SB 955 - This act establishes provisions relating to teacher recruitment and retention. The act creates the "Teacher Baseline Salary Grant Program" and changes the name of the "Urban Flight and Rural Needs Scholarship Program" to the "Teacher Recruitment and Retention State Scholarship Program." MINIMUM TEACHER'S SALARY (Section 163.172) Beginning in the 2025-26 school year, this act increases the minimum teacher's salary from $25,000 to $38,000. For teachers with a master's degree and at least ten years of experience, this act increases the minimum salary from $33,000 to $44,000 for the 2025-26 school year and further increases such salary by $1,000 each year until the 2029-2030 school year, when the minimum shall be $48,000. In the 2026-27 school year and in all subsequent school years, such minimum salary shall additionally be adjusted annually by the percentage increase in inflation, as such term is defined in the act. The State Board of Education shall publish such minimum salaries annually beginning on or after January 1, 2026. The act creates the "Teacher Baseline Salary Grant Fund" and "Teacher Baseline Salary Grant Program" for the purpose of increasing minimum teacher's salaries. The General Assembly may appropriate moneys to the Fund, provided that the total amount appropriated shall not exceed the amount necessary to assist each school district in increasing minimum teacher's salaries as required pursuant to the provisions of the act. For the 2025-26, 2026-27, and 2027-28 school years, each school district may apply to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) for a grant from the Fund, provided that a grant shall not exceed 70% of the amount necessary for a district to increase minimum teacher's salaries as required pursuant to the provisions of the act. The remaining 30% of the amount necessary to increase minimum teacher's salaries shall be allocated from the district's local effort funding as provided in current law. These provisions shall expire on December 31, 2028. This provision is similar to provisions in SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024), in SB 1014 (2024), in SB 1163 (2024), in HCS/HB 1447 (2024), and in HCS/HB 497 (2023). HARD-TO-STAFF SCHOOLS AND SUBJECT AREAS (Section 168.110) The act provides that a school board may include differentiated placement of teachers on the salary schedule to increase compensation in order to recruit and retain teachers in hard-to-staff subject areas or schools. No modifications to the identification of hard-to-staff subject areas or schools shall result in the demotion of a teacher in the salary schedule. Each school district that includes differentiated placement of teachers on the district salary schedule shall annually provide to the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education a report containing information outlined in the act. This provision is identical to HB 190 (2023) and to a provision in SB 1163 (2024) and is similar to provisions in SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024), in HCS/HB 1447 (2024), in HB 1648 (2024), and in HCS/HB 497 (2023). TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAMS (Section 168.400) The act repeals provisions of current law that require preservice teacher education programs to include a program of entry-level testing of all prospective teacher education students to be administered by the Commissioner of Education. This provision is identical to provisions in SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024), in SB 1163 (2024), in HCS/HB 1447 (2024), and in HCS/HB 497 (2023). CAREER LADDER (168.500) The act repeals a provision of current law that teachers' Career Ladder responsibilities and career efforts shall be required to occur outside of compensated hours. The act also specifies that teachers may receive Career Ladder admission and stage achievement for certain activities that are not included in the duties that require a teaching certificate under current law. This provision is identical to a provision in SB 1163 (2024) and is similar to provisions in SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024), in SB 1014 (2024), and in HCS/HB 1447 (2024). TEACHER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION STATE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM (173.232) The act changes the name of the "Urban Flight and Rural Needs Scholarship Program" to the "Teacher Recruitment and Retention State Scholarship Program". The corresponding state treasury fund is also renamed accordingly. The number of years a student may receive a scholarship is reduced from four to two years. The number of students who may receive a scholarship is increased from 100 to 200 in the 2025-26 academic year, with 20 more students being added in each subsequent year until 2030-31 and all subsequent academic years, when 300 students may receive scholarships. To be eligible for a scholarship, recipients shall sign an agreement to teach in a hard-to-staff subject or a hard-to-staff school, as defined in the act, in a Missouri public school for two years for every one year the recipient receives a scholarship. Recipients after June 30, 2025 shall also sign a statement that they have made a good faith effort to secure all available federal sources of grant funding. The scholarships provided in the act shall be available to students who have successfully completed two years at a community college, been awarded an associate degree or the equivalent, or have completed their baccalaureate degree. The act modifies the interest rate paid by scholarship recipients who do not follow through on their agreement to teach in a hard-to-staff subject or school and must therefore repay their scholarship award as a loan. An individual who has qualified as an eligible student under the act shall continue to qualify as an eligible student as long as he or she remains employed by the school district in which he or she agrees to teach, regardless of whether his or her employing school no longer qualifies as a hard-to-staff school, the class he or she teaches longer qualifies as a hard-to-staff subject area, or his or her position within the school district changes. This provision is identical to a provision in SB 1163 (2024) and is similar to SB 1013 (2024), to HB 2092 (2024), to HB 2335 (2024), and to provisions in SS#2/SCS/SB 727 (2024), in SB 955 (2024), in HCS/HB 1447 (2024), and in HCS/HB 497 (2023). OLIVIA SHANNON