“Grow Our Own” Teachers Initiative - College of Education, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa

Are you committed to teaching in Hawaiʻi? You may be eligible for stipends* to cover tuition costs through the Grow Our Own (GOO) Teachers Initiative!

GOO is made possible through a partnership between the Hawaiʻi Department of Education (HIDOE) and the College of Education at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Recipients of GOO funding are required to:

1. Complete one of the following programs:

- Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Secondary Education
- Master of Education in Teaching (MEdT K-12)
- Post-Baccalaureate Certificate in Elementary Education
- Bachelor’s (BE.d) Elementary Education & Hawaiian Language Immersion

2. Gain teacher licensure through the Hawaiʻi Teacher Standards Board (HTSB)

3. Commit to three (3) years of full-time teaching (grades K-12) in their licensed field in Hawaiʻi Public Schools.

*Stipends cover the cost of tuition for courses required for teacher licensure; program courses previously taken are not covered; subject to availability of funds.

General Info

Eligibility Requirements

Award Priorities

Funding

GOO recipients are eligible for stipends that cover the cost of tuition for courses required for teacher licensure. Program courses that were previously taken will not be covered. Students enrolled in an online program will only be assessed for resident tuition regardless of their residence in a different state or country.

Stipends will cover tuition and fees:

Post-Baccalaureate Secondary	Up to 36 credits
MEdT K-12	Up to 34 credits
MEdT Hawaiian Immersion	Up to 46 credits
Post-Baccalaureate Elementary	Up to 31 credits
BEd Elementary Hawaiian Immersion	Up to 54 credits

Please Note:

Neighbor island students will also receive travel stipends to cover roundtrip flights that are purchased by the GOO recipients to attend mandatory face-to-face meetings.
Repeated courses for any reason (i.e., no pass, withdrawal after the official drop date, etc.) will not be funded.
The total amount of the stipends received under the GOO Memorandum of Agreement is considered income by the IRS and is, therefore, reportable. If an individual receives in total more than $600 in a calendar year, the university will report the income on a Form 1099-MISC.
GOO recipients are required to sign and return a memo that will be emailed from our GOO Administrator to confirm receipt of issued stipend checks.

Subject to availability of funds.

Program & Application Info

Post-Baccalaureate - Secondary (Grades 6-12)

	PBCTE-SECONDARY INFO
Program overview & COURSEWORK	See Post-Baccalaureate – Secondary program page
Deadlines	Priority: September 1 Final: October 1
STIPENDS COVERS	36 credits Neighbor island students will also receive travel stipends to cover roundtrip flights that are purchased by the GOO recipients to attend mandatory face-to-face meetings.
STIPENDS SCHEDULE	Tuition stipends are issued each semester after the “drop a course” deadline (see academic calendar for dates). GOO recipients are subject to follow UH Mānoa’s payment deadlines. Please consider tuition stipends as reimbursements, which may take a month or more to process and deliver by mail.
HOW TO APPLY	You must apply to both the PBCTE-Secondary Program and GOO by the deadline. How To Apply – PBCTE Secondary GOO Application The GOO application has three parts: Applicant Information Personal Narrative (limit 500 words) Why do you want to become a teacher and why is long-term teaching in Hawaiʻi important to you? Optional Recommendation Form Applicants may consider sending their Principals or Vice Principals a Recommendation Form to submit on their behalf. Priority will be given to those who have a Recommendation Form submitted by their school administration by October 22

Master's in Teaching (Grades K-12)

	MEDT INFO
Program overview & COURSEWORK	See MEdT- program page
Deadlines (Must be admitted)	Priority: February 1 Final: March 1
STIPENDS COVERS	Up to 34 credits Neighbor island students will also receive travel stipends to cover roundtrip flights that are purchased by the GOO recipients to attend mandatory face-to-face meetings.
STIPENDS SCHEDULE	Tuition stipends are issued each semester after the “drop a course” deadline (see academic calendar for dates). GOO recipients are subject to follow UH Mānoa’s payment deadlines. Please consider tuition stipends as reimbursements, which may take a month or more to process and deliver by mail.
HOW TO APPLY	Please see instructions on how to apply to the MEdT Program. If GOO funding is awarded for the 2024-2025 school year, a GOO application will be made available in the Fall 2024 semester to MEdT Fall 2024 Admits. Please contact uhmgoo@hawaii.edu for more information.

Post-Baccalaureate - Elementary (Grades K-6)

	PBCTE-ELEMENTARY INFO
Program overview & COURSEWORK	See Post-Baccalaureate – Elementary program page
Deadlines (Must be admitted)	Priority: September 1 Final: October 1
STIPENDS COVERS	31 credits Neighbor island students will also receive travel stipends to cover roundtrip flights that are purchased by the GOO recipients to attend mandatory face-to-face meetings.
STIPENDS SCHEDULE	Tuition stipends are issued each semester after the “drop a course” deadline (see academic calendar for dates). GOO recipients are subject to follow UH Mānoa’s payment deadlines. Please consider tuition stipends as reimbursements, which may take a month or more to process and deliver by mail.
HOW TO APPLY	You must apply to both the PBCTE-Elementary Program and GOO by the deadline. How To Apply – PBCTE Elementary GOO Application The GOO application has three parts: Applicant Information Personal Narrative (limit 500 words) Why do you want to become a teacher and why is long-term teaching in Hawaiʻi important to you? Optional Recommendation Form Applicants may consider sending their Principals or Vice Principals a Recommendation Form to submit on their behalf. Priority will be given to those who have a Recommendation Form submitted by their school administration by October 22

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