Transcript Highlights:

• It's a mentoring program.
• Teacher Grant Program, which provides a $14.4 million General Fund reappropriation.
• As we know, a great teacher is one of the most important factors in a child's success.
• As we know, a great teacher is one of the most important factors in a child success.
• million to help with the teacher shortage in high-need schools.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:43:26.720><c> We</c> teacher graduates or te increase. We teacher graduates or te increase.
• <c> graduates</c><00:43:28.400><c> but</c> want not just teacher graduates but want not just teacher
• </c> programs relating to the teacher programs relating to the teacher recruitment,<01:21:07.760><c>
• , not just teachers.
• </c> the little child said to the teacher. the little child said to the teacher. &gt;&gt; Yeah.

Keywords: 1136, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Her goal is to be a preschool lead teacher or open her own family childcare home.
• ><00:28:44.919><c> learned</c><00:28:45.279><c> from</c><00:28:45.440><c> my</c><00:28:45.640><c> mentor
• </c><00:28:46.519><c> and</c> apply what I learned from my mentor and apply what I learned from my mentor
• </c><00:29:06.919><c> open</c><00:29:07.279><c> her</c><00:29:07.480><c> own</c> a preschool Lead Teacher
• or open her own a preschool Lead Teacher or open her own family<00:29:08.679><c> childcare</c><00:29

Committee: House Higher Education

Keywords: 910, house, all

Summary: The House Committee on Higher Education met on January 31 and heard six bills. The chair opened by outlining committee practices, including giving at least 72 hours’ notice for hearings, releasing testimony by 5:00 p.m. the day before hearings, and deferring bills needing substantive HT1 changes so members would not vote “blind.” Members briefly thanked the chair for the transparency approach before moving to the agenda. HB 223 would create a Daniel K. Inouye College of Pharmacy special fund and workforce assessment fee to support a pharmacy center. Testimony from the Board of Pharmacy, the Hawaii Pharmacists Association, the University of Hawaiʻi Hilo College of Pharmacy, Mokai Drugs, and others generally supported the measure, emphasizing workforce data, rural access, student loan repayment, and retention. The committee later advanced HB 223 with amendments, including leaving fee amounts blank for further discussion and inserting a defective date, and the motion passed unanimously. HB 940 would appropriate funds for the rat lungworm lab at UH Hilo; HB 546 would establish the Aloha Intelligence Institute at UH to advance AI; HB 549 would create an early learning apprenticeship grant program; HB 1172 would add the Department of Taxation to the Statewide Longitudinal Data System for wage-data sharing; and HB 1320 would require UH to collect and publicly report graduate outcome data and create a dashboard. Testimony on these bills was largely supportive, with some privacy concerns raised on HB 1172 and a request to protect taxpayer confidentiality. In decision-making, the committee passed all five bills with amendments, generally deleting or blanking appropriations and FTEs for Finance Committee review, adding defective dates for further discussion, and in HB 549 adding a statement that the program is a matter of statewide concern. The committee recessed briefly for decision-making and then adopted the chair’s recommendations on each bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• and additional $500 teacher bonus.
• can serve as the foundation for teacher Prep programs, certification and evaluation.
• instructional materials and requirements for clinical supervisors and mentor the teachers senators.
• The goal here is to help address our teacher shortage in also help improve our teacher prep programs.
• Schools are taught by out of field teachers and Florida needs 9.7% more teachers by 2031 fewer college

Keywords: 999, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• 90 staff, and that's from administration through juvenile correction officers; that includes all teachers
• Our general day-to-day programming includes group mentoring, life skills, and physical activities.
• We have nine teachers: five of them are level three and four are level two.

Committee: House Courts, Corrections & Justice Committee

Transcript Highlights:

• , you know, to get the credential so we can get more teachers in the classroom to teach dual credit,
• Uh, teachers that are with the K-12 system also help us in the delivery of the dual credit coursework
• Uh, when you mentioned the fact that, uh, the state could, uh, help, uh, teachers that are in the K-12
• And, and one more, your teacher prep program is awesome as well.
• So for students or teachers. Great, thank you for that question.

