2024 -- H 8099

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LC005782

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND PROMISE SCHOLARSHIP

     Introduced By: Representatives Azzinaro, O'Brien, and McNamara

     Date Introduced: March 22, 2024

     Referred To: House Finance

     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, 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; provided, on and after July

1, 2024, the time for students to enroll and attend the community college of Rhode Island and

qualify for the scholarship pursuant to this section shall be extended to up to one year after the

student's high school graduation;

     (3) Must complete the FAFSA and any required FAFSA verification, 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”):

     (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;

     (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; and

     (3) Any student with a disability, otherwise eligible for a scholarship pursuant to the

provisions of this section, as of May 15, 2021, shall be entitled to access this program and shall be

afforded all reasonable accommodations, as required by the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act of

1973, including, but not limited to, enrolling on a part-time basis, attaining a high school

diploma/GED by age twenty-one (21), and taking longer than two (2) years to graduate with an

associate’s degree.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION -- RHODE ISLAND PROMISE SCHOLARSHIP

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     This act would extend the time for which a student may enroll in the community college

of Rhode Island Promise Scholarship program to one year after the student's high school graduation.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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