PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the policies of the Coordinating Board for Higher Education regarding institutional and student eligibility for student financial assistance under the A+ Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship program.

1. (1) Definitions.

   1. (A) A+ designated high school shall mean a high school that the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education has determined meets the requirements established in section 160.545, RSMo, and has been approved by the Board of Education for participation in the A+ Program.
   2. (B) Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship shall mean the tuition reimbursement program set forth in subsection 160.545.9., RSMo.
   3. (C) Approved institution shall mean any institution located in the state of Missouri that meets the requirements set forth in subdivisions 173.1102.1(2), (3), or (4), RSMo, that has been approved under 6 CSR 10-2.140, and that has been approved to participate in the federal student financial assistance programs created in Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.
   4. (D) Award year shall be from July 1 of any year through June 30 of the following year.
   5. (E) CBHE shall mean the Coordinating Board for Higher Education created by section 173.005.2, RSMo.
   6. (F) Department shall mean the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development created by section 173.005.1, RSMo.
   7. (G) Dual Credit coursework shall mean college level courses taught by high school instructors to high school students who are simultaneously earning both high school and college credit for these courses.
   8. (H) Dual Enrollment coursework shall mean college level courses taught by postsecondary faculty to high school students who are earning college credit, and may be earning high school credit, for these courses.
   9. (I) Eligible coursework shall mean dual credit or dual enrollment coursework provided by an approved institution.
   10. (J) Eligible student shall mean a student at an A+ designated high school who has applied for the Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship program and who has been verified by the A+ designated high school in accordance with subsection (2)(A) of this rule.
   11. (K) Recipient shall mean an eligible student who has been verified by an approved institution in accordance with subsection (3)(A) of this rule and has been paid an award.
   12. (L) Repeat coursework shall be any coursework for which the recipient has been assigned a grade under the institution’s standard grading policy, excluding coursework for which the recipient was placed in an incomplete or withdrawn status, in a previous term.
   13. (M) Student shall mean a student attending an A+ designated high school who is applying for, or has applied for, a Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship award.
   14. (N) Tuition and fees shall mean any charges to eligible students classified as tuition and any institutional fees charged to all dual credit or dual enrollment students, excluding course-specific fees.
   15. (O) Tuition reimbursement shall mean an amount of money paid by the state of Missouri to an eligible student enrolled in dual credit or dual enrollment coursework under the Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship program for costs related to tuition and general fees, subject to state appropriations, after all other sources of non-loan funding have been applied.

2. (2) Responsibilities of A+ Designated High Schools.

   1. (A) For students who have completed a dual credit/dual enrollment scholarship application, verify they are enrolled in dual credit or dual enrollment coursework and have met the eligibility requirements listed in section (4) of this rule except for paragraph (4)(A)2.
   2. (B) Submit the information required to verify student eligibility to the department. Student eligibility for an award will not be evaluated until this information is provided to the department.

3. (3) Responsibilities of Approved Institutions.

   1. (A) Before requesting reimbursement for an eligible student, verify the following:

      1. 1. The eligible student is enrolled in eligible coursework;
      2. 2. The amount of the reimbursement request, including

the number of hours in which the eligible student is enrolled and the credit hour rate for those hours; and

1. 3. The eligible student is a U.S. citizen or permanent

resident.

1. (B) Comply with the institutional responsibilities required in section 6 CSR 10-2.140(5), with the exception of paragraph 6 CSR 10-2.140(5)(A)5.
2. (C) Verify all other sources of non-loan funding are applied correctly to tuition and general fees, as specified in subsection (6)(C) of this rule.

1. (4) Eligibility Policy.

