Sec. 10a-168a. Minority teacher incentive program.
Sec. 10a-168a. Minority teacher incentive program. (a) There is established a
Connecticut minority teacher incentive program administered by the Department of
Higher Education.
(b) Within available appropriations, the program shall provide grants to minority
students (1) in teacher education programs for their junior or senior year, or both such
years, at any four-year institution of higher education, (2) completing the requirements of
such a teacher education program as a graduate student, provided such student received a
grant pursuant to this section for one year at the undergraduate level, or (3) enrolled in
the alternate route to certification program administered through the Department of
Higher Education. No student shall receive a grant under the program for more than
two years. Maximum grants shall not exceed five thousand dollars per year. The department shall ensure that at least ten per cent of the grant recipients are minority students
who transfer from a Connecticut regional community-technical college.
(c) A minority student who received grants under subsection (b) of this section,
and who teaches in a Connecticut public school upon graduation, shall be eligible for
reimbursement of federal or state educational loans up to a maximum of two thousand
five hundred dollars per year for up to four years of teaching service.
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (b) and (c) of this section, the
combined dollar value of grants and loan reimbursements shall not exceed twenty thousand dollars per student.
(e) For the fiscal years ending June 30, 2001, and June 30, 2002, the Department
of Higher Education may use up to two per cent of the funds appropriated for purposes
of this section for program administration, promotion, recruitment and retention activities that are designed to increase the number of minority students pursuing teaching
careers at Connecticut institutions of higher education.
(P.A. 98-168, S. 13, 26; 98-252, S. 65, 80; P.A. 00-220, S. 37, 43; P.A. 01-173, S. 37, 67; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1, S.
8, 54.)
History: P.A. 98-168 effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 98-252 removed the limitation on the program to students in "public"
institutions of higher education, effective June 8, 1998; P.A. 00-220 amended Subsec. (b) to remove a cap on the number
of students who may receive grants, effective July 1, 2000; P.A. 01-173 amended Subsec. (e) to extend the use of funds
to the fiscal years ending June 30, 2001, and June 30, 2002, and to reduce percentage from 5% to 2%, effective July 6,
2001; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-1 amended Subsec. (b) to designate portions of existing provisions as Subdivs. (1) and (3),
to add Subdiv. (2) re graduate students and to make technical changes, effective July 1, 2001.