JB Pritzker, Governor, State of Illinois

Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship Program

Program News

(last updated September 19, 2024)

2024-25 Program Funding
2024-25 Payment
2024-25 Award Determination
2024-25 Certification
2024-25 Application
2023-24 Reconciliation – Due to ISAC Notifications
Enrollment Status Verification 

2024-25

Program Funding

The 2025 fiscal year (July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025) appropriation for the Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship is $8,000,000.

Payment

Important dates and reminders for 2024-25 MTI Scholarship payment processing:

  • A September 19 e-Message announces:
    • the 2024-25 MTI payment processing cycle has commenced;
    • first-term payment requests can be completed online and submitted electronically to ISAC via the MTI system;
    • in order to be considered timely, first-term payment requests must be submitted on or before Tuesday, December 31, 2024.

Submitting payment requests is a two-step process, which involves generating the request (either individually or in a batch) and then submitting the request.

Payment results display on the MTI Student Detail: Payment screen the day after payment requests are processed. In addition, a Payment Result Summary and Invoice Detail Report can be viewed or printed by selecting the Report tab in the MTI system the day after a payment request has been processed. The report includes Payment Results, Payment Exceptions and Invoice Detail about the payment claim. The Payment Results/Exceptions report should be reviewed the day after submitting payment requests to see which requests, if any, did not process as expected.

The disbursement of funds is processed by the State Comptroller's Office. Refer to the State Comptroller's Website page for information on how to track payment.

For more information, refer to the following locations on ISAC's website:

MTI Payment
MTI Electronic Processing
MTI User Guide

Award Determination

As announced in a September 19 e-Message, awarding for the 2024-25 MTI Scholarship Program has taken place for all applicants who have been certified as eligible. Award notifications (dated September 19, 2024) are being mailed to all eligible applicants by ISAC, and colleges may view award results on the "Student List Eligibility: View screen" in the MTI system.

Refer to the MTI Award Determination area for more information about the award process, award amount and notifications. Details about the MTI system, including access to the MTI User Guide, are available at the MTI Electronic Processing page.

Certification

An August 5 e-Message announces that colleges may certify eligibility for the 2024-25 Minority Teachers of Illinois (MTI) Scholarship Program via the MTI system. The MTI system is available to enter certification data each Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. (CT).

A Certification record is created in the MTI system when an MTI application is complete. All Certifications available in the MTI system must be completed regardless of whether the school certifies a student as eligible or ineligible. The only way an applicant will receive a notification letter is if the Certification is submitted via the MTI system. Be sure to continue completing and submitting Certifications throughout the year, in order to ensure that students will be included in all rounds of awarding that take place.

There are no changes to the online Certification process from last year, and an overview of the process is available on the Certification Procedures for MTI page. Refer to the MTI User Guide for instructions to enter and submit Certifications to ISAC.

Application

The 2024-25 MTI Scholarship Program application remains available online via the Program Applications & Status Checks area of the ISAC Student Portal.

For priority consideration, the 2024-25 MTI Scholarship application and 2024-25 FAFSA or (if applicable) Alternative Application must have been received by March 31, 2024. Complete applications submitted (i.e., electronically signed or postmarked) after March 31 will be considered for the MTI Scholarship Program only if funding remains after all timely complete applicants have been awarded. The date through which 2024-25 applications will be accepted is dependent upon application volume and available funding. Encourage applicants who have not already done so to submit their applications as soon as possible.

At this time, student data related to the 2024-25 MTI application is not appearing for colleges in the MTI system. This page will be updated when student data becomes available for colleges to view.

The Application Procedures for MTI section includes details about the application process, including sample acknowledgement notifications.

Refer to the MTI Scholarship Program page of the Students & Parents area for assistance with questions you receive from applicants regarding the MTI application process.

2023-24

Reconciliation – Due to ISAC Notifications

Notifications detailing the outstanding amount that must be refunded to ISAC for 2023-24 MTI Scholarships were e-mailed to financial aid directors in early August. Review the information in the notification and return the appropriate amount – along with a completed Gift Assistance Programs Refund Check Form – no later than September 30, 2024.

Details about returning funds to ISAC and the payment offset and reconciliation process are provided in the Refunds and Unpaid Claims section of the Processes area.

Enrollment Status Verification

Verification of award recipients' current enrollment status data is to be completed by the college and returned to ISAC in a timely manner. While all 2022-2023 data was to be submitted on or before December 1, 2023, colleges are still encouraged to submit this data as soon as possible. Further details are provided in an October 30 e-Message.

This page will be updated once data is being accepted for the 2023-24 academic year (anticipated for the fall of 2024).

Each fall, colleges are required to verify the enrollment statuses for recipients in the programs with teaching requirements. Verification of enrollment status is required for all recipients who, according to our records, previously received funds from the following ISAC-administered teacher education programs and may have been enrolled at your institution during the prior academic year.

ISAC monitors recipients’ fulfillment of the program requirements because, if recipients fail to meet the applicable requirements, their awards convert to loans that must be repaid. Knowing recipients’ enrollment status, as reported by the colleges, allows ISAC to communicate with recipients who have graduated (or otherwise stopped attending college) regarding the steps they need to take in order to fulfill their teaching requirements. The sooner colleges submit enrollment verification data to ISAC, the sooner ISAC can communicate with impacted award recipients.

Refer to the Enrollment Status Verification page and the Enrollment Status Verification for Teacher Programs User Guide for step-by-step instructions on completing and submitting enrollment status verification data to ISAC. Details about the teaching requirement, extensions, deferments and repayment are provided in the Students & Parents – After College area of this website, and may be accessed via the "Program Requirements" link that appears in the right-margin menu of this page.