Extend the grow your own grant program

This bill extends the Montana Grow Your Own grant program through June 30, 2029, and adds postsecondary institutions as eligible recipients of startup grants to help develop teacher training pipelines. The legislation removes the requirement for grant recipients to convert scholarships to loans if they do not teach in shortage areas within specified timeframes, while maintaining the existing five-year and ten-year service commitments. It also expands eligibility for scholarship recipients to include those who earned at least six postsecondary credits in education while in high school or live in communities with educator shortages. The bill appropriates $500,000 for the 2025-2026 biennium to fund these expanded program activities.