Section 65.20  Requirements of the Plan; Program Specifications

a)         When State funding is available to support new proposals for any initiative under Article 21A of the School Code, the State Superintendent of Education shall issue application materials in order to solicit applications from eligible entities.  As used in this Part, a "proposal" or "application" means relevant portions of a plan for an induction and mentoring program that meets the requirements of Section 21A-20 of the School Code, accompanied by the additional materials applicants will be required to submit, as described in Subpart B.

1)         When the level of funding is insufficient to provide grants to each eligible entity in the State, a Request for Proposals (RFP) will be issued to solicit applications from eligible entities, and applications will be considered for funding based on the extent to which they meet the criteria set forth in Section 65.150 of this Part.

2)         When the level of funding is sufficient to fund all eligible entities in the State, a request for applications will be issued and each school district whose plan meets the requirements of Article 21A of the School Code and this Part will receive a grant in an amount equal to at least the amount specified in Section 21A-25 of the School Code.

b)         In accordance with Section 21A-20 of the School Code, each new teacher induction and mentoring program must align with the standards in Appendix A and shall be based on a plan that at least does all of the following: 

1)         assigns a mentor teacher to each new teacher for a period of at least 2 school years, providing sufficient time for the new teacher and mentor to engage in mentoring activities;

2)         aligns with the Illinois Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards (see 23 Ill. Adm. Code 24), the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards, content area standards (see 23 Ill. Adm. Code 20, 21, 26, 27, and 28 as applicable) and applicable local school improvement and professional development plans, if any.  In order to demonstrate the alignment required by this subsection (b)(2), each plan shall discuss the relationship among the services and experiences that will be available to new teachers, the content-area standards applicable to their respective fields of licensure endorsement or assignment (see 23 Ill. Adm. Code 20, 21, 26, and 27);

3)         describes the role of mentor teachers, the criteria and process for their selection, and how they will be trained, provided that each mentor teacher shall demonstrate the best practices in teaching the mentor teacher's respective field of practice. A mentor teacher may not directly or indirectly participate in the evaluation of a new teacher pursuant to Article 24A of the School Code or the evaluation procedure of the public school; and

4)         is designed to be available for both in-person and virtual participation.  (Section 21A-20 of the School Code).

c)         Each plan shall meet the Illinois Standards of Quality and Effectiveness for New Teacher Induction Programs set forth in Appendix A and further amplified in Section 65.150.

d)         The State Board of Education shall contract with an independent party, using funds from the relevant appropriation for new teacher induction and mentoring programs, to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of the new teacher induction and mentoring programs established pursuant to Article 21A of the School Code. Reports from the evaluation shall be made available to stakeholders after 3 years of program implementation.  (Section 21A-30 of the School Code)

(Source:  Amended at 46 Ill. Reg. 13208, effective July 13, 2022)