Kaine, Hayes Introduce Legislation to Provide Mentorship, Training to New Teachers

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and U.S. Representative Jahana Hayes (D-CT-05) introduced the Beginning Educator Mentorship and Retention Act, legislation that would provide funding for school districts to enhance and or establish mentoring and induction programs for new teachers and school leaders with less than two years’ experience.

“The success of future generations and our overall economy depend on America’s teachers,” said Kaine. “That’s why I’m proud to introduce this bicameral legislation to increase mentoring and induction programs for educators who are new to the field, so they can receive the support they need to stay in the field and do what they do best in the classroom.”

“The initial years of teaching can be extremely challenging and over 70% of beginning educators contemplate leaving the profession within their first five years,” said Hayes. “The Beginning Educator Mentorship and Retention Act is designed to incorporate supports early on to improve retention, accelerate professional growth, and boost educator confidence, setting new teachers on a successful path.”

The Beginning Educator Mentorship and Retention Act would authorize competitive grants for states to support school districts in bolstering or developing mentoring and induction programs for new teachers and school leaders with less than two years of experience. Specifically, the bill would ensure states and localities:

1. Develop and sustain evidence-based induction and mentorship programs that will help novice teachers and leaders develop the skills they will need to be effective in supporting students’ learning, which include support in developing and using evidence based instructional strategies, meeting the needs of students with disabilities and English learners, fostering positive classroom environments, and engaging parents;
2. Coordinate with their educator preparation programs to build upon and enhance the high-quality training for novice teachers and leaders and avoid redundancy;
3. Recruit experienced and effective mentor educators who will support new teachers and leaders in their first two years of teaching or leading. Mentor educators must have demonstrated effectiveness in their roles as educators, taught in the same or similar field, grade, or subject as the mentee, and facilitated collaboration and adult learning;
4. Compensate and provide release time for mentor educators; and
5. Prioritize areas of concentrated poverty with the most significant turnover and staffing challenges. The bill will also provide additional mentoring and induction supports for rural or remote areas schools and areas with limited administrative capacity.

The legislation is endorsed by the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (AACTE), AASA, The School Superintendents Association, ACTFL, American Federation of Teachers (AFT), All4Ed, Association of Educational Service Agencies (AESA), Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents, Center for Learner Equity, Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), Connecticut Association of Boards of Education (CABE), Connecticut Association of Schools, Council of Administrators of Special Education, Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, Deans for Impact, EdTrust, ETS, InnovateEDU, Learning Forward, National Association for Music Education, National Association of Elementary School Principals, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards, National Center for Learning Disabilities, National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), National Council on Teacher Quality, National Education Association (NEA), National Principals Association, National PTA, National Rural Education Association, National School Boards Association, National Center for Teacher Residencies, National Urban League, Teacher Education Division of the Council for Exceptional Children, and Third Way.

A link to full text of the bill can be found here.

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