(1) There is created the Colorado second chance scholarship advisory board, referred to in this section as the "advisory board", which consists of the following five members:
The director of the division of youth services in the department of human services orthe director's designee;
The executive director of the Colorado commission on higher education or the executive director's designee;
The executive director of the department of human services or the executive director's designee;
The program coordinator of the Colorado second chance scholarship; and
An individual previously committed to the division of youth services in the department of human services through lived experiences appointed by the director of the division of youth services in the department of human services.
The advisory board shall hold its first meeting on or before November 1, 2019, at atime and place to be designated by the executive director of the Colorado commission on higher education or the executive director's designee. The board shall meet at least four times each year and shall establish by rule the procedures by which a person may apply for a scholarship. At a minimum, the rules must specify the information a person shall submit and the deadlines for submitting the application.
The advisory board shall award scholarships up to ten thousand dollars to applicantsbased on the following criteria:
An applicant's prior commitment to the division of youth services in the departmentof human services;
An applicant's demonstrated degree of financial need, based on the resources available to the applicant;
An applicant's acceptance to an institution that offers postsecondary credentials, including but not limited to an accredited trade school, community college, certificate program, or other institution of higher education; and
Any other criteria adopted by rule of the advisory board to identify persons in thegreatest need of assistance in the pursuit of any postsecondary credential.
The advisory board shall set the amount of each scholarship based on the person'sdegree of financial need, the cost of attendance, the amount available for the applicable budget year, and the anticipated number of persons who will apply to the scholarship program in the course of the applicable budget year.
The department of higher education shall report on the scholarship program to thepublic through the annual hearing pursuant to the "State Measurement for Accountable, Responsive, and Transparent (SMART) Government Act", part 2 of article 7 of title 2.
This section is repealed, effective September 1, 2022. Prior to such repeal, the Colorado second chance scholarship program is scheduled for review as provided in section 2434-104.
Source: L. 2019: Entire part added, (SB 19-231), ch. 290, p. 2673, § 2, effective August 2.