Starting next year, certain University of Wisconsin students could receive a financial godsend from a benefactor whom few would expect. The federal government will offer a considerably sized grant program for prospective education majors. This program, which UW is currently considering joining, is called the Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education, or TEACH.
Should the university choose to join the program, eligible students could receive a whopping $4,000 per year in federal grant money, covering over half of Madison’s current annual in-state tuition of $6,330. To get the grant, UW students must get their degree from the School of Education, then spend four of the next eight post-graduation years teaching math, reading, science and other needed subjects at a low-income elementary or secondary school.
So far, sounds like a great program, right? Teachers are an essential and invaluable part or our society, and more of them are sorely needed in low-income schools where the students traditionally require more attention. To use the lingo of the dismal science, TEACH provides financial incentives for new teachers to work in areas where their skills are most needed.
However, this program comes with a catch, one that could cause a student to regret prematurely choosing a major in education.
If the student fails to meet the terms of the agreement while enrolled in the program, his or her grant money turns into a federal loan with a hefty unsubsidized interest rate dating from the first year the grant was issued. Thus, if an incoming freshman joins the program, then discovers as a sophomore or junior that he or she cannot or does not want to major in education, the student faces instant debt. Assuming the student quit the program as a junior, he or she would suddenly owe $8,000 or even $12,000 to the federal government, plus a sizable 6.8 percent interest that would be applied to the student’s freshman year. The student?s debt would then snowball for every year he or she fails to pay off the loans. Since the loan is unsubsidized, the federal government does not help to shoulder the burden of the interest rate. These students are left to manage on their own, regardless of financial need.
This one flaw detracts from an otherwise likable grant program. In practice, TEACH could entice undergraduate students to enroll in the program before they know if they are eligible for the education major in their own university. This applies especially to UW-Madison, where admission to the varied departments in the School of Education is extremely competitive. Those who apply to TEACH as a freshman only to get rejected from the school years later would find themselves facing several years’ worth of expensive loans to repay.
The expensive loan caveat is even more troubling when one considers the effects of binding a student to a particular major or career track too early. Eager freshmen who sign on with the TEACH program will find the expensive loans a major deterrent to changing their major or career path if they discover they hate teaching or suddenly develop a passion for another subject.
Committing a student to a major or career upon entering college grates against the entire purpose of our postsecondary education. The United States? system of college education provides students with time to explore areas they have never been exposed to. It differs from many educational systems abroad where students can make better-informed decisions entering university based on the vocational training offered at their secondary schools.
Most high school students in the U.S. cannot take these kinds of classes and are less prepared to make a solid decision about their future. The TEACH grant risks committing students to an entire career for the next eight years before they fully know what they are getting into.
Of course, this is no reason to scrap an otherwise promising program. A few minor changes would solve the problem. The TEACH grant should allow students who quit the program midway through to apply for subsidized loans on the basis of financial need, instead of automatically heaping direct unsubsidized loans on the student, regardless of financial status. This would lessen the penalty for opting out of the program and still provide the government with reimbursement for the wasted grant.
An even better solution would stipulate that only those who are already enrolled in a program similar to the School of Education could receive the grant, ensuring those who have definitively decided to become teachers and are already accepted to the program will reap the benefits. Either way, the grant should not lure students into a mousetrap of premature decisions baited by the cheese of good intentions.
Jack Garigliano ([email protected]) is a sophomore majoring in history and English.
