Missouri Code of State Regulations › Title 6 - DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT › Division 10 - Commissioner of Higher Education › Chapter 2 - Student Financial Assistance Programs › Section 6 CSR 10-2.210 - Fast Track Workforce Incentive Grant

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 14, July 15, 2024
PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the policies of the
				  Coordinating Board for Higher Education regarding student and institutional
				  participation in the Fast Track Workforce Incentive Grant.
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The secretary of state has
				  determined that the publication of the entire text of the material which is
				  incorporated by reference as a portion of this rule would be unduly cumbersome
				  or expensive. This material as incorporated by reference in this rule shall be
				  maintained by the agency at its headquarters and shall be made available to the
				  public for inspection and copying at no more than the actual cost of
				  reproduction. This note applies only to the reference material. The entire text
				  of the rule is printed here.
(1) Definitions.
(A) Academic year shall be twenty-four (24)
				semester or trimester credit hours, thirty-six (36) quarter credit hours, or
				nine hundred (900) clock hours, and at least thirty (30) weeks of instructional
				time for a credit-hour program or at least twenty-six (26) weeks of
				instructional time for a clock-hour program.
(B) Active apprentice status shall mean
				formal participation in an apprenticeship that meets any related requirements
				as defined by the organization providing the apprenticeship or the United
				States Department of Labor.
(C) At
				least half-time student shall mean a student who, regardless of the course
				delivery method, is enrolled in an eligible program at an approved institution
				in at least six (6) semester hours, four (4) quarter hours, twelve (12)
				scheduled clock hours per week, or the equivalent in another measurement system
				for the fall and spring terms or at least three (3) semester hours, two (2)
				quarter hours, twelve (12) scheduled clock hours per week, or the equivalent in
				another measurement system for the summer term. Any student enrolled in a
				program consisting of less than three hundred (300) clock hours and that is
				identified by the approved institution as noncredit, and any eligible
				apprentice participating in an eligible apprenticeship, shall be considered as
				meeting this definition.
(D)
				Applicant means a student or apprentice who filed a complete and accurate
				application to receive a Fast Track Workforce Incentive Grant award as
				prescribed by the Coordinating Board for Higher Education (CBHE) and who
				qualifies to receive such award under section
				173.2553, RSMo, and this
				rule.
(E) Approved institution
				means any institution located in the state of Missouri that meets the
				requirements set forth in sections
				173.1102(2), (3), or
				(4), RSMo, that is approved under
				6 CSR
				10-2.140, and that is approved to participate in the
				federal student financial assistance programs created in Title IV of the Higher
				Education Act of 1965, as amended.
(F) Award year shall be from July 1 of any
				year through June 30 of the following year.
(G) Board shall mean the CBHE created by
				section 173.005, RSMo.
(H) Credit hour shall mean an amount of
				student work defined by an institution, as approved by the institution's
				accrediting agency or state approval agency that is consistent with commonly
				accepted practice in postsecondary education and that meets the requirements in
				34 CFR
				600.2.
(I) Clock hour shall mean a period of time
				that meets the requirements in
				34 CFR
				600.2.
(J) Department shall mean the Department of
				Higher Education and Workforce Development created by section
				173.005, RSMo.
(K) Eligible apprentice shall mean an
				individual who meets the eligibility requirements in section (3) of this rule
				and is participating in an eligible apprenticeship.
(L) Eligible apprenticeship shall mean a
				United States Department of Labor-approved apprenticeship, as defined under
				29 CFR
				29, conducted within the state of Missouri
				that prepares a participant to enter employment in an area of occupational
				shortage as determined by the board.
(M) Eligible program shall mean a program of
				instruction that results in the award of a certificate, undergraduate degree,
				or other industry-recognized credential and that is designated by the board as
				preparing students to enter an area of occupational shortage as determined by
				the board.
(N) Eligible student
				shall mean an individual who meets the eligibility requirements in section (3)
				of this rule and is enrolled or plans to enroll at least half-time as a student
				in an eligible undergraduate program of study offered by an approved
				institution or eligible training provider.
(O) Eligible training provider shall mean a
				training organization or an apprenticeship employer located in Missouri and
				listed in the state of Missouri's Eligible Training Provider System maintained
				by the Office of Workforce Development in the department.
(P) Expenses mean any direct or indirect
				charges including but not limited to tuition, fees, books, supplies, and room
				and board, for educational-related expenses up to the cost of
				attendance.
(Q) Full-time
				employment shall mean full-time employment as defined by the employer or thirty
				(30) hours within a fixed and regularly recurring seven- (7-) day period,
				whichever is greater.
(R)
				Governmental sources of funding shall mean federal, state, and any other
				governmental grant or scholarship aid excluding federal work-study and aid
				classified as a loan and any other aid that can be converted to a
				loan.
