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Maryland lawmakers admit it can take several years, and multiple attempts, from when a bill is introduced until it is passed. But some teachers-in-training pushed to make sure that didn鈥檛 happen in this year鈥檚 90-day legislative session.
Part of the work behind Gov. Wes Moore鈥檚聽, which goes into effect Saturday, began last year with conversations among Maryland college students at the National Education Association鈥檚 Aspiring Educators Conference in Chicago.
Marieme Ndiaye, who attended the annual conference, said she and other education majors聽spent thousands of dollars on gas, food, clothing and classroom materials while enrolled in unpaid internships. They also聽must participate in mandatory classroom teaching in their senior year.
And they must pass Praxis tests, which measure knowledge and classroom skills, to become certified teachers.
Ndiaye said she spent nearly $700 because she had to pay at least twice for each test after she didn鈥檛 pass on some subjects.
鈥淢y expenses [during senior year] were almost $7,000鈥hat came out of my pocket. Having a paid internship is a big thing,鈥� said Ndiaye, 22, who graduated in May from Bowie State University in Prince George鈥檚 County and is scheduled to teach next school year at Cooper Lane Elementary in the county. 鈥淭his legislation won鈥檛 benefit me going forward. It鈥檚 just the peace of knowing that the generations after me are going to be okay.鈥�
The Educator Shortage Act provides a $20,000 yearly stipend eligible student teachers to address the state鈥檚 teacher shortage. To qualify for the stipend, students must be enrolled in a teacher preparatory program and commit to work two years in a high-needs school in Maryland.
The bill also聽includes financial assistance for mental health professionals who work in schools for at least two years, allows 鈥渆ligible鈥� prekindergarten providers to provide teacher preparation programs and requires more diversity in all 24 Maryland public school systems.
It changes eligibility for the Teaching Fellows for Maryland scholarship to no longer require recipients to be Maryland residents or graduates of a Maryland high school.
It requires the Higher Education Commission鈥檚 Office of Student Financial Assistance to publicize the financial incentives at the state鈥檚 four historically Black colleges and universities (Bowie State, Morgan State, Coppin State and University of Maryland Eastern Shore) and to other students of other color 鈥渢hat are underrepresented in the teaching profession.鈥�
, 21, achieved good grades at Morgan State University in Baltimore, but couldn鈥檛 receive a Teaching Fellows scholarship because she鈥檚 a resident of Atlanta. She graduated this year with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in elementary education and will teach first grade at City Neighbors Charter School in Baltimore when school begins Aug. 28.
Bridgeforth, who also attended the Chicago conference, said her freshmen cohort of more than 30 education majors decreased to nine by her senior year. Some changed their major and a few dropped out of school, she said.
In testimony聽聽before the House Ways and Means Committee, she said that she would prepare to pay $30 for an Uber ride-share after her unpaid teaching internship, but later eat a 32-cent cup of noodles.
鈥淗aving an unpaid internship is hard鈥t makes me feel really excited for aspiring educators, especially knowing that there is not a possibility for [them] to leave school because they can鈥檛 afford it anymore, or change their major, or they just can鈥檛 afford to do an internship,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t makes me feel happy to know that hopefully we鈥檙e getting more people into the teaching profession and more people into classrooms and learning how to be teachers.鈥�
Del. Vanessa Atterbeary (D-Howard), who chairs the committee, recalled Bridgeforth鈥檚 testimony.
鈥淪he couldn鈥檛 afford to basically live 鈥� it was pretty upsetting to me,鈥� Atterbeary said聽 鈥淎s a mother raising three African American children, it is important to see children reflect who is [teaching] them.鈥�
The legislation also requires the state Department of Education to create and maintain an educator recruitment, retention and diversity dashboard by Jan. 1, 2025, including demographics and prospective educators participating in internships. A聽聽estimates it could cost about $500,000 to establish the dashboard and about $75,000 annually to maintain it.
