MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2018 Regular Session
To: Universities and Colleges
By: Representatives Mettetal, Sykes, Gibbs (72nd), Gibbs (36th), Holloway, Walker, Barnett, Dixon, Miles, Karriem
AN ACT TO ESTABLISH THE "MISSISSIPPI CAREER-TECH SCHOLARS PROGRAM" FOR THE PURPOSE OF ESTABLISHING LAST MINUTE SCHOLARSHIPS AND FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR ELIGIBLE STUDENTS WHO ENROLL IN CERTAIN CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION PROGRAMS AT PUBLIC COMMUNITY AND JUNIOR COLLEGES, WHICH SUCH PROGRAMS ARE IDENTIFIED THROUGH SECTOR ANALYSIS TO MEET STATE WORKFORCE DEMANDS; TO PRESCRIBE THE CRITERIA THAT QUALIFIES A STUDENT FOR ELIGIBILITY TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PROGRAM; TO PROVIDE THAT THE BENEFITS OF THE PROGRAM ARE NONTRANSFERRABLE, AND ARE SPECIFIC TO THE PUBLIC COMMUNITY OR JUNIOR COLLEGE OF INITIAL ENROLLMENT; TO PROVIDE THAT A STUDENT IS NO LONGER ELIGIBLE FOR THE PROGRAM ONCE THE STUDENT EARNS AN ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE DEGREE FROM A PUBLIC COMMUNITY OR JUNIOR COLLEGE; TO REQUIRE THE MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD, WITH ASSISTANCE FROM THE POSTSECONDARY FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE BOARD, TO PROVIDE AN ANNUAL EVALUATION REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE BY SEPTEMBER 1 OF EACH YEAR, TO INCLUDE NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS, PROGRAM COSTS AND APPROVED CAREER-TECH PROGRAMS; TO AUTHORIZE EACH COMMUNITY AND JUNIOR COLLEGE TO ESTABLISH AN APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION DEADLINES FOR THE PROGRAM; TO REQUIRE THE MISSISSIPPI DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (MDA), IN COLLABORATION WITH THE MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD AND THE MISSISSIPPI ASSOCIATION OF COMMUNITY AND JUNIOR COLLEGES, TO SELECT SECTOR STRATEGIES AND ELIGIBLE CAREER-TECH PROGRAMS; TO REQUIRE THE STATE LONGITUDINAL DATA SYSTEM TO PROVIDE THE INFORMATION USED TO IDENTIFY OCCUPATIONAL SECTORS WHERE THE MOST OPPORTUNITIES AND WORKFORCE NEEDS EXIST; TO REQUIRE MDA TO PROMOTE ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES IN ELIGIBLE OCCUPATIONS; TO REQUIRE THE STATE WORKFORCE INVESTMENT BOARD TO COORDINATE WORKFORCE ACTIVITIES THAT PROVIDE THE NECESSARY ADDITIONAL SUPPORT SERVICES TO ASSIST PARTICIPANTS IN SUCCEEDING IN THE PROGRAM AND IN THE LABOR MARKET; TO REQUIRE EACH PUBLIC AND JUNIOR COLLEGE TO HAVE A MINIMUM OF ONE CAREER-TECH PROGRAM APPROVED FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM, WHICH IS CONSISTENT WITH SECTORS IDENTIFIED BY THE FOUR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS IN THE STATE; TO REQUIRE THE OCCUPATIONAL SECTORS AND CAREER-TECH PROGRAMS TO BE REVIEWED EVERY TWO YEARS BY MDA AMD THE MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD; TO PROVIDE THAT THE PROGRAM SHALL BE ADMINISTERED BY THE STATE FINANCIAL AID OFFICE OF THE POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE BOARD; TO PROVIDE THAT NO GENERAL FUNDS APPROPRIATED AND EXPENDED FOR THE PURPOSE OF THE PROGRAM SHALL BE USED TO REPLACE ANY OTHER FEDERAL, STATE, LOCAL OR INSTITUTIONAL FUNDS; TO PROVIDE THAT THE ESTABLISHMENT AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE PROGRAM IS CONTINGENT UPON LEGISLATION APPROPRIATIONS FOR SUCH PURPOSES; TO PROVIDE THAT THE APPROPRIATION FOR THE PROGRAM SHALL BE MADE TO THE STATE FINANCIAL AID OFFICE OF THE POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE BOARD AND SHALL BE IN ADDITION TO THE ANNUAL APPROPRIATION RECEIVED BY EACH COMMUNITY AND JUNIOR COLLEGE; TO PROVIDE THAT ANY UNFUNDED TUITION SHALL BE THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT; TO PROVIDE THAT ANY UNXEPENDED FUNDS OF THE AMOUNTS APPROPRIATED SHALL NOT LAPSE INTO THE GENERAL FUND AT THE END OF THE FISCAL YEAR, BUT MAY BE CARRIED FORWARD TO THE SUCCEEDING FISCAL YEAR; TO PROVIDE PRIORITY TO MILITARY PERSONNEL IF PROGRAM ENROLLMENT REACHES CAPACITY; TO BRING FORWARD SECTIONS 37-103-7 AND 37-103-15, MISSISSIPPI CODE OF 1972, FOR THE PURPOSE OF POSSIBLE AMENDMENTS; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:
