20 USC 1070g-2 - Applications; eligibility

U.S Code last checked for updates: Nov 22, 2024

§ 1070g–2.

Applications; eligibility

(a)

Applications; demonstration of eligibility

(1)

Filing required

(2)

Demonstration of TEACH Grant eligibility

Each application submitted under paragraph (1) shall contain such information as is necessary to demonstrate that—

(A)

if the applicant is an enrolled student—

(i)

the student is an eligible student for purposes of section 1091 of this title;

(ii)

the student—

(I)

has a grade point average that is determined, under standards prescribed by the Secretary, to be comparable to a 3.25 average on a zero to 4.0 scale, except that, if the student is in the first year of a program of undergraduate education, such grade point average shall be determined on the basis of the student’s cumulative secondary school grade point average; or

(II)

displayed high academic aptitude by receiving a score above the 75th percentile on at least one of the batteries in an undergraduate, post-baccalaureate, or graduate school admissions test; and

(iii)

the student is completing coursework and other requirements necessary to begin a career in teaching, or plans to complete such coursework and requirements prior to graduating; or

(B)

if the applicant is a current or prospective teacher applying for a grant to obtain a graduate degree—

(i)

the applicant is a teacher or a retiree from another occupation with expertise in a field in which there is a shortage of teachers, such as mathematics, science, special education, English language acquisition, or another high-need subject; or

(ii)

the applicant is or was a teacher who is using high-quality alternative certification routes, such as Teach for America, to get certified.

(b)

Agreements to serve

Each application under subsection (a) shall contain or be accompanied by an agreement by the applicant that—

(1)

the applicant will—

(A)

serve as a full-time teacher for a total of not less than 4 academic years within 8 years after completing the course of study for which the applicant received a TEACH Grant under this subpart (referred to in this section as the “service obligation window”);

(B)

teach in a school described in section 1087ee(a)(2)(A) of this title;

(C)

teach in any of the following fields—

(i)

mathematics;

(ii)

science;

(iii)

a foreign language;

(iv)

bilingual education;

(v)

special education;

(vi)

as a reading specialist; or

(vii)

another field or geographic area documented as high-need by the Federal Government, State government, or local educational agency, and approved by the Secretary;

(D)

submit a certification of employment by the chief administrative officer of the school in accordance with subsection (d)(5); and

(E)

meet all State certification requirements for teaching (which may include meeting such requirements through a certification obtained through alternative routes to teaching);

(2)

in the event that the applicant is determined to have failed or refused to carry out such service obligation, the sum of the amounts of any TEACH Grants received by such applicant will be treated as a loan and collected from the applicant in accordance with subsection (c) and the regulations thereunder; and

(3)

contains, or is accompanied by, a plain-language disclosure form developed by the Secretary that clearly describes the nature of the TEACH Grant award, the service obligation, and the loan repayment requirements that are the consequence of the failure to complete the service obligation.

(c)

Repayment for failure to complete service

(1)

In general

(2)

Reconsideration of conversion decisions

(A)

Request to reconsider

(B)

Reconsideration

If, in reconsidering an initial determination under subparagraph (A) (including reconsideration related to a TEACH Grant that was converted to a loan prior to October 13, 2021, and including cases where such loans were fully or partially paid), the Secretary determines that the reason for such determination was the recipient’s failure to timely submit a certification required under subsection (b)(1)(D) (as in effect on the day before October 13, 2021), an error or processing delay by the Secretary, a change to the fields considered eligible for fulfillment of the service obligation (as described in subsection (b)(1)(C)), a recipient having previously requested to have the TEACH Grant converted to a loan, or another valid reason determined by the Secretary, and that the recipient has, as of the date of the reconsideration, demonstrated that the recipient did meet, or is meeting the service obligation in the agreement under subsection (b), the Secretary shall—

(i)

discharge the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D, and reinstate the recipient’s grant under this subpart;

(ii)

discharge any interest or fees that may have accumulated during the period that the grant was converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D;

(iii)

if the recipient has other loans under part D, apply any payments made for the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D during such period to those other loans under part D;

(iv)

if the recipient does not have other loans under part D, reimburse the recipient for any amounts paid on the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D during such period;

(v)

request that consumer reporting agencies remove any negative credit reporting due to the conversion of the TEACH Grant to a loan; and

(vi)

use the additional information provided under subparagraph (A) to determine the progress the recipient has made in meeting the service obligation.

(C)

Extension of time to complete service obligation

In the case of a recipient whose TEACH Grant was reinstated in accordance with subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall, upon such reinstatement—

(i)

extend the time remaining for the recipient to fulfill the service obligation described in subsection (b)(1) to a period of time equal to—

(I)

8 years; minus

(II)

the number of full academic years of teaching that the recipient completed prior to the reconversion of the loan to a TEACH Grant under subparagraph (B), including any years of qualifying teaching completed during the period when the TEACH Grant was in loan status; and

(ii)

treat any full academic years of teaching described in clause (i)(II) as years that count toward the individual’s service obligation (regardless of whether the TEACH Grant funds were in grant or loan status) if that time otherwise meets the requirements of this section.

(d)

Additional administrative provisions

(1)

Change of high-need designation

(2)

Extenuating circumstances

(3)

Communication with recipients

(4)

Qualifying schools and high-need fields

(5)

Submission of employment certification

(A)

Recommended submissions

(B)

Required submission

(C)

Notification

(D)

Adjustment of deadline

(E)

Alternative to certification

(Pub. L. 89–329, title IV, § 420N, as added Pub. L. 110–84, title I, § 104, Sept. 27, 2007, 121 Stat. 788; amended Pub. L. 110–315, title IV, § 412(a)(1), Aug. 14, 2008, 122 Stat. 3226; Pub. L. 117–49, §§ 2, 3, Oct. 13, 2021, 135 Stat. 402, 404.)

cite as: 20 USC 1070g-2