(S) Income shall mean the
				amount identified as the federal family Adjusted Gross Income on the most
				recent Missouri 1040 tax return, the most recent federal 1040 tax return for
				active duty members of the military or their spouses, or other tax
				documentation the department determines is acceptable to document the federal
				family Adjusted Gross Income.
(T)
				Initial recipient shall mean a student who is an eligible student, or eligible
				apprentice as defined in section
				173.2553.2(3),
				RSMo, and has not received a Fast Track award
				in any prior award year.
(U)
				Instructional hour shall mean an amount of student or apprentice classroom work
				that does not meet the federal credit or clock hour definitions in
				34 CFR
				600.2 and that is defined by an
				institution.
(V) Participating
				provider shall mean an approved institution or eligible training provider that
				has a complete Fast Track participation agreement on file with the
				department.
(W) Payment period
				means a subset of the academic year or award year for which a recipient can
				receive a Fast Track grant. For federal Title IV-eligible programs, Fast Track
				payment periods shall meet federal payment period standards. For non-Title
				IV-eligible programs, Fast Track payment periods shall be-
1. For credit programs greater than an
				academic year in length where the remainder of the final year of the program is
				greater than one-half (1/2) of an academic year, each full academic year shall
				consist of two (2) payment periods, each equaling one-half (1/2) of the credit
				or clock hours in the academic year. The remainder of the credit or clock hours
				in the program shall be divided equally into two (2) payment periods. If the
				division of the remainder of credit or clock hours in the program is unequal,
				the first of the two (2) payment periods shall be the larger;
2. For credit programs greater than an
				academic year, where the remainder of the final year of the program is less
				than one-half (1/2) of an academic year, each full academic year shall consist
				of two (2) payment periods, each equaling one-half (1/2) of the credit or clock
				hours in the academic year. The remainder of the credit or clock hours in the
				program shall be included in a single, final payment period;
3. For non-credit programs one (1) academic
				year in length, there shall be two (2) payment periods, each equaling one-half
				(1/2) of the credit or clock hours in the program. If the division of the
				credit or clock hours in the program is unequal, the first of the two (2)
				payment periods shall be larger;
4.
				For non-credit programs that are four hundred and fifty (450) clock hours or
				twelve (12) credit hours in length and less than one (1) academic year in
				length, there shall be two (2) payment periods, each equaling one-half (1/2) of
				the credit or clock hours in the program. If the division of the credit or
				clock hours in the program is unequal, the first of the two (2) payment periods
				shall be larger;
5. For non-credit
				programs less than four hundred fifty (450) clock hours or twelve (12) credit
				hours in length, there shall be a single payment period equaling all of the
				credit or clock hours in the program; and
6. For apprenticeship programs, awards for
				related educational costs will be provided based on documentation from the
				apprenticeship provider.
(X) Private two- (2-) year institution shall
				mean any non-pub-lic institution offering no program above the associate degree
				level.
(Y) Provider shall mean an
				approved institution or eligible training provider.
(Z) Qualifying employment shall mean
				full-time employment of a Missouri resident at a workplace located within the
				state of Missouri, or self-employment while a Missouri resident with at least
				fifty (50) percent of an individual's annual income coming from
				self-employment, either of which result in required returns of income in
				accordance with section
				143.481, RSMo.
(AA) Recipient shall mean an eligible initial
				or renewal student or an eligible initial or renewal apprentice who received a
				Fast Track grant.
(BB) Related
				educational costs shall mean direct costs incurred by an individual as part of
				an eligible apprenticeship program, including but not limited to tools, books,
				and uniforms.
(CC) Renewal
				recipient shall mean a student who is an eligible student or eligible
				apprentice as defined in section
				173.2553.2(3),
				RSMo, and received a Fast Track award in a
				prior award year.
(DD) Residency,
				for the purpose of this rule, shall be determined by reference to the standards
				set forth in 6 CSR 10-3.010, Determination of
				Student Residency.
(EE)
				Satisfactory academic progress shall be a cumulative grade-point average (CGPA)
				of at least two and one-half (2.5) on a four-point (4.0) scale, or the
				equivalent on another scale, and, with the exception of grade-point average, as
				otherwise determined by the approved institution's policies as applied to other
				students at the approved institution receiving assistance under Title IV
				financial aid programs included in the Higher Education Act of 1965. The
				calculation of CGPA shall be based on the approved institution's policies as
				applied to other students in similar circumstances. Students enrolled in
				programs that use a pass/fail grading system are not subject to the CGPA
				requirement but must still meet the institution's academic progress policy
				cited above. For programs for which a CGPA is not calculated or progress
				monitored, institutional polices relating to performance and/or completion
				shall be considered to meet this definition.
(FF) Training hour shall mean an amount of
				student or apprentice on-the-job training or other training that does not meet
				the definition of a credit hour, clock hour, or instructional hour.
(GG) Tuition and fees shall mean any charges
				to students classified as tuition, any institutional fees charged to all
				students, and program-specific fees charged to all students in that program,
				excluding any course-specific fees.