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Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program

San Diego State University will participate in the TEACH Grant Program for the first time for the 2009-10 academic year.

This new federal financial aid program provides funds for students who commit to teaching specific high-need subjects at qualifying elementary or secondary schools that serve students from low-income families.

As a prerequisite to receiving the funds, you are required to sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve (service agreement) indicating you will fulfill a specific teaching obligation within a particular period of time. If you fail to fulfill the program conditions, the grant funds you receive will convert permanently to an unsubsidized Direct Loan with accrued and capitalized interest from the day you received each TEACH Grant disbursement.

Note: The U.S. Department of Education estimates that 80% of the students who receive this grant will not be able to fulfill the teaching obligation and their grant funds will convert permanently to an unsubsidized Direct Loan.

Qualifications for the TEACH Grant

To receive the TEACH Grant at SDSU, you must—

  • be enrolled in the SDSU Teacher Education Single Subject Credential program to teach mathematics or science, and
  • have a 3.25 cumulative GPA prior to each disbursement, and
  • complete TEACH Grant counseling each year you receive a TEACH Grant award, and
  • sign a service agreement each year you receive a TEACH Grant award.

Teaching Obligation

To prevent the TEACH Grant from converting to an unsubsidized loan that you must pay back, you must—

  • teach full time in a high-need field in an elementary or secondary school serving low-income students, and
  • teach in a qualifying school for at least 4 academic years within 8 calendar years after completing your program of study in which you received your TEACH Grant.

If you do not complete the required teaching obligation, your grant converts to an unsubsidized Direct Loan, with interest charged and capitalized from the date you first received the grant. The result can be a significant loan burden that you must repay.

Note: Qualifying schools serving low-income students are listed in the U. S. Department of Education’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits.

Eligible SDSU Programs and High-Need Fields

At SDSU, only students enrolled in the Teacher Education Single Subject Credential Program to teach mathematics or science will be considered for a TEACH Grant for 2009-10.

Science includes biology, chemistry, geological sciences, and physical science.

Service Agreement

You must sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve (service agreement) each year you receive a TEACH Grant.

In signing the service agreement you are agreeing to repay the grant as an unsubsidized Direct Loan, if you do not fulfill all of the terms of the service agreement. You must also repay accrued interest that will be calculated from the date the grant funds were first disbursed to you, or disbursed toward the payment of your university charges.

Once the grant converts to a loan, it cannot be converted back to a grant.

Prevent Your Grant From Converting to a Loan

To prevent your grant from converting to an unsubsidized Direct Loan, you must frequently and regularly communicate in writing and provide documentation to the U. S. Department of Education that you are either—

  • still enrolled in a teacher education program that will prepare you to fulfill your teaching obligation, or
  • you are not yet employed as a full-time teacher, but you still intend to meet the terms and conditions of your teaching service obligation, or
  • you are employed as a full-time teacher in accordance with the terms and conditions of your teaching service obligation, and will document it at the end of each of the four required academic years of your teaching.

If you temporarily cease enrollment in an eligible program or are temporarily unable to begin or continue teaching a high-need subject at an eligible school, you must contact the U. S. Department of Education to assess your options and provide whatever documentation needed to prevent your grant from permanently converting to an unsubsidized Direct Loan.

Once your grant converts to a loan, for whatever reason, it cannot be converted back to a grant.

How to Apply

Before the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships will consider you for a TEACH Grant, you must first:

  • complete a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for 2009-10, and
  • be admitted to and enrolled in an eligible program (only Teacher Education Single Subject Credential for mathematics or science for 2009-10), and
  • complete a TEACH Grant counseling session online, and
  • sign an Agreement to Serve (ATS) online from the U. S. Department of Education.

More information about the online counseling session and ATS will be available during the summer 2009.

Award Amount

The TEACH Grant Program provides—

  • up to $4,000 per year if attending full time
  • up to $3,000 per year if attending ¾ time
  • up to $2,000 per year if attending ½ time

The TEACH Grant, along with all other types of financial aid and resources you receive, cannot exceed the cost of attendance.

Read more about this conditional grant program on the Federal Student Aid TEACH Fact Sheet.