   1. (A) To qualify for tuition reimbursement, a student must meet the following criteria:

      1. 1. Attend an A+ designated high school or high schools

for at least two (2) years prior to the semester in which tuition reimbursement is being sought. Enrollment during the two (2) years in which the student was in attendance at one (1) or more A+ designated high schools must total a minimum of seventy-five percent (75%) of the instructional days required by the high school at which the student is enrolled while taking the dual credit or dual enrollment coursework. Interruptions in enrollment cumulatively totaling no more than twenty-five percent (25%) of instructional days in the two (2) years in which the student was in attendance at one (1) or more A+ designated high schools may occur consecutively or intermittently;

1. 2. Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident;
2. 3. Meet the high school’s requirements for taking dual

credit or dual enrollment coursework, except that students must have a minimum overall unweighted high school grade point average of at least two and one-half (2.5) on a four-point (4.0) scale, or the equivalent on another scale, through the semester immediately preceding the semester in which tuition reimbursement is being sought;

1. 4. Have maintained a record of good citizenship and

avoidance of the unlawful use of drugs and/or alcohol through the semester immediately preceding the semester in which reimbursement is being sought as determined by the A+ high school the eligible student is attending. Student participation in the Constitution Project of Missouri may be included in a student’s record of good citizenship in accordance with the A+ designated high school’s policy; and

1. 5. Be enrolled in eligible coursework.

1. (5) Application and Evaluation.

   1. (A) The department shall prescribe the time and method for filing applications for tuition reimbursement under the Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship program.

   2. (B) Students must submit a completed application by the following deadlines to be considered for tuition reimbursement.

      1. 1. The priority deadline for the fall semester (August

through December) shall be October 1 and for the spring semester (January through May) shall be February 1 of the current academic year.

1. 2. The final deadline shall be December 1 for the fall

semester and April 1 for the spring semester

1. 3. Students filing after the priority deadline has passed and

on or before the final deadline shall be considered for payment if funds are available.

1. (C) The department will evaluate each application and assign the eligible student’s payment rank in accordance with subsection (6)(E) of this rule.

1. (6) Award Policy.

   1. (A) Tuition reimbursement shall occur each semester within one (1) award year.

   2. (B) Tuition reimbursement will be as specified for the following categories of eligible coursework:

      1. 1. Completed coursework for which a grade is assigned

under the institution’s standard grading policy, including coursework assigned a grade of incomplete, will be reimbursed;

1. 2. Dropped or withdrawn coursework will be reimbursed,

based on the approved institution’s tuition refund policy; and

1. 3. Repeat high school dual credit or dual enrollment

coursework will not be reimbursed.

1. (C) The amount of the tuition reimbursement must be calculated based on the remaining costs of actual tuition and fees after all other non-loan aid has been applied.
2. (D) Tuition reimbursement is subject to legislative appropriation.
3. (E) If insufficient funds are available to pay all eligible students, the department will rank eligible students first from lowest to highest Adjusted Gross Income as provided in the eligible student’s application and then from earliest application received date, and will make reimbursement according to rank order until all available funds for the semester are expended.
4. (F) Tuition reimbursement will be made for dual credit or dual enrollment coursework taken in the fall and spring semesters, but no tuition reimbursement will be made for such coursework taken in summer school.
5. (G) No tuition reimbursement will be made retroactive to a previous award year. Tuition reimbursement will be made retroactive to a previous semester only upon the sole discretion of the department.
6. (H) Tuition reimbursement will be made only after institutional certification of the eligible student’s eligibility and the amount of the tuition reimbursement.
7. (I) The recipient’s award will be sent to the approved institution to be delivered to the student’s account.
8. (J) An eligible student’s failure to provide required information by the established deadlines may result in loss of the Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship for the period covered by the deadline.
9. (K) The CBHE has the discretion to withhold payments of any tuition reimbursements after initiating an inquiry into the eligibility or continued eligibility of an eligible student or recipient.
10. (L) A recipient may receive tuition reimbursement from more than one (1) approved institution in a semester or award year.

1. (7) Information Sharing Policy. All information on an individual’s Dual Credit/Dual Enrollment Scholarship application may be shared with the financial aid office of the approved institution providing the individual’s dual credit or dual enrollment coursework, or the A+ designated high school the student is attending, to permit verification of data submitted. Information may be shared with federal financial aid offices, if necessary, to verify data furnished by state or federal governments as provided for in the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. sections 552 and 552a.

AUTHORITY: section 160.545, RSMo Supp. 2021,* and Executive Order 10-16, dated January 29, 2010. Original rule filed Aug. 27, 2021, effective March 30, 2022. *Original authority: 160.545, RSMo 1993, amended 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018.