Sen. Sara Feigenholtz

Filed: 3/5/2024

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 3138

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 3138 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is
5amended by changing Section 8 as follows:
 
6    (20 ILCS 505/8)  (from Ch. 23, par. 5008)
7    Sec. 8. Scholarships and fee waivers; tuition waiver.
8    (a) Each year the Department shall select a minimum of 53
9students (at least 4 of whom shall be children of veterans) to
10receive scholarships and fee waivers which will enable them to
11attend and complete their post-secondary education at a
12community college, university, or college. Youth shall be
13selected from among the youth for whom the Department has
14court-ordered legal responsibility, youth who aged out of care
15at age 18 or older, or youth formerly under care who have been
16adopted or who have been placed in private guardianship.

 

 

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1Recipients must have earned a high school diploma from an
2accredited institution or a State of Illinois High School
3Diploma or have met the State criteria for high school
4graduation before the start of the school year for which they
5are applying for the scholarship and waiver. Scholarships and
6fee waivers shall be available to students for at least 5
7years, provided they are continuing to work toward graduation
8and completion of a certificate or degree program. Unused
9scholarship dollars and fee waivers shall be reallocated to
10new recipients. No later than January 1, 2015, the Department
11shall promulgate rules identifying the criteria for
12"continuing to work toward graduation" and for reallocating
13unused scholarships and fee waivers. Selection shall be made
14on the basis of several factors, including, but not limited
15to, scholastic record, aptitude, and general interest in
16higher education. The selection committee shall include at
17least 2 individuals formerly under the care of the Department
18who have completed their post-secondary education. In
19accordance with this Act, tuition scholarships and fee waivers
20shall be available to such students at any university or
21college 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
24students' earnings or other resources so long as they
25consistently maintain scholastic records which are acceptable
26to their schools and to the Department. Students may attend

 

 

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1other colleges and universities, if scholarships are awarded
2to them, and receive the same benefits for maintenance and
3other expenses 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 or waivers, (ii) the percentage of scholarship or
10waiver recipients who complete their college or university
11degree within 5 years, (iii) the average length of time it
12takes for scholarship or waiver recipients to complete their
13college or university degree, (iv) the reasons that
14scholarship or waiver recipients are discharged or fail to
15complete their college or university degree, (v) when
16available, youths' outcomes 5 years and 10 years after being
17awarded the scholarships or waivers, and (vi) budget
18allocations for maintenance and school expenses incurred by
19the Department.
20    (b) Youth shall receive a tuition and fee waiver to assist
21them in attending and completing their post-secondary
22education at any community college, university, or college
23maintained by the State of Illinois if they are youth for whom
24the Department has court-ordered legal responsibility, youth
25who aged out of care at age 18 or older, or youth formerly
26under care who have been adopted and were the subject of an

 

 

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1adoption assistance agreement or who have been placed in
2private guardianship and were the subject of a subsidized
3guardianship agreement.
4    To receive a waiver under this subsection, an applicant
5must:
6        (1) have earned a high school diploma from an
7    accredited institution or a State of Illinois High School
8    Diploma or have met the State criteria for high school
9    graduation before the start of the school year for which
10    the applicant is applying for the waiver;
11        (2) enroll in a qualifying post-secondary education
12    before the applicant reaches the age of 26; and
13        (3) apply for federal and State grant assistance by
14    completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
15    The community college or public university that an
16applicant attends must waive any tuition and fee amounts that
17exceed the amounts paid to the applicant under the federal
18Pell Grant Program or the State's Monetary Award Program.
19    Tuition and fee waivers shall be available to a student
20for at least the first 5 years the student is enrolled in a
21community college, university, or college maintained by the
22State of Illinois so long as the student continues to work
23toward graduation and completion of a certificate or degree
24program. makes satisfactory progress toward completing the
25student's degree. The age requirement and 5-year cap on
26tuition and fee waivers under this subsection shall be waived

