§ 53B-8-104. Nonresident partial tuition scholarships.

(1) The board may grant a scholarship for partial waiver of the nonresident portion of total tuition charged by public institutions of higher education to nonresident undergraduate students, subject to the limitations provided in this section, if the board determines that the scholarship will:

(a) promote mutually beneficial cooperation between Utah communities and nearby communities in states adjacent to Utah;

(b) contribute to the quality and desirable cultural diversity of educational programs in Utah institutions;

(c) assist in maintaining an adequate level of service and related cost-effectiveness of auxiliary operations in Utah institutions of higher education; and

(d) promote enrollment of nonresident students with high academic aptitudes.

(2) The board shall establish policy guidelines for the administration by institutions of higher education of any partial tuition scholarships authorized under this section, for evaluating applicants for those scholarships, and for reporting the results of the scholarship program authorized by this section.

(3) The policy guidelines promulgated by the board under Subsection (2) shall include the following provisions:

(a) the amount of the approved scholarship may not be more than 1/2 of the differential tuition charged to nonresident students for an equal number of credit hours of instruction;

(b) a nonresident partial tuition scholarship may be awarded initially only to a nonresident undergraduate student who has not previously been enrolled in a college or university in Utah and who has enrolled full time for 10 or more credit hours, whose legal domicile is within approximately 100 highway miles of the Utah system of higher education institution at which the recipient wishes to enroll or such distance that the regents may establish for any institution;

(c) the total number of nonresident partial tuition scholarships granted may not exceed a total of 600 such scholarships in effect at any one time; and

(d) the board shall determine eligibility for nonresident partial tuition scholarships on the basis of program availability at an institution and on a competitive basis, using quantifiable measurements such as grade point averages and results of test scores.

(4) The board shall submit an annual report and financial analysis of the effects of offering nonresident partial tuition scholarships authorized under this section to the Legislature as part of its budget recommendations for the system of higher education.

Amended by Chapter 363, 2009 General Session