| Chapter 277 |
| 2021 -- S 0993 Enacted 07/09/2021 |
| A N A C T |
| RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND PROMISE SCHOLARSHIP |
Introduced By: Senator Frank A. Ciccone |
| Date Introduced: June 28, 2021 |
| It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows: |
| SECTION 1. Section 16-107-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 16-107 entitled "Rhode |
| Island Promise Scholarship" is hereby amended to read as follows: |
| 16-107-6. Eligibility for scholarship. |
| (a) Beginning with the students who enroll at the community college of Rhode Island in |
| the fall of 2017 and ending with students who enroll at the community college of Rhode Island in |
| the fall of 2021, to be considered for the scholarship, a student: |
| (1) Must qualify for in-state tuition and fees pursuant to the residency policy adopted by |
| the council on postsecondary education, as amended, supplemented, restated, or otherwise modified |
| from time to time ("residency policy"); provided, that, the student must have satisfied the high |
| school graduation/equivalency diploma condition prior to reaching nineteen (19) years of age; |
| provided, further, that in addition to the option of meeting the requirement by receiving a high |
| school equivalency diploma as described in the residency policy, the student can satisfy the |
| condition by receiving other certificates or documents of equivalent nature from the state or its |
| municipalities as recognized by applicable regulations promulgated by the council on elementary |
| and secondary education; |
| (2) Must be admitted to, and must enroll and attend the community college of Rhode Island |
| on a full-time basis by the semester immediately following high school graduation or the semester |
| immediately following receipt of a high school equivalency diploma; |
| (3) Must complete the FAFSA and any required FAFSA verification, by or for persons who |
| are legally unable to complete the FAFSA must complete a comparable form created by the |
| community college of Rhode Island by the deadline prescribed by the community college of Rhode |
| Island for each year in which the student seeks to receive funding under the scholarship program; |
| (4) Must continue to be enrolled on a full-time basis; |
| (5) Must maintain an average annual cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.5 or |
| greater, as determined by the community college of Rhode Island; |
| (6) Must remain on track to graduate on time as determined by the community college of |
| Rhode Island; |
| (7) Must not have already received an award under this scholarship program; and |
| (8) Must commit to live, work, or continue their education in Rhode Island after graduation. |
| The community college of Rhode Island shall develop a policy that will secure this |
| commitment from recipient students. |
| (b) Notwithstanding the eligibility requirements under subsection (a) of this section |
| ("specified conditions"): |
| (i) (1) In the case of a recipient student who has an approved medical or personal leave of |
| absence or is unable to satisfy one or more specified conditions because of the student's medical or |
| personal circumstances, the student may continue to receive an award under the scholarship |
| program upon resuming the student's education so long as the student continues to meet all other |
| applicable eligibility requirements; and |
| (ii) (2) In the case of a recipient student who is a member of the national guard or a member |
| of a reserve unit of a branch of the United States military and is unable to satisfy one or more |
| specified conditions because the student is or will be in basic or special military training, or is or |
| will be participating in a deployment of the student's guard or reserve unit, the student may continue |
| to receive an award under the scholarship program upon completion of the student's basic or special |
| military training or deployment. |
| SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage. |
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| LC003108 |
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