Senate Education and Youth Committee, February 24, 2026

Transcript

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1. 0:18:14

   We got, uh, one bill that we're gonna vote on, and the others are gonna be hearings only, and hopefully we can maybe bring them back and vote for it at the end of the session. Um,

2. 0:18:25

   is everybody happy? Yep, they look all happy.

3. 0:18:32

   Senator Setzler, you mind putting prayer in for us? Oh, I'm sorry, yeah.

4. 0:18:36

   Tim. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Let's pray. Dear Heavenly Father, Lord God, you're the giver of all good things. We thank you for all your blessings. Pray that we'd be faithful, Lord God, to the calling you've given us to public service. Give us wisdom, give us humility, and let's glorify you in all we do. We pray this in your holy name. Amen. Amen.

5. 0:18:52

   Thank you, sir. Um, our first bill is a carryover bill from, from, um, Monday, I guess it was. It seems like- It seemed like last week sometime.

6. 0:19:01

   Yes.

7. 0:19:01

   Hear a bill from last, from Monday, Senator Kemp's bill, Senate Bill 475 LC 2492717S.

8. 0:19:11

   That's right.

9. 0:19:11

   Is that correct, sir?

10. 0:19:12

    That's right.

11. 0:19:12

    Okay.

12. 0:19:13

    Yes, Mr. Chairman.

13. 0:19:14

    Um, without going through everything we went through the other day, is there any changes in this bill other than after what you discussed with us, with the committee the other day?

14. 0:19:24

    Yeah. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and committee. There have been no changes, so this is the same bill that was presented yesterday. So happy to take any questions if we need to.

15. 0:19:33

    Okay. Any questions of the author?

16. 0:19:41

    I see no, no hands. Do I have a motion on the bill?

17. 0:19:45

    Move to pass, Mr. Chair.

18. 0:19:47

    Second.

19. 0:19:47

    Oh, got a, we got a motion and a second. Um, any discussion?

20. 0:19:52

    Yes.

21. 0:19:53

    Oh, I'm sorry. Senator Sims?

22. 0:19:56

    No. That's Halpern.

23. 0:19:57

    Oh, I'm sorry. Senator Halpern.

24. 0:19:59

    Hit 12.

25. 0:20:01

    14?

26. 0:20:01

    12.

27. 0:20:01

    12. I'm sorry.

28. 0:20:02

    Yeah. Um, at the appropriate time, I would like to offer a small amendment to section four, and ledge counsel may have to help me with this. But the one thing that I wanted to do was narrow the scope of the-

29. 0:20:22

    Oh, yeah

30. 0:20:22

    ... facilities.

31. 0:20:23

    You mentioned that the other day.

32. 0:20:24

    Yeah. So, um, I wanna add in a piece here. Actually, they answered my question about the locally authorized charters, so I'm good on that. But I wanted to add in something here to limit it to the facilities owned by the system.

33. 0:20:38

    Okay.

34. 0:20:38

    So that if it's a charter school in its own private building, that the school would not necessarily have to do the E+ dollars there. But of course, if the school owns the building in which the school is located, it is, it is the responsibility of the school district and system to take care of that facility. So that would just be the little bit of narrowing I would want to do, and, um, somebody could fancify exactly how to phrase that amendment, but limited to the facilities owned by the system.

35. 0:21:12

    I'm fine with that.

36. 0:21:12

    Senator Kemp, your comments?

37. 0:21:14

    Yeah, I'm fine with that.

38. 0:21:15

    Okay.

39. 0:21:15

    In section four.

40. 0:21:16

    Michael, we need some help on that.

41. 0:21:19

    Coming. He's working as fast as he can.

42. 0:21:22

    I know it. He's amazing.

43. 0:21:27

    Super.

44. 0:21:28

    Mr.

45. 0:21:49

    Chairman, why don't we wait until Michael comes?

46. 0:21:51

    That's what I was gonna say. So what, what we do is we'll... Huh?

47. 0:21:55

    What we can do is just ask.

48. 0:21:56

    Yes.

49. 0:21:59

    Yes, sir.

50. 0:21:59

    I was just gonna make a comment while Michael's working, if that's okay, on the, on the motion.

51. 0:22:02

    Yeah, please. Please.

52. 0:22:03

    Um, I was just meeting with, um, the good, uh, legal counsel from Pro Tem Walker's office, and I'd, I'd kind of proffered an idea that I think, Senator Kemp, as you're moving through the process, may be worth considering on the portion of the bill that you're carrying as the Pro Tem's floor leader.

53. 0:22:22

    Um, moving from w- from 25 to 10% statewide, I know that when, um, a f- another member of the committee was here, he expressed some concern about that for doing that statewide. As this moves through the process, it may be worth considering putting triggers into place that would allow that to happen at 10%. So I know that there's school systems where you might need to move quicker, it might need to be a lower threshold. Uh, perhaps there's a school system somewhere that's, you know, been having some financial issues, and perhaps we could put language in as this goes through the process that certain conditions would trigger 10%, and it may help relieve the anxiety of those members who are concerned that this would lower the threshold to kind of dissolve any city school, uh, that's currently in their district.

54. 0:23:04

    And I think, Senator Beard, you and I were kind of talking through that, some of that. So just an idea that I had that may help a- a- alleviate some of that anxiety.

55. 0:23:19

    Senator Walker. Oh, Pro Tem Walker.

56. 0:23:21

    Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It's a pleasure to join your committee today.

57. 0:23:26

    Yes, well, thank you.

58. 0:23:28

    And I appreciate y'all's diligence on this matter, and, uh, your hard work on it. Um, first I'll say that getting a petition of 10% of the registered voters is a pretty monumental task.

59. 0:23:43

    Mm-hmm.

