Grants

EAGLE TUITION ASSISTANCE GRANT

The Eagle Tuition Assistance Grant is a need-based grant that applies toward tuition and fees. It is intended to provide assistance to middle-income students who are ineligible for other types of need-based gift aid such as grants, scholarships, or other assistance. Providing these funds will reduce the amount of loan debt students will incur while pursuing their degree at Texas A&M University-Texarkana and will assist them in fulfilling their degree goal.

Eligibility

• Award eligibility varies based on enrollment.
• Officially admitted to the university and in good standing
• Show demonstrated need as determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®)
• Texas Resident Undergraduate or Graduate student enrolled in a minimum of three semester credit hours
• Not receiving any other type of need-based gift aid (scholarships, grants, or other assistance) and must meet one of the quantitative measurements listed below:

                          Transfer Students

                               Cumulative grade point average required:

                                            Undergraduate 2.00
                                            Graduate 3.00

                          High School Graduates

                                 Must be eligible for full admission as determined in the Office of Admissions

FEDERAL PELL GRANT

Federal Pell Grants are awarded to undergraduate students who have not earned a bachelor's degree and who possess financial need as determined by the completion of the FAFSA®. All students meeting eligibility requirements are offered the Federal Pell Grant.

Eligibility

• You must have financial need as determined by the FAFSA®.
• Recipients must be making Satisfactory Academic Progress.
• Award eligibility varies based on enrollment.

Lifetime Pell Eligibility

The amount of Federal Pell Grant funds a student may receive over his/her lifetime is limited by a federal law to be the equivalent of six years of Pell Grant funding.  The Department of Education keeps track of your Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) by adding together the percentages of your Pell Grant scheduled awards that you received each award year.  You are able to view your LEU by logging into the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) using your federal student aid pin.  Your LEU will be found on the Financial Aid Review page.  More information about this law, including examples that will help you understand how the percentages are calculated, can be found at the Department of Education’s website.

Minimum Pell Eligibility

The minimum Pell grant is set at 10% of the maximum Pell grant award.  Students who are eligible for less than the minimum award are not Pell eligible, unless the reason for their low Pell eligibility was truncation due to Lifetime Eligibility Used (LEU) limitations.  If a student receives an amount less than 10% of the maximum Pell grant award,  The student will be liable for the amount returned to the Department of Education at the end of the students award year.

TEXAS PUBLIC EDUCATION GRANT (TPEG)

The Texas Public Education Grant (TPEG) is a program administered by the State of Texas to provide assistance to students with financial need, seeking a first bachelor's degree, graduate degree or professional degree. This is a grant, and it does not have to be repaid. This fund does not require a separate application. It is awarded through the standard process based on the FAFSA®/TASFA applications received.

Eligibility

• Must be enrolled in a minimum of 6 semester credit hours.

TEACH GRANT

The Teacher Education Assistance for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant Program was implemented in the 2008-2009 academic year. The TEACH Grant program was created to financially assist students who are seeking degrees in high-need fields and who anticipate teaching in those fields at the secondary or elementary level. Students are eligible to receive up to $5,562 per year.

If you choose to participate in this program, you must agree to serve as a full-time teacher in a high-need field in a public or private elementary or secondary school that serves low-income students. If you fail to meet the requirements of the service obligation, the TEACH Grant will convert to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan. You will then be required to repay the loan to the U.S. Department of Education. You will also be charged interest from the date the grant was disbursed. You may review more information about the obligations at www.teachgrant.ed.gov.

Eligibility

• You must apply through the FAFSA®.
• You must be a U.S. citizen or eligible non-citizen.
• You must enroll in coursework necessary to begin a career in teaching or plan to complete such coursework.
• You must score above the 75th percentile on a college admissions test (SAT, ACT, or GRE) or maintain a cumulative GPA of at least a 3.25.
• You must complete a TEACH Grant Agreement to Serve and TEACH Entrance Counseling.
• Award eligibility varies based on Enrollment. For details, please visit the Award Proration information page.

Current High-need subject areas

• Bilingual Education and English Language Acquisition
• Foreign Language
• Mathematics
• Reading Specialist
• Science
• Special Education

Other identified teacher shortage areas as of the time you begin teaching in that field. These are the teacher subject shortage areas (not geographic areas) that are listed in the Department of Education's Annual Teacher Shortage Area Nationwide Listing.

If you feel that you qualify for the TEACH Grant, please contact Scholarships & Financial Aid from your tamu.edu email address and include your University Identification Number to review your eligibility.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I apply for the TEACH Grant? If you feel that you qualify for the TEACH Grant, please contact Scholarships & Financial Aid from your tamu.edu email address and include your University Identification Number to review your eligibility.

How do I accept the offered TEACH Grant?  We will review your eligibility and contact you at your tamu.edu email address if you are eligible for the TEACH Grant. You can view and process your TEACH Grant award offer in your Scholarships and Financial Aid Portal in Web For Students.

What are the next steps if I have accepted my TEACH Grant? If you have accepted the TEACH Grant in your Scholarships and Financial Aid Portal in Howdy, then you can go to the status tab of your portal to complete the TEACH Entrance Counseling and the TEACH Agreement to Serve. Please allow for a 2-3 business day processing period to receive notification of completed requirements from the Department of Education.

