3333.27 Student choice grant program.

As used in this section:

(A) “Eligible institution” means a nonprofit Ohio institution of higher education that holds a certificate of authorization issued under section 1713.02 of the Revised Code and meets the requirements of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

(B) “Resident” and “full-time student” have the meanings established for purposes of this section by rule of the chancellor of the Ohio board of regents.

The chancellor shall establish and administer a student choice grant program and shall adopt rules for the administration of the program.

The chancellor may make a grant to any resident of this state who is enrolled as a full-time student in a bachelor’s degree program at an eligible institution and maintains an academic record that meets or exceeds the standard established pursuant to this section by rule of the chancellor, except that no grant shall be made to any individual who was enrolled as a student in an institution of higher education on or before July 1, 1984, or is serving a term of imprisonment. The grant shall not exceed the lesser of the total instructional and general charges of the institution in which the student is enrolled, or an amount equal to one-fourth of the total of any state instructional subsidy amount distributed by the chancellor in the second fiscal year of the preceding biennium for all full-time students enrolled in bachelor’s degree programs at four-year state-assisted institutions of higher education divided by the sum of the actual number of full-time students enrolled in bachelor’s degree programs at four-year state-assisted institutions of higher education reported to the chancellor for such year by the institutions to which the subsidy was distributed.

The chancellor shall prescribe the form and manner of application for grants including the manner of certification by eligible institutions that each applicant from such institution is enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program as a full-time student and has an academic record that meets or exceeds the standard established by the chancellor.

A grant awarded to an eligible student shall be paid to the institution in which the student is enrolled, and the institution shall reduce the student’s instructional and general charges by the amount of the grant. Each grant awarded shall be prorated and paid in equal installments at the time of enrollment for each term of the academic year for which the grant is awarded. No student shall be eligible to receive a grant for more than ten semesters, fifteen quarters, or the equivalent of five academic years.

The receipt of an Ohio student choice grant shall not affect a student’s eligibility for assistance, or the amount of such assistance, granted under section 3315.33, 3333.12, 3333.122, 3333.22, 3333.26, 5910.03, 5910.032, or 5919.34 of the Revised Code. If a student receives assistance under one or more of such sections, the student choice grant made to the student shall not exceed the difference between the amount of assistance received under such sections and the total instructional and general charges of the institution in which the student is enrolled.

The general assembly shall support the student choice grant program by such sums and in such manner as it may provide, but the chancellor may also receive funds from other sources to support the program.

No grant shall be made to any student enrolled in a course of study leading to a degree in theology, religion, or other field of preparation for a religious profession unless the course of study leads to an accredited bachelor of arts or bachelor of science degree.

Institutions of higher education that enroll students receiving grants under this section shall report to the chancellor the name of each student who has received such a grant but who is no longer eligible for all or part of such grant and shall refund all moneys due to the state within thirty days after the beginning of the term immediately following the term in which the student was no longer eligible to receive all or part of the grant. There shall be an interest charge of one per cent per month on all moneys due and payable after such thirty-day period. The chancellor shall immediately notify the office of budget and management and the legislative service commission of all refunds received.

Effective Date: 06-29-1999; 09-29-2005; 2007 HB2 05-15-2007