Consider Teachers Act of 2021

“(D) submit a certification of employment by the chief administrative officer of the school in accordance with subsection (d)(5); and

“(E) meet all State certification requirements for teaching (which may include meeting such requirements through a certification obtained through alternative routes to teaching);”

“(1) In general.—In the event”

; and

“(2) Reconsideration of conversion decisions.—

“(A) Request to reconsider.—In any case where the Secretary has determined that a recipient of a grant under this subpart has failed or refused to comply with the service obligation in the agreement under subsection (b) and has converted the grant into a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D in accordance with paragraph (1), (including a TEACH Grant converted to a loan prior to the date of enactment of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021 and including cases where such loans have been fully or partially paid), the recipient may request that the Secretary reconsider such initial determination and may submit additional information to demonstrate satisfaction of the service obligation. Upon receipt of such a request, the Secretary shall reconsider the determination in accordance with this paragraph not later than 90 days after the date that such request was received.

“(B) Reconsideration.—If, in reconsidering an initial determination under subparagraph (A) (including reconsideration related to a TEACH Grant that was converted to a loan prior to the date of enactment of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021 and including cases where such loans were fully or partially paid), the Secretary determines that the reason for such determination was the recipient’s failure to timely submit a certification required under subsection (b)(1)(D) (as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of the Consider Teachers Act of 2021), an error or processing delay by the Secretary, a change to the fields considered eligible for fulfillment of the service obligation (as described in subsection (b)(1)(C)), a recipient having previously requested to have the TEACH Grant converted to a loan, or another valid reason determined by the Secretary, and that the recipient has, as of the date of the reconsideration, demonstrated that the recipient did meet, or is meeting the service obligation in the agreement under subsection (b), the Secretary shall—

“(i) discharge the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D, and reinstate the recipient’s grant under this subpart;

“(ii) discharge any interest or fees that may have accumulated during the period that the grant was converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D;

“(iii) if the recipient has other loans under part D, apply any payments made for the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D during such period to those other loans under part D;

“(iv) if the recipient does not have other loans under part D, reimburse the recipient for any amounts paid on the Federal Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loan under part D during such period;

“(v) request that consumer reporting agencies remove any negative credit reporting due to the conversion of the TEACH Grant to a loan; and

“(vi) use the additional information provided under subparagraph (A) to determine the progress the recipient has made in meeting the service obligation.

“(C) Extension of time to complete service obligation.—In the case of a recipient whose TEACH Grant was reinstated in accordance with subparagraph (B), the Secretary shall, upon such reinstatement—

“(i) extend the time remaining for the recipient to fulfill the service obligation described in subsection (b)(1) to a period of time equal to—

“(I) 8 years; minus

“(II) the number of full academic years of teaching that the recipient completed prior to the reconversion of the loan to a TEACH Grant under subparagraph (B), including any years of qualifying teaching completed during the period when the TEACH Grant was in loan status; and

“(ii) treat any full academic years of teaching described in clause (i)(II) as years that count toward the individual’s service obligation (regardless of whether the TEACH Grant funds were in grant or loan status) if that time otherwise meets the requirements of this section.”

; and

“(3) shall extend the service obligation window (as described in section 420N(b)(1)(A) of such Act) for a period of not more than 3 years, in addition to any extensions provided in accordance with subpart 9 of part A of title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1070g et seq.), in the case of a grant recipient whose service obligation window begins during, or includes—

“(A) the qualifying emergency period; or

“(B) a period of recession or economic downturn related to the qualifying emergency period, as determined by the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of Labor.”