S-2251               _______________________________________________

                                         SUBSTITUTE SENATE BILL NO. 3617

                        _______________________________________________

State of Washington                              49th Legislature                              1985 Regular Session

By Senate Committee on Education (originally sponsored by Senators Bauer, Benitz, Gaspard, Lee, Bender, Goltz, Fleming, Guess and Garrett; by Temporary Committee on Educational Policies, Structure and Management request)

Read first time 3/4/85.

AN ACT Relating to student financial assistance; adding a new section to chapter 28B.80 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1.     The legislature finds that student financial assistance programs designed to direct aid to needy students seeking degrees in particular areas of study determined to be of special concern and value to the state of Washington and its economic and social development should be considered.  Therefore, three pilot programs should be established to evaluate the merit and effectiveness of this approach to financial aid and to explore the merits of targeting existing forms of student financial assistance.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2.  A new section is added to chapter 28B.80 RCW to read as follows:

          (1) A program to target limited amounts of state financial assistance to students pursuing courses of study that expand the work force in areas critical to the state's social and economic growth shall be developed and pilot-tested by the council for postsecondary education or a successor agency responsible for the administration of higher education financial assistance.  Pilot programs to initiate such a directed approach shall be established  at three four-year institutions of higher education.  Institutional participants and the council shall identify the targeted program areas and establish operating and evaluation procedures for the pilot programs, including but not limited to the following:

          (a) Selection of the courses of study to be targeted, with particular attention directed to institutional role and mission, program offerings, and students enrolled in programs in teacher preparation, especially in shortage or high demand fields not covered in other special aid programs, programs in international trade, and programs in other areas identified as particularly important to the state's social and economic development;

          (b) Methods for encouraging and eliciting the participation of business and industry in providing work-study placements for students in the projects, grants, or other forms of financial and educational assistance; and

          (c) Criteria for distribution of aid funds specifically appropriated for the pilot program, with priority given to students eligible for existing loan, waiver, grant, work-study, and fellowship program funds.  Business and industry contributions should be sought in order to expand the numbers of students who may benefit from the program.

          (2) Initial results of the program and its effectiveness in enabling students to enroll in selected programs of study, including but not limited to information on program enrollments, distribution of assistance, student progress, business and industry participation, and supply and demand information on occupations included within the pilot programs, shall be compiled by the council and reported to the legislature during the 1987 legislative session for consideration of continuation and expansion.

          (3) This section shall expire June 30, 1987.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3.     (1) The sum of two hundred forty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 1987, from the general fund to the council for postsecondary education or a successor agency for the purposes of this act.

          (2) Each participating institution shall receive sixty thousand dollars of the total appropriation made under this section.  Of that sixty thousand dollars, twenty thousand dollars shall be used to cover costs of administration and forty thousand dollars shall be used for direct financial assistance to be distributed as grants, waivers, loans, or work-study support for students in the program.  The council for postsecondary education or its successor agency shall retain the remaining sixty thousand dollars of the appropriation to administer the program.