60. 0:23:43

    It's not easy to do.

61. 0:23:46

    Right.

62. 0:23:46

    Um, and then secondly, I'll say it's, it's just to allow a, a ballot referendum then on the school board. It, it doesn't dissolve the school board. It doesn't remove the school board. I'm sure y'all have covered that-

63. 0:24:00

    Mm-hmm

64. 0:24:01

    ... already.

65. 0:24:01

    Yes, sir.

66. 0:24:02

    Um, I think that school districts need to be held to the highest level of accountability, and I think most of the people on this committee, probably all the people on this committee agree. Uh, and we need school board members to Take their responsibility, their fiscal responsibility, their responsibility for educating the children very, very, very seriously and not rubber stamp what's brought to them by school superintendents or administration.

67. 0:24:34

    They need to dig into it and be, uh, vetted out like we do through our process, like this bill is being vetted very thoroughly. And I think, uh, given the local electorate, the people that are paying the bills and s- need to have an opportunity to put on the ballot to remove a school board if they're, uh, mismanaging the system. So I would strongly ask for favorable consideration of, uh, the amendment, and lowering that threshold to 10%.

68. 0:25:07

    It's still very hard to get a petition with 10% of the registered voters. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

69. 0:25:14

    Thank you, sir. McLaurin, are you ready?

70. 0:25:24

    Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I, I would actually recommend just inserting, um, on line 63 after Georgia, "For properties owned by the local school system."

71. 0:25:52

    Any, any discussion? Oh, Senator Halpern, is that mutual?

72. 0:25:57

    Thank you.

73. 0:25:57

    It is? Okay. Um, any discussion on that wording? Senator Setzler.

74. 0:26:05

    Mr. Chair, um, I, I think the... I'm interpreting the lady's r- amendment to address the issue of not wanting to have public tax dollars go to a privately held property that could then be foreclosed upon, and you're taking public dollars and re- r- reapplying them. I, I wonder if the sort of a parallel way to achieve that objective is to say that the dollars could be applied... I, I think what you're contemplating, if there's, if there's property that's held by the county that's used by the charter school, dollars could be spent there.

75. 0:26:36

    What if there were dollars being spent for something that's not currently held by the county but would be procured, built upon, and then held by the county for, for a new property? I don't, I don't, I don't know if you're looking to exclude the possibility of new... F-for example, if $5 million came down from a SPLOST to help build a, a s- a facility for a charter school, as long as that land was held by the county, I don't, I wouldn't w- Do you wanna preclude the new purchase and new develop of new land for use by the charter school, or do you want it to be limited to only existing property owned by the county school system?

76. 0:27:13

    Because as I, as I, as I understand the amendment, it'd be limited to only existing property held by the existing school system.

77. 0:27:21

    I don't, I don't know that I'm saying existing-

78. 0:27:23

    Yeah

79. 0:27:23

    ... 'cause it's broad enough to just say if it's own- at any point at which it's owned by that school system.

80. 0:27:30

    Okay.

81. 0:27:31

    So not necessarily the county, right?

82. 0:27:32

    Yeah.

83. 0:27:32

    So I'm thinking about Atlanta Public Schools, for example, that has, uh, uh, in my district, I've got 12 locally chartered schools that are part of the Atlanta Public School System. The ones that are actually in APS-owned buildings, APS should be reinvesting dollars back into the facility that they owned. It's real estate that's part of their asset base.

84. 0:27:56

    Correct.

85. 0:27:57

    So they should be, they should be making improvements on that, um, which also then benefit that charter school that's housed there. So I'm not precluding, I'm not trying to say only what they own today, but just if it's owned by the school system, then it should. And, and there are different contractual agreements in place also for charters based on the facilities piece.

86. 0:28:23

    Sure, sure.

87. 0:28:23

    So I'm not even trying to wade into that so much-

88. 0:28:27

    Sure

89. 0:28:27

    ... as just to say if we're gonna, if we are gonna say that E-SPLOST dollars and projects, that we need to be inclusive of the local charter schools, which are at that point really part of that local school system, then, then it makes sense to me that, you know, narrowing that to buildings and facilities that the school system already owns makes sense-

90. 0:28:53

    But-

91. 0:28:53

    ... because it's a reinvestment back into their own assets.

92. 0:28:56

    Right. So I, I don't disagree with your underlying premise that you, we shouldn't be spending tax dollars on something that's privately owned. I guess what I'm asking is, should we expand that? Your, your amendment contemplates putting dollars into facilities that are currently owned, like a renovation. W-What I'm wanting to make sure we would include perhaps is, is if SPLOST dollars w-w-were spent to something that would be owned by the, by the s- by the, by the school system, like a new building, new land. Again, a $5 million expansion. They, they, they acquire some property nearby.

93. 0:29:26

    They build a school on it for purposes of the charter. It'd be owned by the school system. But as you drew the amendment, I th- as the, as counsel drew the amendment, I think it only would be limited to, to property that currently belongs to the school system. Shouldn't we a- also include property that would be owned by the school system?

94. 0:29:44

    But by the time you get to building it, you own it.

95. 0:29:51

    Oh, yeah. Yeah.

96. 0:29:52

    Yeah.

97. 0:29:52

    Just, uh, hearing the conversation develop, I would just offer some alternatives. So I w- in, in lieu of the previous, uh, proposed amendment language-

98. 0:30:01

    Okay

99. 0:30:01

    ... again, at the end of line 63, perhaps this covers the discussion. Um, provided however that the local school system shall have no obligation to expend proceeds of such sales tax for the purchase or improvement of property or facilities owned by a local charter school or any entity other than the local school system.

