Section 20.16.235. Institutional eligibility and responsibilities.

	(a)  An institution eligible to participate in the Alaska performance scholarship program must  
		(1) have an authorization or exemption under AS 14.48  and 20 AAC 17;  
		(2) meet the requirements of AS 14.43.830;  
		(3) enter into a program participation agreement with the commission, including the institution's agreement to  
			(A) verify and certify student eligibility for scholarship awards for each term of enrollment; and  
			(B) allow commission staff to audit school records related to management of scholarship money and student eligibility determinations as determined necessary by the executive director;  
		(4) provide third-party documentation of institutional financial soundness and capacity to comply with the fiduciary responsibility for administering state scholarship money; and  
		(5) provide the commission with documentation and information the executive director considers necessary to determine whether the school is eligible to participate, including  
			(A) documentation of participation in a method of electronic funds transfer and electronic data exchange approved by the commission;  
			(B) documentation of compliance with the program participation agreement and applicable state and federal statutes and regulations relevant to institutional financial, administrative, and academic capacity; and  
			(C) periodic reports to the commission as needed by the executive director to reconcile scholarship program data, to report on program completion rates and other award recipient outcomes, and to obtain information needed to meet the requirements of AS 14.43.840.  
	(b)  For purposes of this section, third-party documentation of institutional soundness and capacity to comply with the fiduciary responsibility for administering state scholarship money is demonstrated by presenting annually  
		(1) a consumer report for the institution's owner indicating an absence of negative public records or failure to meet obligations; and  
		(2) institutional financial statements  
			(A) prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles and audited by an independent public accounting firm for the most recently completed fiscal year; and  
			(B) documenting access to income and working capital sufficient to document that the institution is a going concern.  
	(c)  An institution that does not provide the documentation required in (b)(2) of this section may qualify to administer scholarship money by providing educational institution surety bonding, executed solely in favor of and filed with the commission in an amount equal to total instructional expenses to be paid to the institution by award recipients attending the upcoming academic year or vocational period.  
	(d)  An institution is exempt from the requirements of (a)(4) of this section if the institution does not demonstrate any of the circumstances described in (e) of this section, and if the institution  
		(1) has an authorization under AS 14.48  and 20 AAC 17; or  
		(2) is accredited by a regional or national accrediting body that the United States Secretary of Education recognizes under 34 C.F.R. Part 602.  
	(e)  An institution that participates in the Alaska performance scholarship program becomes ineligible to participate in the program upon  
		(1) loss of accreditation, if applicable;  
		(2) failure to comply with applicable career and technical school program requirements in 8 AAC 81;  
		(3) failure to submit required reconciliation reports, outcomes reports, or related documentation to commission staff in accordance with applicable deadlines; or  
		(4) a commission audit finding that the institution lacks the financial, administrative, or academic capacity to successfully administer the scholarship program.  
	(f)  For purposes of this section, a commission audit finding that an institution lacks the financial, administrative, or academic capacity to successfully administer the Alaska performance scholarship program includes a finding of fraud, an inability to document how scholarship money is managed and disbursed, or a consistent and sustained failure to adhere to law applicable to the scholarship program.  
	(g)  Institutional staff shall certify that the institution's records document that the applicant meets requirements for an award, including  
		(1) that the applicant meets the applicant eligibility requirements set out in 20 AAC 16.210;  
		(2) that the applicant has qualifying unmet financial need in accordance with 20 AAC 16.220; and  
		(3) the award amount for which the applicant qualifies, in accordance with 20 AAC 16.220.  
	(h)  For purposes of AS 14.43.830(a)(1) and (2), a postsecondary education institution is physically located in the state if the campus, teachers, classrooms, school administrators, and equipment used to provide the education to students are physically present in the state. Use of electronic materials by teachers in the state does not disqualify a postsecondary institution even if the materials are generated outside the state. However, a distance-delivered program that is administered from outside the state is not physically located in the state even if the program is delivered by teachers or equipment in the state.  

Authorities

14.42.030;14.43.810;14.43.825;14.43.830;14.43.840;44.62.125

Notes

Reference

20 AAC 16.210
8 AAC 81.010

Authority

AS 14.42.030 AS 14.43.810 AS 14.43.825 AS 14.43.830 AS 14.43.840 Editor's note: As of Register 206 (July 2013), the regulation attorney made a technical revision under AS 44.62.125(b)(6), to 20 AAC 16.235(h).

History

Eff. 1/1/2011, Register 196; am 2/21/2014, Register 209; am 2/22/2015, Register 213

References

20.16.235