The Special Education Teacher Tuition Wavier is a scholarship awarded to students pursing the field of special education in a public four-year university in Illinois.

The Special Education Teacher Tuition Wavier (SETTW) was first adopted by the Illinois General Assembly on July 1, 1995. It has been amended nine times since. The bill is TITLE 23: Education and Cultural Resources, SUBTITLE A: Education, CHAPTER XIX: Illinois Student Assistance Commission, PART 2765 Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Wavier (SETTW) PROGRAM. ^[1].

The Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver (SETTW) Program encourages current teachers and academically talented students to pursue careers as Illinois public, private or parochial preschool or elementary or secondary school teachers in any area of Special Education. ^[2] The SETTW will exempt the student from paying tuition and mandatory fees at an eligible institution, for up to four calendar years. ^[3]

To be eligible for the Special Education Teacher Tuition Wavier, the student must:

• be a U.S. Citizen or an eligible non-citizen ( Citizenship Requirements) ^[4];
  
• be an Illinois Resident ^[4];
  
• be a graduate of an approved high school; a student scheduled to graduate from an approved high school by the end of the academic year in which the award is made who ranks in the upper half of his or her high school graduating class at the end of the sixth semester; or a person holding a valid teaching certificate that is not in the discipline of Special Education ^[4];
  
• be enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, as an undergraduate or graduate student seeking initial certification in any area of Special Education ^[4];
  
• be attending, or planing to attend, one of the twelve public universities listed below ^[4];
  
• be a potential new recipient in that he or she shall have not received the Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver in the past ^[4];
  
• remain in attendance at the college on a continuous basis for up to four years (unless granted an approved leave of absence) ^[5];
  
• not be in default on any student loan, nor owe a refund on any state or federal grant ^[5];
  
• comply with federal Selective Service registration requirements ^[5];
  
• not at any time have received cumulative Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver benefits that equal or exceed the program maximum of four academic years ^[5].
  

A recipient may be granted a leave of absence by the president of the institution, or his/her designee, for the following reasons: ^[6]

1. earning funds to defray the recipient's educational expenses;
2. illness of the recipient or a member of the recipient's immediate family, as established by the sworn statement of a licensed physician; or
3. military services.

In any academic year in which the qualified applicant accepts or receives financial assistance through the Paul Douglas Teacher Scholarship, the Minority Teachers of Illinois Scholarship, the Illinois Future Teacher Corps Program, or Teach Illinois Scholarship Program, he or she shall not be eligible for an Illinois Special Education Teacher Tuition Waiver. ^[4]

The student must be enrolled in one of the following Illinois Public Universities to be eligible for the SETTW. ^[7]

• Chicago State University
• Eastern Illinois University
• Governors State University
• Illinois State University
• Northeastern Illinois University
• Northern Illinois University
• Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
• Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville
• University of Illinois at Chicago
• University of Illinois at Springfield
• University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• Western Illinois University

The student must have their application postmarked on or before March 1st of the year they wish to start receiving the award in order to receive priority consideration. Students can either print the application form from the Internet, or they can request one from eligible institutions or state legislative and federal congressional offices. ^[8]

By receiving the tuition waiver, you must teach in Illinois in the field of special education. If this teaching commitment is not fulfilled, the amount of benefits received converts to a loan, and you must repay the entire amount plus interest. ^[3] When a student is awarded with the SETTW, the student must sign the Teaching Agreement/Promissory Note. ^[6] This note states:

• the recipient pledges to begin teaching on a full-time basis, in the field of Special Education, within one year following graduation from or termination of enrollment in a teacher education program, at a nonprofit, public, private or parochial preschool, elementary or secondary school in Illinois and to continue teaching for at least 2 of the 5 years immediately following;
• if the teaching requirement is not fulfilled, the tuition waiver converts to a loan and the recipient must repay the entire amount of the tuition waiver (prorated according to the fraction of the teaching obligation not completed), plus interest at a rate equal to 5% per annum.