will limit the choice of TA providers directing a significant portion of the TA to that Institute.
Links:
[1] http://www.aspira.org/en/user/login?destination=comment/reply/324%23comment-form
[2] http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/?&Db=d110&querybd=@FIELD%28FLD003+@4%28%28@1%28Sen+Lieberman++Joseph+I.%29%29+01385%29%29