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House Engrossed
adult education; grant program; appropriations |
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State of Arizona House of Representatives Fifty-fifth Legislature First Regular Session 2021
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HOUSE BILL 2824 |
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AN ACT
amending Title 15, chapter 2, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, by adding section 15-245; appropriating monies; relating to the department of education.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Title 15, chapter 2, article 2, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended by adding section 15-245, to read:
15-245. Adult education community college coenrollment grant program; fund; reporting requirements; program termination
A. The department of education shall establish an adult education community college coenrollment grant program that provides adult learners pursuing a high school equivalency diploma with enhanced study services and that leads to the issuance of both a high school equivalency diploma and a community college-offered, industry-recognized credential or degree.
B. To be eligible to participate, the grant applicant must be a recognized high school equivalency program provider through the department of education as part of the workforce innovation and opportunity act (P.L. 113-128; 128 Stat. 1425). The department of education shall establish application criteria for the grant program.
C. The adult education community college coenrollment fund is established consisting of legislative appropriations and any other monies. The department of education shall administer the fund. Monies in the fund are continuously appropriated and are exempt from the provisions of section 35-190 relating to lapsing of appropriations. The department may accept and spend federal monies and private grants, gifts, contributions and devises to assist in carrying out the purposes of this section. The department may retain up to five percent of monies received each fiscal year for administrative costs associated with the program.
D. The department of education shall use the monies in the fund to award grants to high school equivalency program providers pursuant to this section. Grant recipients shall use grant monies to award scholarships to eligible adult students for free or reduced costs to participate in a community college-offered, industry-recognized credential or degree based on the criteria prescribed by the department. The department may allow for a portion of monies to be used for additional supports to ensure the success of adult learners in the program.
E. New applicants for this grant shall include:
1. A plan for implementation of the program including which programs they will offer, recruitment and outreach strategies, and what supports they will provide to support program completion.
2. The amount requested for funding and the number of individuals this funding will serve.
3. A description of the program administrative structure, program activities, program staff, and budget.
4. A description of specific program outcomes, goals and metrics the program will use to determine adult learner success.
F. Applicants reapplying for the grant shall include:
1. The amount of funding received from the previous grant cycle, the number of students served in the previous grant cycle, and the number of students that successfully completed a program in the previous grant cycle.
2. A plan for implementation of the program in the new grant cycle including which programs they will offer, recruitment and outreach strategies, and what supports they will provide to ensure program completion.
3. The amount requested for funding in the new grant cycle and the number of individuals this funding will serve.
4. A description of the program administrative structure, program activities, program staff and budget for the new grant cycle.
5. A description of specific program outcomes, goals and metrics the program will use to determine adult learner success in the new grant cycle, and how they performed on these metrics in the previous grant cycle.
G. Grant recipients of the adult education community college coenrollment grant program shall annually report the following to the department:
1. The number of adult learners enrolled in the program.
2. The program completion rate of adult learners enrolled in the program.
3. The average progress of program participants towards meeting completion criteria.
4. The number and type of industry-recognized credentials earned by adult learners enrolled in the program.
5. A descriptive summary of the adult education community college coenrollment grant program offered.
H. For each year that monies are appropriated by the legislature into the fund, on or before June 30, the department of education shall submit a report regarding the adult education community college coenrollment grant program to the governor, the president of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives and shall provide a copy of this report to the secretary of state.
I. The program established by this section ends on July 1, 2031 pursuant to section 41-3102.
Sec. 2. Appropriations; adult education community college coenrollment fund; department of education; adult education services
A. In addition to any other appropriations made in fiscal year 2021-2022, the sum of $3,500,000 is appropriated from the state general fund in fiscal year 2021-2022 to the adult education community college coenrollment fund established by section 15-245, Arizona Revised Statues, as added by this act.
B. In addition to any other appropriations made in fiscal year 2021-2022, the sum of $1,500,000 is appropriated from the state general fund in fiscal year 2021-2022 to the department of education for the purposes of expanding and increasing the capacity of adult education programs and services.