(1) All loans shall
be evidenced by promissory notes payable to TSAC.
(2) Funds will be sent by Automated Clearing
House (ACH) to the institution's financial aid office or business office in the
recipient's name and shall be disbursed on a semester pro rata basis. The
institution will be directed to deliver the funds to the recipient. The maximum
award for a recipient and opportunities for renewal shall be as described in
T.C.A. §
49-4-706. If the recipient
receives other educational assistance for the same period(s), the total
assistance including this award is limited to the recipient's cost of
attendance, as determined by the institution's financial aid office.
(3) The awards may be transferred from one
eligible institution of higher education to another provided that a
TSAC-approved transfer form is submitted to TSAC.
(4) Cancellation
(a) For each year of full-time teaching
service at an eligible school, as defined in these regulations, the recipient
shall receive cancellation credit of one (1) academic year's award (the
equivalent of two (2) semesters) toward repayment of the loan. If a recipient
teaches in an eligible school that is high priority or on warning status as
designated by the Tennessee Department of Education or the State Board of
Education, the recipient's obligation will be canceled at a rate of one and
one-third ( 1 1/3) of the total annual award.
(b) Fractions of a year may be credited in
one (1) semester or one-half (1/2) year increments toward cancellation for
recipients who begin or end full time teaching in the middle of an academic
year in a Tennessee public school. At the end of such period, cancellation will
be applied upon receipt of verification of the completion of such
service.
(c) A grace period of one
(1) year will be granted to allow the recipient opportunity to secure
employment to begin cancellation credit. When a recipient has obtained a
fulltime teaching position at an eligible school, some or all of the grace
period may be waived at the recipient's written request.
(d) Recipients in teaching positions, which
qualify them for cancellation credit, must notify TSAC of that teaching status.
Individuals whom TSAC has determined to be in a fulltime teaching position at
an eligible school shall be granted a postponement on repayment to allow them
the opportunity to complete a full year of teaching. At the end of such period,
cancellation credit will be applied upon receipt of the verification of such
service.
(e) The debt shall be
canceled due to the death of the recipient upon documentation deemed acceptable
by TSAC.
(f) If a recipient is
determined to be totally and permanently disabled under the standards
established by T.C.A., Title 8, Chapter 36, Part 5, for determining disability
for members of the Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System, the outstanding
debt shall be canceled. A recipient is not considered totally and permanently
disabled on the basis of a condition that existed prior to his or her
application unless the recipient's condition has substantially deteriorated
since he or she submitted the application. If at any time subsequent to an
initial determination of disability the recipient's condition improves to the
point where a total and permanent disability no longer exists, TSAC may
reinstate any outstanding debt previously canceled.
(5) Repayment
(a) Repayment for recipients who complete the
plan of study shall begin in the first month following the end of the grace
period or upon demand by TSAC should TSAC determine that the recipient will not
fulfill the service requirement. Interest shall begin to accrue September 1
after completion of the program.
The interest shall accrue at a rate of nine percent (9%) per
annum. Repayment may be in whole or in monthly installments of at least one
hundred dollars ($100) over a period of not more than ten (10) years from the
end of the grace period. Payments of less than the amount required to amortize
the loan within ten (10) years may be made only if the recipient documents to
TSAC's satisfaction his or her inability to make payments of that amount. All
interest shall be based upon the unpaid balance of the loan. The accrued
interest may be capitalized
(b) Repayment for recipients who fail to
complete the funded plan of study shall begin upon demand by TSAC, or in the
first month after TSAC has determined that the student is no longer enrolled in
a teacher education program or other failure to comply with the terms of the
agreement.
Repayment will include the full amount of the loan funds
received plus interest accrued from the date TSAC has determined that the
student is no longer enrolled in a teacher education program or other failure
to comply with the terms of the agreement and shall be based upon an interest
rate of nine percent (9%) per annum. Repayment may be made in whole or monthly
installments over a period of not more than ten (10) years from the date of
failure to complete the plan of study. All interest shall be based upon the
unpaid balance of the loan. The accrued interest may be capitalized. If a
borrower issues a check, draft, or warrant, which is subsequently returned to
TSAC for reason of insufficient funds, a stop payment order by the issuer, or
other reason, the payment to which these funds was applied shall be reversed on
the borrower's account and interest shall continue to accrue from the date of
the last valid payment.
(c)
Repayment of principal and interest will be prorated for partial service
cancellation to reflect each full academic year taught. Such repayment shall
begin upon demand by TSAC, or in the first month following termination of the
creditable teaching service. Repayment of the non-canceled portion of the loan
may be made in whole or in monthly installments over the remaining months of
the ten (10) year repayment period. All interest shall be based upon the unpaid
balance of the loan. The accrued interest may be capitalized. Minimum monthly
payments of one hundred dollars ($100) will be required unless an exception as
described in (5)(a) of this rule is granted.
(d) If a recipient should re-enter teaching
at an eligible school after commencing monetary repayment, the repayments
already made cannot be returned to the recipient. However, additional repayment
balances that were not in arrears at the time of the reentry into teaching may
be ''forgiven'' by subsequent teaching service.
(6) Repayment of principal may be deferred,
but interest shall accrue, during any period while the recipient is enrolled as
a full-time student in an accredited institution of higher learning, or other
extenuating circumstances as determined by the Associate Executive Director for
Grant and Scholarship Programs of TSAC. To be eligible for deferment the
recipient must request a deferment in writing and complete a TSAC-approved
deferment form on a semi-annual basis.
(7) Deferments must be verified on a
semi-annual basis and supporting documentation shall be provided to TSAC if
requested. A student may be granted a deferment based on one or more of the
following reasons:
(a) Enrollment not seeking
a teaching certificate: The student is still enrolled in an accredited
institution, but is no longer seeking a teaching licensure, and shall not
exceed three (3) years.
(b)
Enrollment seeking a teaching certificate: The student has not yet completed
the requirements for a teaching licensure, is still enrolled at least half-time
at an accredited postsecondary institution, is making satisfactory progress
toward a teacher licensure, and shall not exceed four (4) years.
(c) Hardship: A period of time in which the
recipient is unable to make payments due to financial, medical, or personal
circumstances beyond the recipient's control, or other extenuating
circumstances approved by the Associate Executive Director for Grant and
Scholarship Programs. Such period of hardship shall not exceed two (2)
years.
(d) Military duty: The
student has been called into active duty and shall not exceed the time of
deployment.
Notes
Tenn. Comp. R.
& Regs.
1640-01-13-.05
Original rule
filed July 14, 1989; effective October 29, 1989. Amendment filed July 17, 1991;
effective October 29, 1991. Amendment filed October 20, 1997; effective
February 27, 1998. Amendment filed September 17, 1998; effective January 28,
1999. Amendment filed June 30; effective October 28, 2000. Amendment filed July
26, 2000; effective November 28, 2000. Amendment filed August 29, 2000;
effective December 29, 2000. Amendment filed August 6, 2002; effective December
27, 2002. Amendments filed February 3, 2005; effective June 28, 2005. Repeal
and new rule filed December 6, 2007; effective April 29, 2008. Repeal and new
rule filed March 1, 2013; effective August 29, 2013. Amendment filed December
27, 2013; effective 5/31/2014.
Authority: T.C.A. §§
49-4-201,
49-4-203,
49-4-204, and
49-4-706.