Committee: House Higher Education

Transcript Highlights:

• founding president, Thomas, welcomed me there, and I met with the administration as well as the teachers
• founding president, Thomas, welcomed me there, and I met with the administration as well as the teachers
• founding president, Thomas, welcomed me there, and I met with the administration as well as the teachers
• Speaker, I rise today to recognize an outstanding educator and mentor, Dave Blanchard, who was recently
• As a fellow Parkland Trojan, I congratulate Kate, her family, and her teachers, and I wish her continued

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We continue to face an unprecedented teacher shortage, even as California continues to invest in teacher
• We continue to face an unprecedented teacher shortage, even as California continues to invest in teacher
• Our pools are not full of fully credentialed teachers.
• Our substitute teachers are not case managers.
• and the continuity of a substitute teacher.

Summary: The hearing opened with several procedural announcements and then took up AB 2148, which would prohibit artificial intelligence from replacing education workers. The author and supporters from the California Federation of Teachers and California School Employees Association argued the bill was a modest first step to protect human educators, students’ social-emotional development, and teacher agency in classroom technology decisions. Public support came from labor and education groups, while some school administrator and county office representatives said they were moving to neutral or awaiting the printed amendments. The committee discussed teacher shortages and the role of AI as a supplement rather than a replacement, then passed AB 2148 as amended to Higher Education on a 5-0 vote. The committee then heard AB 2202, which would create a Closing the Achievement Gap Commission to advise the State Board of Education. The author and sponsors said the commission would improve coordination between state and local education leaders and help the state better support local efforts to close achievement gaps. Support came from CSBA, CFT, charter schools, and many district leaders. Members raised questions about early childhood representation on the commission, and the author said he would discuss that with the sponsor. The bill passed as amended to Appropriations on a 5-0 vote. The consent calendar, including AB 1569, AB 2071, AB 2206, AB 2298, AB 2467, AB 2580, AB 2652, and AB 2726, was also approved. AB 2555 was then heard as a special order bill to reform English learner reclassification. The author said the current system is outdated, inconsistent, and too subjective, and proposed a more automatic, transparent process with stronger parent involvement and post-reclassification monitoring. Testimony in support emphasized personal experiences of delayed reclassification and the need to recognize biliteracy; there was no opposition. The bill passed as amended to Appropriations on a 6-0 vote. The committee also approved AB 1860, which would extend design-build authority to county offices of education while preserving prevailing wage, apprenticeship, and skilled workforce requirements; opposition from county superintendent and facilities groups was removed after amendments, and the bill passed 6-0 to Appropriations. Later, the committee passed AB 2514, which would create a State of Achievement Gap Dashboard to track state-level progress in closing achievement gaps, and AB 2149, which would require the Legislative Analyst’s Office to publicly assess the state’s progress and recommend actions. Both bills were presented as part of a broader package to improve state accountability for student outcomes, and both passed as amended to Appropriations on 7-0 votes. Finally, AB 2490 was heard, proposing to allow longer-term substitute assignments with added training, mentorship, and parent notification to address teacher shortages and classroom instability. Supporters said it would reduce “subchurn” and help maintain continuity, especially in special education; opponents, including CTA, Public Advocates, and CTC staff, argued the bill was unnecessary given existing rulemaking and could create legal and training concerns. The transcript cuts off during committee discussion of AB 2490, so no final vote is shown for that bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• We continue to face an unprecedented teacher shortage, even as California continues to invest in teacher
• Our pools are not full of fully credentialed teachers.
• Our substitute teachers are not case managers.
• And ideally, eventually become certificated teachers.
• , and the continuity of a substitute teacher.

