WEST virginia legislature

2021 regular session

Introduced

House Bill 2487

By Delegate Higginbotham

Introduced February 15, 2021; Referred to the Committee on Education then Finance]

A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new section, designated §18-2-6c, relating to creating a Campus Mentors pilot program; describing Campus Mentors; requiring State Superintendent to issue request for proposals subject to appropriation and authorizing award of four three-year competitive grants; specifying eligible applicants and partner public schools; requiring partner with Campus Mentors organization; specifying criteria that define Campus Mentors program; and describing funding model and permissible expenditures.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

§18-2-6c. West Virginia Campus Mentors pilot project.

(a) There is hereby created in the Department of Education, a Campus Mentors pilot program. Campus Mentors is a one-room dedicated classroom for high school students at risk for school failure that is located on a college or university campus and serviced by teacher education and related majors. Campus Mentors involves a close partnership between a college or university’s teacher education program and a high school and/or career tech center. Its goal is to raise the achievement of youth at risk and enhance the preparation of the state’s next generation of teachers.

(b) Subject to an appropriation by the Legislature therefor, the State Superintendent shall issue a request for proposals for the implementation, support and evaluation of Campus Mentors pilot sites at colleges or universities, hereinafter referred to as IHE’s, that offer traditional, four-year undergraduate teacher education programs and are physically located in West Virginia. The State Superintendent may award three-year competitive grants for each of four IHE’s for pilot Campus Mentor sites on the campus of the IHE. Any college or university physically located in West Virginia that offers traditional, four-year undergraduate teacher education programs and is of sufficient size to meet the criteria set forth in subsection (c) of this section is eligible to apply. The application shall identify the IHE’s public high school or career/technical school partner or partners whose students shall be offered enrollment in the Campus Mentors program. Any public high school or career/technical school may request identification as a partner school if it is close enough geographically to the IHE’s Campus Mentors site to bus students to the campus daily, and if it has sufficient numbers of students who are at risk for school failure, as per academic, behavioral, and income indicators. The IHE and the school district having jurisdiction over the partner high school or career/technical school shall mutually select a project manager. All applicants and grantees shall partner with the Campus Mentors staff at Miami University of Ohio, Oxford, Ohio (campusmentors.org), to obtain details regarding planning, implementation, and program evaluation. Important information includes the selection of youth participants, recommended implementation timelines, and sharing of data for program evaluation.

(c) The following criteria define a Campus Mentors program: 

(1) The program meets daily in a single classroom located on the campus of a college or university that offers traditional, four-year undergraduate teacher education programs;

(2) The program serves high school students at risk for school failure based on past grades, behavior, attendance, and financial need. The partner high school or career/tech school identifies students on the basis of their academic, behavioral, attendance and financial need who may benefit from the services of the Campus Mentors program and may encourage, but not require, the identified students to participate in the program;

(3) Participating students are transported daily to the classroom by their school district for either partial or full-day instruction in high school coursework. They are instructed by a single teacher who is employed by the school district. The IHE shall provide appropriate parking for the teacher;

(4) The teacher is assisted by IHE students in teacher education or related majors at the IHE who serve in a capacity either as academic tutors or one-on-one mentors. The academic tutoring is provided by IHE students assigned by the teacher education or related program in sufficient quantity to ensure that at least three tutors are in the classroom at all times when the university is in session, allowing minimal time at the beginning of the semester for placement. These IHE students are assigned to support the Campus Mentors classroom through selected coursework as determined by IHE faculty and administration;

(5) One-on-one mentoring is provided by IHE students in teacher education or related majors at the IHE. The IHE shall identify one mentor for each participating student, each semester, through required placements for IHE students in teacher education or related majors;

(6) Grantees agree to implement, evaluate, and support a Campus Mentors program for a period of three years, including one planning year and two years of implementation;

(7) Grantees agree to an evaluation plan that measures program impact on both the participating high school or career/tech students and future teachers, including collaborating with other grantees and with Campus Mentors staff to establish a common impact database. Data collected from the participating high school or career/tech students shall include GPA, credits attained, and behavioral record. Data collected from future teachers shall include the results of onsite observation as well as pre-post inventories in teacher efficacy; and

(8) Grantees shall establish a sustainability plan to extend the work beyond the grant period. The sustainability plan shall demonstrate the ability to continue the program beyond the grant period.

(d) Grant funds shall be used for planning and/or administration directly related to the planned Campus Mentors site and consultation with Campus Mentors (campusmentors.org) staff. Grant funds may be used for classroom equipment and supplies, program evaluation, and meeting expenses, including hosting. Funds may not be used for IHE overhead or travel unrelated to the program. The responsibilities of the school district include: Assisting in identifying the project manager; identifying participating students based on Campus Mentors guidelines; employing the classroom teacher who shall participate in planning, implementation and evaluation; supporting transportation to and from the partner IHE; and sharing data to support program evaluation. The responsibilities of the IHE include: Assisting in identifying the project manager; providing a dedicated classroom on campus; providing appropriate parking for the classroom teacher; sharing data to support program evaluation; and identifying specific teacher education or related courses that shall use Campus Mentors as a required placement, in sufficient numbers to ensure at least three tutors shall be present in the classroom at all times, plus a sufficient number of mentors for one-on-one mentoring, each semester.

NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create a pilot Campus Mentors program limited to four sites on college or university campuses and awarded through a competitive grant process. The Campus Mentors program involves a close partnership between a higher education teacher preparation program and public high school or career/technical center with the goal of raising the achievement of at-risk students and enhancing the preparation of the next generation of teachers. The program shall include grants to be awarded by the State Superintendent to entities interested in partnerships that respond to an RFP and which are subject to legislative appropriations. The grants are for a three-year period involving one year of planning and two years of implementation. Applications shall include a sustainability plan to continue operations following the grant period. Campus Mentors is a trademarked program originating at Miami University of Ohio and consultation with staff of the program is required for program implementation and evaluation. The bill includes criteria that define the program.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.