This article has been updated with additional TEACH guidance
At NASFAA's conference in San Antonio, U.S. Department of Education (ED) staff presented an interest session on the Teacher Education Access to College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program. The presentation provided an overview of the program, with useful summaries of challenging issues such as institutional and student eligibility.
In reviewing the various program requirements, ED staff clarified some issues on which members have posed questions to NASFAA through its AskRegs service. The following paragraphs detail the clarifications.
One way that undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, and graduate students may establish eligibility for a TEACH Grant is by scoring above the 75th percentile on one of the batteries of a nationally-normed admissions test (such as the ACT, SAT, or GRE). During the presentation, ED stated that the institution does not have to use the nationally-normed test taken by the student for its admissions process, and that graduate students can establish eligibility for TEACH Grant funds by scoring above the 75th percentile on a nationally-normed undergraduate admissions test. Schools may also switch the basis it uses to establish a student's eligibility for funds.
For example, a student could establish eligibility by earning at least a 3.25 GPA on a 4.0 scale during her first payment period at an institution. In a subsequent payment period, her GPA drops below 3.25, so she loses eligibility for TEACH Grant funds based on this measure of academic performance. If the school can document that the student scored above the 75th percentile on a battery of a nationally-normed admissions test, the student can re-establish eligibility for funds based on this measure. Keep in mind that once a student establishes eligibility for grant funds based on a test score, the student maintains eligibility to receive TEACH Grant disbursements regardless of any fluctuations in his or her GPA, assuming that the students continues to meet other eligibility requirements.
Current and former teachers do not have to meet academic achievement requirements if they are pursuing certification through a high-quality alternative certification route. The alternative certification process must be imbedded in a master's degree program.
One way that institutions may establish eligibility to participate in the TEACH Grant Program is by offering a high-quality teacher preparation program that in part provides or assists in providing supervision and support services to teachers. The presenter clarified that this requirement does not refer to student teachers or employment supervision, but to on-going connections between the institution and schools in the community to foster best practices, etc.
Another avenue to establishing institutional eligibility is by offering a baccalaureate degree that in combination with other training or experience will prepare students to teach in a high-need field. In order to participate in the program, these institutions must have entered into an agreement with at least one eligible institution that offers a high-quality teacher preparation program or post-baccalaureate program. ED stated that schools that meet this criterion must provide the names of one to three institutions with whom it has agreements. It is important to note that institutional eligibility is not based on student action, meaning that students are not required to complete programs at schools with which the first institution has agreements.
Many members have had questions regarding the counseling requirements for the TEACH Grant Program. Recipients must complete counseling a least once a year. The presenter clarified that a student must complete counseling before the first disbursement of any TEACH Grant award. Depending on a student's enrollment pattern, it is possible that a student would have to receive counseling more than once a year. For example, a full-time student would receive his first TEACH Grant of $4,000 for attendance in the fall and spring semesters. If he enrolls full time for the summer term, he is eligible to receive a disbursement from a second TEACH Grant award. Before receiving the disbursement, the student would need to complete subsequent counseling even though he completed initial counseling less than 12 months earlier before receiving TEACH Grant funds for the fall semester.
ED staff also provided details of changes made to the program by the Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2008 (HEOA). Effective July 1, 2010, a high-need field no longer included on the Nationwide List is grandfathered for teaching service purposes if the field was listed when a student received a TEACH Grant. Any teaching service performed prior to July 1, 2010, will count only if the field is designated as high-need by the State in which a recipient is teaching at the time he or she begins qualifying teaching service. As a result of reauthorization, teaching in an educational service agency that serves low-income students may satisfy the requirement to teach in a low-income school.
The presenter also provided details on likely revisions to the TEACH Grant regulations resulting from negotiations completed earlier this year. Proposed changes would limit suspensions of the eight-year time frame for completing teaching requirements to three years for suspensions granted due to military service. After a three-year suspension, the recipient or the recipient's representative could apply to the Secretary in writing for a discharge of the service obligation based on the number of years the recipient was called or ordered to active duty. Watch Today's News for an announcement regarding the publication of the Notice of Proposed Rule Making in the Federal Register.
If you were unable to attend the conference, you may still download the handout from this session.
By Jennifer Martin
NASFAA Assistant Director for Professional Assessment, Training, and Regulatory Assistance
Posted 08/05/09 to www.NASFAA.org. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited. Please submit Web site questions or comments to Web@NASFAA.org.
