45th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2001

RELATING TO CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT; ESTABLISHING A SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM TO ENCOURAGE CAREER DEVELOPMENT FOR PEOPLE WORKING IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION POSITIONS; ENACTING THE EARLY CHILDHOOD CAREER SCHOLARSHIP ACT; MAKING AN APPROPRIATION.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the "Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act".

Section 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act:

A. "academic year" means any consecutive period of two semesters, three quarters or other comparable units commencing with the fall term each year;

B. "approved program" means a program approved by the secretary of children, youth and families offered by a state vocational school, community college or a branch of a state university leading to a certificate, associate or bachelor's degree in early childhood education, special education or elementary education;

C. "award recipient" means a student awarded a scholarship;

D. "commission" means the commission on higher education;

E. "early childhood program" means a program in the public schools or funded by the children, youth and families department from federal or state funds that serves children from newborn to eighth grade;

F. "eligible institution" means a state post-secondary educational institution, including vocational schools, community colleges or branches of state universities offering a vocational certificate or associate degree for a program in early childhood education, special education or elementary education and state universities that offer bachelor's degree programs in early childhood education, special education or elementary education;

G. "employee" means a person employed by an early childhood program for at least one year prior to receiving a scholarship, who continues to remain employed during the academic year for which the scholarship is awarded;

H. "scholarship" means an early childhood career scholarship; and

I. "state post-secondary educational institution" means a post-secondary educational institution created by the state or the federal government and located in New Mexico.

Section 3. CREATION OF SCHOLARSHIP.--"Early childhood career scholarships" are created to be administered by the commission pursuant to the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act.

Section 4. CONDITIONS FOR ELIGIBILITY.--To be eligible to be an award recipient, a person shall:

A. be an employee;

B. be a resident of New Mexico and a citizen of the United States or a person with a permanent resident visa;

C. be accepted for enrollment in an approved program;

D. be enrolled in six semester hours of courses in an approved program;

E. be pursuing a certificate or associate degree from an approved program; and

F. have met any other criteria to be an award recipient established by the commission after consultation with the children, youth and families department.

Section 5. CONDITIONS FOR CONTINUING ELIGIBILITY.--A scholarship may be reawarded to an employee who:

A. has been an award recipient in the last academic year;

B. remains in good academic standing as determined by the eligible institution; and

C. is enrolled in an approved program.

Section 6. AMOUNT OF SCHOLARSHIP.--Award recipients shall receive scholarships of seven hundred fifty dollars ($750) per semester or a maximum of one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500) per academic year.

Section 7. DURATION OF SCHOLARSHIPS.--Scholarships shall be awarded for one academic year, but the funds shall be disbursed at the beginning of each semester in which the award recipient is enrolled in classes.

Section 8. AUTHORITY TO ADOPT RULES--DISTRIBUTION OF SCHOLARSHIP FUNDS.--The commission may adopt rules necessary to implement and administer the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act.

Section 9. TERMINATION OF SCHOLARSHIPS.--A scholarship is terminated if the award recipient:

A. withdraws from an eligible institution;

B. fails to re-enroll for a consecutive academic year;

C. fails to take six semester hours per semester in an approved program; or

D. substantially fails to comply with the rules that the commission adopted pursuant to the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act.

Section 10. APPROPRIATION.--

A. Six hundred thousand dollars ($600,000) is appropriated from the general fund for expenditure in fiscal year 2002 to the following agencies in the following amounts for the following purposes:

(1) to the commission on higher education, four hundred fifty thousand dollars ($450,000) to provide early childhood career scholarships pursuant to the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act; and

(2) to the children, youth and families department, one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000) to publicize the early childhood career scholarships created in the Early Childhood Career Scholarship Act and identify early childhood, special education and elementary education workers who do not have bachelor's degrees, who are eligible and motivated to take advantage of that scholarship program.

B. Any unexpended or unencumbered balance remaining at the end of fiscal year 2002 shall revert to the general fund.