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1    AN ACT concerning State government.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Children and Family Services Act is amended
5by 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.
17Recipients must have earned a high school diploma from an
18accredited institution or a State of Illinois High School
19Diploma or have met the State criteria for high school
20graduation before the start of the school year for which they
21are applying for the scholarship and waiver. Scholarships and
22fee waivers shall be available to students for at least 5
23years, provided they are continuing to work toward graduation

 

 

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1and completion of a certificate or degree program. Unused
2scholarship dollars and fee waivers shall be reallocated to
3new recipients. No later than January 1, 2015, the Department
4shall promulgate rules identifying the criteria for
5"continuing to work toward graduation" and for reallocating
6unused scholarships and fee waivers. Selection shall be made
7on the basis of several factors, including, but not limited
8to, scholastic record, aptitude, and general interest in
9higher education. The selection committee shall include at
10least 2 individuals formerly under the care of the Department
11who have completed their post-secondary education. In
12accordance with this Act, tuition scholarships and fee waivers
13shall be available to such students at any university or
14college maintained by the State of Illinois. The Department
15shall provide maintenance and school expenses, except tuition
16and fees, during the academic years to supplement the
17students' earnings or other resources so long as they
18consistently maintain scholastic records which are acceptable
19to their schools and to the Department. Students may attend
20other colleges and universities, if scholarships are awarded
21to them, and receive the same benefits for maintenance and
22other expenses as those students attending any Illinois State
23community college, university, or college under this Section.
24Beginning with recipients receiving scholarships and waivers
25in August 2014, the Department shall collect data and report
26annually to the General Assembly on measures of success,

 

 

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1including (i) the number of youth applying for and receiving
2scholarships or waivers, (ii) the percentage of scholarship or
3waiver recipients who complete their college or university
4degree within 5 years, (iii) the average length of time it
5takes for scholarship or waiver recipients to complete their
6college or university degree, (iv) the reasons that
7scholarship or waiver recipients are discharged or fail to
8complete their college or university degree, (v) when
9available, youths' outcomes 5 years and 10 years after being
10awarded the scholarships or waivers, and (vi) budget
11allocations for maintenance and school expenses incurred by
12the Department.
13    (b) Youth shall receive a tuition and fee waiver to assist
14them in attending and completing their post-secondary
15education at any community college, university, or college
16maintained by the State of Illinois if they are youth for whom
17the Department has court-ordered legal responsibility, youth
18who aged out of care at age 18 or older, or youth formerly
19under care who have been adopted and were the subject of an
20adoption assistance agreement or who have been placed in
21private guardianship and were the subject of a subsidized
22guardianship agreement.
23    To receive a waiver under this subsection, an applicant
24must:
25        (1) have earned a high school diploma from an
26    accredited institution or a State of Illinois High School

 

 

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1    Diploma or have met the State criteria for high school
2    graduation before the start of the school year for which
3    the applicant is applying for the waiver;
4        (2) enroll in a qualifying post-secondary education
5    before the applicant reaches the age of 26; and
6        (3) apply for federal and State grant assistance by
7    completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid.
8    The community college or public university that an
9applicant attends must waive any tuition and fee amounts that
10exceed the amounts paid to the applicant under the federal
11Pell Grant Program or the State's Monetary Award Program.
12    Tuition and fee waivers shall be available to a student
13for at least the first 5 years the student is enrolled in a
14community college, university, or college maintained by the
15State of Illinois so long as the student continues to work
16toward graduation and completion of a certificate or degree
17program. makes satisfactory progress toward completing the
18student's degree. The age requirement and 5-year cap on
19tuition and fee waivers under this subsection shall be waived
20and eligibility for tuition and fee waivers shall be extended
21for any applicant or student who the Department determines was
22unable to enroll in a qualifying post-secondary school or
23complete an academic term because the applicant or student:
24(i) was called into active duty with the United States Armed
25Forces; (ii) was deployed for service in the United States
26Public Health Service Commissioned Corps; or (iii) volunteered

 

 

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1in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps. The Department shall
2extend eligibility for a qualifying applicant or student by
3the total number of months or years during which the applicant
4or student served on active duty with the United States Armed
5Forces, was deployed for service in the United States Public
6Health Service Commissioned Corps, or volunteered in the Peace
7Corps or the AmeriCorps. The number of months an applicant or
8student served on active duty with the United States Armed
9Forces shall be rounded up to the next higher year to determine
10the maximum length of time to extend eligibility for the
11applicant or student.
12    The Department may provide the student with a stipend to
13cover maintenance and school expenses, except tuition and
14fees, during the academic years to supplement the student's
15earnings or other resources so long as the student
16consistently maintains scholastic records which are acceptable
17to the student's school and to the Department.
18    The Department shall develop outreach programs to ensure
19that youths who qualify for the tuition and fee waivers under
20this subsection who are high school students in grades 9
21through 12 or who are enrolled in a high school equivalency
22testing program are aware of the availability of the tuition
23and fee waivers.
24    (c) Subject to appropriation, the Department shall provide
25eligible youth an apprenticeship stipend to cover those costs
26associated with entering and sustaining through completion an

 

 

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1apprenticeship, including, but not limited to fees, tuition
2for classes, work clothes, rain gear, boots, and
3occupation-specific tools. The following youth may be eligible
4for the apprenticeship stipend provided under this subsection:
5youth for whom the Department has court-ordered legal
6responsibility; youth who aged out of care at age 18 or older;
7or youth formerly under care who have been adopted and were the
8subject of an adoption assistance agreement or who have been
9placed in private guardianship and were the subject of a
10subsidized guardianship agreement.
11    To receive a stipend under this subsection, an applicant
12must:
13        (1) be enrolled in an apprenticeship training program
14    approved or recognized by the Illinois Department of
15    Employment Security or an apprenticeship program approved
16    by the United States Department of Labor;
17        (2) not be a recipient of a scholarship or fee waiver
18    under subsection (a) or (b); and
19        (3) be under the age of 26 before enrolling in a
20    qualified apprenticeship program.
21    Apprenticeship stipends shall be available to an eligible
22youth for a maximum of 5 years after the youth enrolls in a
23qualifying apprenticeship program so long as the youth makes
24satisfactory progress toward completing the youth's
25apprenticeship. The age requirement and 5-year cap on the
26apprenticeship stipend provided under this subsection shall be

 

 

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1extended for any applicant who the Department determines was
2unable to enroll in a qualifying apprenticeship program
3because the applicant: (i) was called into active duty with
4the United States Armed Forces; (ii) was deployed for service
5in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps;
6or (iii) volunteered in the Peace Corps or the AmeriCorps. The
7Department shall extend eligibility for a qualifying applicant
8by the total number of months or years during which the
9applicant served on active duty with the United States Armed
10Forces, was deployed for service in the United States Public
11Health Service Commissioned Corps, or volunteered in the Peace
12Corps or the AmeriCorps. The number of months an applicant
13served on active duty with the United States Armed Forces
14shall be rounded up to the next higher year to determine the
15maximum length of time to extend eligibility for the
16applicant.
17    The Department shall develop outreach programs to ensure
18that youths who qualify for the apprenticeship stipends under
19this subsection who are high school students in grades 9
20through 12 or who are enrolled in a high school equivalency
21testing program are aware of the availability of the
22apprenticeship stipend.
23(Source: P.A. 102-1100, eff. 1-1-23; 103-22, eff. 8-8-23;
24103-154, eff. 6-30-23.)
 
25    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
26becoming law.