Note: This version of section amended by P.L.242-2023, SEC.1. See also preceding version of this section amended by P.L.161-2023, SEC.1.

     Sec. 5. (a) An applicant who is enrolled in an accredited postsecondary educational institution after June 30, 2017, may qualify for a scholarship under this section. To qualify for a scholarship, an applicant must:

(1) apply for a scholarship on a form supplied by the commission;

(2) except as provided in subsection (b), have graduated from an Indiana nonaccredited nonpublic or state accredited high school accredited under IC 20-31-4.1 and:

(A) graduated in the highest twenty percent (20%) of students in the applicant’s high school graduating class;

(B) received a score in the top twentieth percentile on the SAT or ACT examination; or

(C) achieved a cumulative grade point average upon graduation of at least 3.5 on a 4.0 grading scale (or its equivalent if another grading scale is used) for courses taken during grades 9, 10, 11, and 12;

(3) have participated in school activities and community service activities during high school;

(4) have applied to and been accepted for enrollment in an accredited postsecondary educational institution approved by the commission under section 10 of this chapter;

(5) agree in writing to:

(A) obtain a license to teach under IC 20-28-5; and

(B) teach for at least five (5) consecutive years in a public school or an eligible school (as defined in IC 20-51-1-4.7) in Indiana after graduating with a baccalaureate degree from the accredited postsecondary educational institution described in subdivision (4); and

(6) meet any other criteria established by the commission.

     (b) A student who graduates from a nonaccredited nonpublic school must meet the requirement described in subsection (a)(2)(B) in order to meet the eligibility requirement described in subsection (a)(2).

As added by P.L.105-2016, SEC.1. Amended by P.L.92-2020, SEC.101; P.L.63-2021, SEC.2; P.L.242-2023, SEC.1.