Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 2, February 2024
Rule 1
- Organization and Structure
I. The Arkansas Department of Workforce
Education (DWE) shall administer the Technical Careers Student Loan Forgiveness
Program within the policies set by the State Board of Workforce Education and
Career Opportunities (SBWECO). All formal communications shall be addressed to
or signed by the Director of the DWE or his/her designee. An advisory panel
that is representative of agencies and entities involved in the economic
development of Arkansas, including business and industry, shall provide advice
to DWE regarding the administration of the program.
II. The final responsibility for selecting
loan forgiveness recipients shall rest with the Director of the DWE.
III. When functioning under Act 652 of 1999
and any subsequent legislation, DWE shall follow the provisions of the
Administrative Procedures Act.
Rule
2
- Program Eligibility Criteria
I. Eligibility Criteria
A. Applicants must be citizens of the United
States or permanent resident aliens.
B. Applicants must have received a diploma,
certificate, or associate's or baccalaureate degree in a designated high-demand
technical field from an approved Arkansas postsecondary institution.
C. Applicants must plan to work full-time in
Arkansas in the high-demand technical field for which they received
training.
D. Applicants must have
received a federal student loan or other alternative loan approved by the
DWE.
E. Beginning in the 2002-2003
academic year, students entering postsecondary education must submit an "Intent
to Apply" form as soon as they declare a major. Based on availability of funds,
applicants could be accepted based on the timely submission of this
form.
Rule 3
- Application Process for Loan Forgiveness
Program
I. Applications
A. Solicitation of Applicants
1. Program information, including the annual
list of designated technical programs and applications are mailed to the
following:
a) Department chairs of designated
technical programs in approved postsecondary institutions
b) Financial aid directors/officers
c) Deans of continuing education
d) High school
counselors
2.
Applications are also available upon request from the DWE.
3. The DWE will disseminate program
information through workshops, meetings, press releases, DWE's web site, and
DWE's newsletter.
B.
Students must submit the application form for loan forgiveness within six
months after program completion and must complete one year of full-time
employment in Arkansas in the approved field within two years of program
completion.
C. Students who
complete the baccalaureate degree in a designated high-demand technical program
and who enroll full-time in a graduate degree program in the same or a related
field within two years of the completion of the baccalaureate degree can apply
for a waiver of the work requirement during the time that they are enrolled
full-time in the graduate program. In order to maintain eligibility for loan
forgiveness, the student must submit to the DWE a transcript showing full-time
enrollment and satisfactory academic progress at the end of each semester. When
the student completes the graduate program, the waiver of the work requirement
will be cancelled and all provisions of the work requirement will take effect.
If the student drops to less than full-time enrollment or does not make
satisfactory academic progress, the waiver of the work requirement will be
cancelled and all provisions of the work requirement will take effect.
Eligibility for loan forgiveness applies only to the undergraduate
degree.
D. Upon receipt by DWE,
applications are reviewed to ensure that all pertinent data is included. A
letter is mailed to each applicant confirming the receipt and completeness of
the application. For those whose application is either incomplete or
ineligible, a notice will be sent identifying the reason for incompleteness or
ineligibility. The applicant will then have the opportunity to provide the
missing information or correct any inaccurate information. Before an applicant
can be considered for an award, the corrected/missing information must be
received by the DWE by the deadline indicated in the Incomplete/Ineligible
Notice.
II. Selection
and Notification of Recipients
A.
Responsibility for selecting recipients shall rest with the Director of the
DWE.
B. Selection criteria will
include availability of funds and ranking of applicants according to a
combination of components, including timely submission of the "Intent to Apply"
form, cumulative grade point average, field of study, relevant work experience,
and whether the applicant is a prior recipient.
C. Selected recipients will be mailed award
letters stating their eligibility for the program and conditions for continued
eligibility. They will also receive a loan forgiveness program packet with the
following forms:
1. Loan Verification
Certificate
This certificate shall be signed by the loan forgiveness applicant and
shall give the DWE authority to verify loan information.
2. Program Completion Verification Form
The applicant must present this form to the registrar at the
institution attended to certify program completion. This form shall include the
following:
a) Name of program
completed
b) Completion date
c) Diploma/certificate/degree
granted
d) Cumulative grade point
average
The registrar of the postsecondary institution must complete this form
and return it to the DWE. A free copy of the applicant's transcript must be
returned to the DWE along with the form.
