Section 2747.30  Program Procedures

a)         An application for the scholarship must be submitted annually and, in order to receive priority consideration for an award, must be completed and received by a date established each year by the Commission and posted on the ISAC website, preceding the academic year for which the scholarship is being requested.

1)         The application is available on ISAC's website.

2)         If the scholarship application is incomplete, ISAC will notify the applicant. The applicant will then have an opportunity to furnish the missing information; however, the application will only be considered for processing as of the date when the application is complete and received by ISAC.

b)         Up to 250 scholarships may be awarded annually to qualified students, with priority given to minority applicants as defined in 110 ILCS 947/67.1101(c).

c)         When an appropriation for the program for a given fiscal year is insufficient to provide scholarships to all qualified students, ISAC will allocate (based on the order of the earliest date of application receipt) the available scholarship funds for that fiscal year to qualified students who submit a complete and timely application, as specified in subsection (a) based on the following order of priority:

1)         to students who received the scholarship in the prior academic year and who remain eligible for the scholarship.

2)         to new, qualified applicants who are minority students.

3)         to the extent allowed by the amount of funding that remains after awarding to those applicants in the priority categories in subsections (c)(1) and (2), ISAC may award the remaining funds to other qualified new applicants.

d)         Within the constraints of annual appropriation levels, two semester or three quarter term payments and one summer term payment are made directly to the institution. Summer term is considered the final term of the academic year.

e)         Prior to receiving scholarship assistance under this Part, the qualified applicant must sign an Agreement/Promissory Note that is submitted to ISAC. The Agreement/Promissory Note shall include the following stipulations:

1)         for each year or any portion of a year for which scholarship aid is received, the recipient pledges to work as a school social worker, on a full-time equivalent basis, for two years of the 5 years immediately following graduation or termination from the program for which the recipient received assistance under this Part;

2)         the recipient shall begin working within one year after completion of the program for which the recipient received assistance under this Part, and shall work on a continuous basis for the required period of time;

3)         the social work requirement will be fulfilled at a nonprofit Illinois public, private or parochial preschool, elementary school or secondary school;

4)         if the social work requirement is not fulfilled, the scholarship converts to a loan and the recipient must repay the entire amount of the scholarships prorated according to the fraction of the teaching obligation not completed, plus interest at a rate of interest equal to five percent and, if applicable, reasonable collection fees; and

5)         the recipient agrees to provide ISAC with evidence of compliance with program requirements (e.g., responses to annual follow-up questionnaires, etc.).

f)         A recipient of a scholarship awarded under this Part will not be in violation of the agreement entered into pursuant to subsection (e) during periods in which the recipient:

1)         serves, for not more than three years, as a member of the United States Armed Forces;

2)         is temporarily totally disabled, for not more than three years, as established by the sworn affidavit of a licensed physician; or

3)         is actively seeking but unable to find full-time employment as a school social worker at a school that satisfies the criteria set forth in subsection (e)(3), and is able to provide evidence of that fact.

g)         If a recipient is required to repay any portion of the scholarship, the repayment period shall be completed within 10 years after the scholarship converts to a loan. This 10-year period may be extended if the recipient:

1)         is pursuing a graduate course of study in a field related to social work and is enrolled on a full-time basis at a qualified Illinois institution of higher learning;

2)         is serving, for not more than three years, as a member of the United States Armed Forces;

3)         is temporarily disabled, for not more than three years, as established by the sworn affidavit of a licensed physician;

4)         is actively seeking and unable to find full-time employment as a school social worker at a school that satisfies the criteria set forth in subsection (e)(3) and is able to provide evidence of that fact.

h)         During the time a recipient qualifies for any of the extensions listed in subsection (g), the recipient shall not be required to make payments and interest shall not accrue.

i)          A recipient shall enter repayment status on the earliest of the following dates:

1)         the first day of the first calendar month after the recipient has ceased to pursue a course of study leading to licensure as a school social worker at the preschool, elementary or secondary level, but not before six months have elapsed after the cessation of at least half-time enrollment in such a course of study;

2)         the date the recipient informs ISAC that the recipient does not plan to fulfill the school social work obligation; or

3)         the day after the latest date upon which the recipient must have begun working as a school social worker after completing the postsecondary education for which the scholarship was awarded.

j)          A recipient shall not be required to repay the amount of the scholarships received if the recipient becomes permanently totally disabled as established by the sworn affidavit of a qualified physician (see, e.g., 34 CFR 682.402(c)), or if the recipient's representative provides ISAC with a death certificate or other evidence that the recipient has died.