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Who is eligible
for the TEACH Grant?
To receive a TEACH Grant, you must:
- Complete the 2008-2009 Free Application for Federal
Student Aid (FAFSA), indicating on the FAFSA your
intent to teach. It is not necssary to demonstrate
financial need.
- Be a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen.
- Be enrolled as an undergraduate, post-baccalaureate,
or graduate student in a postsecondary educational
institution that has chosen to participate in the
TEACH Grant Program.
- Be enrolled in coursework that is necessary to
begin a career in teaching or plan to complete such
coursework. Such coursework may include subject
area courses (e.g., math courses for a student who
intends to be a math teacher).
- Meet certain academic achievement requirements
(generally, scoring above the 75th percentile on
a college admissions test or maintaining a cumulative
GPA of at least 3.25).
- Sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve (see below
for more information on the TEACH Grant Agreement
to Serve).
What is a high-need field?
High-need fields are the specific subject areas
identified below:
- Bilingual Education and English Language Acquisition
- Foreign Language
- Mathematics
- Reading Specialist
- Science
- Special Education
- Other identified teacher shortage areas as of
the time you begin teaching in that field.
These are teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic
areas) that are listed in the Department of Education’s
Annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing
at http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ope/pol/tsa.doc.
What is a low-income school district?
Schools serving low-income students include any elementary
or secondary school that is listed in the Department
of Education's Annual Directory of Designated
Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits
at https://www.tcli.ed.gov/CBSWebApp/tcli/TCLIPubSchoolSearch.jsp.
What is the annual amount of the scheduled
award?
The annual award for a full-time student (12+ credit
hours) is $4,000.
three-quarter-time student (9-11 credit hours) is $3,000.
half-time student (6-8 credit hours) is $2,000.
less-than-half-time student (5 or fewer credit hours)
is $1,000.
How many TEACH grant awards can I receive?
An undergraduate or post-baccalaureate student may receive
the equivalent of up to four (4) scheduled awards during
the completion of their first baccalaureate program,
or their first baccalaureate and post-baccalaureate
programs combined. A graduate student is eligible to
receive the equivalent of up to two (2) scheduled awards
for an eligible master's degree program of study.
Is the TEACH grant renewable?
To receive the TEACH grant in a future year, you must
file a valid FAFSA for that year, indicate your interest
in teaching, maintain a 3.25 GPA, and complete a new
service agreement.
How do I complete the Service Agreement?
The Service Agreement must be completed online.
You can sign the form using your Federal Student Aid
PIN at www.teach-ats.ed.gov.
How does the Department of Education track
my teaching service?
Within 120 days of completing or otherwise ceasing enrollment
in your program of study, you must confirm to the Secretary
of Education that either you are employed as a full-time
teacher in accordance with the terms and conditions
of the service agreement, or you are not yet employed
as a full-time teacher but you intend to meet the terms
and conditions of the service agreement.
If you are performing full-time teaching service in
accordance with the service agreement, at the end of
each year of elementary or secondary teaching service,
you must provide documentation to the Secretary of your
teaching service on a form approved by the Secretary
and certified by the chief administrative officer of
the school in which you are teaching. The form must
document that you are a highly qualified teacher, teaching
in any of the designated high-need fields, in a designated
low-income school.
What do you mean by repay the loan with accrued
interest?
If you receive a TEACH grant but do not complete the
required teaching service as explained above, you will
be required to repay the grants as a Federal Direct
Unsubsidized Stafford Loan, with interest charged from
the date that each TEACH grant was disbursed.
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