Public Act 095-0609
 
SB0853 Enrolled LRB095 05567 NHT 25657 b

    AN ACT concerning education.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section
3-15.12 as follows:
 
    (105 ILCS 5/3-15.12)  (from Ch. 122, par. 3-15.12)
    Sec. 3-15.12. High school equivalency testing program. The
regional superintendent of schools shall make available for
qualified individuals residing within the region a High School
Equivalency Testing Program. For that purpose the regional
superintendent alone or with other regional superintendents
may establish and supervise a testing center or centers to
administer the secure forms of the high school level Test of
General Educational Development to qualified persons. Such
centers shall be under the supervision of the regional
superintendent in whose region such centers are located,
subject to the approval of the President of the Illinois
Community College Board.
    An individual is eligible to apply to the regional
superintendent of schools for the region in which he or she
resides if he or she is: (a) a person who is 17 18 years of age
or older, has maintained residence in the State of Illinois,
and is not a high school graduate, but whose high school class
has graduated; (b) a member of the armed forces of the United
States on active duty who is 17 years of age or older and who is
stationed in Illinois or is a legal resident of Illinois; (c) a
ward of the Department of Corrections who is 17 years of age or
older or an inmate confined in any branch of the Illinois State
Penitentiary or in a county correctional facility who is 17
years of age or older; (d) a female who is 17 years of age or
older who is unable to attend school because she is either
pregnant or the mother of one or more children; (e) a male 17
years of age or older who is unable to attend school because he
is a father of one or more children; (f) a person who is
successfully completing an alternative education program under
Section 2-3.81, Article 13A, or Article 13B; or (c) (g) a
person who is enrolled in a youth education program sponsored
by the Illinois National Guard; or (h) a person who is 17 years
of age or older who has been a dropout for a period of at least
one year. For purposes of this Section, residence is that abode
which the applicant considers his or her home. Applicants may
provide as sufficient proof of such residence and as an
acceptable form of identification a driver's license, valid
passport, military ID, or other form of government-issued
national or foreign identification that shows the applicant's
name, address, date of birth, signature, and photograph or
other acceptable identification as may be allowed by law or as
regulated by the Illinois Community College Board picture
identification card and two pieces of correctly addressed and
postmarked mail. Such regional superintendent shall determine
if the applicant meets statutory and regulatory state
standards. If qualified the applicant shall at the time of such
application pay a fee established by the Illinois Community
College Board, which fee shall be paid into a special fund
under the control and supervision of the regional
superintendent. Such moneys received by the regional
superintendent shall be used, first, for the expenses incurred
in administering and scoring the examination, and next for
other educational programs that are developed and designed by
the regional superintendent of schools to assist those who
successfully complete the high school level test of General
Education Development in furthering their academic development
or their ability to secure and retain gainful employment,
including programs for the competitive award based on test
scores of college or adult education scholarship grants or
similar educational incentives. Any excess moneys shall be paid
into the institute fund.
    Any applicant who has achieved the minimum passing
standards as established by the Illinois Community College
Board shall be notified in writing by the regional
superintendent and shall be issued a high school equivalency
certificate on the forms provided by the Illinois Community
College Board. The regional superintendent shall then certify
to the Illinois Community College Board the score of the
applicant and such other and additional information that may be
required by the Illinois Community College Board. The moneys
received therefrom shall be used in the same manner as provided
for in this Section.
    Any applicant who has attained the age of 17 18 years and
maintained residence in the State of Illinois and is not a high
school graduate, any person who has enrolled in a youth
education program sponsored by the Illinois National Guard, but
whose high school class has graduated, any ward of the
Department of Corrections who has attained the age of 17 years,
any inmate confined in any branch of the Illinois State
Penitentiary or in a county correctional facility who has
attained the age of 17 years, any member of the armed forces of
the United States on active duty who has attained the age of 17
years and who is stationed in Illinois or is a legal resident
of Illinois, any female who has attained the age of 17 years
and is either pregnant or the mother of one or more children,
any male who has attained the age of 17 years and is the father
of one or more children, or any person who has successfully
completed an alternative education program under Section
2-3.81, Article 13A, or Article 13B is eligible to apply for a
high school equivalency certificate (if he or she meets the
requirements prescribed by the Illinois Community College
Board) upon showing evidence that he or she has completed,
successfully, the high school level General Educational
Development Tests, administered by the United States Armed
Forces Institute, official GED Centers established in other
states, or at Veterans' Administration Hospitals or the office
of the State Superintendent of Education administered for the
Illinois State Penitentiary System and the Department of
Corrections. Such applicant shall apply to the regional
superintendent of the region wherein he has maintained
residence, and upon payment of a fee established by the
Illinois Community College Board the regional superintendent
shall issue a high school equivalency certificate, and
immediately thereafter certify to the Illinois Community
College Board the score of the applicant and such other and
additional information as may be required by the Illinois
Community College Board.
    Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section, any
applicant who has been out of school for at least one year may
request the regional superintendent of schools to administer
the restricted GED test upon written request of: The director
of a program who certifies to the Chief Examiner of an official
GED center that the applicant has completed a program of
instruction provided by such agencies as the Job Corps, the
Postal Service Academy or apprenticeship training program; an
employer or program director for purposes of entry into
apprenticeship programs; another State Department of Education
in order to meet regulations established by that Department of
Education, a post high school educational institution for
purposes of admission, the Department of Professional
Regulation for licensing purposes, or the Armed Forces for
induction purposes. The regional superintendent shall
administer such test and the applicant shall be notified in
writing that he is eligible to receive the Illinois High School
Equivalency Certificate upon reaching age 17 18, provided he
meets the standards established by the Illinois Community
College Board.
    Any test administered under this Section to an applicant
who does not speak and understand English may at the discretion
of the administering agency be given and answered in any
language in which the test is printed. The regional
superintendent of schools may waive any fees required by this
Section in case of hardship.
    In counties of over 3,000,000 population a GED certificate
shall contain the signatures of the President of the Illinois
Community College Board, the superintendent, president or
other chief executive officer of the institution where GED
instruction occurred and any other signatures authorized by the
Illinois Community College Board.
    The regional superintendent of schools shall furnish the
Illinois Community College Board with any information that the
Illinois Community College Board requests with regard to
testing and certificates under this Section.
(Source: P.A. 94-108, eff. 7-1-05.)