Eleanor Holmes Norton: “I thank my good friend for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 848, the Consider Teachers Act of 2021.…”

“I thank my good friend for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 848, the Consider Teachers Act of 2021. I introduced the companion bill with Congresswoman Victoria Spartz. I would like to thank Senators Mike Braun and Kyrsten Sinema also for their leadership on this bill, and my good friend, Chairman Bobby Scott, for bringing this bill to the floor today. This bill would improve the service obligation verification process for the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education Grant Program, or TEACH grant program, as it is called. The TEACH grant program was created to attract the best and brightest to the teaching profession in underserved communities. The TEACH grant program provides up to $4,000 a year in grants to students who agree to serve for at least 4 years as full-time teachers in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves low-income families. The obligation to teach 4 years must be completed within an 8-year period. Those who do not fulfill their service requirement have their grants converted into Federal direct unsubsidized Stafford loans which must be paid back with interest. These loans cannot revert to grants. According to the Office of Management and Budget, 66 percent of the grants are converted into loans. Though 21,000 grant recipients have completed the program without conversion, 94,000 recipients have had their grants converted to loans.…”