Academic Competitiveness
Grants
In
The U.S. Department of Education
(USED) has released information on the Academic Competitiveness Grant (ACG)
Program as included in the Higher Education Reconciliation Act of 2005
(HERA). These grants are available to
certain Pell-eligible college students starting with the 2006-07 academic
year. Secretary Margaret Spelling’s May
2, 2006 explanatory letter and informational attachment, which provide
eligibility details and definitions of recognized rigorous secondary school
programs of study, are available at
http://www.ed.gov/policy/highered/guid/secletter/060502.html.
USED has provided options for a
student to qualify as eligible for an Academic Competitiveness Grant. Students
must also meet general Pell grant requirements:
Option 1:
Option 2: The State Scholars Initiative
requirements.
Students who participate in and complete the State Scholars program will
be eligible. This program is not currently offered in
Option 3: A required set of courses similar
to the State Scholars Initiative. This program of study includes
four years of English, three years of Math (including Algebra I and a higher
level course such as Algebra II, Geometry, or Data Analysis and Statistics),
three years of science (including at least two courses from biology, chemistry
or physics), three years of social studies, and one year of a foreign
language. The program of study must be
completed with passing grades.
Option 4: Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate courses and test
scores. This program requires a minimum of two
Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses in high
school and a minimum passing score on the exams for those classes. Students must score 3 or higher on AP exams
and 4 or higher on IB exams.
In
addition to the options listed above the USED recently issued the following
guidance regarding the eligibility of dually enrolled students:
Question:
In establishing the ACG program, Congress
restricted eligibility for students to receive a first year ACG grant to a
student who “has not been previously enrolled in a program of undergraduate
education” (see §401A(c)(3)(A)(ii) of the Higher
Education Act. (HEA)). Does a student who participated
in a dual enrollment program, where the student took college level classes
while still enrolled in high school, meet the condition of “has not been
previously enrolled in a program of undergraduate education” and therefore
qualify as eligible for an ACG?
USED Response: This restriction does not apply where a student enrolled in one or more
college level undergraduate courses while still in high school, as long as the
student was not admitted into a formal program of study at the postsecondary
education institution. Under the
Federal student aid programs, a formal program of study is defined as one that
leads to a degree, certificate or other postsecondary education credential. The
term used by the Department and by most institutional financial aid administrators
to identify the status of this type of student is as a "regular
student" of the postsecondary education institution.
In
general, we would not consider a student who attends a postsecondary education
institution to complete his or her high school diploma requirements to have
been enrolled as a “regular student” at the postsecondary institution. Most
dual enrollment students are not admitted as “regular students” enrolled in a
program of study to obtain a degree, certificate or other postsecondary
education credential. Those students are not disqualified from eligibility for
Academic Competitiveness Grants simply by virtue of their participation in dual
enrollment programs.
|
Eligible
for First-Year ACG |
Not
Eligible for First-Year ACG |
|
A
student who, while in high school: •
took one or more undergraduate courses BUT •
was not formally admitted as a “regular student” by the postsecondary
education institution. A “regular student” is one who “is enrolled or accepted
for enrollment at an institution for the purpose of obtaining a degree,
certificate, or other recognized educational credential offered by that
institution.” 34 CFR §600.2. |
A
student who, while in high school: •
had been formally admitted as a “regular student” by the postsecondary
education institution. A
“regular student” is one who “is enrolled or accepted for enrollment at an
institution for the purpose of obtaining a degree, certificate, or other
recognized educational credential offered by that institution.” 34 CFR
§600.2. |
Public
schools awarding Regents diplomas with honors, Regents diplomas with advanced
designation, or Regents diplomas with advanced designation with honors keep
permanent records of their high school graduates and can provide documentation
for a student when needed, if the student’s diploma or official transcript does
not denote the diploma granted.
Nonpublic school students may exercise
eligibility Option 1 if the high school is registered by the Department. Home-schooled children may be eligible under
Option 4. Students in the Higher Education Opportunity Program (HEOP) at
independent colleges and universities, the Education Opportunity Program (EOP)
at SUNY, or the College Discovery (CD) program and the Search for Education,
Elevation and Knowledge (SEEK) program at CUNY may also be eligible under the
above options.