(a) Subject to appropriation, the commission shall award an Alaska performance scholarship to an applicant who
(1) is a resident of the state as defined in AS 01.10.055 ;
(2) graduated or will graduate within six months from a high school in the state;
(3) except as provided in (c) of this section, has completed a core academic curriculum of high school level coursework that includes
(A) four years of mathematics, four years of language arts, four years of science, and four years of social studies, one year of which may include a foreign language, an Alaska Native language, fine arts, or cultural heritage; or
(B) three years of mathematics, four years of language arts, three years of science, four years of social studies, and two years of a foreign language or an Alaska Native language;
(4) has a minimum grade-point average in high school of 2.5 or higher; the department shall set by regulation minimum requirements based on a substantially similar standard for districts that do not assign grades;
(5) has achieved a minimum score on a
(A) college entrance examination; or
(B) standardized examination designed to measure a student's level of preparedness to make the transition to work, as selected by the department; and
(6) is enrolled in good standing in a course of study at a qualified postsecondary institution in this state that is intended to result in the award of a certificate or degree.
(b) The commission shall establish in regulation standards for continuing and regaining eligibility for a scholarship.
(c) The commissioner shall waive a portion of the core academic requirements specified under (a)(3) of this section for not more than 24 additional months after a student graduates from a high school in the state to provide an eligible applicant the opportunity to complete the academic requirements at a qualified postsecondary institution using a scholarship awarded under AS 14.43.825 (a) or at a public high school in the state with a district sponsorship under (f) of this section if the applicant submits a timely application on a form approved by the commissioner and provides satisfactory proof that the applicant was unable to complete the academic requirements under (a)(3) of this section as a result of circumstances beyond the applicant's control, including
(1) illness or disability;
(2) a lack of reasonable access to the required coursework at a small or remote high school attended by the applicant in the state; and
(3) other circumstances prescribed by regulation adopted by the board.
(d) The commissioner shall approve or deny an application for a waiver submitted under (c) of this section within 30 days after receiving the application.
(e) An applicant who receives a waiver under (c) of this section, shall, within the time granted for the waiver, provide satisfactory proof to the commissioner of completion of the core academic requirements specified under (a)(3) of this section.
(f) Notwithstanding a contrary provision in this title, a school district that agrees to sponsor a student for a waiver under (c) of this section may include a student who has been approved for a waiver under (c) of this section in the student count conducted under AS 14.17.600 as a full-time or part-time student if the student attends a school in the district for the purpose of completing the core academic requirements under (a)(3) of this section.
(g) In this section, "district" has the meaning given in AS 14.17.990.
Section: Previous 14.43.810 14.43.820 14.43.825 14.43.830 14.43.840 14.43.849 NextLast modified: November 15, 2016