TEACH Grant Program at Salisbury University

The purpose of offering TEACH Grant funding to Salisbury University students is to provide financial support for teacher candidates (students) pursuing careers in education. The availability of new federally-funded Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) grants will provide a stable and steady source of financial aid for those students entering critical shortage fields. TEACH grants are authorized in the College Cost Reduction and Access Act, which was enacted into law in fall 2007. These are grants to recruit teachers into hard-to-staff fields and low-income schools, and they will help cover the cost of tuition for both undergraduate and graduate students.

The U.S. Department of Education’s (the Department’s) TEACH Grant Program provides grant funds to postsecondary students who are completing or plan to complete coursework that is needed to begin a career in teaching, and who agree to serve for at least four years as a full-time, highly qualified teacher in a high-need field, in a school serving low-income students. Eligible full-time students may receive $4,000* per year in TEACH Grant funds, up to a maximum of $16,000* for undergraduate and post-baccalaureate study, and $8,000* for graduate study (*may be reduced due to sequestration).

If you receive a TEACH Grant but do not complete the required four years of teaching service within eight years after completing the coursework for which you received the grant, or if you otherwise do not meet the requirements of the TEACH Grant Program, all TEACH Grant funds that you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford/Ford Loan (Direct Unsubsidized Loan) that you must repay in full, with interest, to the Department. Once a TEACH Grant is converted to a loan, it cannot be converted back to a grant.

Salisbury University is pleased to provide its students the opportunity to participate in the TEACH Grant program. This is a collaborative effort between academic units and the Financial Aid Office at Salisbury University The following programs are TEACH grant eligible programs at Salisbury University in both undergraduate and MAT programs: Federal Student Aid Department of Education Teach Grant

• Secondary Biology
• Secondary Chemistry
• Secondary French
• Secondary Mathematics
• Secondary Physics
• Secondary Spanish
• Undergraduate ESOL
• Graduate TESOL
• *Graduate Reading Specialist

*You must plan to work as a teacher in the area of reading specialist

The TEACH Grant program will help finance educational costs for teacher candidates pursuing careers in teacher shortage areas.  Additionally, the TEACH Grant can be used to finance students majoring in ESOL and TESOL at our institution.                  

** NOTE: YOU MUST BE ADMITTED IN THE PROFESSIONAL TEACHER EDUCATION PROGRAM TO APPLY FOR THE TEACH GRANT AT SALISBURY UNIVERSITY.

For more information on the applying for the TEACH Grant go to TEACH Grants | Federal Student Aid.

**For more information on the Admission to the Professional Teacher Education Program at Salisbury University go to this link: Admission Requirements for the Professional Teacher Education Program (PTEP) .

To receive a TEACH Grant you must meet the following criteria:

General Eligibility Requirements:

Federal Student Aid Department of Education - Basic Eligibility 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).

• You must be a degree-seeking Salisbury University student enrolled at least half time during the semester you receive TEACH Grant funding.
• Be in good academic standing in both your content area and within the department of Education Specialties, maintaining at least a cumulative GPA of a 3.25 to meet the federal standard required for TEACH Grant eligibility.
• Be admitted to the Professional Teacher Education department prior to or in the same semester you accept TEACH Grant funding.
• Demonstrate and maintain professionalism in school placements/internship.
• Meet expectations for SU candidates and professional dispositions outlined in the Disposition Policy as well as meet and maintain the SU Code of Community Standards policy.

For more information on Student Eligibility please visit the Office of Financial Aid.

You must sign an Agreement each year before receiving a TEACH Grant. The Agreement is a legally binding document that defines the teaching service obligations you must meet and specifies your repayment obligation if a TEACH Grant that you receive is converted to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan.

By signing the Agreement you promise to meet the teaching service requirements of the TEACH Grant Program and to repay with interest the full amount of any TEACH Grant that is converted to a Direct Unsubsidized Loan if you do not meet those requirements.

By signing the Agreement, you agree:

• To serve as a full-time, highly qualified teacher for at least four elementary or secondary school years within 8 years of completing, or otherwise ceasing to be enrolled in, the program for which you received a TEACH Grant,
• To teach in a low-income school, and to teach in a high-need field, in the majority of classes that you teach during each school year.

As stated above, one of the conditions for fulfilling your TEACH Grant service obligation is that you must meet the requirements for a highly qualified teacher as defined in section 9101(23) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended, or if you are a special education teacher, as defined in section 602(10) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act. You can find out more about the highly qualified teacher requirements online (see sidebar note for the Web address).

Requirements for highly qualified teacher status online

For purposes of the TEACH Grant Program, a low-income school is a public or private elementary or secondary school that is listed in the Department’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits (see sidebar note for the Web address and additional information about low-income schools).

The Department’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits online: studentaid.gov/tcli/directory-search

In order to satisfy your service obligation by teaching in another high-need field listed in the nationwide list, that field must be listed in the Nationwide List for the state in which you begin teaching at the time you begin teaching in that field. If you begin qualifying teaching service in a high-need field that is listed in the Nationwide List, but in subsequent school years of teaching that high-need field is no longer included in the Nationwide List, your subsequent years of teaching will continue to qualify for purposes of satisfying your TEACH Grant service obligation.

Schools designated as low-income for part of a school year

If the school where you teach meets the requirements of a low-income school during all or a part of a school year of your required four school years of teaching, but does not meet those requirements in subsequent school years, those subsequent years of teaching at that school will still qualify for purposes of satisfying your TEACH Grant service obligation.

Schools operated by Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)

All elementary and secondary schools operated by the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) or operated on Indian reservations by Indian tribal groups under contract or grant with the BIE qualify as low-income schools.

Teacher shortage area Nationwide List online: United States Department of Education

*If you have read and understand these requirements please contact the Office of Financial Aid.

*If you have additional questions or need further clarifications, please contact the Office of Advising for the Seidel School of Education at: Carrianne Cicero cmciero@salisbury.edu

In exchange for receiving a TEACH Grant, you must agree to service that meets the following criteria:

1. You must be a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school.
   AND
2. You must teach in a *school that serves low-income students.

*Please use the link below to access more information on high-need fields and schools serving low-income students:

• How can I identify schools or educational service agencies that serve low-income students?

As a recipient of a TEACH Grant, you must teach for at least four (4) academic years within eight (8) 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.

For more information go to TEACH Grants | Federal Student Aid.

The following programs at Salisbury University are TEACH Grant eligible.  Please click on each on your area of interest to find out more information about programs requirements.

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For Undergraduate ESOL go to:

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For *Graduate Reading Specialist go to:

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For Graduate TESOL go to:

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*You must plan to work as a teacher in the area of reading specialist

For more information on other programs go to the Academic Affairs home page.