100. 0:30:23

     That probably does it

101. 0:30:25

     Yes, sir

102. 0:30:25

     Can you-

103. 0:30:26

     That was-

104. 0:30:26

     Yes. Can you-

105. 0:30:28

     But, but, but, because, 'cause you have a charter school that's in their own privately owned building they're leasing that's a dog, they might wanna move to a new building that's owned by the school system.

106. 0:30:35

     Let's move on.

107. 0:30:36

     Do you need me to repeat that?

108. 0:30:37

     Um, I think, number six.

109. 0:30:39

     I'm, I'm so sure we're gonna need you to repeat that.

110. 0:30:42

     Um. Yes, sir. You, you got the floor.

111. 0:30:46

     Yes.

112. 0:30:46

     This may be a dumb question, but help me understand. There are some school districts at least, I know there's at least one, where the city spans two different counties. So like Beaufort, for example. If Beaufort owns a charter school, if there's a charter school inside the city limits of Beaufort, we're talking about two county school systems. How would this section apply in that case when you've got two counties that technically both have parts of the city district where the charter school is, and we're talking about making sure tax dollars are going

113. 0:31:30

     to those charter schools in equal proportion, and I may be using the wrong words, as other buildings within that school system. Is, do we need to address that hybrid situation, or has that been contemplated?

114. 0:31:46

     No. So for a locally approved, they only have the authorizer of that local school system, so it's either the county or the city school system. So the school system of which they are authorized by would be responsible for ensuring that they are not treating them any less favorably than the school, traditional schools in their district. Do you see what I'm saying?

115. 0:32:05

     Okay. So the sales tax for educational purposes, I'm sorry, that can be levied on the city level as well, not just the county level?

116. 0:32:12

     Right.

117. 0:32:13

     Yes.

118. 0:32:13

     Okay.

119. 0:32:14

     Yeah.

120. 0:32:14

     Thank you.

121. 0:32:15

     That's right.

122. 0:32:19

     Thank you. Um, let's, do we have an motion on the amendment?

123. 0:32:26

     You need a second.

124. 0:32:28

     Do I need to repeat the-

125. 0:32:28

     Don't you have-

126. 0:32:28

     Yeah. I do.

127. 0:32:29

     Sure. Yep.

128. 0:32:29

     Okay, I do.

129. 0:32:33

     Okay.

130. 0:32:33

     And the amendment will say...

131. 0:32:36

     At the end of line 63, after the word Georgia, insert the following: semicolon, provided, comma, however, comma, that the local school system shall have no obligation to expend proceeds of such sax, sales tax for the purchase or improvement of property or facilities owned by a local charter school or any entity other than the local school system.

132. 0:33:03

     Her voice sounds so good.

133. 0:33:06

     I know, but-

134. 0:33:06

     Senator-

135. 0:33:06

     I got a lot of praise

136. 0:33:07

     ... senator, is that your amendment? Senator Halpern, is that your amendment?

137. 0:33:10

     That is, that is, that is the amendment.

138. 0:33:10

     Do I have a second on the amendment?

139. 0:33:12

     Uh, yes.

140. 0:33:12

     Senator Setzler second. Any discussion on the amendment? I, I see none. All in favor of the amendment, raise your hand. Right hand.

141. 0:33:24

     Okay, everybody for it. Thank you. Now, let's, um, put the amendment in the bill, and do I have a motion on the bill, uh, that is-

142. 0:33:34

     We already have that.

143. 0:33:35

     We have a motion.

144. 0:33:35

     Yeah, we already have a motion.

145. 0:33:35

     Yeah, we can do-

146. 0:33:36

     Oh, we are? Okay. Okay. So-

147. 0:33:38

     We already did.

148. 0:33:38

     Well, yeah, okay. So, so we, we've already, we got a motion on the bill and a second on the bill. Okay. So all in favor of the bill with the amendment, raise your right hand.

149. 0:33:52

     All in favor. You done it again, man.

150. 0:33:54

     That's one.

151. 0:33:54

     There we go.

152. 0:33:55

     We have one.

153. 0:33:56

     Oh, it's one.

154. 0:33:57

     Oh, we have one.

155. 0:33:57

     Yeah, it's two.

156. 0:33:57

     Two.

157. 0:33:57

     Oh, okay. Two.

158. 0:33:57

     Two. Two, not one.

159. 0:33:58

     Two. Okay. Okay.

160. 0:34:00

     Yes. Two, not, yeah.

161. 0:34:01

     Okay, so we had two, two no's and all yeses, the rest of them yeses. Okay. Hey, you know, you know I like you, don't you? Okay.

162. 0:34:12

     I actually-

163. 0:34:14

     I'm, I'm actually ta- I'm actually talking about Senator Dolezal. Go ahead.

164. 0:34:19

     Just leave it there.

165. 0:34:20

     Okay. Thank y'all so much. Thank y'all for working hard on that. Uh, we're gonna move now into some, um, h- hearing onlys, and so we got some, um, beautiful ladies and one gentleman. So we're gonna start out with the ladies first. Uh, Senator Anderson.

166. 0:34:37

     The most beautiful lady, Anderson Walker.

167. 0:34:39

     Well, that's what I, that's what I said wasn't it?

168. 0:34:41

     There's another Anderson, but he is not.

169. 0:34:43

     Well, we're not talking about...

170. 0:34:47

     Never mind. Never mind. Please tell us the bill number, LSC number, your full name and, and go forward.

171. 0:34:56

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

172. 0:34:56

     Okay.

173. 0:34:56

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I am Tonya, Senator Tonya Anderson, and I am presenting, uh, Senate Bill 519 using the substitute LC61-0417S.

174. 0:35:12

     Yes, ma'am. Your turn.

