CONTINUATION OF TEACHER AND TEACHER’S AIDE PLACEMENT PROGRAMS.

SEC. 1331. CONTINUATION OF TEACHER AND TEACHER’S AIDE PLACEMENT PROGRAMS. (a) Expanded Coverage of Certain Members of the Armed Forces.—Subsection (e)(1) of section 11S1 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by striking out “before the date of the discharge or release” in the first sentence and inserting in lieu thereof “not later than one year after the date of the discharge or release”. (b) Eligibility of Members Not Educationally Qualified for Teacher Placement Assistance.—(1) Subsection (c) of such section is amended— (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively; and (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new paragraph: “(2) For purposes of this section, a former member of the armed forces who did not meet the minimum educational qualification criterion set forth in paragraph (1)(B)(i) for teacher placement assistance before discharge or release from active duty shall be considered to be a member satisfying such educational qualification criterion upon satisfying that criterion within five years after discharge or release from active duty.”. (2) Subsection (e) of such section is amended— (A) in paragraph (1), as amended by subsection (a), by inserting before the period at the end of the first sentence the following: “or, in the case of an applicant becoming educationally qualified for teacher placement assistance in accordance with subsection (c)(2), not later than one year after the date on which the applicant becomes educationally qualified”; and (B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph: “(4)(A) The Secretary shall provide under the program for identifying, during each fiscal year in the period referred to in subsection (c)(1)(A), noncommissioned officers who, on or before the end of such fiscal year, will have completed 10 or more years of continuous active duty, who have the potential to perform competently as elementary or secondary school teachers, but who do not satisfy the minimum educational qualification criterion under subsection (c)(1)(B)(i) for teacher placement assistance. “(B) The Secretary shall inform noncommissioned officers identified under subparagraph (A) of the opportunity to qualify 107 STAT. 1792in accordance with subsection (c)(2) for teacher placement assistance under the program.”. (c) Extension of Period of Required Service.—(1) Section 1151 of such title is further amended— (A) in subsection (f)(2), by striking out “two school years” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “five school years”; (B) in subsection (h)(3)(A), by striking out “two consecutive school years” and inserting in lieu thereof “five consecutive school years”; (C) in subsection (h)(5), by striking out “two years” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “five years”; and (D) in subsection (i)(1), by striking out “two years” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “five years”. (2) Section 1598(d)(2) of such title is amended by striking out “two school years” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “five school years”. (3) Section 2410j(f)(2) of such title is amended by striking out “two school years” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “five school years”. (d) Grant Payments.—Subsection (h)(3)(B) of section 1151 of such title is amended by striking out “equal to the lesser of—” and all that follows through “$50,000.” and inserting in lieu thereof the following: “based upon the basic salary paid by the local educational agency to the participant as a teacher or teacher’s aide. The rate of payment by the Secretary shall be as follows: “(i) For the first school year of employment, 50 percent of the basic salary, except that the payment may not exceed $25,000. “(ii) For the second school year of employment, 40 percent of the basic salary, except that the payment may not exceed $10,000. “(iii) For the third school year of employment, 30 percent of the basic salary, except that the payment may not exceed $7,500. “(iv) For the fourth school year of employment, 20 percent of the basic salary, except that the payment may not exceed $5,000. “(v) For the fifth year of employment, 10 percent of the basic salary, except that the payment may not exceed $2,500.”. (e) Increased Flexibility in Providing Stipends and Placement Grants.—Subsection (h) of such section is amended in paragraphs (1) and (2) by striking out “shall” both places it appears and inserting in lieu thereof “may”. (f) Agreements with States.—Subsection (h) of such section is further amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: “(7)(A) In addition to the agreements referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2), the Secretary may enter into an agreement directly with a State identified pursuant to subsection (b)(1) to allow the State to arrange the placement of participants in the placement program with local educational agencies identified pursuant to subsection (b)(2) or (b)(3). The Secretary shall consult with the Secretary of Education in entering into agreements with States under this paragraph. 107 STAT. 1793 “(B) With respect to an agreement under this paragraph with a State, nothing in this paragraph shall be construed to negate or supersede the authority of any appropriate official or entity of the State to approve those portions of the agreement that are not under the jurisdiction of the chief executive officer of the State. “(C) The Secretary may reserve up to 10 percent of the funds made available to carry out the placement program for a fiscal year for the placement of participants through agreements entered into under this paragraph. Paragraphs (3) through (6) shall apply with respect to any placement made through such an agreement.”. (g) Clarification of Stipend Exception.—Subsection (g) of such section is amended by striking out paragraph (2) and inserting in lieu thereof the following new paragraph: “(2) A member who is separated under the special separation benefits program under section 1174a of this title, receives voluntary separation payments under section 1175 of this title, or retires pursuant to the authority provided in section 4403 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1993 (Public Law 102–484; 10 U.S.C. 1293 note) shall not be paid a stipend under paragraph (1).”. (h) Application of Certain Amendments.—The amendments made by subsections (c) and (d) shall not apply with respect to— (1) persons selected by the Secretary of Defense before the date of the enactment of this Act to participate in the teacher and teacher’s aide placement programs established pursuant to sections 1151, 1598, and 2410j of title 10, United States Code; or (2) agreements entered into by the Secretary before such date with local educational agencies under such sections.