Through the College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007,
Congress created the Teacher Education Assistance for College and
Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program that provides grants of up
to $4,000 per year to students who intend to teach in a public or
private elementary or secondary school that serves students from
low-income families.
Conditions
In exchange for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must agree to serve as
a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a public or private
elementary or secondary school that serves low-income students. As
a recipient of a TEACH Grant, you must teach for at least four
academic years within eight calendar years of completing the
program of study for which you received a TEACH Grant. IMPORTANT:
If you fail to complete this service obligation, all amounts of
TEACH Grants that you received will be converted to a Federal
Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan. You must then repay this loan to
the U.S. Department of Education. You will be charged interest from
the date the grant(s) was disbursed. Note: TEACH Grant recipients
will be given a 6-month grace period prior to entering repayment if
a TEACH Grant is converted to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan.
Student Eligibility
Requirements:
To receive a TEACH grant you must meet the following criteria:
- Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA),
although you do not have 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 course work that is necessary to begin a career
in teaching or plan to complete such course work. Such course work
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).
High-Need Field
High-need fields are the specific 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.
How to Apply
For additional information on the TEACH Grant Program, including
application procedures, please visit the official
TEACH Grant Program web site.