ESTABLISHMENT; ADMINISTRATION

(a) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall establish and administer the doctoral incentive loan repayment program as provided by this subchapter and shall adopt rules as necessary to administer the program. (b) The purpose of the doctoral incentive loan repayment program is to provide education loan repayment assistance to individuals from groups that are underrepresented among the faculty and administration of public and independent institutions of higher education in this state to increase the number of individuals from those underrepresented groups among the faculty and administration of public and independent institutions of higher education in this state. (c) For purposes of this subchapter, an individual is from a group that is underrepresented among the faculty and administration of public and independent institutions of higher education in this state if: (1) the individual was from a low socioeconomic background while pursuing the individual's undergraduate education; or (2) when the individual graduated from high school the individual resided in an area from which a disproportionately low number of high school graduates enrolled in postsecondary educational institutions.