175. 0:35:15

     All right. Thank you. Uh, so thank you for allowing me to present this bill. Senate Bill 519 is a workforce, uh, stabilization and professionalism bill for Georgia educators. It addresses teacher retention, workplace conditions, and clarity in employment practices, all critical to improving student outcomes. This is a practical, targeted update to existing law, not a structural overhaul. This is about student success.

176. 0:35:47

     The first thing Senate Bill 519 does is it strengthens teacher evaluations, requires training designated evaluators for all school employees, re- requires trained designated educators, evaluators for all student employees, school employees. It ensures objectivity and professionalism by prohibiting peer-to-peer evaluations within the same school. It protects employee privacy, evaluation records remain confidential, and data can be shared in aggregate, but not personally identifiable.

177. 0:36:22

     It allows educators to opt in to share their performance data supporting career mobility. Now, why does this matter? It matters because it builds trust in the evaluation system. It reduces bias and inconsistency, and it aligns evaluation with professional standards. The other thing this bill does, it creates contract transparency and timeliness. It requires school systems to issue complete contracts by May 15th. Contracts must include salary, assignment, all terms with no blanks or placeholders.

178. 0:36:59

     It eliminates vague letters of intent as substitutes for real contracts. It ensures educators receive written explanations for non-renewal upon request. Now, why does this matter? It matters because it provides certainty and respect for educators as professionals. It helps districts compete in a tight teacher labor market. It also prevents late or unclear hiring practices that drive attrition. The next thing it addresses is basic working conditions, something as simple as a restroom break.

179. 0:37:34

     It guarantees teachers at least two planned restroom breaks per day. One break may coincide with a planning period. Why does this matter? It addresses a real and widely reported workplace issue. It supports health, dignity, and basic working conditions, particularly important for elementary teachers, pregnant educators, and long instructional blocks. I served as a, um, principal for a day at one of my local schools, and oh my gosh, this is, this is hard work.

180. 0:38:13

     Um, the next thing that this bill allows for is role-specific professional development. It requires training to be aligned with an educator's actual role, and it emphasizes evidence-based practices addressing needs identified in evaluations. Why does this matter, Senator Payne? It matters because it moves away from one-size-fits-all training and increases the return on investment on professional development. It directly ties training to classroom effectiveness.

181. 0:38:44

     Next, it creates school bus safety and driver support. It requires bus drivers to acknowledge safety policies annually, ensures ed- updated policies are redistributed and acknowledged, and it allows drivers to request a bus monitor for behavior concerns. This matters because it improves student safety and discipline on buses. It provides support for drivers, uh, as this is a high turnover position. It creates accountability and documentation for safety procedures.

182. 0:39:18

     Lastly, this creates balanced local control approach. It maintains local district authority while setting clear minimum standards. It does not impose new testing, mandates, or unfunded programs, but it focuses on clarity, consistency, and employee support. As a summary of this bill, teacher retention is one of Georgia's most urgent education challenges. Senate Bill 519 addresses real day-to-day issues educators face, which is unclear contracts, inconsistent evaluations, and a lack of workplace accommodations.

183. 0:40:01

     Understand that these common sense bipartisan improvements support educators, it strengthens school systems, and ultimately improves student outcomes. Senate Bill 519 respects educators as professionals, improves working conditions, and strengthens the systems that support student success. And with that, Mr. Chair, I will take any questions.

184. 0:40:24

     You want to sit down?

185. 0:40:27

     Because...

186. 0:40:31

     Any questions from the, uh, members?

187. 0:40:39

     Tell me why this bill is important to you.

188. 0:40:42

     As I stated, um, well, I stated before that I have served at one of my schools as a, um, principal for a day and a teacher for a day in, uh, different counties. Um, students need so much, but the teachers need just as much. Um, they are juggling a lot when it comes to classrooms, classroom sizes, the expectation of them to perform and, um, achieve what the state school board of education is requiring of them.

189. 0:41:14

     Um, so to have that support from, um, the legislature would keep them from having to, based on classroom sizes, would keep them from having to try to juggle one, um, portion of the classroom without a clear contract. It just can be a lot of a melting pot in the classroom, and it takes away the attention to, um, accurately, uh, teach a subject or topic. Um, and then it keeps them from having to take work home, do work on the weekends, burn out, um, just, just turnover.

190. 0:41:51

     And, um, so this is important so that Georgia can get off the bottom of the list of something and move to the top.

191. 0:41:59

     Good. Thank you, ma'am. Great explanation. Thank you so much for your passion.

192. 0:42:03

     You're welcome.

193. 0:42:03

     Okay.

194. 0:42:04

     And educators are in my family, so.

195. 0:42:06

     Oh, yeah. Um, thank you, ma'am. We're gonna, um, let Representative Besemore-

196. 0:42:14

     Okay

197. 0:42:14

     ... come forward. And, uh-

198. 0:42:16

     Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman.

199. 0:42:17

     Oh, thank you, ma'am. Thank you for being here.

200. 0:42:19

     Sure.

201. 0:42:19

     Um...

202. 0:42:20

     Good job.

203. 0:42:21

     Yeah, great job. Great job.

204. 0:42:23

     Thank you. Thank you, colleagues.

205. 0:42:25

     Now, one thing that Representative Besemore was gonna tell-

206. 0:42:27

     Oh, one, one question for me?

207. 0:42:28

     No, ma'am.

208. 0:42:29

     Oh, okay.

209. 0:42:29

     Yeah, ma'am. I'm sorry. One, one thing Representative Besemore was gonna tell you, tell y'all, tell all, all of us, is that w- that she is so happy- That the House passed the massive literacy bill today.

210. 0:42:43

     Whoop, whoop. Yes.

211. 0:42:44

     And, um, by, I think we only had two no votes on it.

212. 0:42:49

     Yep, just two.

