Congressman Jason Crow Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Allow Prospective Teachers and Principals in Residency Programs to Use Federal Work-Study

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, Reps. Jason Crow (CO-06) introduced the Teacher, Principal, and Leader Residency Access Act alongside Reps. Jahana Hayes (CT-05), Scott Tipton (CO-03), Lori Trahan (MA-03) and Rodney Davis (IL-13). The bipartisan-led bill would expand Federal Work-Study funds to pay for costs associated with participating in teacher and principal residency programs, which have proven effective to improve teacher demand, quality, and retention. The bill would add teacher and principal residencies to the Federal Work-Study program ensuring no added cost to the taxpayer.

"Providing our teachers with the resources and training they need should be one of the most important priorities for this country. When our teachers are supported, they succeed and their success is our children's success," said Crow. "Residency programs are an excellent way for teachers to gain valuable on-the-job experience before setting off on classrooms of their own. As Congressman, I recognize this as good policy, but as a father of two school age kids, I know this is the right thing to do for our teachers and students and I'm proud to champion this commonsense bill."

"Recruiting and retaining educators in rural communities is a challenge we in Congress can improve by enhancing existing residency programs," said Tipton. "The overwhelming success rate of these programs has already helped place quality educators in schools and will continue to be a critical component of bettering the educational opportunities for current and future generations. I am proud to join my colleagues in advancing this important legislation and will continue to prioritize the needs of rural communities in Colorado‘s Third District."

"Strengthening our pipeline of highly trained teachers is of paramount importance, especially as we continue to navigate the effects of COVID-19 on our educators and students," said Trahan. "The Teacher and Leader Residency Access Act will provide college students who plan to become teachers with more opportunities to gain invaluable in-the-classroom experience while also prioritizing our most underserved students. We must get this bill passed into law without delay."

"Many school districts in Illinois and across the country are facing a shortage of administrators and teachers, including teachers of subject matters that are critical to preparing students for the jobs in our modern economy," said Davis. "Our bipartisan legislation expands the Federal Work-Study Program to pay for a portion of teacher and principal residency programs, which are proven to provide more experience to educators and increase job retention. Particularly during this pandemic, we need to do everything we can to give teachers, administrators, and school districts the resources they need to help their students succeed."

"As Colorado's largest teacher residency program, we know that high-quality preparation for educators, including clinical residency experiences, makes a profound impact on both the learning experience for teacher candidates as well as their retention within the profession," said PEBC President and CEO Sue Sava. "As the country continues to experience a nationwide educator shortage, it is paramount that we invest in strategies that best prepare future generations to be career-ready in their chosen fields, and increase access to high-quality learning experiences in order to widen the funnel to students for whom residency programs are often financially unviable. The Teacher and Leader Residency Access Act will provide students who choose careers in education to support themselves while pursuing their dreams to enter the educator workforce and will benefit emerging teachers, leaders, and students."

Teachers who have not participated in a residency program are upwards of three times more likely to leave teaching than educators who have participated in a residency program, and hiring new teachers costs Americans over $8 million per year across rural and urban educational agencies. Studies across the nation reinforce the effectiveness of these residency programs, with many indicating graduate retention rates ranging from 80 to 90 percent in the same district after three years.

This bill is modeled after Colorado's PEBC Teacher Residency program, one of the oldest and most respected residency programs in the nation. The Denver-based program has proven successful with a five-year retention rate of 95 percent and over 1,000 prepared educators across Colorado to date, according to the Boettcher Foundation.

The Teacher, Principal, and Leader Residency Access Act has been endorsed by the Rural School and Community Trust, Colorado Education Association, AASA, The School Superintendents Association, National Association of Secondary School Principals, and National Association of Elementary School Principals.