PA Student Teacher Support Program to provide up to $15K for future educators

In a joint announcement with a bipartisan group of legislators and the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), Governor Josh Shapiro recently announced the opening of the online application period for the new student teacher stipend application, the PA Student Teacher Support Program, for the 2024-25 academic year.

In 2023, Shapiro signed into law Act 33, establishing the $10 million Educator Pipeline Support Grant Program, which provides up to $15,000 to eligible student teachers in Pennsylvania. Administered through the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency (PHEAA), this program aims to address the teacher shortage in Pennsylvania and fill staffing gaps for critical education positions.

“Today, we are here as Democrats and Republicans, investing in commonsense solutions to address the real problems Pennsylvanians face. We want more Pennsylvanians to become teachers – and that’s why we fought to include $10 million for student teacher stipends in last year’s budget and why my budget this year boosts funding for the Student Teacher Support Program to $15 million,” said Shapiro. “This investment is commonsense and it has strong bipartisan support – let’s come together to increase our support for our new teachers and show Pennsylvanians that their state government is working for them.”

Shapiro’s administration included the following statistics: Compared to 10 years ago when Pennsylvania certified approximately 20,000 new teachers every year, in 2023 Pennsylvania certified just over 5,000 new teachers. The Commonwealth also reportedly has 5,500 teacher vacancies in schools across the state right now.

To help encourage more students to become teachers, Shapiro is hoping the stipend program will help address the financial strain caused by student teaching requirements. The program provides financial support to students enrolled in a PA Department of Education-approved teacher preparation program and who are completing their student teaching requirements.

“On behalf of PHEAA’s board of directors, I can tell you that we are truly honored to play a pivotal role in administering and servicing this groundbreaking student teachers support program,” said Senator Wayne Fontana, PHEAA board chairman. “PHEAA is pleased to be a partner with the Shapiro administration and of the General Assembly on the rollout of the new PA Student Teacher Support Program, which will provide a lifeline for right rising teachers. By providing financial support to support teachers we are not only investing in the future of education, but also addressing the critical teacher shortage in this Commonwealth. As the governor says – this is the kind of stuff that we all need to come together to get done.”

The state’s 2024-2025 budget proposal increases funding for the program by $5 million to a total of $15 million to support Pennsylvanians training to become certified and committed educators in the Commonwealth.

Pennsylvania student teachers who are enrolled at a higher education institution in Pennsylvania for the fall and spring semesters of the 2024-25 academic year can apply at pheaa.org/StudentTeacher. The program will be awarded on a first come, first served basis.

The program will provide $10,000 to student teachers who meet the program requirements, with an additional $5,000 available to student teachers working in high-need areas. To qualify for the stipend, students must commit to working as teachers in Pennsylvania for a minimum of three years after completing their education and must be enrolled in an approved PDE Educator Preparation Program at a higher education institution in the Commonwealth.

For more information regarding the PA Student Teacher Support Program and eligibility, visit pheaa.org/StudentTeacher.