Answer: The primary project goal of the SW Minnesota Special Education Teacher Pipeline grant program is to address the special education teacher shortage by providing financial and programmatic support to Tier I and Tier II teachers, current paraprofessionals, and other unlicensed staff to become a licensed Tier III or IV special educator.

Answer: SW Minnesota Special Education Teacher Pipeline grant program was awarded $3,000,000 to support financial and programmatic support to qualified candidates. The funding runs out when all grant dollars are expended or on June 30, 2028, whichever is sooner.

Answer: The minimum requirements must be met for candidates to apply to this program are listed below. However, the application to apply for funding will include additional questions and paperwork (i.e. verification of employment, educational experience, letter of commitment from district/special education director, etc.).

To submit an application, the applicant must:

• Be currently employed with a Joint Application (district partner).
• Be a Tier I or Tier II teacher, paraprofessional and/or non-licensed staff.
• Demonstrate a willingness to be a special education teacher after completing the program.
• Does not hold a Tier III or IV teaching license in Minnesota.

Answer: Applications will start being accepted on March 12, 2024, for Tier I and Tier II teachers and funding likely could start summer session 2024.

Applications for non-licensed staff and paraprofessionals will open on May 15, 2024, and funding likely could start fall session 2024.

Answer: Candidates will receive direct tuition assistance paid directly to one of our teacher preparation provider partners. Candidates will receive programmatic supports such as access to the Program Success Coach to support candidates to successfully complete a licensure program, mentoring, one-on-one coaching, etc.

Answer: Candidates are not able to receive reimbursement for funds already paid to Teacher Preparation Providers. Candidates must apply to the program and be accepted before tuition assistance is allocated to the partner Teacher Preparation Provider (TPP). Candidates must meet with Program Success Coach to demonstrate progress towards degree and special education teaching license to continue to receive funding.

If accepted into the program, you will be receiving monetary support from a grant that was awarded to Southwest Minnesota Region 6/8 schools for the amount of tuition, fees, books, and other allowable expenses for courses that are necessary to be licensed as a special education teacher.

At this time, current Tier 1 or Tier 2 special education teachers will receive up to $600 per credit for graduate level and up to $450 per credit for undergraduate level to cover tuition and fees for courses that are required for licensure. Application fee up to $50 and books/materials up to $200 per semester will be covered as requested.

For other non licensed, paraprofessional, and/or Tier I or II staff employed with a partner district in our region, the same funding limits apply as long as there is funding available in the grant. All courses for which this scholarship provides monetary support must be required for the obtaining of a Tier 3 teaching license.

Recipients are eligible to receive scholarship funds for a maximum of four years. Scholarship funds will be paid directly to the partner Teacher Preparation Provider. Many participants will have most, if not all tuition and fees paid from this grant as long as funds are available.

Answer: The Special Education Teacher Pipeline grant will only pay for undergraduate or graduate courses that apply towards earning a special education teacher license in Minnesota. Grant funds will not pay for research or other non-licensure courses.

Answer: SW Minnesota Special Education Teacher Pipeline grant program has partnered with the following Teacher Preparation Programs (TPP): Bemidji State University, Minnesota State University – Mankato, Minnesota State University – Moorhead, St. Cloud State University, Southwest Minnesota State University – Marshall, and Western Governors University. We can only provide direct tuition assistance to one of our Teacher Preparation Program partners. However, if you would like our program to consider adding another partner, please email liz.deen@swwc.org.

Answer: No, we would like to include as many candidates as possible to access this funding to fulfill our goal of establishing a special education teacher pipeline in our region to increase the numbers of licensed Tier III or IV special educators. We can fund participants that meet the eligibility criteria up to the funding limits established by the grant. In rare circumstances, for example if a person changes their major or licensure area or there is a high need for a particular license, we would consider funding more than one licensure area at the same time. However, once a participant obtains a Tier III or IV license funding is no longer available.

Answer: As we move forward, the webpage will provide the most up-to-date information about the special education teacher pipeline grant programs. This will include program updates for all Teacher Preparation Programs partners.

Learn more here: https://www.swwc.org/spedpipeline.

Answer: There are multiple requirements to be part of this program, one being employed with a district partner. If you meet the qualifying criteria and are accepted into the program, then you could select a special education licensure program offered by an approved teacher preparation program (TPP) partner. Many offer online programs to complete licensure requirements.

Answer: In order to receive and continue to receive tuition and other programmatic funding, participants must remain employed with a partner district. As far as obtaining employment as a special education teacher after licensure, all hiring decisions will be made by district employers.

Answer: All courses would need to be evaluated by your selected special education teacher licensure program provided by an approved Teacher Preparation Provider (TPP) partner. This program provides direct tuition funding to an approved TPP on behalf of approved participants in our program. If you have further questions, please contact the Program Success Coach for assistance with connecting to an approved TPP provider.

Answer: No, we are looking for people who would like to become a special education teacher in our region and this grant is available to provide direct tuition funding to remove barriers to becoming a licensed teacher. We encourage all interested non licensed staff, paraprofessionals, or others not currently licensed as a Tier III or IV teacher to apply for funding. We are excited to welcome all great people to become a special education teacher – we are here to help you!

