Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 16, March 25, 2024
A.
Receipt of application.
1. Applications
submitted in person, by facsimile, or by other electronic means, or postmarked
by carrier mail by the applicable deadline (July 31, September 14, and December
1) of the academic year may be deemed as meeting the deadline.
2. If the deadline occurs on a weekend or
nonbusiness day as recognized by the institution or carrier, the application
will be deemed as meeting the respective deadline if the application is
received by the institution by the first business day following the deadline or
postmarked by carrier mail by the carrier's first business day following the
deadline.
3. Students who submit an
application to one institution but enroll into another may still be considered
to have met the respective deadline if the initial institution can verify
receipt of the application by the deadline.
B. Priority for award. Because funds may not
be sufficient to award all eligible students, students are prioritized based on
prior eligibility (returning students) and date of application (new students).
Below are descriptions of the students in priority order for receiving an
award. Priority students will receive a full award before students in a
subsequent priority order.
1. Category 1 and 2
students receive priority for an award.
a.
Category 1 students: returning students who received an award in the previous
fiscal year, including:
(1) Students returning
to their original institution;
(2)
Students transferring from another participating eligible institution;
and
(3) Students moving from one
degree level to another within an institution or from another participating
eligible institution.
b.
Category 2 students: students submitting a completed program application by
July 31 of the fiscal year who were:
(1) New
and readmitted students who were not enrolled in the previous fiscal year;
or
(2) Returning students who met
the domicile requirements in the previous fiscal year but did not receive an
award due to insufficient funding (Category 3 and 4 students) or because they
were not enrolled full time or otherwise did not meet other award
criteria.
2.
Category 3 students will be considered for an award if funds are available
after Category 1 and 2 students are fully funded. Category 3 students are those
who submit a completed application after July 31 but no later than September
14, including:
a. New and readmitted students
who were not enrolled in the previous fiscal year; or
b. Students enrolled but who did not apply
for an award in the previous fiscal year.
3. Category 4 students will be considered for
an award if funds are available after Category 1, 2, and 3 students are fully
funded.
a. Category 4 students are those who
submit a completed program application after September 14 but no later than
December 1 of the fiscal year and include new and readmitted students who were
not enrolled in the previous fiscal year.
b. Category 4 students receive spring term
only awards.
4.
Exceptions are made for students who break enrollment for military purposes.
Students reentering their degree program within one year of completion of
military responsibilities shall be granted priority, along with Category 1
students. This exception is for priority purposes only as the student still
must meet all eligibility criteria.
C. Eligibility criteria. In order to be
eligible to receive an award, the student must:
1. Be a domiciliary resident of Virginia, as
defined by § 23.1-502 of the Code of Virginia, for at least one year prior
to the date of entitlement (first day of classes for the program in which the
student is enrolled) or eligible under § 23.1-505 of the Code of
Virginia.
2. Enroll in the academic
year for which the award is to be received as a full-time student in an
eligible program at a participating eligible institution.
a. A student's enrollment status shall be
determined at the census date. If a student falls below full time by dropping
or withdrawing from individual courses or withdraws from the institution after
the census date, he shall receive a prorated award based on the tuition refund
policy in effect at the institution.
b. A graduating student enrolled less than
full time for a term in his final academic year may be eligible to receive an
award if:
(1) The student was enrolled full
time and accepted for or received an award in the immediate preceding academic
year;
(2) The course credits
available in the current term needed to complete degree requirements total less
than a full-time course load; and
(3) The maximum number of years of
eligibility has not been exceeded.
c. Exceptions to the full-time requirement
due to a documented disability or other medical reasons, as applicable under
the federal American's with Disabilities Act, will be considered on a
case-by-case basis.
3.
Have complied with federal selective service registration requirements unless
the following apply:
a. The requirement to
register has terminated or become inapplicable to the person; and
b. The person shows by preponderance of the
evidence that failure to register was not a knowing and willful failure to
register.
4. Complete
and submit an application for an award by the published deadline.
5. Not participate in the Virginia Women's
Institute for Leadership at Mary Baldwin College.
D. Limitations on awards. For administrative
purposes, each academic year shall be comprised of six units of program
eligibility; accordingly, a semester is equivalent to three units and a quarter
is equivalent to two units.
1. If a student
receives a partial payment for a semester or quarter, the student's total
eligibility shall be reduced by one semester (three units) or quarter (two
units).
2. Undergraduate students:
a. Students pursuing an associate's degree
shall be limited to a maximum of two academic years (12 units), or its
equivalent, of support.
b. Students
pursuing degrees at the undergraduate level shall be limited to a combined
life-time maximum of four academic years (24 units), or its equivalent, of
support, inclusive of enrollment in any combination of associate's or
baccalaureate degrees.
c. Students
enrolled in teacher certification programs at the undergraduate level may
receive awards if the student is enrolled full time and has not exhausted
eligibility.
3.
Post-undergraduate students:
a. Students
pursuing degrees at the graduate level shall be limited to a combined life-time
maximum of three academic years (18 units), or its equivalent, of
support.
b. Students pursuing
degrees at the first-professional level shall be limited to a life-time maximum
of three academic years (18 units), or its equivalent, of support, except for
students pursuing medical or pharmacy degrees who are limited to four academic
years (24 units), or its equivalent, of support.
c. In no case should any combination of
post-undergraduate programs exceed four years of support.
4. A student enrolled at multiple
institutions may receive an award if:
a. The
home institution is an eligible institution;
b. A formal consortium agreement is in place;
and
c. The student's combined
enrollment is full time.
If the consortium agreement includes a Virginia public
institution, the award will be prorated based on the courses for the term not
attempted at the Virginia public institution as a percentage of minimum
full-time enrollment.
5. A student may receive an award under a
study abroad program if:
a. The student is
enrolled full time;
b. The student
remains on record as an enrolled student in an otherwise eligible program at a
participating eligible institution for the term in which the award is
received;
c. The program funds are
disbursed to the participating eligible institution; and
d. The overseas program is a formal agreement
arranged by the participating eligible institution.
E. Appeals process.
1. The participating institution makes the
student's initial eligibility determination. If the institution determines that
the student does not meet the domicile requirements, the institution must
notify the student in writing of the outcome and the availability of the
appeals process.
2. Council shall
make final decisions on domicile eligibility disputes between students and the
enrolling institutions. The appeal process for resolving eligibility disputes
shall consist of a review of the institution's initial determination by a
council staff member. Further student appeals are subject to a final review by
a committee comprised of three council staff members. No person who serves at
one level of the appeals process shall be eligible to serve at any other level
of review. Timing for completion of the review is heavily dependent upon the
response time to staff information requests for both the student and the
institution, but typically council staff will respond within two
weeks.
3. Student appeals must be
filed in writing with the council within 30 days of the institution's written
notification. If the outcome of the appeal upholds the institution's initial
determination, the student may file a final appeal within 30 days of the
council's written notification.
4.
The appeals process is contained in this subsection and available to the
institutions and students online or in print upon request.
Statutory Authority: § 23.1-629 of the Code of
Virginia.