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Senate Education committee amends House Bill 297 to keep existing computer‑science endorsement pathways and funds two‑year PD
Summary
The Senate Education Committee amended House Bill 297 to remove duplicate pathway listings already in statute, extend endorsement eligibility to more licensure types, and appropriate $200,000 over two years for teacher professional development related to computer science endorsements.
Senate Education amended House Bill 297 on a unanimous voice vote after sponsors reported changes that preserve six existing computer‑science endorsement pathways and remove a sunset on two of them.
The amendment, identified in the hearing as amendment 0231684.1, was described by a presenter identified in the transcript as "Representative" as having removed previous House Education Committee changes that duplicated statutory language. "It took out all of the previous house education committee amendments," the Representative said, adding that the six pathways to obtain a computer‑science endorsement are already listed in statute so they were no longer needed in the bill.
The presenter said the amendment also removed expiration dates on two of the six existing pathways after discussions with the Public Education Department (PED). "Out of the 6 that exist currently 2 had expiration dates. So, PED has agreed to remove those expiration dates," the Representative said.
Senators pressed on several points. Senator South asked whether the bill is primarily an appropriation; the Representative said the bill includes an appropriation but also expands which licensure types can obtain an endorsement beyond secondary licenses. A senator asked why the $200,000 professional‑development appropriation was limited to two years; the Representative said recurring funding would be preferable but the sponsors sought a prudent, short‑term request while continuing to evaluate the pathway and seek additional funds in the future.
The committee recorded an affirmative roll call after a motion to pass the bill as amended. The clerk announced a "do pass motion on an 8 with 1 excused." The roll call recorded yes votes from Senators Boone, Ezell, Figueroa, Nava, Ramos, Thorn, Pope and Solf; one member was excused.
Why it matters: the amendment keeps the state’s existing statutory pathways intact, prevents automatic expiration for two routes to endorsement, and provides two years of targeted professional development funding to encourage teacher certification in computer science.
Votes at a glance
- House Bill 297, as amended — Motion to pass: Passed. Tally: 8 yes, 0 no, 1 excused.
Speakers quoted and key attributions in this article come from the hearing transcript and are attributed to the speakers who appear there.