Aspiring educator Cierra Davisson, 20, resides in Cecil County and is a rising senior at Frostburg State University in Allegany County.
Davisson is working this summer at a local Lowe鈥檚 and hoping 鈥渢o save as much money as possible鈥� to take her Praxis tests when she begins her teaching internship later this year.
鈥淚 want to be a teacher because every student and every person out there in this world [can] be successful with the right support system,鈥� said Davisson, who also attended the conference in Chicago last year. 鈥淭here鈥檚 still more work to do to make sure we can have more educators.鈥�
鈥�I will be fighting鈥�
The legislation establishes two types of stipends college students can receive: an initial stipend and an internship stipend.
One begins in the 2023-24 school year and runs聽through the 2025-26 school year for students in their first or second year at a college or university.
To be eligible for that initial stipend students must attend a school where at least 40% of them receive federal Pell grants in an associate or bachelor鈥檚 degree program.
According to a fiscal note, four historically Black colleges and universities and five other schools in Maryland 鈥� Garrett College, Hood College, University of Baltimore, Washington Adventist University and Wor-Wic Community College 鈥� enrolled that percentage or more of Pell grant recipients in 2019-20.
Del. Eric Ebersole (D-Baltimore), who chairs the House Ways and Means education subcommittee, said this week that Baltimore City Community College and Allegany College also enroll the required percentage of Pell grant students.
He said students at schools that meet the Pell grant threshold聽but then transfer to a four-year college or university in the state could still receive an initial stipend.
An estimated 300 students could each receive a stipend of up to $3,500. The state鈥檚 financial assistance office would determine an exact amount.
鈥淭he purpose of the initial stipend鈥s to nurture in the recipient a passion for becoming a teacher,鈥� according to the legislation.
Atterbeary admitted there was some pushback from officials at Towson University and the University of Maryland College Park, which don鈥檛 meet the eligibility threshold.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not the target audience. I鈥檓 trying to get folks at the Eastern Shore. I鈥檓 trying to get students at Bowie and Morgan to stay here and teach in our schools,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o for me, that was the main goal.鈥�
Some current and former college students interviewed disagree.
Davisson said all Maryland schools should be included, or at least permit a school to have the option to accept a stipend. She said she plans to travel to Annapolis next year to urge lawmakers to put that into law.
鈥淚 believe every school with a teaching program should have the option to have this stipend for their students,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 will be there in Annapolis. I will be fighting. I care so much about the people it will affect.鈥�
An internship stipend would begin in the 2026-27 school year and run through 2028-29. According to the fiscal note, about 200 students each could receive stipends of up to $20,000. To get it, students must:
- Be enrolled in a teacher preparation program at an institution of higher education that leads to a state professional teacher鈥檚 certificate.
- Participate in an internship or a practicum with a 鈥渄irect experience working with students in a public school or publicly funded prekindergarten program as part of the recipient鈥檚 course of study.鈥�
- Pledge to fulfill a service obligation for two years as a full-time teacher at a high-needs school, grade level, or content area in which there is a shortage of teachers, as identified by the state Department of Education.
The bill also requires聽the state Higher Education Commission to hire an independent consultant, by July 1, 2028, to evaluate the effectiveness of the act聽in attracting new teachers. By Jan. 1, 2029, the commission must send a report to the governor and General Assembly.
The stipends are part of a six-year Teacher Development and Retention pilot program scheduled to end June 30, 2029.
Jay Capitelli, 21, attends the University of Maryland and enrolled in a five-year accelerator program where he would receive a bachelor鈥檚 degree in history next year and then a master鈥檚 degree in education in 2025.
Capitelli won鈥檛 benefit from either stipend, but he鈥檚 grateful future educators will.
鈥淗aving a paid internship will not only be beneficial for people who want to be teachers, but also people who would want to be interested in the education profession,鈥� he said. 鈥淸Internships] are unpaid and it is hard. Having this stipend will allow them to become teachers and will help them along the way.鈥�
