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132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 471
S.P. 210 In Senate, February 11, 2025
Resolve, to Establish a Pilot Program to Expand Intensive English
Language Learner Programs
Received by the Secretary of the Senate on February 5, 2025. Referred to the Committee
on Education and Cultural Affairs pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed.
DAREK M. GRANT
Secretary of the Senate
Presented by Senator RAFFERTY of York.
Cosponsored by Representative MITCHELL of Cumberland and
Senator: BALDACCI of Penobscot, Representatives: CLOUTIER of Lewiston, DHALAC of
South Portland, MURPHY of Scarborough, RANA of Bangor, SARGENT of York, YUSUF of
Portland.
Page 1 - 132LR0809(01)
1Sec. 1. Pilot program established. Resolved: That the Department of Education,
2 in collaboration with the Department of Labor and the University of Maine System, shall
3 establish a 2-year pilot program to expand intensive English language learner programs at
4 the University of Maine and the University of Southern Maine. The pilot program must be
5 open to individuals at least 16 years of age whose primary language is a language other
6 than English.
7Sec. 2. Pilot program requirements. Resolved: That the pilot program under
8 section 1 may not enroll more than 150 students for full-time instruction per semester in its
9 first year and may not enroll more than 300 students for full-time instruction per semester
10 in its 2nd year, for a total of no more than 900 students for the duration of the pilot program.
11 The pilot program must provide a computer or tablet for each student enrolled in the pilot
12 program. For the purposes of this section, "full-time instruction" means 18 to 20 hours of
13 instruction each week.
14Sec. 3. Stipends for students enrolled in pilot program. Resolved: That the
15 pilot program under section 1 must provide stipends to students enrolled in the pilot
16 program to pay for:
17 1. The cost of child care for students who do not otherwise qualify for the Temporary
18 Assistance for Needy Families program as described in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title
19 22, chapter 1053-B;
20 2. The cost of transportation to and from an intensive English language learner
21 program described in section 1; and
22 3. Living expenses for students who do not receive municipal general assistance as
23 described in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, chapter 1161.
24 Receipt of a stipend under this section does not affect an individual's eligibility for or
25 the amount an individual receives through municipal general assistance as described in the
26 Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, chapter 1161 or the Temporary Assistance for Needy
27 Families program as described in Title 22, chapter 1053-B.
28Sec. 4. Pilot program to fund Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
29program coordinators. Resolved: That the pilot program under section 1 must include
30 funding for 2 positions to assist students enrolled in the pilot program with accessing funds
31 through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program in accordance with the
32 Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, chapter 1053-B. The position responsibilities must
33 include assisting students with combining funds received from the Temporary Assistance
34 for Needy Families program to pay for child care.
35Sec. 5. Municipal general assistance work requirement met by enrollment.
36Resolved: That a student enrolled in the pilot program under section 1 meets the municipal
37 general assistance work requirement under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section
38 4316-A.
39Sec. 6. Full scholarships or tuition waivers for students to attend University
40of Southern Maine program. Resolved: That the University of Maine System must
41 award full scholarships or tuition waivers for students to attend the University of Southern
42 Maine's Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages online accelerated master's
43 degree program. The University of Maine System and the Department of Education must
Page 2 - 132LR0809(01)
44 require that a recipient of a full scholarship or tuition waiver must teach in an intensive
45 English language learner program in the State for a length of time as specified by the
46 department after completion of the online accelerated master's degree program.
4Sec. 7. Reports. Resolved: That the University of Maine System shall submit an
5 interim report no later than January 15, 2027 and a final report no later than January 15,
6 2028 to the joint standing committees of the Legislature having jurisdiction over education
7 matters and appropriations and financial affairs on the intensive English language learner
8 pilot program established pursuant to section 1 and the scholarships and tuition waivers
9 required under section 6. Each report must include, but is not limited to, the number, by
10 county, of students served by the pilot program and their employment outcomes; any
11 barriers to the success of the pilot program; and plans and recommendations, including any
12 suggested legislation, for the future of the intensive English language learner pilot program
13 and training for teachers in the State who teach English to individuals who speak languages
14 other than English as their primary language.
15SUMMARY
16 This bill requires the Department of Education, the Department of Labor and the
17 University of Maine System to establish a 2-year pilot program to expand the intensive
18 English language learner programs at the University of Maine and the University of
19 Southern Maine. The pilot program must provide stipends to enrolled students for the cost
20 of child care and transportation and certain living expenses. The pilot program must
21 include funding for 2 positions to assist students enrolled in the pilot program with
22 accessing funds through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program. The pilot
23 program specifies that a student enrolled in the pilot program meets the municipal general
24 assistance work requirement under the municipal general assistance laws. The bill requires
25 the University of Maine System to award full scholarships or tuition waivers for students
26 to attend the University of Southern Maine's Teaching English to Speakers of Other
27 Languages online accelerated master's degree program. The University of Maine System
28 and the Department of Education must require that a recipient of a full scholarship or tuition
29 waiver must teach in an intensive English language learner program in the State for a length
30 of time determined by the department after completion of the degree program. The bill
31 also requires the University of Maine System to report to the Legislature on the progress
32 of the pilot program.
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