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| Public Act 095-0715 |
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AN ACT concerning education.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is | ||||
amended by changing Sections 25 and 31 as follows:
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(110 ILCS 947/25)
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Sec. 25. State scholar program.
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(a) An applicant is eligible to be designated a State | ||||
Scholar when the
Commission finds the candidate:
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(1) is a resident of this State and a citizen or | ||||
permanent resident of the
United States;
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(2) has successfully completed the program of | ||||
instruction at an
approved high school, or is a student in | ||||
good standing at such a school and
is engaged in a program | ||||
which in due course will be completed by the end of
the | ||||
academic year, and in either event that the candidate's | ||||
academic
standing is above the class median; and that the | ||||
candidate has not had any
university, college, normal | ||||
school, private junior college or public community
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college, or other advanced training subsequent to | ||||
graduation from high school;
and
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(3) has superior capacity to profit by a higher | ||||
education.
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(b) In determining an applicant's superior capacity to | ||
profit by a
higher education, the Commission shall consider the | ||
candidate's
scholastic record in high school and the results of | ||
the examination conducted
under the provisions of this Act. The | ||
Commission shall establish by rule the
minimum conditions of | ||
eligibility in terms of the foregoing factors, and the
relative | ||
weight to be accorded to those factors.
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(c) The Commission shall base its State Scholar | ||
designations upon the
eligibility formula prescribed in its | ||
rules, except that notwithstanding
those rules or any other | ||
provision of this Section, a student nominated by
his or her | ||
school shall be designated a State Scholar if that student
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achieves an Illinois Standard Test Score at or above the 95th | ||
percentile
among students taking the designated examinations | ||
in Illinois that year, as
determined by the Commission.
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(d) The Commission shall obtain the results of a | ||
competitive examination
from the applicants this Act. The | ||
examination shall provide a measure of each
candidate's ability | ||
to perform college work and shall have demonstrated utility
in | ||
such a selection program. The Commission shall select, and | ||
designate by
rule, the specific examinations to be used in | ||
determining the applicant's
superior capacity to profit from a | ||
higher education. Candidates may be asked by
the Commission to | ||
take those steps necessary to provide results of the
designated | ||
examination as part of their applications. Any nominal cost of
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obtaining or providing the examination results shall be paid by | ||
the candidate
to the agency designated by the Commission to | ||
provide the examination service.
In the event that a candidate | ||
or candidates are unable to participate in the
examination for | ||
financial reasons, the Commission may choose to pay the
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examination fee on the candidate's or candidates' behalf. Any | ||
notary fee which
may also be required as part of the total | ||
application shall be paid by the
applicant.
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(e) The Commission shall award to each State Scholar a | ||
certificate or other
suitable form of recognition. The decision | ||
to attend a non-qualified
institution of higher learning shall | ||
not disqualify applicants who are
otherwise fully qualified.
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(f) Subject to appropriation, each State Scholar who | ||
enrolls or is enrolled in an institution of higher learning in | ||
this State shall also receive a one-time grant of $1,000 to be | ||
applied to tuition and mandatory fees and paid directly to the | ||
institution of higher learning. However, a student who has been | ||
awarded a Merit Recognition Scholarship under Section 31 of | ||
this Act may not be awarded a grant under this subsection (f), | ||
although he or she may still be designated a State Scholar. | ||
(g) The Commission shall adopt all necessary and proper | ||
rules not inconsistent with this Section for its effective | ||
implementation.
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(Source: P.A. 87-997.)
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(110 ILCS 947/31)
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Sec. 31. Merit Recognition Scholarship program.
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(a) As used in this Section:
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"Eligible applicant" means a student from any high school | ||
in this State,
either
approved by or not recognized by the | ||
State Board of Education, who is engaged
in a
program of study | ||
that in due course will be completed by the end of the
academic | ||
year,
and (i) whose cumulative high school grade point average | ||
is at or above the
95th
percentile of his or her high school | ||
class after completion of the 6th semester
of a high
school
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program of instruction or (ii) whose score on a
standardized
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examination determined by the Commission, taken before or | ||
during the 6th
semester of high school, is at or above the 95th | ||
percentile of
students
in the State who take the standardized | ||
college entrance examination.
These high school students are | ||
all eligible
to receive a
scholarship to be awarded under this | ||
Section.
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"Qualified student" means a person:
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(1) who is a resident of this State and a citizen or | ||
permanent resident of
the United States;
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(2) who, as an eligible applicant, is in good academic | ||
standing at the
high
school in which he or she is enrolled | ||
and has made a timely application for a
Merit Recognition | ||
Scholarship under this Section;
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(3) who has successfully completed the program of | ||
instruction at any high
school located in this State; and
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(4) who enrolls or is enrolled in a qualified Illinois | ||
institution of
higher
learning or a Service Academy as an | ||
undergraduate student or cadet and has not
received a | ||
baccalaureate degree.
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"Merit Recognition Scholarship" means a $1,000 academic | ||
scholarship
awarded under this Section during an academic year | ||
to a qualified student,
without regard
to financial need, as a | ||
scholarship to any qualified Illinois institution of
higher | ||
learning or
a Service Academy in which the student is or will | ||
be enrolled as an
undergraduate
student or cadet.
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"Service Academy" means the U.S. Air Force Academy, the | ||
U.S. Coast Guard
Academy, the U.S. Military Academy, or the | ||
U.S. Naval Academy.
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(b) In order to identify, encourage, promote, and reward | ||
the distinguished
academic achievement of students from every | ||
high school located in this State,
each
qualified student shall | ||
be awarded a Merit Recognition Scholarship by the
Illinois
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Student Assistance Commission to any qualified Illinois | ||
institution of higher
learning or
to any Service Academy.