Committee: House Education

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• She does well in school, gets along well with her teachers, has lots of friends.
• They love their teachers. It's one little group of kids.
• Teacher didn't take attendance.’ So go speak with your teacher, stuff like that.
• Teacher didn't take attendance. So go speak with your teacher, stuff like that.
• The Vex Robotics teachers are some of the most sought-after in the school.

Committee: Senate Education Pre-K - 12

Summary: The committee met to discuss student attendance and chronic absenteeism in Florida K-12 schools, with Chair Simon outlining the state’s attendance requirements and intervention process, including school contact after unexcused absences, child study team review, district superintendent referral, DJJ family services referral, truancy petitions, and possible parental prosecution and driver’s license consequences. Dr. Chris Curran of the University of Florida presented statewide data showing chronic absenteeism has risen sharply since the pandemic, with Florida at about 31.4% in 2023–24, and noted that absenteeism varies by district, school level, demographics, and urbanicity. He emphasized that causes are multifaceted—ranging from transportation, mental health, housing instability, safety concerns, and family circumstances—and said effective responses include early warning systems, text or phone outreach, multi-tiered interventions, mentoring programs like Check & Connect, and community partnerships. He also cautioned that punitive responses alone are often less effective than addressing root causes and keeping students engaged academically even when they miss school. Collier County Superintendent Leslie Ricciardelli described her district’s attendance efforts as a priority supported by attendance specialists, social workers, mental health staff, home visits, attendance contracts, and extensive parent communication. She said Collier’s chronic absenteeism rate was about 9% in 2023–24 and attributed success to consistent monitoring, family outreach, and community support, while stressing that students must be physically present to learn. She also argued that many absences are tied to barriers such as clothing, transportation, childcare, or family mental health, and that districts need resources to address those issues. Dr. Rachel Dawes added that Collier uses multilingual brochures, attendance awareness campaigns, vacation-planning guidance, door tags, automated calls and letters, and a truancy flow chart, with truancy court used as a last resort. Volusia County Executive Director Mike McAuliffe described a districtwide overhaul that included an attendance matters campaign, automated notices sent early and often, same-day and period-by-period notifications, a data dashboard, and tiered supports through MTSS. He said Volusia reduced chronic absenteeism from 34% in 2023–24 to a projected 29% and reported a first-quarter rate of about 20% in the current year. He highlighted community partnerships, including AdventHealth support for washers and dryers, bikes for students with transportation barriers, and monetary recognition for schools that reduce absenteeism. In response to questions, both district leaders emphasized that funding, staffing, and consistent follow-through are essential, and that attendance work is most effective when paired with family engagement, data monitoring, and practical supports rather than punishment alone.

Transcript Highlights:

• TRIO provides the one-on-one advising, tutoring, and mentoring that keep first-generation and low-income
• Tony Trigero, on behalf of the California Teachers Association.
• We want to align our remarks with this California Federation of Teachers.
• hearing that she could make money without having sex just by meeting older men who would act like mentors
• My name is Bryant Miramontas, legislative advocate with the California Teachers Association.

Committee: House Higher Education

Keywords: 988, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• of the Year Award for the Texas Association of Teachers.
• And members, please join me in recognizing Chris Mahelsick, the 2025 Texas Teacher of the Year.
• They help mentor and raise scholarships for law students.
• As a past president of the NAACP Missouri City Branch, Gary has been a long mentor, a true advocate when
• HB 2850 by Perez of El Paso. to financial incentives for public school teachers who commit to teach a

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• She does well in school, gets along well with her teachers, has lots of friends.
• They love their teachers. It’s one little group of kids.
• Teacher didn’t take attendance.’ So go speak with your teacher, stuff like that.
• Teacher didn't take attendance. So go speak with your teacher, stuff like that.
• “The Vex Robotics teachers are some of the most favorite in the school.