213. 0:42:49

     No votes on it. And according to Chairman Irwin, this is the largest education bill since lottery.

214. 0:42:57

     Yes.

215. 0:42:57

     Wow.

216. 0:42:57

     And they said language.

217. 0:42:59

     Yeah. And so I think we very, we very, very hit-

218. 0:43:01

     Yeah

219. 0:43:01

     ... um, the House and Senate worked very closely on this bill, many, many hours. Many, many, many, many hours and many, many, many meetings. And, um, we hope to get it over here early part of next week and spend a full, um, s- committee meeting just on the literacy bill. And so Representative Basemore, if you would please-

220. 0:43:20

     So before I swear-

221. 0:43:21

     ... the floor

222. 0:43:22

     ... I've, last time I was here, I just held the book up, but I wanna pass it out so you all can look at it to see exactly what I'm talking about when I explain this bill to you. So as I'm saying, you've heard this before. It is a little lighter than it was when it came over the first time. It's not as top-heavy. This is HB... First of all, thank you Mr. Chair-

223. 0:43:46

     Yes, ma'am. Thank you

224. 0:43:46

     ... and committee. Um, this is HB 200, LC number LC61-0408S.

225. 0:44:00

     And thank you for allowing me to present this bill to you. Um, those that heard it last year, you might remember, um, while I was presenting, this bill, um, it establishes a three-year pilot immersive writing program for elementary schools in Georgia. The program is designed to improve literacy outcomes for students in grades two through five, structured, standards-aligned writing experiences.

226. 0:44:36

     So this is exactly what we've been talking about this whole session, literacy and allowing our children to start reading and writing at an early age. The pilot program aims to improve literacy skills in elementary students, increase student engagement and motivation in writing, provide immersive writing-focused learning experiences, study and evaluate the impact of immersive writing instruction.

227. 0:45:11

     I'm gonna stop for a minute because if you ha- if you see the book, um, that book, the title says A Different Kind of Hero. That book was written by an 11-year-old child, and it was illustrated, the person that illustrated had to imagine what the person writing it was actually seeing in her mind, how she wanted it to look, and that young lady that did illustrate it was my granddaughter, and her name's Brooklyn Basemore, and if you look at the book, she is on that book.

228. 0:45:52

     They took a chance because that is her gift of illustrating and drawing, and so she drew what that writer was envisioning when she, when she, uh, wrote that book. And what's so good about this program is the fact that kids are not given an assignment. They want to do this. Because if I tell you that I need you to write me a book on elephants, and that is not what you're interested in, but this is what this young lady was interested in.

229. 0:46:28

     And I think if you remember from last year, this book is now on Amazon.

230. 0:46:34

     Mm.

231. 0:46:34

     And guess who gets the proceeds? The 11-year-old. Well, she's not 11 years old now. But she gets all the money every time that book is purchased. So what are we doing now? We're creating entrepreneurs.

232. 0:46:49

     Mm.

233. 0:46:50

     So that's why I'm so excited about this program and allowing all of our students. The person that I met was Stan Tucker over at Trueth, and he was doing a presentation, and this is what motivated me to get this bill on the floor and to introduce it, because I believe he, he goes all over to different states. Why aren't we using this program in our state for our children?

234. 0:47:21

     He has already helped over 200 students achieve a book, write a book, and get it published. And I'm gonna move on from here. Um, the eligible schools, they participate, they have to serve, as I said, grades two to five, and submit an application by January 1st, 2027, include a statement explaining an intended use of grant funds.

235. 0:47:56

     So it's not just that we're giving money, but they have to invest also. So they have to put money in if they want their students to participate in this program. And there is a fiscal note, um, that should be attached, and I was very modest, I was told, and, and I, I really wanted to do it that way just so if the individuals in the schools did not, um, take advantage of it, we are not wasting funds.

236. 0:48:30

     We are being fiscally responsible. So I asked for 2 million, and that would be each year for all the schools that would decide, because they opt in They have to opt in, and, and the students would be. But I think we're going to advance that amount and the numbers that are gonna participate, because once-

237. 0:48:52

     Mm-hmm

238. 0:48:52

     ... students find out this is, um, at their disposal, and the teachers, they're going to jump in and, um, get on board with this. And again, literacy, reading and writing at an early age, grade two. And also, I have grandchildren that are in the school system, so-

239. 0:49:14

     Yeah

240. 0:49:14

     ... and they are starting. Oh, yes, I don't look that old . But I do, and I'm so excited-

241. 0:49:23

     She's so modest

242. 0:49:24

     ... because I, I can see now the desire, um, that they have to excel. They wanna write, they wanna read, they wanna explore what they feel. And so I, I think this program would definitely help all of our young people. So also, um, as I said, it establishes this, uh, state board of education will, um, have the responsibilities, and they're on board with that, um, establish the program, pilot program, set, um, participation criteria, create reporting requirements, and promulgate the rules and regulations.

243. 0:50:09

     And also develop application process October 1st, 2026. Monitor and assess program annually. Submit annual reports beginning January 1st, 2028. And, um, as I said, the accountability in reporting, participating schools must comply with reporting requirements, annual program assessments conducted by the Department of Education, reports provided to the state board of education each year.

244. 0:50:48

     Where's your book at?

245. 0:50:50

     Oh, um, it's at home.

246. 0:50:55

     The principal. There we go. Thank you.

247. 0:50:59

     If you'd like, Mr. Chair-

248. 0:51:00

     Oh, I see

249. 0:51:00

     ... you could keep that one.

250. 0:51:01

     Right here on the front page. That's your granddaughter?

251. 0:51:02

     That is her.

252. 0:51:03

     That her?

253. 0:51:03

     And if you look on the back of the book, it's in... If you open the back, her picture should be there. I would not have chose that picture, but she did.

