Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a)
Definitions.
(1) Academic year shall mean one
calendar year beginning July 1st and ending on June 30th.
(2) Corporation shall mean the New York State
Higher Education Services Corporation.
(3) Program shall mean the New York State
Math and Science Teaching Incentive Program codified in section
669-d of the
Education Law.
(4) Rank shall mean
the sum of an applicant's cumulative undergraduate and graduate grade point
average (GPA) plus total undergraduate and graduate credit hours successfully
completed.
(5) Secondary education
shall mean grades 7 through 12.
(6)
Successful completion of an academic year shall mean that at the end of any
academic year, the applicant: maintained full-time status; completed at least
27 credit hours or its equivalent in a course of study leading to a teaching
degree in the fields of math or science; with a minimum GPA of 2.5; and
possesses a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher for all academic years of
undergraduate and graduate study. Applicants may complete less than 27 credit
hours if they are in their last year and fewer than 27 credit hours are
necessary to complete their course of study. In this case, the award amount
shall be pro-rated by credit hour.
(7) Teach in the classroom on a full-time
basis shall mean a New York State certified teacher, teaching a math or science
curriculum in secondary education, providing classroom instruction for 10
continuous months, each school year, for a number of hours to be determined by
either the school district, school board or school, the bylaws thereof, the
labor contract between the teacher and employer, or if none of the above apply,
the chief administrator of the school. Verification may be requested by the
corporation and may consist of a written, signed certification from the school
board, superintendent or principal.
(b) Eligibility. In addition to the
requirements of section
669-d of the
Education Law, these additional requirements shall apply in the selection of
the program recipients:
(1) Applications for
the program shall be postmarked or electronically transmitted to the
corporation no later than February 1st of each year, provided that this
deadline may be extended at the discretion of the corporation.
(2) Applications shall be filed on forms
prescribed by the corporation.
(3)
The pool of applicants shall be those who have successfully met the filing
deadline.
(4) The applicant shall
have a cumulative GPA of 2.5 or higher for all undergraduate and graduate study
at the time of the application.
(5)
Successful applicants shall execute a service contract prescribed by the
corporation.
(6) Successful
applicants, who have executed a service contract, shall apply for payment each
year on forms specified by the corporation.
(c) Priorities. If there are more applicants
than available funds, the following provisions shall apply:
(1) First priority shall be given to
applicants who have received payment of an award pursuant to section
669-d of the
Education Law for the academic year immediately preceding the academic year for
which payment is sought and have successfully completed the academic year for
which payment is sought.
(2) Second
priority shall be given to applicants who have received payment of an award
pursuant to section
669-d of the
Education Law in any prior academic year and have successfully completed the
academic year for which payment is sought.
(3) Third priority shall be given to
applicants, including re-applicants, who have never received an award, and have
successfully completed the academic year for which payment is sought, according
to rank and who otherwise meet the minimum eligibility requirements.
(4) In the event of a tie within any given
priority, recipients shall be chosen by random selection. Random selection
shall be conducted by lottery.
(d) Disqualifications. In addition to the
provisions of section 669-d, as well as the restrictions of section
661
(6) of the Education Law, the applicant shall
be disqualified from receiving an award for any of the following conditions:
(1) The applicant fails to meet any statutory
or regulatory requirement necessary to obtain a teaching certificate in math or
science, or necessary to become a math or science teacher in secondary
education.
(2) The applicant
breaches the terms of the written service contract with the corporation and
fails to remedy such breach in a timely manner consistent with the terms and
conditions of such contract.
(3)
The award is duplicative of another State and/or Federal award that the
applicant currently receives.
(4)
The applicant has a service obligation owed to any other State and/or Federal
program.
(5) The applicant is in
default on a federally guaranteed student loan.
(e) Disbursements. Payment shall be made
directly to the eligible institutions, on behalf of applicants, within a
reasonable time upon the successful completion of the academic year subject to
the verification and certification by the institution of the applicant's GPA
and other eligibility requirements.
(f) Penalty. In addition to the requirements
of section
669-d
(5) of the Education Law, the following
requirements shall apply in converting the award to a loan:
(1) All award monies received shall convert
to a 10-year student loan plus interest for recipients who fail to meet the
statutory, regulatory, contractual, administrative or other requirements of
this program.
(2) Interest for the
life of the loan shall be fixed and equal to that published annually by the
U.S. Department of Education for Federal Direct Loan Program PLUS parent loans
pursuant to the terms of the service contract.
(3) Interest accrues from the day each award
payment is disbursed.
(4) Interest
shall be capitalized on the day the award recipient violates the service
contract or on the date the corporation deems the recipient was no longer able
or willing to perform the terms of the service contract.