HIGHER ED-GRANTS TO TEACHERS House SponsorsRep. La Shawn K. Ford-Mary E. Flowers 1/10/2017HouseSession Sine Die 110 ILCS 947/65.47 new Amends the Higher Education Student Assistance Act. Requires the Illinois Student Assistance Commission to award grants to applicants who are teachers licensed under the School Code and are employed by a school district within an area designated as a poverty area by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity to obtain additional course credit or an additional degree at a public university located in this State. Provides that the amount of the grant shall equal 50% of the tuition and other necessary fees required of the teacher by the public university at which the teacher enrolls. Requires grant recipients to contract with the Commission to teach for an additional 2 years in the school district in which they were employed at the time of application for the grant. Sets forth provisions concerning this commitment.Pension Note (Government Forecasting & Accountability) HB 4205 will not impact any public pension fund or retirement system in Illinois. State Debt Impact Note (Government Forecasting & Accountability) HB 4205 would not change the amount of authorization for any type of State-issued or State-supported bond, and, therefore, would not affect the level of State indebtedness. State Mandates Fiscal Note (Dept. of Commerce & Economic Opportunity) This bill does not create a State mandate. Fiscal Note (Illinois Board of Higher Education) The Illinois Student Assistance Commission estimate uses the percentage of the school eligible for Free or Reduced Lunch as a proxy, not knowing how The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity would define a poverty area. About 61,000 teachers work in schools with at least 40% of students eligible for free or reduced price lunch, and around half of teachers already hold a master's degree, leaving roughly 30,000 teachers who might be eligible for the program. According to College Navigator data, the weighted average tuition and fees for undergraduate school in Illinois is about $13,000. The weighted average for graduate school at Illinois public universities is about $13,509. The bill proposes covering half the cost. If most teachers wanted to attend graduate school part­time, then the average cost per participant using graduate tuition and fees is $13,509 x 0.5 x 0.5, or $3,377 per participant. Determining participation is more complicated. If half of the eligible teachers chose to participate, the cost would be 15,000 x $3,377, or about $50 million. If 10% wanted to participate it would be 3,000 x $3,377, or about $10 million. 4/21/2015HouseFiled with the Clerk by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford 4/21/2015HouseAdded Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. Mary E. Flowers 4/21/2015HouseFiscal Note Requested by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford 4/21/2015HouseState Mandates Fiscal Note Requested by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford 4/21/2015HousePension Note Requested by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford 4/21/2015HouseState Debt Impact Note Requested by Rep. La Shawn K. Ford 4/21/2015HouseFirst Reading 4/21/2015HouseReferred to Rules Committee 4/22/2015HousePension Note Filed 4/22/2015HouseState Debt Impact Note Filed 4/22/2015HouseState Mandates Fiscal Note Filed 4/23/2015HouseFiscal Note Filed 1/10/2017HouseSession Sine Die