254. 0:51:13

     Oh. Oh, she's a beautiful little girl.

255. 0:51:15

     And, and the person that wrote the book.

256. 0:51:17

     Yeah.

257. 0:51:18

     And they both were here when we presented on the floor of the House-

258. 0:51:22

     Well, thank you

259. 0:51:22

     ... and the parents.

260. 0:51:23

     Turn that on so we didn't mean to hold it.

261. 0:51:26

     It's on.

262. 0:51:26

     Any quest- any questions at all, though?

263. 0:51:32

     You know, it, it seems like every, every time we turn, we f- we finding out we really have underestimated a lot of our children, haven't we?

264. 0:51:39

     Mm-hmm.

265. 0:51:39

     And all we gotta do is give them opportunities.

266. 0:51:41

     Yes.

267. 0:51:42

     Senator Sims.

268. 0:51:44

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Question, uh, Representative Bazemore, so is this a program designed by an outside vendor? I'm not quite, um, I'm not sure.

269. 0:51:55

     So it could be. This person that I was talking about, Stan Tucker, he is an outside, um, agency.

270. 0:52:01

     Stan Tucker.

271. 0:52:02

     Right. And he's the one that did the presentation at Trinity that I heard, and he has a whole program where he travels. But it's up to us to, to choose who we want.

272. 0:52:15

     Thank you.

273. 0:52:16

     I would refer you to him. Because he's excellent, he and his team.

274. 0:52:22

     Well, thank you, ma'am. No other, see no other questions. Thank you for your presentation. Is that-

275. 0:52:26

     Thank you so much. Yeah

276. 0:52:27

     ... thanks for your enthusiasm, too, for this.

277. 0:52:30

     Thank you. And Mr. Chair, you can keep the book if you'd like.

278. 0:52:35

     I'm gonna, uh... Senator Hatchett's got, got several small children. I think it-

279. 0:52:41

     I need a couple.

280. 0:52:42

     You need it?

281. 0:52:42

     So I'm gonna, we're gonna w- w- w- w- we're gonna donate it to Senator Hatchett.

282. 0:52:47

     Okay. And then my, my granddaughter will be back down, um, now she goes to K State.

283. 0:52:52

     Mm-hmm.

284. 0:52:53

     But she been signing for you.

285. 0:52:55

     Very talented, very talented.

286. 0:52:56

     Yes, she is. She made the dean's list.

287. 0:52:59

     All right.

288. 0:53:02

     Thank you again.

289. 0:53:02

     Yes, ma'am. You're very welcome. Thank you. That was an exciting time in the House this morning, wasn't it?

290. 0:53:08

     It was.

291. 0:53:08

     To be over there. It was, um-

292. 0:53:11

     It was

293. 0:53:11

     ... it was incred-

294. 0:53:12

     And 10,000 over

295. 0:53:13

     ... yes, ma'am, incredible testimony. I, I mean, what we're doing for, what the general assembly is doing for literacy in Georgia is just blows your mind. There's so much emphasis on it. Senator Setzler, please come forward. Now, this is something, uh, that Senator Setzler and I have been talking about actually probably for a couple years now. And, um, we, we wanted, we wanted to move forward, but we also know that, that, uh, in order for this to happen is, uh, and, and he and Dr. Jody Barrow with the Professional Standards Commission are a- actually talking now.

296. 0:53:43

     So this is just another hearing, hearing on this, but I thought that it's very important for all of us to know with the teacher shortage we've got, we've got other professionals out there that probably could step into the, step into the profession if, if they meet certain standards. So Senator, please take it away.

297. 0:53:59

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, uh, members of the committee, pleased to bring before you Senate Bill 484. Um, I'm calling this experience-based teacher accreditation. What this really is is it recognizes there's great educators, um, educating kids across our state in our private institutions and in our institutions of higher education who might like to teach in our public schools but are prohibited from doing that because, um, you could have been a calculus professor at Kennesaw State University for 10 or 15 years, and you couldn't darken the door of a calculus classroom down the street at Kennesaw Mountain High School 'cause you're not a accredited teacher.

298. 0:54:36

     Um, likewise, there's teachers who are phenomenal teachers in some of the best private schools in the southeastern United States who, again, because they don't have teacher accreditation through a traditional process, could never teach in public schools. Um, I was having this conversation recently, Mr. Chairman, um- I, I th-- I'm gonna use, share some anecdotes. I was, um, just happened to be having, um, lunch with, um, my local college president, Dr. Schweig, and I wanna bring her into this, um, beyond just this conversation she and I had. Uh, s- she was the dean of the School of Business at Kennesaw State, um, noted scholar, a PhD in bu-business school, head of our business school.

299. 0:55:12

     She's the president of KSU. I said, "You know, Dr. Schweig, you couldn't go down the street and teach at Kennesaw Mountain High School." Because even though she has a PhD, uh, everything that gets you to teaching in Georgia requires a 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching or approximately 27 hours of undergraduate training in specific education courses during your undergraduate program to get teacher accreditation. So I wanna, wanna share that with you. Um, so it is roughly 27 hours while you're an undergrad to get a social studies teaching degree to go launch as a bachelor-- with, with, you know, with a, with a bachelor's degree into teaching.

300. 0:55:48

     If you're teaching at the, at the, at the elementary school level, it's about that many classes. If you come through and get a history degree or a physics degree and you've not been accredited as a teacher, um, there are pathways that they can bring you in to teach on a kind of a, a provisional basis. But every one of those pathways requires, as part of that three-year pathway, you go get a 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching to be able to teach. This bill rejects the premise that a 30-hour separate Master of Arts in Teaching is essential to teach our kids and recognizes if you've been teaching at four, for four years at university level or four years at the private school level, six hours of specific focused, six credit hours, college credit hours of specific focused classes, um, or 80 professional hours, um, um, would qualify you after having meet, m-met the standard.

