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| Wilson Seeks To Provide Scholarships for Future Teachers |
May 08, 2000 |
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Legislation would help New Mexico deal with growing teacher shortage
WASHINGTON, DC –Under a plan announced by Congresswoman Heather Wilson today, students at the University of New Mexico School of Education and others seeking to become teachers could be eligible for a $10,000 annual scholarship to pay for college expenses. In return for the scholarship, the students would commit to teaching 2 years for every year of scholarship assistance, not to exceed 6 years per recipient.
The idea for the new proposal by Congresswoman Wilson came during the congressional field hearing that she organized in January. During the hearing, a number of education experts from New Mexico expressed concern about the growing shortage of qualified teachers facing schools across the state. As a result of numerous follow-up meetings and consultations with local education officials, Wilson settled on this scholarship plan as a way to help encourage more young people to enter the teaching profession.
“We want the best and the brightest we can get to become teachers, and we need to keep them honing their skills once they are in the classroom,” said Wilson. “Great teachers are the cornerstone of all good schools. The more we can do to bring more bright young people into the teaching profession, the better chance we have of making our schools the envy of the world.”
Vi Florez, Dean of UNM’s College of Education, said, “The College of Education at UNM can respond to this plan by providing systematic support to new and experienced teachers so that more teachers choose to stay in New Mexico`s classrooms.
“The creative way of recruitment, quality teacher preparation programs, caring student mentoring and opportunities for advanced professional development are key elements to making a difference for teachers who are the conduit to student academic success,” concluded Dr. Florez.
The final draft of Congresswoman Wilson’s legislation is expected to be introduced in Congress when she returns to Washington later this week. Here is a brief description of the key elements of Wilson’s bill:
* High school graduates or certified teachers pursuing additional education would be eligible for up to 5 years
* $10,000 scholarship for full-time students and a $5,000 scholarship for part-time students per year
* Scholarship recipients commit to teaching 2 years for every year of scholarship assistance, not to exceed 6 years per recipient
* Recipients will be selected by state wide panels, and selection will be based on merit
* The state may set aside 35% of scholarships for applicants who will commit to programs of study that will address teacher shortages
* The bill would authorize $260,000,000 in federal funding for the first year of the program—enough for about 25,000 full time scholarships nationwide, or about 250 per year for New Mexicans.
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