SECTION 1. Sections 1 through 6 of this act shall be known as the "Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program Act."
SECTION 2. (1) The Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program is established to serve as a last dollar scholarship program for eligible students by providing financial assistance to those students who enroll in career and technical education programs identified through sector analysis to meet the workforce demands of the state.
(2) To be eligible to participate in the program, a student must:
(a) Be a legal resident of the State of Mississippi as provided under Section 37-103-7 or Section 37-103-15, if legally married;
(b) Be admitted to a public community or junior college and apply for and accept all offers for all available federal, state and institutional aid;
(c) Enroll in a minimum of fifteen (15) credit hours in an approved and/or identified career-tech program offered at a public community or junior college; and
(d) For participants employed full time, the student must provide a letter from the employer to certify employment and must maintain a minimum of nine (9) credit hours each semester in a credit-bearing approved/identified career-tech program offered at one of the public community or junior colleges.
(3) Once admitted into the program, participating students must:
(a) Maintain a 2.0 GPA each semester; and
(b) Participate in available work-based learning opportunities in the selected field of study, if the business or industry provides this option.
(4) The benefits of the Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program are nontransferrable, and are specific to the public community or junior college of initial enrollment. A student who transfers to another public community or junior college shall not be eligible for the program at the transfer institution.
(5) Once program participants earn an associate of applied science degree from a public community or junior college, said participants are no longer eligible for the program.
SECTION 3. (1) By September 1 of each program year, the Mississippi Community College Board, with assistance from the Postsecondary Financial Assistance Board, shall provide to the Legislature an evaluation of the program from the previous fiscal year. The report shall include the number of participants in the program, the cost associated with the program, approved career-tech programs in which participants enrolled and progress made by participants toward a degree or certificate.
(2) It shall be the responsibility of each community and junior college to establish an application, including specific submission deadlines, for the program. Applications for the program shall include information about how students can apply for and receive federal, state and institutional aid. Additionally, program participants shall work with the financial aid office of the community college of enrollment to determine what additional financial assistance is available in the form of scholarships and grants.
SECTION 4. (1) Sector strategies and eligible career-tech programs shall be selected by the Mississippi Development Authority (MDA), in collaboration with the Mississippi Community College Board and the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges, which shall work to identify eligible occupations within sectors of interest to the state and work with local economic developers to identify eligible occupations in sectors of importance at the local level.
(2) The State Longitudinal Data System (SLDS) shall provide the information to identify those occupational sectors where the most opportunities and workforce needs exist.
(3) The Mississippi Development Authority shall be responsible for promoting economic opportunities in eligible occupations for individuals who engage in programs designed to help them gain the necessary academic and industry credentials along with life and practical skills to include apprenticeship programs or the Mississippi Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (MI-BEST) program offered at community and junior colleges.
