Preparing and Training Education Professional (PREP) Act

Section-by-Section Summary

The PREP Act would improve the effectiveness of grant programs under the Higher Education
Act of 1965 in building teacher and leader capacity to create inclusive, student-centered, and
supportive learning environments that develop the higher order skills k-12 students will need in
today and tomorrow’s economy. This bill reflects evidence-based policies and practices designed
to support a well-prepared and diverse educator workforce with a focus on recruiting, preparing,
and supporting talented candidates planning to teach in high-need fields and locations. In
addition, the PREP Act provides a more holistic and useful approach to teacher and leader
preparation to drive continuous program improvement and align their preparation with the needs
of K-12 classrooms.

Section-by-Section Summary of Key Changes to Current Law

Sec. 200 – Definitions

• Updates definitions to reflect high-quality research on effective educator preparation and the
skills that educators need to support k-12 students in today and tomorrow’s economy.
• Expands the definition of a high-need district to include those with educator shortages and
with a majority of schools identified for additional support and improvement under the Every
Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).
• Aligns relevant definitions with those included in ESSA.

Part A – Teacher Quality Partnership Grants

Sec. 201 – Purposes
• Expands the purpose of Teacher Quality Partnership grants (TQP) to include the recruitment
of well-prepared individuals from underrepresented populations with an emphasis on areas of
teacher shortages.
• Emphasizes the importance of partnerships between school districts and institutions of higher
education to support alignment between teacher and leader preparation and the needs of k-12.

Sec. 202 – Partnership Grants

• Requires applicants to describe efforts to implement a competitive and comprehensive
screening process, prepare teaching candidates to effectively teach subject matter and support
the academic and non-academic needs of students, including strategies for closing
achievement gaps, and developing strong district-institution partnerships.
• Directs grantees to provide high-quality clinical experiences, with a priority for residency
programs, and implement evidence-based elements of high-quality teacher and leader
preparation designed to improve effectiveness.
• Supports “Grow Your Own Programs” designed to recruit teacher candidates from
nontraditional populations including paraprofessionals, after-school program staff, or other
community members and support them financially as they complete preparation programs, in
exchange for the candidates returning to teach in their communities.
• Creates a set aside to support states in their work to increase teacher and school leader
diversity, improve teacher preparation programs, and address state teacher and school leader
shortages
Sec. 203 – Administrative Provisions
• Prioritizes programs that offer candidates the opportunity to learn to teach in partner schools
through a residency, address rural teacher and leader shortages, or increase the diversity of
the teacher and leader workforce.

Sec. 204 – Accountability and Evaluation and Sec. 205 – Accountability for Programs that
Prepare Teachers and Leaders
• Streamlines measures by focusing on metrics of program completion, attainment of full
certification, and retention rates.
• Expands data to include data on school leaders.

Sec. 206 – Teacher Development

• Aligns the setting of annual goals for preparation programs with state and local efforts under
ESSA and makes additional changes to be more responsive to the needs of local educational
agencies.

Sec. 209 – Authorization of Appropriations

• Authorizes a funding level of $300,000,000 and if the amount appropriated in a fiscal year is
at or above $100,000,000, allows individual award amounts to be increased.

Sec. 210 – Honorable Augustus F. Hawkins Centers of Excellence and Other Title II
Programs
• Supports Minority Serving Institutions by authorizing grant programs of at least $500,000 to
recruit and prepare teachers to implement evidence based reforms to prepare teachers or
school leaders to serve in low-performing schools and close student achievement gaps and
promote effective teaching or school leadership skills including through providing residency
programs, mentorship, and service scholarships.
• Eliminates programs that have not been recently funded or demonstrated effective and
incorporates their objectives into TQP and other funded programs under Title II to provide a
more comprehensive preparatory experience for candidates.

Title III – Institutional Aid

Sec. 318 – Predominantly Black Institutions and Sec. 319 – Native American-Serving,
Nontribal Institutions

• Aligns activities within teacher preparation programs at Predominantly Black Institutions and
Native American-Serving, Nontribal Institutions with the evidence-based practices required
under Title II.
• Increases the authorization levels to support efforts to prepare a diverse educator workforce.