Enrolled Bill Summary

            Senate Bill 1057 amends the Education Code to redesignate the Teach for Texas grant program as the Teach for Texas financial assistance program and establish it as a program separate from the TEXAS grant program. The bill specifies that these grants are available only to students seeking certification in an educator certification program at an eligible institution, and it extends eligibility to college graduates in the first year of an educator certification program, adds other eligibility criteria similar to those in the TEXAS grant program, and increases the amount of an individual grant from two to four times the amount of a TEXAS grant. The bill establishes a Teach for Texas alternative certification assistance program for persons seeking certification through alternative educator certification programs. The amount of an individual grant under that program is two times the amount of a TEXAS grant.

            The bill also extends a person's period of eligibility for a TEXAS grant by requiring the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to adopt rules to provide additional time for an otherwise eligible person whose enrollment is interrupted by hardship or other good cause. The bill requires the coordinating board and the commissioner of education to develop a plan or recommendations to ensure the adequate dissemination of information on the TEXAS grant program and other financial aid to prospective students and financial aid recipients, parents, school counselors, financial aid offices, and other parties. The bill also amends the teacher education loan repayment assistance program by statutorily prescribing the minimum annual and maximum total amounts of repayment assistance an individual may receive rather than allowing the board to set those amounts by rule.