Answer: Yes, as long as we partner with the Teacher Preparation Provider (TPP), you are welcome to join any qualifying programs if accepted into that program. I would encourage you to reach out to the college of interest to you and ask about the possibility of transferring. The TPP provider can assist you with evaluating your transcript and provide information on how long and what courses are needed for your degree and licensure.

Answer: This is an allowable expense in the grant. We are working on the parameters of funding lost wages for non-licensed staff completing field experience and student teaching hours. We plan to have information posted on the webpage by May 1, 2024. Learn more here: https://www.swwc.org/spedpipeline.

If a person previously held a standard MN Teaching license which could qualify as a Tier III or IV upon renewal, then they would not qualify for this grant funding. SPED Pipeline grand funding is for candidates to get their initial teaching license in a special education teaching field.

We would recommend a candidate who has had a previous teaching license in Minnesota to reach out to PELSB to review their license information and PELSB can provide details on how to renew a lapsed license. You can email PELSB directly at (pelsb@state.mn.us).

Answer: If you would like your school district to be considered, please contact liz.deen@swwc.org. Additional districts in economic regions 6 or 8 could be added through amendment. Once your district is added as a partner, and you meet the other qualification criteria, you can apply for funding.

Answer: Please email liz.deen@swwc.org for consideration to be added as a partner. Not all requests will be granted, but additional partners could be added quarterly at Regional Check-In meetings with district partners.

Answer: No. This grant program is only for Tier 1 or 2 teachers, paraprofessionals or other non-licensed employees who are seeking their first professional teaching license (Tier 3).

• The first priority remains Tier 1 or 2 special education teachers.
• The second priority remains paraprofessionals or other non-licensed employees. We would consider a Tier 1 or 2 teacher that is not currently in a special education position in this second group. Though this person has a license, it is not a Tier 3 license nor is it in special education. Provided these Tier 1 or 2 teachers wish to be a special educator at the end of the process, they would be eligible. 

Answer: Speech Language Pathologists and Therapists are considered related service or school support professionals and do not qualify for funding under this program.

Other related service positions include school nurse, school counselor, school social worker, and school psychologists. These positions are not required to meet the same pedagogical and special education standards for licensure and are thus ineligible for this program.

• SPED: Academic and Behavioral Specialist
• SPED: Emotional Behavior Disorders
• SPED: Learning Disabilities
• SPED: Autism Spectrum Disorders
• SPED: Early Childhood Special Education
• SPED: Developmental Cognitive Disabilities

• SPED: Oral/Aural Deaf Education
• SPED: Deaf or Hard of Hearing
• SPED: Blind or Visually Impaired

Candidates must submit an official application once. Click here to apply. Scholarships are awarded on a semester basis and recipients need to show satisfactory progress in the previous semester to continue to receive a scholarship. Recipients are asked to submit their unofficial transcript showing their previous semester grade and a copy of their tuition invoice for the next semester in lieu of an application for semesters beyond the first semester for which scholarship funds are awarded. This must be sent a minimum of three weeks prior to the start of classes to allow for processing.

The course of study is a plan to complete courses and credits to complete all licensure requirements. This plan is created with your Teacher Preparation Provider and should include all courses that are required as well as the proposed semesters to complete. All scholarship recipients must submit a planned course of study that allows them to graduate and be license eligible by the end of the grant period in June 2028. Please submit your plan to Heidi van der Hagen, SWWC Program Success Coach.

Staff that receive a scholarship through this opportunity will be required to participate in up to four coaching sessions per year that will be offered after school hours. There may be additional support opportunities available as needed.

Yes, scholarship recipients must remain employed by a district partner while receiving funds. By receiving these scholarship funds, you are committing to employment within the SW Minnesota community for a period equal to the length of scholarship support. This employment will be specifically a certified teaching position serving students with disabilities. The work commitment will be determined under the following formula: one year of scholarship support =one year of work within SW Region as a teacher after obtaining your Tier 3 license. For example, if you receive 4 semesters of scholarship support, you would need to work for 2 school years (4 semesters) within the SW Region. For purposes of this section, a scholarship received for a summer session is considered a semester. Although there is no penalty should you move outside the region or choose to not become employed as a special educator, but we are hopeful to support candidates that would like to continue employment in special education within our region after becoming licensed.

If, at any time, there are extenuating circumstances that may cause you to fall behind in coursework or disengage from the program, there must be prior communication with Heidi van der Hagen, the Program Success Coach. In this instance, you understand that you will be required to develop an Academic Agreement with your university. You will be required to make this Agreement available to SWWC (Heidi van der Hagen) and your employer. Additionally, you understand that if you fail to meet the guidelines in said Academic Agreement, you will be asked to leave the Special Education Teacher Pipeline grant program. At the end of each semester, you will be required to provide proof of good academic standing with the college/university to the grant management team at SWWC.

Funds received from the scholarship can only be used for purposes of tuition, fees, books, and other approved allowable expenses and the funds must directly be related to coursework that leads to licensure in special education. The scholarship recipient is responsible and is aware that there may be a tax and financial aid implication of receiving these funds and is responsible for communicating this information to any parties that request this information.