Invest in Rural Teachers Act

Title II of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6601 et seq.) is amended—

(1) by redesignating part C as part D; and

(2) by inserting after part B, the following:

The Secretary shall carry out a program under which the Secretary makes grants to States to enable States to award subgrants to eligible entities, in accordance with subsection (b), to support signing and retention bonuses for teachers in rural schools.

To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, a State shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.

A State that receives a grant under subsection (a) shall use the grant funds to award subgrants to eligible entities to pay signing and retention bonuses, in accordance with paragraph (3), to individuals hired to teach in rural schools.

To be eligible to receive a subgrant under this subsection, an eligible entity shall submit an application to the State at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the State may require.

An eligible entity that receives a subgrant under paragraph (1) shall use the subgrant funds to award a signing and retention bonus to each teacher hired by the agency who agrees to teach in a rural school for a period of 3 school years.

The amount of the signing and retention bonus paid to a teacher under subparagraph (A) shall be $5,000 annually for each year of the 3 school-year period described in such subparagraph.

An eligible entity that receives a subgrant under this subsection shall seek to prioritize the recruitment, hiring, and award of bonuses to teachers who previously resided in the community served by the entity, including teachers who were born, raised, and educated in such community.

States and eligible entities shall seek to enter into partnerships with institutions of higher education for purposes of—

(1) informing students in teacher preparation programs about the availability of rural teacher incentive bonuses under this section; and

(2) encouraging students in such programs to seek teaching positions in rural schools.

In this section:

(1) The term eligible entity means—.

(A) a local educational agency that meets the requirements of section 5211(b); or

(B) an educational service agency that serves such a local educational agency.

(2) The term rural school means a school under the jurisdiction of a local educational agency described in paragraph (1)(A).

Section 2003 of such Act is amended by adding at the end the following:

For the purposes of carrying out part C, there are authorized to be appropriated $500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2030.