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1 | AN ACT concerning education.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The School Code is amended by changing Section | ||||||
5 | 30-14.2 as follows:
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6 | (105 ILCS 5/30-14.2) (from Ch. 122, par. 30-14.2)
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7 | Sec. 30-14.2. MIA/POW scholarships.
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8 | (a) Any spouse, natural child, legally adopted child, or | ||||||
9 | any
step-child of an eligible veteran or serviceperson who | ||||||
10 | possesses all necessary
entrance requirements shall, upon | ||||||
11 | application and proper proof, be awarded
a MIA/POW Scholarship | ||||||
12 | consisting of the equivalent of 4 calendar years of
full-time | ||||||
13 | enrollment including summer terms, to the state supported
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14 | Illinois institution of higher learning of his choice, subject | ||||||
15 | to the
restrictions listed below.
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16 | "Eligible veteran or serviceperson" means any veteran or | ||||||
17 | serviceperson , including an Illinois National Guard member who | ||||||
18 | is on active duty or is active on a training assignment,
who | ||||||
19 | has been declared by the U. S. Department of Defense or the
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20 | U.S. Department of Veterans' Affairs to be a prisoner of war, | ||||||
21 | be missing
in action, have died as the result of a | ||||||
22 | service-connected disability or be
permanently disabled from | ||||||
23 | service-connected causes with 100% disability and
who at the | ||||||
24 | time of entering service was an Illinois resident or was an
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25 | Illinois resident within 6 months of entering such service.
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26 | Full-time enrollment means 12 or more semester hours of | ||||||
27 | courses per semester,
or 12 or more quarter hours of courses | ||||||
28 | per quarter, or the equivalent thereof
per term. Scholarships | ||||||
29 | utilized by dependents enrolled in less than full-time
study | ||||||
30 | shall be computed in the proportion which the number of hours | ||||||
31 | so carried
bears to full-time enrollment.
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32 | Scholarships awarded under this Section may be used by a |
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1 | spouse or child
without regard to his or her age. The holder of | ||||||
2 | a Scholarship
awarded under this Section shall be subject to | ||||||
3 | all examinations and academic
standards, including the | ||||||
4 | maintenance of minimum grade levels, that are
applicable | ||||||
5 | generally to other enrolled students at the Illinois | ||||||
6 | institution of
higher learning where the Scholarship is being | ||||||
7 | used.
If the surviving spouse
remarries or if there is a | ||||||
8 | divorce between the veteran or serviceperson and
his or her | ||||||
9 | spouse while the dependent is pursuing his or her course of
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10 | study, Scholarship benefits will be terminated at the end of | ||||||
11 | the term for
which he or she is presently enrolled. Such | ||||||
12 | dependents shall also be
entitled, upon proper proof and | ||||||
13 | application, to enroll in any extension
course offered by a | ||||||
14 | State supported Illinois institution of higher learning
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15 | without payment of tuition and approved fees.
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16 | The holder of a MIA/POW Scholarship authorized under this | ||||||
17 | Section shall
not be required to pay any matriculation or | ||||||
18 | application fees, tuition,
activities fees, graduation fees or | ||||||
19 | other fees, except multipurpose
building fees or similar fees | ||||||
20 | for supplies and materials.
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21 | Any dependent who has been or shall be awarded a MIA/POW | ||||||
22 | Scholarship shall
be reimbursed by the appropriate institution | ||||||
23 | of higher learning for any
fees which he or she has paid and | ||||||
24 | for which exemption is granted under this
Section if | ||||||
25 | application for reimbursement is made within 2 months following
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26 | the end of the school term for which the fees were paid.
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27 | (b) In lieu of the benefit provided in subsection (a), any | ||||||
28 | spouse,
natural child, legally adopted child, or step-child of | ||||||
29 | an eligible veteran
or serviceperson, which spouse or child has | ||||||
30 | a physical, mental or
developmental disability, shall be | ||||||
31 | entitled to receive, upon application and
proper proof, a | ||||||
32 | benefit to be used for the purpose of defraying the cost of
the | ||||||
33 | attendance or treatment of such spouse or child at one or more
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34 | appropriate therapeutic, rehabilitative or educational | ||||||
35 | facilities. The
application and proof may be made by the parent | ||||||
36 | or legal guardian of the
spouse or child on his or her behalf.
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1 | The total benefit provided to any beneficiary under this | ||||||
2 | subsection shall
not exceed the cost equivalent of 4 calendar | ||||||
3 | years of full-time enrollment,
including summer terms, at the | ||||||
4 | University of Illinois. Whenever
practicable in the opinion of | ||||||
5 | the Department of Veterans' Affairs, payment
of benefits under | ||||||
6 | this subsection shall be made directly to the facility,
the | ||||||
7 | cost of attendance or treatment at which is being defrayed, as | ||||||
8 | such
costs accrue.
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9 | (c) The benefits of this Section shall be administered by | ||||||
10 | and paid for out
of funds made available to the Illinois | ||||||
11 | Department of Veterans' Affairs.
The amounts that become due to | ||||||
12 | any state supported Illinois institution of
higher learning | ||||||
13 | shall be payable by the Comptroller to such institution on
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14 | vouchers approved by the Illinois Department of Veterans' | ||||||
15 | Affairs. The
amounts that become due under subsection (b) of | ||||||
16 | this Section shall be
payable by warrant upon vouchers issued | ||||||
17 | by the Illinois Department of
Veterans' Affairs and approved by | ||||||
18 | the Comptroller. The Illinois Department
of Veterans' Affairs | ||||||
19 | shall determine the eligibility of the persons
who make | ||||||
20 | application for the benefits provided for in this Section.
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21 | (Source: P.A. 89-267, eff. 1-1-96.)
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22 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
23 | becoming law.
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