093_SB0204

 
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 1        AN ACT concerning a youth service scholarship program.

 2        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 3    represented in the General Assembly:

 4        Section 1.  Short title.  This Act may be  cited  as  the
 5    Youth Service Scholarship Act.

 6        Section  5.  Intent.   It  is  the  intent of the General
 7    Assembly to establish the Youth Service  Scholarship  Program
 8    to accomplish all of the following goals:
 9        (1)  Provide  this State's youth with opportunities to do
10    all of the following:
11             (A)  Give back to their communities through service.
12             (B)  Enhance their access to a college education.
13             (C)  Develop, in "real life" situations, the  skills
14        and   understanding  critical  to  their  development  as
15        students, workers, and community members.
16             (D)  Develop a  lifelong  ethic  of  service  and  a
17        richer  understanding  of  citizenship  in  a  democratic
18        society.
19        (2)  Deter juvenile delinquency by providing this State's
20    youth  with  after  school and intersession alternatives that
21    promote public service.
22        (3)  Form a partnership  between  schools  and  community
23    organizations   dedicated   to  building  responsibility  and
24    broadening higher education opportunities  for  this  State's
25    youth.
26        (4)  Mobilize  youth,  an  often  neglected  resource, in
27    service that meets the critical needs  of  their  communities
28    by,  for  example,  tutoring  preschool  children in reading,
29    assisting licensed providers' care for infants and  toddlers,
30    helping   with   after   school   recreational  programs  and
31    nutritional programs for elementary  school  pupils,  helping
 
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 1    the  frail and elderly to live independently, contributing to
 2    neighborhood cleanup and housing rehabilitation projects, and
 3    assisting  their  peers  to  become  involved  in   community
 4    service.

 5        Section 10.  Definitions.  In this Act:
 6        "Commission"    means    the   Illinois   Commission   on
 7    Volunteerism and Community Service.
 8        "Program" means the Youth Service Scholarship Program.

 9        Section 15.  Establishment of  Program;  availability  to
10    consortia.
11        (a)  There   is  hereby  established  the  Youth  Service
12    Scholarship Program, a pilot program, to be  administered  by
13    the  Commission.   The  Program shall be in effect for fiscal
14    years 2004 through  2008,  and  the  Program  shall  be  made
15    available  to  consortia  that  are  comprised of one or more
16    school districts that operate schools with grades  9  through
17    12   and  at  least  3  community-based  organizations.   The
18    consortia shall be selected for participation in the  program
19    on a competitive basis by the Commission.
20        (b)  A  pupil  may  be selected by a consortium to earn a
21    scholarship while the pupil is enrolled in any  of  grades  9
22    through  12  in a public school located in this State that is
23    involved  in  the  consortium.   The  pupil  may  redeem  the
24    scholarship if the pupil  enrolls  in  a  private  or  public
25    postsecondary or vocational institution located in this State
26    by  December  1  of  the  year  the pupil graduates from high
27    school or receives a high school equivalency certificate.   A
28    student  may  defer redeeming the scholarship for 2 years.  A
29    pupil wishing to defer his or her  scholarship  shall  notify
30    the  Commission,  in  writing,  by December 1 of the year the
31    pupil graduates from high school or receives  a  high  school
32    equivalency  certificate.   A  pupil may also defer redeeming
 
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 1    the scholarship for longer than 2 years if the  pupil  enters
 2    service in AmeriCorps, another national service program, or a
 3    branch of the United States Armed Services, in which case the
 4    scholarship shall be redeemed upon completion of the service.
 5    The  Commission  may grant a request to delay redemption of a
 6    scholarship beyond 2 years for other reasons  on  a  case  by
 7    case basis.
 8        (c)  In  the  event  that the Commission ceases to exist,
 9    the Program shall be administered  by  the  Illinois  Student
10    Assistance Commission.

