Alabama § 16-60-372 - (Repealed by Act 2023-539, § 12(B), Effective December 31, 2028, Unless Extended by Act of Legislature) Program Established; Award of Grants.

§ 16-60-372. (Repealed by Act 2023-539, § 12(B), Effective December 31, 2028, Unless Extended by Act of Legislature) Program Established; Award of Grants.

(a) A short-term credential program is established that will provide grants to help pay for qualifying educational expenses for eligible students at any Alabama Community College System institution.

(b) An eligible student may receive a grant of up to four thousand five hundred dollars ($4,500) that shall be paid to the Alabama Community College System institution where the eligible student enrolls in a short-term credential program and shall be applied toward the eligible student’s qualifying educational expenses required to complete a credit or non-credit short-term credential program that provides training for in-demand careers in the relevant region.

(c) One-half of the grant shall be paid to the Alabama Community College System institution within five days after the eligible student’s first day of class in the short-term credential program, and the other one-half of the grant shall be paid within five days after the eligible student’s completion of the short-term credential program. The second one-half of the grant shall not be paid if the eligible student does not complete the course, and in such a situation, the eligible student shall be responsible for paying the outstanding balance of any tuition or other fees owed to the Alabama Community College System institution at which the course was taken. If the eligible student does not complete the short-term credential program within one calendar year from the first day of the program’s commencement, that individual must repay the State of Alabama the initial one-half of the grant that was paid to the Alabama Community College System institution on his or her behalf.

(d) An eligible student who receives a grant under this article may not receive another grant until one calendar year after he or she completes the short-term credential program for which the prior grant was awarded.