The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania created a new PA Student Teacher Support Program. This program, administered by the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA), provides a $10 million appropriation to issue awards to students entering the teaching profession across the Commonwealth.
The PA Student Teacher Support Program will provide $10,000 to $15,000 to eligible student teachers to address the financial strain caused by student teaching requirements. The awards are intended to replace income that students may have to forego while student teaching. The program also aims to make the teaching profession more accessible and reduce teacher shortages impacting Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and non-public schools across the Commonwealth.
STUDENT TEACHER ELIGIBILITY
To be considered for the PA Student Teacher Support Program, you must:
- Be currently enrolled in an institution of higher education located in Pennsylvania
- Be currently enrolled in a PA Department of Education approved educator preparation program
- Meet the minimum GPA requirement of 3.0
- Be placed in a position as a student teacher at an approved location. Note: placement is not required at the time of your application, but it is required by the placement deadline.
- Locations include: School districts, intermediate units, non-public schools, area career and technical schools, charter schools, regional charter schools, or cyber charter schools.
- Have obtained the required clearances for employment in public or private schools in Pennsylvania
- Agree to work as a teacher at an LEA or non-public school within Pennsylvania for a period of no less than 3 years
- Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- A permanent resident is defined as a non-citizen who is legally permitted to live and work in the United States permanently
HOW TO APPLY
Applications for the 2024-25 academic year are now OPEN. This program will issue awards on a first-come, first-served basis per term.
Eligibility for the Student Teacher Support Program is not need-based, meaning that this income paid to the student will not need to be counted as Other Financial Assistance (OFA) by a financial aid office (only need-based employment is considered as OFA).
We therefore encourage all eligible education majors that will student teach during the Fall 2024 or Spring 2025 term to submit a completed application as soon as possible.
- TO APPLY GO TO: pheaa.org/StudentTeacher
- The deadline for applications for the 2024-25 academic year is December 15, 2024.
If you have questions or concerns, please contact PHEAA staff at 1-800-443-0646. Questions may also be directed via email to the PA Student Teacher Support Program mailbox at
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