Summary: The committee on Pre-K through 12 Education met to discuss chronic absenteeism, district attendance interventions, and related truancy procedures. Chair Simon reviewed Florida’s attendance laws and escalation process, including school-based interventions, child study team meetings, referrals to the Department of Juvenile Justice, truancy petitions, and possible sanctions for parents and driving privileges. The committee heard first from University of Florida professor Dr. Chris Curran, who presented state and national absenteeism data showing chronic absenteeism has risen sharply since the pandemic, with Florida at about 31.4% in 2023-24. He emphasized that absenteeism has multiple causes, including transportation, mental health, housing instability, safety concerns, and family barriers, and said effective responses include early warning systems, multi-tiered supports, mentoring, and community partnerships rather than relying only on punitive measures. Members questioned Dr. Curran about whether absenteeism is a behavior or barrier issue, whether exclusionary discipline is counted, the need for a uniform definition across districts, and whether more punitive truancy enforcement is effective. He said the issue is usually a mix of barriers and choices, that excused and unexcused absences both matter for chronic absenteeism data, and that root-cause analysis and supportive interventions are generally more productive than punishment alone, though consequences can still play a role. The committee then heard from Collier County Superintendent Leslie Ricciardelli and district staff, who described a highly structured attendance system built around attendance specialists, social workers, mental health staff, home visits, attendance contracts, multilingual outreach, and frequent parent notifications. They said Collier’s chronic absenteeism rate was about 9% in 2023-24 and credited their success to early contact, community partnerships, and a strong district culture around attendance. Volusia County Schools Executive Director Mike McAuliffe described a newer districtwide attendance initiative that uses automated letters, same-day notifications, data dashboards, MTSS tiers, incentives, and community supports such as bikes, washers and dryers, and faith-based partnerships. He reported Volusia reduced chronic absenteeism from 34% in 2023-24 to a projected 29% and said the district is now seeing about 20% in the first quarter of the current year. No formal votes were taken.

Transcript Highlights:

• It might be a mentor, it may be an employer, maybe somebody at the school.
• Those are the teachers who can come to our location.
• And so teachers all throughout the Twin Cities, but we also have teachers who will drive down from Duluth
• Those are the teachers who can students.
• And so teachers come to our location.

Bills: HF1972 , HF229 , HF1090 , HF1084 , HF1307 , HF1274 , HF1609 , HF2110 , HF211 , HF216 , HF222 , HF224 , HF225 , HF203 , HF206 , HF207 , HF208 , HF227 , HF246 , HF427 , HF466 , HF502 , HF680 , HF971

Committee: House Capital Investment

Keywords: community center, Breckenridge, capital investment, state bonds, economic development, HF229, North Branch Area Hockey Association, Stacy Ice Arena, Chisago County, general fund appropriation, grant, ice arena, hockey rink, youth sports, recreational facility, community arena, nonprofit, DEED, Department of Employment and Economic Development, local infrastructure

Transcript Highlights:

• So a teacher candidate demonstrates knowledge. Dr.
• They will look like their cooperating teachers.
• They will look like they're cooperating teachers.
• So we'll watch a teacher teach and then we'll talk about it.
• Their teachers have increased their instructional competencies and their teacher knowledge, which then