11        Section  20.  Award  of scholarships.  Upon completion of
12    100 hours of volunteer community service, as defined  by  the
13    Commission  pursuant  to  Section  35  of this Act, performed
14    between September 1 of one year and August  31  of  the  next
15    year, a pupil shall earn a scholarship in the amount of $500.
16    The  maximum  amount  of  a scholarship is $2,000, provided a
17    pupil performs  the  required  amount  of  community  service
18    during each of grades 9 through 12.  A scholarship shall only
19    be  used  for  tuition,  fees,  books,  supplies,  and living
20    expenses. If possible, an equal number of scholarships  shall
21    be awarded to pupils enrolled in each of grades 9 through 12.

22        Section 25.  Service sites.
23        (a)  The  community  service  described  in Section 20 of
24    this Act shall only be performed at service  sites  that  are
25    approved  by the consortium, based on guidelines developed by
26    the Commission, pursuant to Sections 30 and 35 of this Act.
27        (b)  A service site may not provide any salary or stipend
28    to the pupils performing  community  service  in  conjunction
29    with the Program.
30        (c)  Any  public  or private not for profit organization,
31    including a school, located in  this  State  is  eligible  to
32    participate  as  a service site if the service to be provided
 
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 1    by pupils seeking to earn scholarships meets  the  definition
 2    of  community service developed by the Commission pursuant to
 3    Section 35 of this Act.
 4        (d)  The consortia shall give priority to  service  sites
 5    that  meet the needs of low-income youth or focus on reducing
 6    juvenile delinquency, or both.
 7        (e)  The  Commission  shall  ensure  that  consortia  and
 8    participating service sites comply with all applicable  State
 9    and federal child welfare laws.

10        Section   30.  Selection   of   pupils   and   consortia;
11    application.
12        (a)  The  Commission  shall develop guidelines to be used
13    by the consortia to  select  pupils  to  participate  in  the
14    Program.   These  guidelines shall give selection priority to
15    pupils  who  will  participate  in  academically   meaningful
16    community service.
17        (b)  The   Commission   shall   develop   guidelines  for
18    selecting consortia for participation in  the  Program.   The
19    Commission   shall   give   priority   to  consortia  with  a
20    participating school district that serves a  high  percentage
21    of  students  qualifying  for  a free lunch under the federal
22    Child Nutrition Act of 1966.
23        (c)  The Commission shall attempt  to  include  an  equal
24    distribution  of consortia serving urban, rural, and suburban
25    communities.
26        (d)  The Commission shall develop an application form and
27    instructions for  completion  of  the  form  to  be  used  by
28    consortia  when  applying  for  participation in the program.
29    The Commission shall notify  all  eligible  school  districts
30    about the Program and shall include a copy of the application
31    form and instructions with the notice.

32        Section  35.  Community service defined.  The Commission,
 
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 1    in consultation with the  State  Board  of  Education,  shall
 2    define eligible community service based on the definitions of
 3    community  service used in the federal work-study program and
 4    the National and Community Service Act of 1990, as amended by
 5    the National and Community Service Trust Act of 1993.

 6        Section 40.  Administrative costs.  Administrative  costs
 7    under  this Act shall not exceed actual costs up to a maximum
 8    of 10% in fiscal year 2004 and 6% thereafter. The  Commission
 9    shall  reimburse  a  participating  school  district within a
10    consortium for administrative costs incurred in administering
11    the Program, in an amount that does  not  exceed  5%  of  the
12    amount  of  each  scholarship  administered  by  that  school
13    district.

14        Section 45.  Study.  By July 1, 2007 the Commission shall
15    submit to the General Assembly a study of the efficacy of the
16    Program.  The study shall include, but is not limited to, all
17    of the following:
18             (1)  The demand for scholarships by grade level.
19             (2)  The  demand  for  pupil participants by service
20        sites.
21             (3)  General background data on participating pupils
22        and consortia.
23             (4)  Types of  service  performed  by  participating
24        pupils.
25             (5)  An  itemization  of costs for administering the
26        Program.

27        Section 50.  Appropriation of funds.  This Act  shall  be
28    implemented  only  to  the extent that funds for that purpose
29    are appropriated.

30        Section 990.  Repealer.  This Act is repealed on  January
 
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 1    1, 2009.

 2        Section 999.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect upon
 3    becoming law.