SUMMARY:

            This bill would amend Part 4 of Article 6 of Chapter 2 of Title 20 of O.C.G.A. relating to financing under QBE so that eligible juniors and seniors who spent the previous year enrolled in a public school may finish their high school diploma requirements by attending an eligible college or university full time, and the funding for those students would follow them to the institution of higher education.

REQUIREMENTS:

• By April 1 of each year, general information about the program would be required to be provided to 10^th and 11^th grade students along with counseling for the students and their parents/guardians before students enroll in the program.  The student and the parents would have to sign a statement provided by the DOE that they have received counseling and understand the responsibilities involved.
• Local systems would have to grant academic credit to eligible students enrolled in eligible institutions if the course work has been approved by the DOE and the student passed the course.  The student would be responsible for notifying the eligible institution to notify the local schools system of his/her grade.
• All passed course work would count toward SBOE graduation requirements and subject area requirements of the LBOE and would be recorded on the student’s high school transcript.
• The DOE would be responsible for developing the necessary rules to require local systems to award a high school diploma once the necessary courses are completed, and they will consult the BOR and the State Board of Technical and Adult Education.
• The DOE must pay the eligible institutions the lesser of the following amounts for each participating student, less a $200 administrative cost for the local school system:
• • Actual cost of tuition, materials and fees for the courses taken;
  • The amount that the student would have earned if he/she had been in equivalent instructional programs in a local system for a full instructional day.
• The appropriations to a local school system would be reduced by the amount that its participating students would send to the eligible post-secondary institutions.
• The records fee [$200] may be increased by the SBOE annually, at their discretion.
• No further payment would be required of the eligible student beyond what would be allotted in this act.
• The SBOE would have to establish rules and regs regarding state and federal testing requirements for eligible students who participate in the program.
• No other financial aid can be awarded to eligible, participating students.
• Hours or courses taken would not count toward maximum hourly caps for the HOPE.