301. 0:56:46

     And I'll walk through the standards, Mr. Chairman, if that's, it's okay with you.

302. 0:56:48

     Please.

303. 0:56:49

     But for members of the committee, uh, on, um, beginning on line, um, really s- 23 of the bill, again, um, what this lays out, or actually beginning on line 16 of the bill, uh, the requirements are to be a, a teacher through an experience-based program, you have to have a bachelor's degree. This is just, we're not getting around bachelor's or higher degree. It could be a bachelor, master, or, or PhD degree. So there's an education requirement and then four years of verifiable teaching experience.

304. 0:57:19

     If you wanna teach K five, you have to have that f-four years experience in a K five setting. You couldn't have been a high school teacher and then go teach kindergarten. So it's K five to be a K five teacher, um, six through 12 or higher ed to be in middle school or high school in terms of your teaching experience. And pass the GACE test. You have to pass the GACE ethics test as any other teacher would. You have to pass the subject matter test. So you have to be an expert in your subject just as any other teacher would. Um, but in lieu of student teaching and in lieu of that 30-year Master of Arts in Teaching, if you've been successful for four years in a private school environment or in a university environment or a technical college environment, anything post-secondary, technical schools, community college, private college, university system of Georgia system college, that experience plus the validation of a principal who wants to hire you, you don't have this automatically, but it's, as, as it says on line 23 of the bill, "Upon offer of employment by a local school system or public school, the commission shall issue a, a professional certificate based on your experience, your subject matter expertise, and that six credit hours of training." So it's six credit hours versus 30 credit hours if you have four years of experience.

305. 0:58:37

     If you're coming in as a college kid with a physics degree or history degree, you have to go get your 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching. But if you've been teaching in another setting equivalently for four years, the requirement wouldn't be 30 hours, it would be six hours, 'cause you've had your student teaching equivalent. You've, you've actually put together lesson plans. You've, you've put together and delivered education in the setting. If you do it for four years, we, we deem that to have been enough experience to prove your success at what you're doing. This allows us to bring teachers from our private schools who may wanna teach in the public schools, who right now would be pre-prevented from doing that.

306. 0:59:10

     Uh, I'll share some examples, Mr. Chairman. Um, y-you think about rural communities. You know, how many calculus professors do they have in rural Georgia? Well, down the street in the technical college is somebody that can teach advanced math. Someone who teaches advanced math in our technical colleges are not accredited to teach in our high schools. Why would we turn them away? Even if they've been teaching 10 or 15 years, they, without going through the accreditation process, which every single time is going to require that 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching, um, why wouldn't we let them teach our kids if they've demonstrated success elsewhere, you know, in, in other settings?

307. 0:59:46

     That's what this bill's about. It recognizes there's professionals that wanna teach in our public schools. Um, we see a, a, we, we see, see folks, as we see now, the average teacher's teaching, you know, four to five years and they leave. We're seeing teachers leave our public schools to go to o- go to other settings. Why don't we create a pathway for folks who are in other settings to come to our public schools? Um, I know, um, uh, this is something that Senator Beach, before he was the Treasury of the United States, was very, very passionate about. His wife wanted to be the business teacher at Roswell High School.

308. 1:00:19

     Yeah.

309. 1:00:20

     And had great experience to do that, and she was turned away. Um, and I'm not picking on Fulton County Schools, it was just a matter of fact. And after really trying to teach at the public school level, said, "You know what? I'm gonna go down the street and I'm gonna help, um, launch an s- a private school." She taught in a private school setting for years, raised millions of dollars for them as, as a, as a fundraiser in addition to her teaching role, and was really thrived in that setting. This is a person whose first desire was to teach in the public school setting but was not willing to say, "You know what? I'll, I'll take another 30-hour master's degree.

310. 1:00:50

     My MBA should be good enough." Um, with, with teaching experience. And that's what this says, it's let's find, let's recruit people from our great private schools and from our universities into our public school system who wanna teach there.

311. 1:01:02

     Can I ask you a question?

312. 1:01:03

     Yes, sir.

313. 1:01:04

     Let's, let- let's take an example, okay? Let's take Senator Hatchett as the example. He graduated Georgia Tech, he got a Juris Doctor degree from University of Georgia, and wants to go, go back to a high school in Habersham County and teach Civics class. Can he do that?

314. 1:01:28

     I personally think he ought to be able to. No, this bill doesn't fix that.

315. 1:01:32

     No, but what-

316. 1:01:32

     This bill says if he's done all those things and he's taught for four years at the university level, so let's say he taught at the University of North Georgia, he taught Government Civics for four years at U- at North Georgia, he could do this.

317. 1:01:43

     Okay.

318. 1:01:43

     This bill still requires him, him, him to have four years of experience.

319. 1:01:47

     But, but now he ha- he has not taught anywhere. He, he, he's practiced law for all these years and, and all that, but he's obviously got two degrees.

320. 1:01:56

     Mm-hmm.

321. 1:01:57

     So, so right now he cannot go back into his local high school and teach a Civics class or Civics classes. Is that correct?

322. 1:02:06

     Well, it's correct. What they would say is they'd welcome him there, but they'd put him on a provisional pathway where over the course of the next three years, he'd have to go back and earn a 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching-

323. 1:02:17

     That's what I imagined

324. 1:02:17

     ... to be able to do it.

325. 1:02:18

     That's what I imagined.

326. 1:02:19

     I reject the premise that you ought to do that. If he's been teaching at, at Georgia State Law School or some other setting-

327. 1:02:25

     Yeah

328. 1:02:25

     ... four years in the classroom ought to be able to qualify you to, to-

329. 1:02:29

     Yeah

330. 1:02:29

     ... to sidestep a 30-hour Master of Arts in Teaching.

