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Financial Aid

 

TEACH Grant Program

Funding your education



The TEACH Grant Program is impacted by Sequestration as of March 1, 2013. On August 2, 2011, Congress passed the Budget Control Act of 2011, which put into place automatic federal budget cuts, known as a “sequester,” to take effect if Congress failed to enact legislation to reduce the federal deficit by March 1, 2013. Because Congress did not act, these budget cuts are now in effect. Specific impacts are still being determined and we will update this page as we know more. At this point we expect a reduction in the amount of the grant. As a student, you can continue to complete the required steps and turn in the required forms. The forms will not be processed and awards will not be made until we have further instruction from the Department of Education.

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 (see below for more information on high-need fields and schools serving 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 the service obligation, all amounts of the TEACH Grants that you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan that you must repay, with interest charged from the date of each TEACH Grant disbursement.

Student Eligibility Requirements

To receive a TEACH Grant you must:

  • Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and list the University of Colorado Denver school code 004508. (You do not have to demonstrate financial need.)
  • Be a U.S. Citizen or eligible non-citizen.
  • Be enrolled as a post-baccalaureate, or graduate student or be fully admitted as a junior or senior to the undergraduate Teacher Education Program at UC Denver School of Education & Human Development pursing undergraduate Teacher Education studies in math or foreign language (Spanish or French).
  • Be enrolled in coursework that is necessary to begin a career in teaching or plan to complete such coursework. Such coursework may include subject area courses (e.g., math courses for a student who intends to be a math teacher).
  • Be enrolled full-time to receive $2,000 per term; otherwise, the award is prorated.
  • 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 (click on the Agreement to Serve tab for more information on the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve).

Eligible CU Denver School of Education Programs

  • Graduate Teacher Education license with M.A. in Curriculum & Instruction in:
    secondary mathematics, secondary science or secondary foreign language
  • Graduate Special Education license with M.A. in Special Education in:
    special education, dual elementary & special education or dual secondary content area & special education
  • Graduate Early Childhood Special Education license with M.A. in:
    Early Childhood
  • Master’s program for teachers who hold a license and are pursuing an M.A. in Curriculum & Instruction with:
    reading teacher or Linguistically Diverse Education endorsement
  • Be fully admitted as a junior or senior to the undergraduate Teacher Education Program at UC Denver School of Education & Human Development pursing undergraduate Teacher Education studies in math or foreign language (Spanish or French).
  • Or, go to the CU Denver School of Education website ucdenver.edu/education for more information.

Teach Grant Agreement to Serve

Each year you receive a TEACH Grant, you must sign a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve that will be available electronically on a Department of Education Web site. The TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve specifies the conditions under which the grant will be awarded, the teaching service requirements, and includes an acknowledgment by you that you understand that if you do not meet the teaching service requirements you must repay the grant as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan, with interest accrued from the date the grant funds were disbursed. Specifically, the TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve will provide that -

  • For each TEACH Grant-eligible program for which you received TEACH Grant funds, you must serve as a full-time teacher for a total of at least four academic years within eight calendar years after you completed or withdrew from the academic program for which you received the TEACH Grant.
  • You must perform the teaching service as a highly-qualified teacher at a low-income school. The term highly-qualified teacher is defined in section 9101(23) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 or in section 602(10) of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act.
  • Your teaching service must be in a high-need field.
  • You must comply with any other requirements that the Department of Education determines to be necessary.
  • If you do not complete the required teaching service obligation, TEACH Grant funds you received will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan that you must repay, with interest charged from the date of each TEACH Grant disbursement.

Schools Serving Low-Income Students

Schools serving low-income students include any elementary or secondary school that is listed in the Department of Education’s Annual Directory of Designated Low-Income Schools for Teacher Cancellation Benefits.

Next Steps

If, after reading the information on this page, you feel you are eligible for the TEACH Grant, please download and submit the TEACH Grant Interest Form to the Financial Aid Office. Application information will also be distributed by the School of Education and Human Development.

MANDATORY TEACH Grant Entrance and Exit Counseling

Students receiving the TEACH Grant must complete the Initial and Subsequent Counseling.

Students who received the TEACH Grant and are graduating must complete the TEACH Grant Exit Counseling.

Additional Guidance and Implementing Regulations

Additional information about the TEACH Grant Program is available on the TEACH Grant web page.

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