House File 2083 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 2083 BY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION (SUCCESSOR TO HSB 519) A BILL FOR An Act relating to the eligibility for grants under the teach 1 Iowa scholar program. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 5356HV (3) 89 jda/jh

H.F. 2083 Section 1. Section 261.110, subsection 3, Code 2022, is 1 amended to read as follows: 2 3. Criteria for eligibility shall be established by the 3 commission and shall include but are not limited to the 4 following: 5 a. The applicant was in the top twenty-five fifty percent 6 academically of students exiting a teacher preparation program 7 approved by the state board of education pursuant to section 8 256.7, subsection 3 , or a similar teacher preparation program 9 in another state, or had earned other comparable academic 10 credentials. 11 b. The applicant is preparing to teach become a teacher 12 who provides classroom instruction in fields including but not 13 limited to science, technology, engineering, or mathematics; 14 English as a second language or special education instruction; 15 or is preparing to teach in a hard-to-staff subject as 16 identified by the department. The department shall take 17 into account the varying regional needs in the state for 18 teachers in these subject areas when applying the criterion 19 of this paragraph. The department shall annually identify 20 and designate hard-to-staff subjects for the purpose of this 21 paragraph. The eligibility of an applicant who receives a 22 teach Iowa scholar grant and who is preparing to teach in a 23 hard-to-staff subject as identified by the department shall 24 not be affected in subsequent years if the department does not 25 continue to identify that subject as a hard-to-staff subject 26 any of the following located in this state: 27 (1) A school district . 28 (2) A charter school. 29 (3) An area education agency. 30 (4) An accredited nonpublic school. 31 c. The applicant met all of the eligibility requirements 32 of this section on or after January 1, 2013. A person who met 33 the program eligibility requirements of this section prior to 34 January 1, 2013, is ineligible for this program. 35 -1- LSB 5356HV (3) 89 jda/jh 1/ 3

H.F. 2083 d. On or after July 1, 2022, the total value of grants 1 awarded under this section each year to applicants who are 2 preparing to become teachers who provide classroom instruction 3 in a school district, charter school, area education agency, or 4 an accredited nonpublic school shall be as follows: 5 (1) Fifty percent shall be awarded to applicants preparing 6 to become teachers who provide classroom instruction in 7 a school district, charter school, area education agency, 8 or an accredited nonpublic school, with less than or equal 9 to one thousand two hundred students. However, if the amount 10 requested by applicants pursuant to subparagraph (2) is less 11 than the amount reserved for applicants under subparagraph (2), 12 the commission may award the difference to applicants under 13 this subparagraph. 14 (2) Fifty percent shall be awarded to applicants preparing 15 to become teachers who provide classroom instruction in a 16 school district, charter school, area education agency, or an 17 accredited nonpublic school, with greater than one thousand 18 two hundred students. However, if the amount requested by 19 applicants pursuant to subparagraph (1) is less than the amount 20 reserved for applicants under subparagraph (1), the commission 21 may award the difference to applicants under this subparagraph. 22 EXPLANATION 23 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 24 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 25 This bill relates to the eligibility for grants under the 26 teach Iowa scholar program. 27 The teach Iowa scholar program, administered by the 28 college student aid commission, provides grants to certain 29 high-caliber, full-time teachers in Iowa in amounts not to 30 exceed $4,000 annually or $20,000 over five years. Under 31 current law, the eligibility criteria established by the 32 commission for grants under the program include that the 33 applicant was in the top 25 percent academically of students 34 exiting a teacher preparation program and the applicant is 35 -2- LSB 5356HV (3) 89 jda/jh 2/ 3

H.F. 2083 preparing to teach in certain specified fields. The bill 1 modifies these provisions to provide that the applicant was in 2 the top 50 percent academically of students exiting a teacher 3 preparation program and the applicant is preparing to become 4 a teacher who provides classroom instruction in a school 5 district, charter school, area education agency, or accredited 6 nonpublic school located in the state. 7 The bill provides that on or after July 1, 2022, the total 8 value of grants awarded under the program to applicants who are 9 preparing to become teachers who provide classroom instruction 10 in a school district, charter school, area education agency, 11 or an accredited nonpublic school shall be equally divided 12 between applicants preparing to become teachers who provide 13 classroom instruction in a school district, charter school, 14 area education agency, or an accredited nonpublic school with 15 less than or equal to 1,200 students and applicants preparing 16 to become teachers who provide classroom instruction in a 17 school district, charter school, area education agency, or an 18 accredited nonpublic school with greater than 1,200 students. 19 The bill authorizes the commission to award different amounts 20 to each group of applicants if the amount requested by 21 applicants of either group is less than the amount reserved for 22 that group. 23 -3- LSB 5356HV (3) 89 jda/jh 3/ 3