 

 

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1and eligibility for tuition and fee waivers shall be extended
2for any applicant or student who the Department determines was
3unable to enroll in a qualifying post-secondary school or
4complete an academic term because the applicant or student:
5(i) was called into active duty with the United States Armed
6Forces; (ii) was deployed for service in the United States
7Public Health Service Commissioned Corps; or (iii) volunteered
8in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps. The Department shall
9extend eligibility for a qualifying applicant or student by
10the total number of months or years during which the applicant
11or student served on active duty with the United States Armed
12Forces, was deployed for service in the United States Public
13Health Service Commissioned Corps, or volunteered in the Peace
14Corps or the AmeriCorps. The number of months an applicant or
15student served on active duty with the United States Armed
16Forces shall be rounded up to the next higher year to determine
17the maximum length of time to extend eligibility for the
18applicant or student.
19    The Department may provide the student with a stipend to
20cover maintenance and school expenses, except tuition and
21fees, during the academic years to supplement the student's
22earnings or other resources so long as the student
23consistently maintains scholastic records which are acceptable
24to the student's school and to the Department.
25    The Department shall develop outreach programs to ensure
26that youths who qualify for the tuition and fee waivers under

 

 

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1this subsection who are high school students in grades 9
2through 12 or who are enrolled in a high school equivalency
3testing program are aware of the availability of the tuition
4and fee waivers.
5    (c) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall provide
6eligible youth an apprenticeship stipend to cover those costs
7associated with entering and sustaining through completion an
8apprenticeship, including, but not limited to fees, tuition
9for classes, work clothes, rain gear, boots, and
10occupation-specific tools. The following youth may be eligible
11for the apprenticeship stipend provided under this subsection:
12youth for whom the Department has court-ordered legal
13responsibility; youth who aged out of care at age 18 or older;
14or youth formerly under care who have been adopted and were the
15subject of an adoption assistance agreement or who have been
16placed in private guardianship and were the subject of a
17subsidized guardianship agreement.
18    To receive a stipend under this subsection, an applicant
19must:
20        (1) be enrolled in an apprenticeship training program
21    approved or recognized by the Illinois Department of
22    Employment Security or an apprenticeship program approved
23    by the United States Department of Labor;
24        (2) not be a recipient of a scholarship or fee waiver
25    under subsection (a) or (b); and
26        (3) be under the age of 26 before enrolling in a

 

 

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1    qualified apprenticeship program.
2    Apprenticeship stipends shall be available to an eligible
3youth for a maximum of 5 years after the youth enrolls in a
4qualifying apprenticeship program so long as the youth makes
5satisfactory progress toward completing the youth's
6apprenticeship. The age requirement and 5-year cap on the
7apprenticeship stipend provided under this subsection shall be
8extended for any applicant who the Department determines was
9unable to enroll in a qualifying apprenticeship program
10because the applicant: (i) was called into active duty with
11the United States Armed Forces; (ii) was deployed for service
12in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps;
13or (iii) volunteered in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps. The
14Department shall extend eligibility for a qualifying applicant
15by the total number of months or years during which the
16applicant served on active duty with the United States Armed
17Forces, was deployed for service in the United States Public
18Health Service Commissioned Corps, or volunteered in the Peace
19Corps or the AmeriCorps. The number of months an applicant
20served on active duty with the United States Armed Forces
21shall be rounded up to the next higher year to determine the
22maximum length of time to extend eligibility for the
23applicant.
24    The Department shall develop outreach programs to ensure
25that youths who qualify for the apprenticeship stipends under
26this subsection who are high school students in grades 9

 

 

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1through 12 or who are enrolled in a high school equivalency
2testing program are aware of the availability of the
3apprenticeship stipend.
4(Source: P.A. 102-1100, eff. 1-1-23; 103-22, eff. 8-8-23;
5103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)
 
6    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
7becoming law.".