1. (1) ACADEMIC PERIOD. A semester or quarter.
2. (2) APPROVED POSTSECONDARY PROGRAM. Any for-credit or non-credit workforce or career training program or course of study at the undergraduate level directed toward a vocational certification, an associate degree, or a baccalaureate degree offered by a participating institution. The term includes an academic major.
3. (3) COMMISSION. The Alabama Commission on Higher Education.

4. (4) ELIGIBLE DEPENDENT. An individual who, on the date of applying for the scholarship provided under this article, is:

   1. (a) Not eligible for the police officer's survivors educational assistance provided under Article 5 of this chapter; and

   2. (b) Is one of the following:

      1. 1. A natural or adopted child of a qualifying law enforcement officer, who is under 27 years of age, and who has resided in the state for at least the two preceding years; or
      2. 2. The current or surviving spouse of a qualifying law enforcement officer who has resided in the state for at least the two preceding years.

5. (5) ELIGIBLE STUDENT. An eligible dependent who completes an Alabama Law Enforcement Officers’ Family Scholarship application, and adheres to the following:

   1. (a) Is enrolled or accepted for enrollment in an approved postsecondary program at a participating institution as an undergraduate student;
   2. (b) Complies with the Standards of Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) as required for Title IV benefits under the federal Higher Education Act and as defined by the participating institution for each academic period for which the recipient is enrolled.
   3. (c) That the recipient maintains his or her full-time residency in the state.
   4. (d) Completes the academic terms for which the scholarship is available within 66 months of the approval of the application, in the absence of a formal waiver of this condition by the Commission due to injury, illness, the necessity of part-time enrollment, or some other extraordinary circumstance;
   5. (e) Completed a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) and submitted to the United States Department of Education, or documentation from the participating institution that the applicant has completed the FAFSA;

   6. (f) If the recipient's eligibility is based on spousal status, eligibility shall end if the marriage to the qualifying law enforcement officer is terminated by a decree of divorce.

      1. 1. A surviving spouse of a law enforcement officer who did not die in the line of duty will remain eligible.
   7. (g) Maintains eligibility for the scholarship while changing his or her approved postsecondary program or transferring to another participating institution, or both, only if the change or transfer is approved by the appropriate participating institution no later than the beginning of the fifth semester or the ninth quarter for which the scholarship would be available.
6. (6) FULL-TIME STATUS. Enrolled in at least twelve (12) credit hours at a participating institution.
7. (7) LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY. Any law enforcement department or agency that serves the state, a municipality, a county, or a postsecondary educational institution.
8. (8) PARTICIPATING INSTITUTION. An accredited public or private postsecondary vocational school, technical school, community or junior college, college, or university in Alabama that enters into a contract with the Commission to accept reimbursement for a scholarship awarded to an eligible student.
9. (9) PART-TIME STATUS. Enrolled in at least six (6) credit hours but no more than eleven (11) credit hours at a participating institution.

10. (10) QUALIFYING LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER: An individual who:

    1. (a) Is or has been certified by the Alabama Peace Officers' Standards and Training Commission.
    2. (b) Is employed full-time for at least seven years by a single law enforcement agency in the state, or at least 12 continuous years on a full-time basis by more than one law enforcement agency in the state.
    3. (c) If no longer employed in law enforcement or retired, was not terminated from the most recent employment as a law enforcement officer pursuant to a disciplinary action.
11. (11) REQUIRED EDUCATIONAL EXPENSES. Costs charged for tuition, mandatory fees, and books or electronic and digital media required on a course syllabus.

Author: Takena V. Jones, Stephanie C. Dolan

Statutory Authority: Code of Alabama 1975, §§16-5-1, et seq.

History: New Rule: Published September 30, 2025; effective November 14, 2025.