331. 1:02:31

     Yeah, but right now, at the fact he hadn't taught anywhere-

332. 1:02:34

     Correct

333. 1:02:34

     ... he's still, he's got under his current law, he's got to have 30 hours.

334. 1:02:38

     Yes, sir.

335. 1:02:39

     Senator Sims, what, what's your, former retired educator, you got any comments about that? A number-

336. 1:02:46

     It is kind of narrowly, narrowly tailored to-

337. 1:02:50

     Uh, talk, talk in your microphone, please.

338. 1:02:53

     I did have my light on, didn't I?

339. 1:02:54

     Uh-huh.

340. 1:02:54

     I'm sorry. Um, I would wonder why you're,

341. 1:03:02

     um, framing your bill so narrowly to just include, I think, an individual that has been on, uh, had a successful career as a lawyer, done all of these things, should have, should be able to go into the classroom and teach without having to do all of those 30-some hours. But they should have some kind of, of educational experiences through academia to teach them how to work with children.

342. 1:03:34

     Right.

343. 1:03:34

     I think that's very important. As well as, uh, there's a special education part of it that also goes along with it. That too should be a part of the curri-

344. 1:03:44

     It-

345. 1:03:44

     That new curriculum for that person that wants to teach.

346. 1:03:47

     Yeah, and so should, so, so speak to-

347. 1:03:49

     But, but what I'm worried about is there seems to be this, you, we're opening up, we're opening it up for private school teachers to come back to public schools. Is it for that? Is that your aim? You know, 'cause I'm real suspicious about this kind of stuff when I start hearing it.

348. 1:04:11

     Sure.

349. 1:04:11

     Is that your goal? Or is it we're truly opening this up, opening it up to help with the teachers that we don't have, that the lack of, of professionals that we, we need in the classroom? Have we talked to PSC? Have we talked to USG's educational departments? Because that's where the problem really lies, how we are turning teachers out, how many we are turning out. 'Cause we have a whole lot of kids that sign up to teach, you know, they, to major in it, but they don't get out of college, and they change their majors a lot.

350. 1:04:50

     Sure.

351. 1:04:51

     So I'm a, I'm-

352. 1:04:53

     Well, that, that, that's exactly the reason we're having a hearing today, because of we, he and I agreed that, that, that there's more work that'd be done.

353. 1:05:00

     Yes.

354. 1:05:00

     But we wanted people to be aware of there's a potential pathway.

355. 1:05:04

     Yeah.

356. 1:05:04

     And Dr. Barra, yes sir, you go.

357. 1:05:06

     I, I'd like to address-

358. 1:05:07

     Go ahead, yeah. Let me hear what you-

359. 1:05:08

     Senator, thank you for your question. The, uh, if I could-

360. 1:05:10

     Mm-hmm

361. 1:05:10

     ... direct you to the exact point you made-

362. 1:05:12

     Uh-huh

363. 1:05:13

     ... um, on line 16 through 20. The six hours I was talking about is if they've got this four years of experience and the degree, it says three semester hours is essentially the pedagogy professional practice. It's pedagogy, it's science of reading, evaluation, ethics, classroom management, professional practice.

364. 1:05:32

     Special education, yeah.

365. 1:05:33

     Yeah, so that's, that's three hours. The other would be on child adolescence psychology, development, special education. Those, those core things that are in statute now, they're, they're captured in those six hours. What's not in there is the other classes that they, that they train people who've never been in a classroom before, kids coming through school to kind of prepare them. We, we have the six credit hour core.

366. 1:05:58

     Repeat it, yeah.

367. 1:05:59

     But the other things, the student teaching's considered to be done. That's, that's what this is about.

368. 1:06:03

     One, one last question. Senator Parent, is that you?

369. 1:06:05

     Uh, yes. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

370. 1:06:06

     This'll be the last question.

371. 1:06:07

     Sure.

372. 1:06:07

     We need to move out.

373. 1:06:08

     Sure thing. Um, uh, Senator Setzler, thanks for bringing the bill.

374. 1:06:12

     No problem.

375. 1:06:12

     I, I seem to remember when Senator Beach was talking about this issue that you could teach for five years-

376. 1:06:20

     Yeah

377. 1:06:20

     ... before it, but there was like a provisional that-

378. 1:06:25

     Provisional

379. 1:06:25

     ... it would only last five years.

380. 1:06:26

     It's, it's, it's three, I said three, it may be five, but you, but in that period of time, you've got to go get this 30 hour in AD.

381. 1:06:32

     It's three years.

382. 1:06:32

     Oh, it's three.

383. 1:06:32

     It's three years.

384. 1:06:33

     Okay, I had, and I just had five in my head from when-

385. 1:06:35

     Thought it was three, yeah

386. 1:06:36

     ... Senator Beach talked about it. Okay, thanks for clarifying.

387. 1:06:37

     It's three hours, and I, I would just share with you. There, I know private school teachers right now who have, you know, their average scores on their, their AP classes are four and a half. They're fours and fives of their classes. They, uh, have 10 years of teaching. They have Master of Arts. Th- th- they have M.Ed.s, but not Master of Arts in Teaching. They would have to go back and get another master's degree to get in the classroom, but they're teaching in the private school setting because they can't get in our public schools. I think we ought to be able to open the door to them.

388. 1:07:07

     Thank you, sir. Thank you, Senator. Thank you. Great conversation. I really appreciate y'all engaging in conversation. So Senator, we're looking forward to you talking to Dr. Barra and y'all for, getting something for that. Thank you. We're adjourned. Thank you.