SEF Co-Signs Letter Encouraging $9 Billion Federal Investment in the Educator Pipeline

September 23, 2021

The Southern Education Foundation is one of 65 equity-focused organizations that signed onto a letter urging the Senate Committees on Budget and Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions to include in the budget reconciliation bill a $9 billion investment in a well-prepared, diverse, stable, and supported educator workforce, as recommended by the Biden-Harris administration.

The letter calls for:

• Allocating $2.8 billion to the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) Program, to support comprehensive educator preparation programs.
• Investing $400 million in the Augustus F. Hawkins Centers of Excellence program to support comprehensive educator preparation at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs),tribal colleges and universities (TCUs), and other minority-serving institutions (MSIs).
• Providing $900 million to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Part D’s personnel preparation program to support the comprehensive preparation of specialeducators.
• Updating the nations’ teacher service scholarship program by doubling the TEACH Grant award amount and reforming its loan conversion penalty.
• Creating a $1.6 billion fund to help teachers earn additional certifications in high-demand subjects and in certifications that are associated with greater effectiveness.
• Investing $2 billion in teacher and school leadership so that educators can make even greater impacts.