Purpose of the Bill

The bill aims to modify existing requirements for reporting teacher shortages within the state of Minnesota. It seeks to enhance understanding and address gaps related to teacher availability, particularly focusing on areas and demographics where shortages are identified.

Main Provisions

• Teacher Shortage Reporting: The bill updates the criteria for what constitutes a "shortage area" in teacher availability across Minnesota. This includes areas where there are not enough licensed teachers to meet demand.
• Economic Development Regions: It identifies specific economic regions where a shortage of teachers exists. Additionally, it specifies these shortages should be reported by the Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board.
• Demographic Gaps: The bill introduces a focus on demographic representation, particularly concerning Indigenous teachers and teachers of color. It requires reporting on the percentage of these teachers compared to the percentage of Indigenous students and students of color in K-12 schools within the same regions.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• The definition of a "shortage area" is revised to include not only fields of licensure and economic regions lacking enough teachers but also those areas where there is a significant gap between the availability of Indigenous teachers and teachers of color and the student demographics.
• Mandates that these evaluations and reports on teacher shortages and demographic gaps be provided every even-numbered year by November 1st.

Relevant Terms

• Teacher Shortage
• Licensed Teacher
• Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board
• Indigenous Teachers
• Teachers of Color
• Economic Development Regions
• Demographic Representation