By accepting an InVEST in STEM Noyce scholarship, you are making a commitment to

• Earn your secondary teaching certification in mathematics, chemistry, biology, or physics from Longwood University.
• Teach for two years in a high-needs school district for each year of scholarship funding.
  • Your teaching commitment must be fulfilled within 8 years after graduation from the program.
  • If an InVEST in STEM scholarship recipient does not fulfill the teaching requirement, the scholarship must be repaid in part or in full, in proportion to the fulfillment of the teaching commitment met, as described below.

The National Science Foundation defines high-need school district as meeting at least one of the following criteria: 

1. Has at least one school in which 50% or more of the enrolled students are eligible for participation in the free and reduced price lunch program.
2. Has at least one school in which –
   1. More than 34% of the academic classroom teachers at the secondary level (across all academic subjects) do not have an undergraduate degree with a major or minor in, or a graduate degree in, the academic field in which they teach the largest percentage of their classes; OR
   2. More than 34% of the teachers in two of the academic departments do not have an undergraduate degree with a major or minor in, or a graduate degree in, the academic field in which they teach the largest percentage of their classes.
3. Has at least one school whose teacher attrition rate has been 15 percent or more over the last three school years.

Repayment for Failure to Meet Service Obligation

The recipient agrees to repay to Longwood University the amount of the scholarship if he or she does not–

1. Meet the service obligation identified above ; or
2. Receive a waiver or suspension of this obligation as explained below in “Discharge of a Required Payment.”

If the scholarship recipient does not fulfill his or her service obligation within eight (8) years by teaching for two years in a high-need local educational agency for each year he or she received scholarship support, the recipient becomes obligated to fully repay the scholarship within eight (8) years after his or her date of graduation from Longwood University. If the scholarship recipient withdraws from Longwood University prior to graduation, the recipient becomes obligated to repay the scholarship six (6) months after his or her withdrawal from Longwood University. If upon graduation from Longwood University, the scholarship recipient teaches in a high-need local educational agency for a period that is less than the period of his or her service obligation, the recipient becomes responsible for repayment of the percentage of the period for which the service obligation was not fulfilled.

Example: An individual receives a 2 years of scholarship support (up to $20,000 each year) to attend Longwood University. The commitment for this individual is to teach 4 years (2 years per year of scholarship funding) in a high-need local educational agency following graduation. The individual graduates from from Longwood and works in a high-need local educational agency for two full school year. The individual then moves and takes a teaching position in a school district that is not high-need.

If the individual remains in the district that is not high-need, then eight (8) years after graduation, the individual has fulfilled one-half of his or her service obligation and so must immediately repay one-half of the scholarship received.

Until the scholarship recipient either satisfies the service obligation or repays the scholarship, the recipient agrees to provide Longwood University a current home address and telephone number and a current work address and telephone number, as well as other needed identifying information. In addition, the recipient understands that Longwood University and the high-need LEA are or will be using the recipient’s social security number so that Longwood University can, if necessary, secure payment of these amounts from the recipient if he or she fails to meet the service obligation.

Discharge of a Required Repayment

Longwood University will waive or suspend an obligation to repay the scholarship of a scholarship recipient who has died or who demonstrates to Longwood University’s satisfaction that, because of permanent physical or mental disability or some other extraordinary circumstance, he or she is not employable as a teacher. Upon receipt of acceptable documentation and approval of the discharge request, Longwood University returns to the scholarship recipient, or for a discharge of death, the recipient’s estate, those payments received after the date the eligibility requirements for the discharge were met and prior to the date the discharge was approved. Longwood University also returns any payments received after the date the discharge was approved.