Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of SB0661
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Full Text of SB0661  102nd General Assembly

SB0661ham001 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Rep. Lindsey LaPointe

Filed: 5/11/2021

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 661

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 661 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Higher Education Student Assistance Act is
5amended by adding Section 65.110 as follows:
 
6    (110 ILCS 947/65.110 new)
7    Sec. 65.110. Post-Master of Social Work School Social Work
8Professional Educator License scholarship.
9    (a) Subject to appropriation, beginning with awards for
10the 2022-2023 academic year, the Commission shall award
11annually up to 250 Post-Master of Social Work School Social
12Work Professional Educator License scholarships to a person
13who:
14        (1) holds a valid Illinois-licensed clinical social
15    work license or social work license;
16        (2) has obtained a master's degree in social work from

 

 

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1    an approved program;
2        (3) is a United States citizen or eligible noncitizen;
3    and
4        (4) submits an application to the Commission for such
5    scholarship and agrees to take courses to obtain an
6    Illinois Professional Educator License with an endorsement
7    in School Social Work.
8    (b) If an appropriation for this Section for a given
9fiscal year is insufficient to provide scholarships to all
10qualified applicants, the Commission shall allocate the
11appropriation in accordance with this subsection (b). If funds
12are insufficient to provide all qualified applicants with a
13scholarship as authorized by this Section, the Commission
14shall allocate the available scholarship funds for that fiscal
15year to qualified applicants who submit a complete application
16on or before a date specified by the Commission, based on the
17following order of priority:
18        (1) firstly, to students who received a scholarship
19    under this Section in the prior academic year and who
20    remain eligible for a scholarship under this Section;
21        (2) secondly, to new, qualified applicants who are
22    members of a racial minority, as defined in subsection
23    (c); and
24        (3) finally, to other new, qualified applicants in
25    accordance with this Section.
26    (c) Scholarships awarded under this Section shall be

 

 

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1issued pursuant to rules adopted by the Commission. In
2awarding scholarships, the Commission shall give priority to
3those applicants who are members of a racial minority. Racial
4minorities are underrepresented as school social workers in
5elementary and secondary schools in this State, and the
6General Assembly finds that it is in the interest of this State
7to provide them with priority consideration for programs that
8encourage their participation in this field and thereby foster
9a profession that is more reflective of the diversity of
10Illinois students and the parents they will serve. A more
11reflective workforce in school social work allows improved
12outcomes for students and a better utilization of services.
13Therefore, the Commission shall give priority to those
14applicants who are members of a racial minority. In this
15subsection (c), "racial minority" means a person who is a
16citizen of the United States or a lawful permanent resident
17alien of the United States and who is:
18        (1) Black (a person having origins in any of the black
19    racial groups in Africa);
20        (2) Hispanic (a person of Spanish or Portuguese
21    culture with origins in Mexico, South or Central America,
22    or the Caribbean Islands, regardless of race);
23        (3) Asian American (a person having origins in any of
24    the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the
25    Indian Subcontinent, or the Pacific Islands); or
26        (4) American Indian or Alaskan Native (a person having

 

 

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1    origins in any of the original peoples of North America).
2    (d) Each scholarship shall be applied to the payment of
3tuition and mandatory fees at the University of Illinois,
4Southern Illinois University, Chicago State University,
5Eastern Illinois University, Governors State University,
6Illinois State University, Northeastern Illinois University,
7Northern Illinois University, and Western Illinois University.
8Each scholarship may be applied to pay tuition and mandatory
9fees required to obtain an Illinois Professional Educator
10License with an endorsement in School Social Work.
11    (e) The Commission shall make tuition and fee payments
12directly to the qualified institution of higher learning that
13the applicant attends.
14    (f) Any person who has accepted a scholarship under this
15Section must, within one year after graduation or termination
16of enrollment in a Post-Master of Social Work Professional
17Education License with an endorsement in School Social Work
18program, begin working as a school social worker at a public or
19nonpublic not-for-profit preschool, elementary school, or
20secondary school located in this State for at least 2 of the 5
21years immediately following that graduation or termination,
22excluding, however, from the computation of that 5-year
23period: (i) any time up to 3 years spent in the military
24service, whether such service occurs before or after the
25person graduates; (ii) the time that person is a person with a
26temporary total disability for a period of time not to exceed 3

 

 

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1years, as established by the sworn affidavit of a qualified
2physician; and (iii) the time that person is seeking and
3unable to find full-time employment as a school social worker
4at a State public or nonpublic not-for profit preschool,
5elementary school, or secondary school.
6    (g) If a recipient of a scholarship under this Section
7fails to fulfill the work obligation set forth in subsection
8(f), the Commission shall require the recipient to repay the
9amount of the scholarships received, prorated according to the
10fraction of the obligation not completed, at a rate of
11interest equal to 5%, and, if applicable, reasonable
12collection fees. The Commission is authorized to establish
13rules relating to its collection activities for repayment of
14scholarships under this Section. All repayments collected
15under this Section shall be forwarded to the State Comptroller
16for deposit into this State's General Revenue Fund.
17    A recipient of a scholarship under this Section is not
18considered to be in violation of the failure to fulfill the
19work obligation under subsection (f) if the recipient (i)
20enrolls on a full-time basis as a graduate student in a course
21of study related to the field of social work at a qualified
22Illinois institution of higher learning; (ii) is serving, not
23in excess of 3 years, as a member of the armed services of the
24United States; (iii) is a person with a temporary total
25disability for a period of time not to exceed 3 years, as
26established by the sworn affidavit of a qualified physician;

 

 

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1(iv) is seeking and unable to find full-time employment as a
2school social worker at an Illinois public or nonpublic
3not-for-profit preschool, elementary school, or secondary
4school that satisfies the criteria set forth in subsection (f)
5and is able to provide evidence of that fact; or (v) becomes a
6person with a permanent total disability, as established by
7the sworn affidavit of a qualified physician.
 
8    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
91, 2022.".