Committee: Senate Education

Summary: The Senate Education Committee approved the minutes from February 18, 2026, and then heard Senate Bill 1335 from Senator Tammy Nichols. The bill would require students receiving state-appropriated support for veterinary education to return to Idaho for four years and spend 600 hours per year, or about 30% of their time, treating agricultural animals. Supporters said the measure is meant to address Idaho’s shortage of large-animal veterinarians and ensure a return on existing taxpayer-funded veterinary seats, with testimony from the Idaho Farm Bureau, Idaho Veterinary Medical Association, Idaho Cattle Association, and Idaho Wool Growers. The IVMA said it was neutral, citing concerns about the bill’s detailed requirements, pay differences, and whether enough jobs would be available, while some senators questioned whether the bill was more of a mandate than an incentive and whether the requirement should apply to current or future students. Committee members also discussed technical questions about the bill’s timing, the mixed-animal training requirement, and whether service could occur outside Idaho. Senator Nichols and testifiers said the intent was to apply the bill beginning with the 2027-28 academic year and to ensure students receive training in mixed-practice agricultural veterinary medicine. After closing remarks from the sponsor, Senator Burtenshaw moved to send SB 1335 to the floor with a due pass recommendation, Senator Carlson seconded, and the motion passed despite Senator Zito stating she would vote no because she opposed using state money in this way. The committee then received a presentation from Dr. Sally Brown of the College of Idaho on behalf of the Idaho Higher Education Literacy Partnership. She described the group’s work to strengthen teacher preparation in the science of reading, revise literacy standards, develop competency guides and assessments, and support literacy partnerships across Idaho’s higher education institutions. Whitney Ward of Northwest Nazarene University and Carolyn Court of Boise State University highlighted school-district partnerships, literacy summits, and clinical placements for teacher candidates, emphasizing that principals and district leaders also need literacy training to improve systems and support classroom instruction. Committee members asked about why administrators need this training, and presenters said principals play a key role in coaching, walkthroughs, and supporting schoolwide literacy systems.

Transcript Highlights:

• Right now, in order to be a teacher, you have to pass the Praxis exam.
• with the current new teachers.
• So they have a mentor-mentee, and Jackie just left. She was one of our mentors for the program.
• And so the retired teachers are able to mentor some of our new teachers and provide them support that
• You have to entice teachers to come with. those two typically isn't enough.

Committee: Joint Tribal and State Relations Committee

Keywords: 908, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They will look like their cooperating teachers.
• They will look like they're cooperating teachers.
• So we'll watch a teacher teach and then we'll talk about it.
• Their teachers have increased their instructional competencies and their teacher knowledge, which then
• So it's a bit of a misnomer that only the teachers need the knowledge of literacy.

Committee: Senate Education

Keywords: 989, all

Transcript Highlights:

• are studying to be teachers to have are studying to be teachers to have their<00:03:38.560><c> classroom
• </c><00:18:40.799><c> teachers</c> was in the classroom mentoring teachers was in the classroom mentoring
• </c> 1906 along with uh EKU as a teachers 1906 along with uh EKU as a teachers college.<00:38:07.839>
• Last year we had over 300 teachers on our campus living and learning about how to be a better teacher
• Our students perform well, our teachers, our master teachers in the classroom.

Keywords: 958, all

Summary: The Interim Joint Budget Review Subcommittee on Education met with a quorum, approved the August 20, 2025 minutes, and then heard a discussion tied to Constitution Day and Kentucky’s constitutional duty to provide an efficient system of common schools. Chairman James Tipton reviewed the history of Kentucky’s model laboratory schools, postsecondary academy programs such as Gatton and Craft, magnet schools, virtual learning, and computer science opportunities, arguing that Kentucky has long expanded educational opportunity through different school models. He described model schools and academy programs as hybrid or innovative approaches that serve specialized student needs and noted that some of these programs receive state appropriations and, in some cases, tuition. Senator Steve West then gave a retrospective on school choice in Kentucky, beginning with the 2017 charter school law and explaining that Kentucky’s charter framework was designed as public-only to comply with the state constitution. He said charter schools have remained largely dormant in Kentucky and used that as context for Senate Bill 207, the School Innovation Act, which he said was modeled on a South Carolina approach. Under SB 207, a local school board can contract with a third-party entity to manage an existing school, receive SEEK funding, and seek waivers from certain state regulations in order to innovate, while retaining limits on items such as school safety and attendance rules. Members asked about how the new model differs from charter schools, whether schools could cherry-pick students, and whether teachers would remain district employees. West and Tipton said the bill is intended to keep the school within the public system, with the local district initiating the process and maintaining accountability through a time-limited contract that can be ended if the school fails to perform. They emphasized that the school would serve the existing student population rather than select students, and that teachers would remain district employees with their pensions and related contributions unchanged. Representative Brown raised concerns that exceptions and charters could leave lower-income children behind, while West responded that the bill is meant to expand choice for families who otherwise lack access and cited examples from other states where outside management and parental involvement helped turn around low-performing schools. No additional votes or formal actions were taken beyond approving the minutes.