What if the terms and conditions of the TEACH Grant service obligation are not fulfilled? If you do not meet the requirements of the your service obligation, all TEACH Grant funds will be converted to a Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loan with interest charged from the date each TEACH Grant disbursed.

What are the semester amounts (fall, spring and summer) of the TEACH Grant based on enrollment? 

What are the aggregates (life-time maximum amounts) of the TEACH Grant for graduate and undergraduate students?  The aggregate TEACH Grant for an undergraduate student is $16,000 and the aggregate TEACH Grant for a graduate student is $8000.

TEXAS GRANT

The Toward Excellence, Access & Success (TEXAS) grant was established in 1999 by the Texas Legislature to provide need-based financial assistance to Texas students.

***This program is subject to funding availability from the state of Texas.

Award eligibility varies based on enrollment. For details, please visit the Award Proration information page.

Eligibility

• You must be a Texas resident.
• You  must be enrolled in a minimum of 9 semester credit hours.
• Register for Selective Service or must be exempt from this requirement.
• You must have not been convicted of a felony or crime involving a controlled substance.
• You must demonstrate exceptional financial need as determined by the FAFSA® or TASFA.
• You must be a graduate of an accredited high school in Texas no earlier than fall 1998.
• You must have completed the Distinguished or Recommended high school curriculum. We encourage you to have a final high school transcript mailed directly to the Office of Admissions, 7101 University Ave. Texarkana, TX 75503, in order to expedite the verification of eligibility for this program.
• You must enroll in a non-profit public college or university in Texas within 16 months of graduation from an accredited public or accredited private high school in Texas, and
• You must not have accumulated more than 30 semester credit hours, excluding those earned for dual or concurrent courses or awarded through credit by examination (AP, IB or CLEP), have earned an Associate Degree from a public technical, state or community college in Texas and enroll in any public university in Texas no more than 12 months after receiving their associate's degree.

OR

• If you are transferring from another college or university and you previously received the TEXAS Grant, you may be eligible to continue receiving it at Texas A&M University. Please notify a financial aid advisor to determine continued eligibility.
• If you are a student athlete, you must have NCAA compliance approval to be eligible for this program.
• If you received an associate's degree from a Texas college within the last 12 months and have never received a TEXAS Grant before.

Renewal Requirements

At the end of the first year, you must meet Texas A&M University Scholarships & Financial Aid Satisfactory Academic Progress requirements (2.0 GPA and 67% completion) in order to be considered for a second year in the TEXAS Grant program.

After completing the second year in the program, you are required to meet the following conditions at the end of every spring term.

• You must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.50.
• You must complete 24 semester credit hours each academic year.
• If you do not meet the aforementioned requirements, you will lose eligibility for the program.

Furthermore, Texas Grant recipients will be monitored to ensure compliance with the following:

Maximum Time Frame policies

Hardships or Other Proper Causes

Should you fail to meet the requirements for renewal, you may submit an appeal to the TEXAS Grant Program Coordinator to review your eligibility based upon extenuating circumstances. The request must be submitted in writing and must detail the reason behind request. Reasons that may be considered include:

• A severe illness or other debilitating condition that affected academic performance;
• An indication that you are responsible for the care of a sick, injured, or needy person and that your provision of care affected your academic performance; or
• Other extraordinary circumstances that may have impacted your ability to meet renewal requirements (i.e. professional internship).

A financial aid advisor or administrator will respond to your request through your Texas A&M email account. Additional supporting documentation may be requested. A copy of all correspondence will be placed in your financial aid file. Submitting an appeal does not guarantee any adjustments can or will be made.

FEDERAL SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY GRANT

The Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant (FSEOG) is available to undergraduate Federal Pell Grant recipients with high financial need. This fund does not require a separate application. It is awarded through the standard process based on the FAFSA®.

Students MUST be enrolled in at least 12 hours to receive this grant.

REGENTS EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE GRANT

The Regents Grant Initiative provides additional funds to financial aid recipients from the Texas A&M System for emergency financial support to students.

• This grant assists with essential expenses due to unforeseen hardship(s)
• Grant is “free money”, meaning there is not a requirement of repayment of the grants
• Your application will be reviewed on a case by case basis
• Grants may cover school expenses such as tuition and fees, textbooks, school supplies, housing and meals (semester basis)

Eligibility Requirements

1. Texas Resident seeking first undergraduate (Bachelors) degree
2. Be in Good Academic Standing and good standing with financial aid
3. File a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) during the year you are seeking additional assistance
4. Student/Family FAFSA® adjusted gross income (AGI) must be between $40,000 - $100,000 (special conditions may apply to families with income below $40,000)
5. Must have exhausted all other aid types
6. Student/Family must have an unforeseen financial hardship. Something unforeseen is something that could not be predicted and was not expected
7. Documentation may be submitted and in some cases may be required 

If you feel like you have a circumstance that meets these qualifications, please submit an application to: Regents Emergency Assistance Grant 

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