SECOND REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 1134
92ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATORS FOSTER, COLEMAN, DOUGHERTY AND KENNEDY.
Read 1st time January 22, 2004, and ordered printed.
TERRY L. SPIELER, Secretary.
4116S.01I
AN ACT
To amend chapter 160, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to the creation of the Missouri junior/senior cadets program.
Section A. Chapter 160, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be known as section 160.735, to read as follows:
160.735. 1. There is hereby established the "Missouri Junior/Senior Cadets Program", which shall be administered by the department of elementary and secondary education. The program shall encourage high school juniors and seniors to mentor kindergarten through eighth grade students in their respective school districts for a minimum of six hours per week during the school year.
2. In order to be a mentor in the program, a student must:
(1) Be a Missouri resident who attends a Missouri high school;
(2) Possess a cumulative grade point average of at least three on a four-point scale or equivalent; and
(3) Plan to attend college.
3. Each public high school in the state shall establish guidelines for the junior/senior cadets program. The mentor shall work with the school principal, classroom teachers, and other applicable school personnel in planning and implementing the mentoring plan. Such mentoring may occur before, during, or after school.
4. If a mentor in the program successfully provides mentoring services for an average of at least six hours per week during a school year, the mentor shall receive:
(1) One hour of class credit which may satisfy graduation requirements; and
(2) Should the mentor attend college with the stated intention of becoming a teacher, the mentor shall be reimbursed, subject to appropriation, by the department of elementary and secondary education for the costs of one credit hour per semester for a total of no more than eight semesters.
Although a student may be a mentor during both their junior and senior years, the mentor shall only be awarded a total of one hour of class credit and may only be reimbursed for one college credit hour for a total of eight semesters.
5. There is hereby established in the state treasury a fund to be known as the "Missouri Junior/Senior Cadets Fund", which shall consist of all moneys that may be appropriated to it by the general assembly, and in addition may include any gifts, contributions, grants, or bequests received from federal, state, private, or other sources. The fund shall be administered by the department of elementary and secondary education. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 33.080, RSMo, to the contrary, moneys in the Missouri junior/senior cadets fund shall not be transferred to the credit of the general revenue fund at the end of the biennium. Interest and moneys earned on the fund shall be credited to the fund. Moneys in the fund shall be used solely for the purpose of tuition reimbursements pursuant to the provisions of this section.
6. In order to help fund the Missouri junior/senior cadets program, the department of elementary and secondary education shall investigate means of funding the program.