(4) The State Workforce Investment Board (SWIB) shall be responsible for coordinating workforce activities that will provide the necessary additional support services to assist participants in succeeding in the community college program and in the labor market.
(5) (a) Each public community and junior college shall have a minimum of one (1) approved career-tech program to participate in the scholarship program.
(b) Approved programs shall be consistent with those sectors identified by the four (4) workforce development districts across the state, and the career-tech programs shall lead to high-skill, high-wage jobs.
(c) Sectors and eligible career-tech programs shall be reviewed every two (2) years by the Mississippi Development Authority and the Mississippi Community College Board to ensure job availability remains current.
SECTION 5. The Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program shall be administered by the State Financial Aid Office of the Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board. The Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board, with the assistance of the Mississippi Development Authority, the Mississippi Community College Board, and the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges shall establish eligible career-tech programs at the community and junior colleges.
SECTION 6. (1) It is the intention of the Legislature that no general funds authorized to be expended for the purpose of the Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program shall be used to replace federal funds, other state funds, local government funds and/or institutional funds, which are being used to assist students with the cost of tuition authorized under the provisions of this act and which are withdrawn and no longer available.
(2) The program shall be contingent upon the availability of funds appropriated by the Legislature. Funds appropriated for the program shall be in addition to the annual appropriations received by each community and junior college for operations.
(3) (a) The Mississippi Community College Board shall determine, for each fall and spring semester, the state's actual share of the cost of the program for each community and junior college.
(b) If legislative funding is not sufficient to meet the needs of all eligible students, the State Financial Aid Office shall reduce the allocation of funds to each college in proportion to the state's actual share of the cost of the program for each community and junior college, in order to determine the unfunded tuition cost at each college and to calculate the reduced amount to allocate and distribute to each college.
(4) Funding for the Mississippi Career-Tech Scholars Program shall be appropriated to the State Financial Aid Office of the Postsecondary Education Financial Assistance Board.
(5) Any unfunded tuition shall be the responsibility of the student.
(6) Any funds appropriated for this act which are not expended during the fiscal year for which they were appropriated shall not lapse into the State General Fund, but shall remain inviolate, and shall be carried forward for the same purposes during the succeeding fiscal year.
(7) Public and private entities that provide financial contributions to existing community or junior college tuition guarantee programs may and are encouraged to continue to do so.
(8) In accordance with Section 37-103-25, each community and junior college shall be solely responsible for setting tuition and fees to be paid by students.
(9) Students who participate in the program shall be eligible for community and junior college reimbursement purposes of state appropriations, provided that said students meet established admission and attendance requirements.
(10) Should approved career-tech programs reach enrollment capacity, priority shall be given to military personnel.
SECTION 7. Section 37-103-7, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
37-103-7. For purposes of determining whether a person pays out-of-state or in-state tuition for attendance at universities and community and junior colleges, the residence of a person less than twenty-one (21) years of age is that of the father, the mother or a general guardian duly appointed by a proper court in Mississippi. If a court has granted custody of the minor to one (1) parent, the residence of the minor is that of the parent who was granted custody by the court. If both parents are dead, the residence of the minor is that of the last surviving parent at the time of that parent's death, unless the minor lives with a general guardian duly appointed by a proper court of Mississippi, in which case his residence becomes that of the guardian. A student residing within the State of Mississippi who, upon registration at a Mississippi institution of higher learning or community college, presents a transcript demonstrating graduation from a Mississippi secondary school and who has been a secondary school student in Mississippi for not less than the final four (4) years of secondary school attendance shall not be required to pay out-of-state tuition. This section shall not apply to the residence of a person as it relates to residency for voter registration or voting.
SECTION 8. Section 37-103-15, Mississippi Code of 1972, is brought forward as follows:
37-103-15. A married person may claim the residence status of his or her spouse, or he or she may claim independent residence status under the same regulations set forth in Section 37-103-13 as any other adult.
SECTION 9. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2018.