3. Employment Verification Form
The applicant must provide the name and address of his or her employer
to the DWE on the form provided. After one year of qualified employment, the
DWE will mail the employment verification form to the employer. The employer
must complete this form and return it to the DWE. This form must be submitted
yearly for each year of loan forgiveness eligibility.
III. Loan Repayment
A. Loan repayments will be disbursed directly
to the lending authority after receipt of the employment verification
form.
B. If the loan forgiveness
recipient presents to the Department of Workforce Education a "Paid in Full"
Promissory Note from the lending authority, the loan repayment will be
disbursed directly to the loan forgiveness recipient.
Rule 4
-
Limitations of Loan Awards
I.
Applicants may apply for forgiveness of loan amounts of up to $2,500 per
academic year or the amount borrowed, whichever is less. The maximum forgivable
amount is $10,000.
II. Awards will
be made pursuant to the limitations above and ranking status based on the
availability of program funds. Each participant must maintain eligible status
to receive funds.
Rule 5
-Forgiveness of Loan
I. Criteria for Loan Forgiveness
A. Loan recipients who graduate from a
designated technical program and work full-time in Arkansas in the high-demand
technical field for which they trained shall have one year of their loan amount
up to $2,500 forgiven for each full year of qualified employment completed
after graduation from the designated technical program. Duration of eligibility
is based on the recipient's qualifying program. Loan forgiveness shall be
granted to a student for only one training program.
B. Program recipients who discontinue
qualified employment shall repay the loan according to terms of their loan
agreement with the lending authority.
C. Leaves of absence from qualified
employment shall be reviewed on a case-by-case basis.
Rule 6
-
Institutional Responsibilities
II. Postsecondary Institution
Responsibilities
A. Administrative agreement
Each participating institution shall submit to the DWE a signed
administrative agreement of intent to comply with the responsibilities set out
in the rule. This agreement shall be signed by the chief executive officer of
the institution. The institution will be responsible for receipt of all
communications, completion of forms, maintenance of records, and verification
of data.
B. Institutional
verification
The institution shall provide information relative to the loan
forgiveness program upon request to the DWE. Information shall be returned to
DWE within 15 days of receipt of the request.
Rule 7
-
Responsibility of Recipients
I. Recipient's Responsibility
A. It is the recipient's responsibility to
notify the DWE of any change in status within 15 days. This will include change
in name, change in residence, or change in employment. Failure to notify the
DWE of a change in status will affect forgiveness status.
B. It is the recipient's responsibility to
complete and return within 15 days all required forms sent by DWE. Failure to
complete these forms will prohibit loan repayment.
Rule 8
- Program
Definitions
The following definitions are used in the Technical Careers Student
Loan
Forgiveness Program:
Academic Year
|
A measure of the academic work to be accomplished by the
participant. The academic year is defined as at least two semesters, two
trimesters, or three quarters.
|
Approved Institution
|
An Arkansas postsecondary public or private vocational
technical school, technical institute, comprehensive lifelong learning center,
two-year college, or four-year college or university that is approved by the
State Board of Workforce Education and Career Opportunities, the Higher
Education Coordinating Board or the State Board of Private Career Education to
offer training in the designated technical field. The institution must not
discriminate against applicants or employees on the basis of race, color,
religion, sex, age, handicap, or national origin, consistent with the
provisions of applicable state and federal laws. The institution must have a
signed administrative agreement with DWE.
|
Designated Technical Program
|
A technical education program offered by an approved
institution that prepares students for high-demand technical career fields.
Only those programs that are designated by the State Board of Workforce
Education and Career Opportunities are eligible for loan forgiveness. The list
of programs shall be published annually.
|
Permanent Resident Alien
|
An individual who can provide documentation from the
Immigration and Naturalization (INS) that he or she is in the United States for
other than a temporary purpose with the intention of becoming a citizen or
permanent resident. Valid documentation is an 1-551, 1-151, 1-181, I-94, or
passport stamped with the notation "Processed for 1-551, Temporary Evidence of
Lawful Admission for Permanent Residence."
|
Qualified Employment
|
Full-time (at least 30 hours per week and defined by the
employer as full-time) employment in the high-demand technical career field for
which the applicant received training. The State Board Of Workforce Education
and Career Opportunities must have approved the field as a high-demand
technical field. One year of qualified employment is required for each year of
loan forgiveness.
|
U.S. Citizen or National
|
The term "U.S. citizen" includes persons born or who have
become naturalized citizens of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto
Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and Trust
Territory - Palau. The term "national" includes citizens of American Somoa or
Swain's Island.
|