Earn to Learn Act

Earn to Learn Act

This bill directs the Department of Education (ED) to establish a college matched-savings demonstration grant program, through which ED must award competitive grants to states and nonprofit organizations to provide certain low-income students with educational savings accounts (e.g., 529 plans).

Further, ED must (1) develop and make available to grant recipients certain tools, including a training platform, a program guide, an online data portal, and certain trainings (e.g., on college readiness); (2) ensure that participation in the grant program does not affect student eligibility for Federal Pell Grants; and (3) provide technical assistance.

Grant recipients must use funds to (1) select eligible students to participate in the grant program, (2) provide selected students with financial literacy education, (3) establish an educational savings account for each participating student and allow such students and their families to deposit funds in their account to save for attendance at an institution of higher education or an area career and technical education school, and (4) reserve matching funds for participating students. Additionally, grant recipients must ensure that participating students are entitled to withdraw funds from their accounts under certain circumstances.