Tuition aid and housing assistance
There are several programs providing tuition aid, exemptions and grants, and housing assistance for educators. Information and links to the following programs are available on the TCTA website at tcta.org.
Tuition/fee grants and exemptions
Federal
The federal Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant program is a non-need-based program providing up to $4,000 a year to undergraduate, post-baccalaureate and graduate students who agree to teach for four years in a high-need field, in a low-income school (within eight years of completing the program for which the TEACH Grant was awarded). Also eligible are current teachers or retirees with expertise in a high-need field pursuing a master’s degree, and current or former teachers pursuing certification through a high-quality alternative certification route (Note: additional requirements apply). More information is available on the USDE Student Aid website at http://studentaid.ed.gov.
State
The Teach for Texas Loan Repayment Program provides up to $5,000 annually in loan repayment assistance for eligible classroom teachers who:
- submit a completed application to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board during the annual application period between April 1 and June 15 for teaching service during the current academic year being completed;
- are currently teaching full-time at the preschool, primary or secondary level in a Texas public school; and
- are certified and teach full-time in a field OR at a campus identified by TEA as experiencing a shortage of teachers during the academic year for which the application is submitted.
The aggregate maximum for loan repayment amounts is $20,000. Participation in the program is limited to five years. Annual loan repayments are disbursed after verification of eligible teaching for a complete academic year, and are made co-payable to the participant and the holder of the loan.
(Note: Funding for the Teach for Texas Loan Repayment Program was drastically reduced in the 2011 legislative session to only $1 million for the 2012-13 biennium, representing a 91 percent decrease in funding. Accordingly, the THECB has stated that only RENEWAL applications will be accepted for the next two years, and funding will not be sufficient to provide assistance to all eligible teachers submitting renewal applications. More information regarding the application process and priority of acceptance for renewals will be posted to the THECB website by Oct. 1, 2011.)
The Educational Aide Exemption program allows any current school employee who has worked as an educational aide for at least one of the last five years to qualify for college tuition and fee exemptions while seeking teacher certification. Eligibility is determined by the employing school district, and applications are processed by the college or university. Beginning in fall 2012, eligible applicants must also be enrolled in courses required for teacher certification in one or more subject areas determined by TEA to be experiencing a critical shortage of teachers. However, the legislation also grandfathers current grantees from this new eligibility requirement. (Note: It appears this program will not be funded beginning with the fall 2011 semester.)
More information on these tuition assistance programs is available from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board at (800) 242-3062 or (512) 427-6340 or on the Coordinating Board’s website at www.hhloans.com.
Loan deferment/forgiveness
A significant student loan repayment option, the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) program, caps monthly federal loan payments at an affordable level based on income and family size, and forgives any debt and interest that remains after 25 years. In some cases, government, nonprofit or other public service employees may be eligible for loan forgiveness after just 10 years. IBR is available for almost all federal loans – past, present, or future – made by any lender, whether for college or graduate school. Additional information is available on the IBR website at www.ibrinfo.org.
Another program available to teachers is a Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program, which discharges any remaining debt after 10 years of full-time employment in public service, including jobs in public education. The borrower must have made 120 payments on or after Oct. 1, 2007 as part of the Federal Direct Loan program to obtain this benefit. (Since July 1, 2008, borrowers could consolidate into a Direct Loan in order to qualify for this loan forgiveness program.) More information is available on the IBR website at www.ibrinfo.org.
Teachers who have received federal loans to attend school and now serve in a designated low-income school or in a subject-matter shortage area may have the opportunity to cancel or defer student loans, depending on the type of loans. Some Stafford loan forgiveness benefits have increased from $5,000 to $17,500, for teachers meeting certain requirements. Details on this and other loan forgiveness/deferment/cancellation benefits are available on the TEA website at www.tea.state.tx.us/loan.aspx.
Texas B-On-Time Student Loan Program
The Texas B-On-Time Student Loan Program provides no-interest loans to eligible students with the possibility of loan forgiveness when the student completes his/her degree on time and graduates with at least a 3.0 on a four-point scale average. Only Texas residents who graduated from a public or accredited private high school not earlier than the 2002-03 academic year under the recommended or advanced high school curriculum are eligible (Note: additional requirements apply). More information on this and other loan programs is available from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board website at www.hhloans.com.
Housing assistance
Professional educators are eligible for several programs benefiting first-time homebuyers operated by the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation (TSAHC). The Professional Educators Home Loan Program provides 30-year fixed rate mortgage loans to eligible first-time homebuyers at a low interest rate, as well as down payment and closing cost assistance in the form of a grant. Additionally, the Mortgage Credit Certificate (MCC) program is a tax credit that reduces tax liability. This reduction increases the amount of disposable income available to purchase a home. To qualify, homebuyers must meet program requirements, including income and home purchase price limits. For more information, contact the TSAHC at (888) 638-3555 or (512) 477-3555, or visit the TSAHC website at www.tsahc.org.
