Tennessee § 49-4-916 - Merit scholarship.

§ 49-4-916. Merit scholarship.

To be eligible for a general assembly merit scholarship as an entering freshman, a student must: Meet all requirements for a Tennessee HOPE scholarship; Achieve a final high school grade point average of at least 3.75; and Attain a composite ACT score of at least 29 on any single ACT test date or a concordant equivalent score on the SAT on any single SAT test date. To be eligible for a general assembly merit scholarship as an entering freshman, a student who completes high school in a Tennessee home school program after December 1, 2003, or who graduates from a high school located in Tennessee that is not an eligible high school after December 1, 2003, shall: Meet all requirements for a Tennessee Hope scholarship that are applicable to the student; Attain a composite ACT score of at least 29 on any single ACT test date or a concordant equivalent score on the SAT on any single SAT test date; During the course of a home school program or while attending an ineligible high school: Enroll in at least four (4) dual enrollment courses totaling at least twelve (12) semester hours credit at an eligible postsecondary institution and achieve a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0; Participate in a governor's school program, and achieve a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0; Take two (2) Advanced Placement (AP) examinations, and make a score of at least three (3); or Take one (1) College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) test, and make a score of at least fifty-five (55); Apply for a general assembly merit scholarship; and Be admitted to and enroll in an eligible postsecondary institution no later than sixteen (16) months after completing high school in a Tennessee home school program, or graduating from high school. A student, who receives a general assembly merit scholarship as an entering freshman shall continue to be eligible for a general assembly merit scholarship, if the student meets all requirements of § 49-4-911 for continuation of a Tennessee HOPE scholarship. If a student receiving a general assembly merit scholarship ceases to be academically eligible for the general assembly merit scholarship, by failing to maintain the required cumulative grade point average at the end of any semester in which academic eligibility is reviewed under § 49-4-911, then the student may regain the Tennessee HOPE scholarship award under § 49-4-911(b), but may not regain the general assembly merit scholar supplemental award. If a student receiving a general assembly merit scholarship ceases to be eligible for a general assembly merit scholarship at any time, for any reason other than failure to maintain the required cumulative grade point average, then the student shall not be able to regain either the Tennessee HOPE scholarship or the general assembly merit scholar supplemental award. A student who meets the requirements for a general assembly merit scholarship shall receive a Tennessee HOPE scholarship award under § 49-4-914 and a general assembly merit scholar supplemental award. The general assembly merit scholar supplemental award for full-time students shall be determined in accordance with § 4-51-111 and shall be set in the general appropriations act. Both the Tennessee HOPE scholarship award and the general assembly merit scholar supplemental award are subject to the amounts appropriated by the general assembly and any law relating to a shortfall in funds available for postsecondary financial assistance from the net proceeds of the state lottery. Acts 2003, ch. 298, § 1; 2004, ch. 840, §§ 14, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28; 2004, ch. 881, §§ 3, 4, 5; 2005, ch. 481, §§ 9, 10, 16; 2016, ch. 943, §§ 1, 2; 2017, ch. 328, § 3; 2020, ch. 794, § 37. Code Commission Notes. Former subsection (d), concerning eligibility for general merit scholarships, was deleted as obsolete by the code commission in 2009. Compiler's Notes. Acts 2004, ch. 840, § 30(a) provided that the amendment of subdivisions (a)(2) and (d)(1)(A) by §§ 27, 28 of that act shall apply to students seeking financial assistance from lottery proceeds for the 2005-2006 school year and thereafter. Acts 2004, ch. 840, § 30(b) provided that the amendment of the introductory paragraphs, subdivisions (a)(3) and (d)(1)(B) by §§ 14 and 21-23 of that act shall apply to students seeking financial assistance from lottery proceeds for the 2004-2005 school year and thereafter. Acts 2005, ch. 481, § 30, provided that: (a) A student who was eligible for a Tennessee HOPE scholarship, a general assembly merit scholarship, or a Tennessee HOPE access grant for the 2004-2005 academic year, but who did not attend any postsecondary institution in the 2004-2005 academic year, may apply for such scholarship or grant under the amendments made to title 49, chapter 4, part 9 by §§ 5 through 13 of the act. TSAC may award the scholarship, if the student meets all applicable requirements for the scholarship or grant and the student is admitted to and enrolls in an eligible postsecondary institution no