HB4652 EnrolledLRB098 16800 KTG 55350 b

1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended
5by changing Section 8 as follows:
 
6    (20 ILCS 505/8)  (from Ch. 23, par. 5008)
7    Sec. 8. Scholarships and fee waivers. Each year the
8Department shall select a minimum of 53 students (at least 4 of
9whom shall be children of veterans) to receive scholarships and
10fee waivers which will enable them to attend and complete their
11post-secondary education at a community college, university,
12or college. Youth shall be selected from among the youth for
13whom the Department has court-ordered legal responsibility,
14may select from among the youth under care, youth who aged out
15of care at age 18 or older, or youth formerly under care who
16have been adopted or who have been placed in private
17guardianship. Recipients must or are in a guardianship
18placement, a maximum of 48 students (at least 4 of whom shall
19be children of veterans) who have earned a high school diploma
20from an accredited institution, a General Education
21Development certificate or diploma, or have met the State
22criteria for high school graduation before the start of the
23school year for which they are applying for the scholarship and

 

 

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1waiver. a public school district or a recognized nonpublic
2school or a certificate of general education development (GED),
3or who have met the State criteria for high school graduation ;
4the youth selected shall be eligible for scholarships and fee
5waivers which will entitle them to 4 consecutive years of
6community college, university, or college education.
7Scholarships and fee waivers shall be available to students for
8at least 5 years, provided they are continuing to work toward
9graduation. Unused scholarship dollars and fee waivers shall be
10reallocated to new recipients. No later than January 1, 2015,
11the Department shall promulgate rules identifying the criteria
12for "continuing to work toward graduation", and for
13reallocating unused scholarships and fee waivers. Selection
14shall be made on the basis of several factors, including, but
15not limited to, scholastic record, aptitude, and general
16interest in higher education. The selection committee shall
17include at least 2 individuals formerly under the care of the
18Department who have completed their post-secondary education.
19In accordance with this Act, tuition scholarships and fee
20waivers shall be available to such students at any university
21or college maintained by the State of Illinois. The Department
22shall provide maintenance and school expenses, except tuition
23and fees, during the academic years to supplement the students'
24earnings or other resources so long as they consistently
25maintain scholastic records which are acceptable to their
26schools and to the Department. Students may attend other

 

 

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1colleges and universities, if scholarships are awarded them,
2and receive the same benefits for maintenance and other
3expenses as those students attending any Illinois State
4community college, university, or college under this Section.
5Beginning with recipients receiving scholarships and waivers
6in August 2014, the Department shall collect data and report
7annually to the General Assembly on measures of success
8including (i) the number of youth applying for and receiving
9scholarships, (ii) the percentage of scholarship recipients
10who complete their college or university degree within 5 years,
11(iii) the average length of time it takes for scholarship
12recipients to complete their college or university degree, (iv)
13the reasons that scholarship recipients are discharged or fail
14to complete their college or university degree, (v) when
15available youths' outcomes 5 years and 10 years after being
16awarded the scholarships, and (vi) budget allocations for
17maintenance and school expenses incurred by the Department.
18(Source: P.A. 97-799, eff. 7-13-12.)