167.263. Teacher assistants, grades kindergarten through three--program established--eligibility--application for assistance--rules, promulgation, procedure.

MISSOURI STATUTES AND CODES

167.263. Teacher assistants, grades kindergarten through three--program established--eligibility--application for assistance--rules, promulgation, procedure.

Teacher assistants, grades kindergarten through three--programestablished--eligibility--application for assistance--rules,promulgation, procedure.

167.263. 1. A program to provide teacher assistants in regularclassrooms in grades kindergarten through three is established. For thepurposes of this section a "teacher assistant" is defined as a qualifiedperson employed by a school district to assist a certificated teacher inclassroom instruction and management. No teacher assistant shall becounted as a teacher for the purposes of establishing ratios of teachersto pupils in a classroom, school or school district. Any publicelementary school containing such grades which meets the criteria pursuantto this section shall be eligible for a state financial supplement toemploy teacher assistants. Eligibility criteria are that the school shallhave a breakfast program, the school shall serve at least forty percentof its lunches to pupils who are eligible for free or reduced price mealsaccording to federal guidelines, and the school shall have a readingintervention plan pursuant to section 167.268.

2. A school district which contains such eligible schools may applyto the department of elementary and secondary education for a statefinancial supplement to employ teacher assistants in those schools named inthe application and in no other schools of the district. The statefull-time equivalent financial supplement shall be three thousand dollarsper teacher assistant. No more than one assistant per classroom shall besupplemented by the state pursuant to this section. Teacher assistantsthus employed pursuant to this section shall assist teachers in gradeskindergarten through three and in no other grades. School districts shallnot apply for or assign teacher assistants employed pursuant to thissection in classrooms designated as special education or compensatoryeducation classrooms.

3. The state board of education shall promulgate rules andregulations for the implementation of this section. Such rules shallinclude identifying minimum qualifications for teacher assistants which mayinclude teacher education students, determining the minimum number ofpupils per classroom to be eligible for a teacher assistant, establishingapplication procedures for school districts, and determining a method ofawarding state financial supplements in the event that the number ofapplications exceeds the amounts appropriated therefor. No rule or portionof a rule promulgated under the authority of this chapter shall becomeeffective unless it has been promulgated pursuant to the provisions ofsection 536.024, RSMo.