HOUSE BILL 504
By White
SENATE BILL 682
By White
SB0682
001742
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AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 49,
Chapter 4, Part 7, relative to future teacher
scholarships.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(b)(2), is amended by
deleting the subdivision and substituting:
(2) "Eligible candidate" means a student who is:
(A)
(i) Enrolled in an approved EPP in the student's junior or senior
year, as determined by the institution in which the student is enrolled as
an undergraduate student; or
(ii) Enrolled in an approved EPP as a post-baccalaureate student,
if the student is seeking an initial educator license; and
(B) A citizen of the United States who has resided in this state for at least
one (1) year prior to the student's admission to the eligible postsecondary
institution at which the student is enrolled;
SECTION 2. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(b), is amended by deleting
subdivision (4).
SECTION 3. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(c), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting:
(c) Subject to available funding, TSAC shall administer a pilot program to award
a Tennessee Future Teacher scholarship to future educators. The program begins with
the 2023-2024 academic year and terminates on July 1, 2030.
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SECTION 4. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(d), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting:
(d) To be eligible for a Tennessee Future Teacher scholarship, an eligible
candidate must:
(1) Be admitted to and enrolled in an approved EPP;
(2) Complete the scholarship application, as required by TSAC; and
(3) Sign a promissory note agreeing to teach in an LEA or public charter
school in this state for at least two (2) consecutive years in a targeted setting.
SECTION 5. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(f)(2), is amended by
deleting the subdivision and substituting:
(2) The student no longer meets:
(A) The standards established by the state board of education for
admission to the student's EPP; or
(B) The standards of the approved EPP in which the student is enrolled;
or
SECTION 6. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(h), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting:
(h) Subject to the amounts appropriated by the general assembly, the amount of
the Tennessee Future Teacher scholarship is five thousand dollars ($5,000). A
Tennessee Future Teacher scholarship may be awarded to a student each academic
year the student is enrolled in an approved EPP.
SECTION 7. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(i), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting:
(i) If a student receives a Tennessee Future Teacher scholarship, but does not
teach in a targeted setting for two (2) consecutive years, then the student must
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reimburse TSAC for each year the student did not teach in a targeted setting in an
amount equal to the total scholarship amount the student received pursuant to this
section divided by two (2), without interest.
SECTION 8. Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 49-4-701(k), is amended by deleting
the subsection and substituting:
(k) The office of research and education accountability (OREA), in the office of
the comptroller of treasury, shall review and study the pilot program created in this
section and the Tennessee Future Teacher scholarships awarded through the pilot
program to determine the effectiveness of the scholarships in increasing the number of
licensed educators in this state. The study must be conducted in the fourth and seventh
year of the pilot program and four (4) years after the program terminates on July 1, 2030.
The OREA shall report its findings and conclusions of each study to the speakers of the
senate and house of representatives and to the education committee of the senate and
the committee of the house of representatives having jurisdiction over scholarships for
higher education by December 31 each year a study is conducted.
SECTION 9. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.