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(b-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Section, | ||
a student who has received a grant under the State Scholar | ||
program under Section 25 of this Act is ineligible to receive a | ||
Merit Recognition Scholarship.
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(c) No Merit Recognition Scholarship provided for a | ||
qualified student
under this Section shall be considered in | ||
evaluating the financial situation of
that student
or be deemed | ||
a financial resource of or a form of financial aid or | ||
assistance
to that
student, for purposes of determining the | ||
eligibility of the student for any
scholarship,
grant, or | ||
monetary assistance awarded by the Commission, the State, or | ||
any
agency
thereof pursuant to the provisions of any other | ||
Section of this Act or any
other law of this
State; nor shall | ||
any Merit Recognition Scholarship provided for a
qualified
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student under
this Section reduce the amount of any | ||
scholarship, grant, or monetary
assistance that that
student is | ||
eligible to be awarded by the Commission, the State, or any | ||
agency
thereof in
accordance with the provisions of any other | ||
Section of this Act or any other
law of this
State.
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(d) The Illinois Student Assistance Commission is | ||
designated as
administrator of the Merit Recognition | ||
Scholarship program. Each high
school
located in this State | ||
shall certify to the Commission the names of its students
who | ||
are
eligible applicants, specifying which of the students | ||
certified as eligible
applicants have
completed the program of | ||
instruction at that high school and the graduation
date fixed | ||
for
their high school class and specifying for each of the | ||
other eligible
applicants whose
names appear on the | ||
certification the semester of high school last completed by
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them.
The Commission shall promptly notify those eligible | ||
applicants so certified who
are
reasonably assured of receiving | ||
a Merit Recognition Scholarship in accordance
with
the annual | ||
funding levels recommended in the Governor's budget of their
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eligibility to
apply for a scholarship under this Section, | ||
other than any eligible applicant
named on any
such | ||
certification who, as an eligible applicant, has previously | ||
made
application to the
Commission for a Merit Recognition | ||
Scholarship under this Section. An
otherwise
eligible | ||
applicant who fails to make a timely application (as determined | ||
by the
Commission) for a Merit Recognition Scholarship under | ||
this Section shall
no longer
be deemed an eligible applicant | ||
and shall not qualify for the award.
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(e) All applications for Merit Recognition Scholarships to | ||
be awarded
under
this Section shall be made to the Commission | ||
on forms that the Commission shall
provide for eligible | ||
applicants. The form of applications and the information
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required to
be set forth therein shall be determined by the | ||
Commission, and the Commission
shall
require eligible | ||
applicants to submit with their applications such supporting
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documents
as the Commission deems necessary.
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(f) The names and addresses of Merit Recognition | ||
Scholarship recipients
are a matter of public record.
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(g) Whenever an eligible applicant who has completed the | ||
program of
instruction at any high school located in this State | ||
thereafter makes timely
application to
the Commission for a | ||
Merit Recognition Scholarship under this Section, the
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Commission shall promptly determine whether that eligible | ||
applicant is a
qualified
student as defined in subsection (a) | ||
of this Section. Each such eligible
applicant so
determined by | ||
the Commission to be a qualified student shall be awarded
a | ||
Merit Recognition Scholarship in the amount of $1,000, | ||
effective exclusively
during the
academic year following the | ||
qualified student's high school graduation, subject
to | ||
appropriation by the General Assembly.
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(h) Subject to a separate appropriation for purposes of | ||
this Section,
payment of
any Merit Recognition Scholarship | ||
awarded under this Section shall be
determined
exclusively by | ||
the Commission. All scholarship funds distributed in | ||
accordance
with this
subsection (h) shall be paid to the | ||
qualified Illinois
institution of higher
learning or Service | ||
Academy and used only for payment of the educational
expenses
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incurred by the student in connection with his or her | ||
attendance as an
undergraduate
student or cadet at that | ||
institution or Service Academy, including but not
limited to
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tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, required | ||
Service Academy
uniforms, and travel and personal expenses | ||
related to the student's attendance
at that
institution or | ||
Service Academy. Any Merit Recognition Scholarship awarded
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under
this Section shall be applicable to 2 semesters or 3 | ||
quarters of enrollment.
Should a
qualified student withdraw | ||
from enrollment prior to completion of the first
semester or
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quarter for which the Merit Recognition Scholarship is | ||
applicable, the
student shall
refund to the Commission the | ||
amount of the scholarship received.
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(i) The Commission shall administer the Merit Recognition | ||
Scholarship
program established by this Section and shall make | ||
all necessary and proper
rules, not
inconsistent with this | ||
Section, for its effective implementation.
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(j) When an appropriation to the Commission for purposes of | ||
this Section is
insufficient to provide scholarships to all | ||
qualified students, the Commission
shall
allocate the | ||
appropriation in accordance with this subsection (j). If funds
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are insufficient to provide all qualified students with a | ||
scholarship as
authorized by subsection (g) of this Section, | ||
the Commission shall allocate the
scholarships to qualified | ||
students in order of decreasing relative academic
rank, as | ||
determined by the Commission using a formula based upon the | ||
qualified
student's grade point average, score on the | ||
appropriate statewide standardized
examination, or a | ||
combination of grade point average and standardized test
score. | ||
All Merit Recognition Scholarships awarded shall be in the | ||
amount of
$1,000.
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(k) The Commission, in determining the number of Merit | ||
Recognition
Scholarships to be offered pursuant to subsection | ||
(j) of this Section, shall
take into consideration past | ||
experience with the rate of merit scholarship
funds unclaimed | ||
by qualified students. To the extent necessary to avoid an
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over-commitment of funds, the Commission may allocate | ||
scholarship funds on
the basis of the date the Commission | ||
receives a completed application form.
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(Source: P.A. 91-128, eff. 7-1-00.)
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