Sec. 4. Grants for early childhood educators
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Beginning not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education (referred to in this section as the Secretary ) shall carry out a program under which the Secretary makes payments to institutions of higher education with a qualified early childhood educator program to enable such institutions to make grants, on a competitive basis, to eligible individuals who file an application and agreement in accordance with subsections
(b)and (c). The Secretary shall periodically set dates by which eligible individuals shall file applications for a grant under this section. Each eligible individual desiring a grant under this section shall file an application containing such information and assurances as the Secretary may determine necessary to enable the Secretary to carry out the functions and responsibilities of this section. A grant awarded under this section may be renewed for additional one-year periods if— the recipient submits a renewal application containing such information and assurances as the Secretary may determine necessary; and the grant is renewed not more than three times, for a total of not more than four academic years for each eligible recipient. Each application under subsection
(b)shall include, or be accompanied by— an agreement by the applicant that— in the event that the applicant receives a grant under this section, the applicant shall— serve as a full-time or part-time educator in a licensed early learning program for a total of not less than one academic year, and four additional months for each subsequent grant renewal, within two years after the date on which the period of time covered by the grant is completed; and submit a certification of employment by the employing early learning program in such form as the Secretary may determine necessary; and in the event that the applicant is determined to have failed or refused to carry out such service obligation, the sum of the amounts of any grants received by such applicant under this section will be treated as a loan and collected from the applicant in accordance with paragraph
(3)and the regulations thereunder; and a plain-language disclosure form developed by the Secretary that clearly describes the nature of the grant award, the service obligation, and the loan repayment requirements that are the consequence of the failure to complete the service obligation. An individual who serves as a full or part-time educator in a licensed early childhood education program concurrently while enrolled in a qualified early childhood educator program may count such service toward the fulfillment of the service obligation in the agreement under paragraph (1). Except as provided in paragraph (4), in the event that any recipient of a grant under this section fails or refuses to comply with the service obligation in the agreement under paragraph (1), the sum of the amounts of any grants received by such recipient shall, upon a determination of such a failure or refusal in such service obligation, be treated as a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D of title IV except that— no interest shall accrue on such amounts; and such amounts shall be subject to repayment in accordance with— an income-contingent or income-based repayment plan, if the individual meets the eligibility requirements for such a repayment plan; and such other terms and conditions as are specified by the Secretary in regulations promulgated under this section. In the case of a recipient who has made a good faith effort to find employment in a licensed early learning program and has been unable to acquire such employment, the Secretary is authorized to provide a hardship extension for a period of not more than one year to grant recipients who fail to complete their service requirement within a 2-year period. An eligible individual selected to receive a grant or a grant renewal under this section shall receive a grant in an amount not to exceed $3,000 for each academic year during which the individual is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis in the qualified early childhood educator program for which the grant was awarded. Payments under this section shall be made in accordance with regulations promulgated by the Secretary for such purpose and in such manner as will best accomplish the purposes of this section, provided— any disbursement made by crediting a grant recipient’s account shall be limited to tuition and fees and other materials necessary for the completion of coursework as determined by the Secretary; and not less than 85 percent of any funds provided to an eligible institution under subsection
(a)shall be advanced to the eligible institution prior to the start of each payment period and shall be based upon an amount requested by the institution as needed to cover the total cost of grants awarded to eligible recipients until such time as the Secretary determines and publishes in the Federal Register with an opportunity for comment, an alternative payment system that provides payments to institutions in an accurate and timely manner, except that this sentence shall not be construed to limit the authority of the Secretary to place an institution on a reimbursement system of payment. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the Secretary from making a grant directly to an eligible individual in a case in which an institution of higher education with a qualified early childhood educator program does not participate in the program under subsection (a). In this section: The term eligible individual means an individual who is enrolled on a full-time or part-time basis in a qualified early childhood educator program. The term institution of higher education has the meaning given that term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1002 ). The term qualified early childhood educator program means a course of study leading to an associate’s degree or a certificate in early childhood education or a related field from an institution of higher education. The term licensed early learning program means any State-licensed or State-regulated program or provider, regardless of setting or funding source, that provides early care and education for children from birth to kindergarten entry, including, but not limited to, programs operated by child care centers and in family child care homes. There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025. Of the amount made available under paragraph
(1)in any fiscal year, not more than 3 percent may be used for evaluation, monitoring, salaries, and administrative expenses.
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Sec. 4
Grants for early childhood educators
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