later than sixteen (16) months after graduating from an eligible high school, graduating from a high school located in Tennessee that is not an eligible high school, completing high school in a Tennessee home school, or obtaining a GED(R). A student may apply for the retroactive award of a Tennessee HOPE scholarship, a general assembly merit scholarship, or a Tennessee HOPE access grant for any semester of the 2004-2005 academic year in which the student would have qualified for a scholarship or grant under §§ 14-20, or § 22 of the act, had such provisions been in effect during that academic year. TSAC may award the scholarship or grant retroactively, if the student meets all applicable requirements for the scholarship or grant.” Acts 2013, ch. 453, § 52 provided that: “(a) For students who first received the Tennessee HOPE scholarship, Tennessee HOPE access grant or Tennessee HOPE scholarship for nontraditional students before the fall semester of 2009, award amounts for the 2013-2014 academic year (two semesters) shall be: “(1) $4,000 for an eligible student under the HOPE scholarship award or HOPE nontraditional scholarship award pursuant to § 49-4-914(a) ; “(2) $2,000 for an eligible student under the HOPE scholarship award pursuant to § 49-4-914(b) ; “(3) $1,500 for an eligible student under the ASPIRE need-based supplemental award pursuant to § 49-4-915 ; and “(4) $1,000 for an eligible student under the General Assembly Merit Scholar supplemental award pursuant to § 49-4-916 . “(b) For students who first received the Tennessee HOPE scholarship, Tennessee HOPE access grant or Tennessee HOPE scholarship for nontraditional students beginning the fall semester of 2009 or thereafter, award amounts for the 2013-2014 academic year shall be: “(1) $2,000 per semester for an eligible student under the HOPE scholarship award or HOPE nontraditional scholarship award pursuant to § 49-4-914(a) ; “(2) $1,000 per semester for an eligible student under the HOPE scholarship award pursuant to § 49-4-914(b) ; “(3) $750 per semester for an eligible student under the ASPIRE need-based supplemental award pursuant to § 49-4-915 ; “(4) $500 per semester for an eligible student under the General Assembly Merit Scholar supplemental award pursuant to § 49-4-916 ; and “(5) Pursuant to the provisions of § 49-4-920 , the award amount for an eligible student under the Tennessee HOPE access grant shall be $1,375 per semester at four-year schools and $875 per semester at two-year schools. “(c) The 2013-2014 award amount for an eligible student under the Wilder-Naifeh Technical Skills Grant pursuant to § 49-4-921 shall be $2,000. “(d) The 2013-2014 award amount for an eligible student under the Tennessee HOPE foster child tuition grant shall be determined under the provisions of § 49-4-933 . “(e) The 2013-2014 award amount shall be $1,000 per semester for successful completion of twelve (12) or more semester hours for an eligible student under the Helping Heroes Grant pursuant to § 49-4-938 ; provided, however, that the total amount expended for Helping Heroes Grants shall not exceed $750,000. “(f) The 2013-2014 award amount shall be determined pursuant to the provisions of § 49-4-939 for an eligible student under the Tennessee Rural Health scholarship; provided, however, that the total amount expended for Tennessee Rural Health scholarships shall not exceed $300,000. “(g) The 2013-2014 award amount shall be determined by the Tennessee student assistance corporation in accordance with § 49-4-930 for an eligible student under the dual enrollment grant.” Acts 2016, ch. 943, § 3 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall apply to students seeking postsecondary financial assistance from net lottery proceeds for the 2016-2017 academic year and academic years thereafter. Acts 2017, ch. 328, § 8 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall apply to students seeking postsecondary financial assistance from net lottery proceeds for the 2017-2018 academic years and academic years thereafter. For the Preamble to the act concerning HOPE Lottery Scholarships and the Tennessee Promise and Reconnect programs, see Acts 2020, ch. 794. Acts 2020, ch. 794, § 1 provided that the act, which amended this section, shall be known and may be cited as the “Financial Aid Simplification for Tennesseans (FAST) Act”. Amendments. The 2020 amendment, in (a), deleted “who graduates from an eligible high school after December 1, 2003, upon meeting all curriculum requirements of the high school for graduation and who is seeking an associate or baccalaureate degree at an eligible postsecondary institution,” following “a student” and substituted “must:” for “shall:”; in (a)(2) deleted “overall weighted” following “Achieve a final”, and inserted “; and”; substituted a period for a semicolon at the end of (a)(3); and deleted (a)(4) and (a)(5) which read: “(4) Apply for a general assembly merit scholarship; and “(5) Be admitted to and enroll in an eligible postsecondary institution no later than sixteen (16) months after graduating from high school.” Effective Dates. Acts 2020, ch. 794, § 70. August 1, 2020.