Bill Text: NJ S3471 | 2020-2021 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires students to complete financial aid application as part of high school graduation requirements.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-12-06 - Reported from Senate Committee, 2nd Reading [S3471 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2020-S3471-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator SHIRLEY K. TURNER
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
SYNOPSIS
Requires students to complete financial aid application as part of high school graduation requirements.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning graduation requirements for high school students and supplementing chapter 7C of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Beginning with the 2022-2023 grade 11 class, the State Board of Education shall require that the local graduation requirements adopted by a board of education or a board of trustees of a charter school include the requirement that a student complete and submit a financial aid application in a form prescribed by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority.
b. A student shall be exempt from the graduation requirement if the student submits to the school district:
(1) a form signed by the parent or guardian, or by the student if he is at least 18 years of age, requesting the exemption; or
(2) a form signed by the school counselor authorizing the exemption for good cause as defined by the State board.
c. The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Executive Director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, shall provide a list of resources for school districts, parents, and students that include instructions on how to complete a financial aid application prescribed by the authority. The executive director of the authority shall make available such resources as are necessary directly to school counselors or other school employees who assist students in completing the financial aid application.
d. Each school district shall annually notify students and the parents or guardians of the requirement established pursuant to this section.
e. The Department of Education shall verify which students have met the requirement established pursuant to this section with the authority. The department shall include that information in the student's record.
f. The Department of Education shall include the number of students who have met the requirement established pursuant to this section in the School Report Card issued pursuant to P.L.1995, c.235 (C.18A:7E-1 et seq.).
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill provides that, beginning with the 2022-2023 grade 11 class, the State Board of Education will require that the local graduation requirements adopted by a board of education or a board of trustees of a charter school include the requirement that a student complete and submit a financial aid application in a form prescribed by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. A student will be exempt from the graduation requirement if the student submits to the school district:
(1) a form signed by the parent or guardian, or by the student if he is at least 18 years of age, requesting the exemption; or
(2) a form signed by the school counselor authorizing the exemption for good cause as defined by the State board.
The Commissioner of Education, in consultation with the Executive Director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, will provide a list of resources for school districts, parents, and students that include instructions on how to complete a financial aid application prescribed by the authority. The executive director of the authority will make available such resources as are necessary directly to school counselors or other school employees who assist students in completing the financial aid application.
Each school district will annually notify students and the parents or guardians of the requirement established by the bill. The Department of Education will verify which students have met the requirement established by the bill with the authority and will include that information in the student's record. The department will also include information on the number of students who have met the requirement in the School Report Card issued under current law.
