The Consider Teachers Act, a bipartisan bill introduced in the Senate by Senator Mike Braun (R-Indiana), Senator Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona), and in the House by Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) and Congresswoman Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.-05) aimed at fixing a broken system burdening teachers with unfair loans, passed the U.S. House of Representatives last week by a vote of 406 to 16. This legislation was passed in the Senate in April and now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law.
The TEACH Grant program provides grant assistance to students who serve four years as a full-time teacher in high-need, often underserved communities. However, often due to basic clerical mistakes, thousands of teachers have found their grants converted into loans that must be paid back with interest. The Consider Teachers Act aims to fix this broken system permanently, and provides extra time for teachers to complete service requirements due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Spartz
“As a mother and educator, I understand the importance of strong teachers for high quality learning,” Rep. Spartz said. “I was happy to join my Senate and House colleagues in leading the Consider Teachers Act, which clarifies and streamlines some processes for the TEACH Grant program.”
“I am pleased the House today passed the Consider Teachers Act of 2021, which will reform the TEACH Grant program, which is unfairly converting many teachers’ grants to loans,” Rep. Norton said. “Currently, many teachers are finding their grants converted to loans because of small administrative errors. This bill will correct the administrative process and extend the period teachers have to fulfill their service requirements by three years for those who were affected by the coronavirus crisis. It will now head to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. As the daughter of a teacher in the D.C. public schools, Vela Holmes, this bill pleases me personally.”
Braun
“The TEACH grant is an important program to incentivize teachers to serve in neglected communities, but 12 years of poor government management has turned these grants into groans for thousands of teachers,” Sen. Braun said. “The passage of the Consider Teachers Act in the House and Senate shows our appreciation for America’s great teachers, and now I look forward to this bipartisan bill being signed into law.”
“Arizona teachers receiving TEACH grants serve in low-income schools, helping Arizona students access quality educations across our state,” Sen. Sinema said. “The government made a promise to these teachers – and our commonsense, bipartisan bill ensures the government honors its obligation and protects our teachers from surprise bills.”
Background
In 2007, the federal government created the TEACH Grant, providing grant assistance to students who serve four years as a full-time teacher in a high-need field. Under program terms, if service requirements are not met, grants are converted into loan obligations. While the program was well-intentioned, poor program administration has resulted in teachers unfairly having grant dollars converted into loans – prompting many to refer to the converted grants as “groans.” The Consider Teachers Act addresses these challenges that are thwarting the program’s intent.
According to the Office of Management and Budget, the majority of TEACH Grants – 66 percent – are converted into Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans which must be paid back with interest. Previously, once converted, a loan cannot revert back to grant. A total of 21,000 teachers have completed the program without a conversion, but 94,000 recipients have had their grants converted to loans. Small paperwork issues often triggered the conversions. For example, if teachers sent in their annual form one day late, or had other problems, such as a missing date or signature, the grant was converted.