Transcript Highlights:

• Because of that, she was a mentor to so many women who sought public office.
• She became a high school teacher once returning to California because for Betsy education and public
• Even after she retired, Betsy remained a trusted and sought-after mentor to those seeking office, especially

Summary: The Assembly convened, established a quorum after a roll call, and opened with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. Routine procedural motions followed, including unanimous-consent actions to suspend rules for adjournment-in-memory remarks, guest introductions, and expedited floor processing of certain bills and committee reports. The chamber also recognized several guests, including Sacramento Police Detective Jason Collins, student musician Ethan Shue, and Glendale Councilmember Artie Kasakian. On the floor file, AB 1184 by Assembly Member Patterson, the Homeowner Association Accountability and Transparency Act of 2026, was presented as a measure to add basic transparency requirements for HOAs; it passed 56-0. AB 871 by Assembly Member Stephanie, addressing financial elder abuse and scam reporting/training for financial institutions, also passed 56-0. On the Senate side, SB 25 by Senator Umberg, which would give the California Attorney General earlier access to federal merger-notification filings to streamline merger review, passed 43-14 after the Majority Leader presented it. The Assembly then held several adjournment-in-memory tributes, including Paul R. Ignatius, former U.S. Secretary of the Navy and Glendale native; Oxnard Police Commander Scott Aaron; Private First Class Tanner F. Rubio of the U.S. Marine Corps; and former Yolo County Supervisor Betsy Marchand. Members and family guests offered remarks honoring their service and legacies, followed by a moment of silence for PFC Rubio. The session concluded with announcements about upcoming floor and committee deadlines and adjourned until Monday, January 26 at 1 p.m.

Transcript Highlights:

• In addition to her academic and professional pursuits, Jada volunteers and mentors young girls through
• for Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 182, a bill to be entitled an act relating to the school teacher
• training and mentoring program.
• training and mentoring program.
• And all of that is in the amendment while maintaining the mentoring program, and that is the bill, Mr

Summary: The Senate opened with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and a series of recognitions for interns, staff, and guests. Members also honored retiring Senate staffer Susan Miller and recognized a veteran injured in combat. After routine announcements, the chamber moved to returning messages from the House and began taking up bills and amendments. The Senate concurred in House amendments and passed SB 118 on RV park assessments and SB 572 on ethics for public officers and employees, both by 38-0 votes. It then took up the elections bill, CS/CS/HB 991, which drew extensive debate. Supporters said it would strengthen election integrity by tightening citizenship verification and ID rules; opponents argued it would burden eligible voters, especially students, seniors, disabled voters, and others without the newly required documents. The bill passed 27-12. The chamber also passed the education package SB 182 after adopting a Senate amendment to the House amendment, and approved SB 474 on military affairs, SB 425 on historic cemeteries, HB 929 on local regulation of chickees, and HB 35/SB 1370 on habitual traffic offender designation, all with unanimous or near-unanimous votes. The Senate then considered SB 902/ HB 733, the Department of Health package. Members adopted an amendment and amendment-to-amendment that preserved most Senate provisions while modifying or removing several House additions, including some early steps and medical marijuana-related changes, and the bill passed 37-0. The chamber also began work on HB 905, the foreign influence bill, with a strike-all amendment offered to expand restrictions on foreign influence, sister-city agreements, linkage institutes, and related activities, but the debate on that measure was still underway when the transcript ended. Several other returning messages and bills were temporarily postponed, and the Senate recessed briefly before resuming business.