The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 16: Education

Chapter 079: SCHOLARSHIPS; REPORTS

• § 2531. Repealed. 1959, No. 252, § 9.

• §§ 2531a-2531e. Repealed. 2013, No. 56, § 15(6), eff. May 30, 2013.

• § 2531f. Repealed. 2009, No. 33, § 83(g)(5).

• § 2531g. Repealed. 1965, No. 198, § 12.

• § 2531h. Repealed. 1975, No. 202 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. March 27, 1976.

• § 2532. Repealed. 1959, No. 252, § 9.

• § 2533. Repealed. 1965, No. 198, § 12.

• § 2534. Repealed. 1959, No. 252, § 9.

• § 2535. Town scholarships

  A town, at any legal meeting of the voters, may appropriate from its general funds money to pay all or part of the tuition and incidental expenses of one or more students from the town in any institution of higher learning. When a town makes such an appropriation, a committee consisting of the superintendent of the district in which the town is located, the chair of the school board, the chair of the prudential committee, if any, in the town, and the principals of each high school and academy in the town, or if there is not a high school or academy, the principal of the high school usually attended by the resident students shall constitute a board of selection. On or before August 1 following an appropriation, the board shall designate, on the basis of scholarship and need, the number of students authorized by the appropriation. The choice of the institution shall be made by each student receiving a scholarship. (Amended 1975, No. 100, § 2; 2013, No. 92 (Adj. Sess.), § 184, eff. Feb. 14, 2014.)

• § 2536. Repealed. 2007, No. 154 (Adj. Sess.), § 6(12).

• § 2537. Armed Services Scholarships

  (a) It shall be the policy of the State of Vermont to provide scholarships to be known as the Armed Services Scholarships for education beyond high school for:

  (1) Children and spouses of members in good standing of the Vermont National Guard who since 1955 have been killed, or who since January 1, 2001 have died, while on active or inactive duty in accordance with specifications herewith.

  (2) Children and spouses of members in good standing of the active Reserve Forces of the United States who since January 1, 2001 have died while on active or inactive duty and who were Vermont residents at the time of death.

  (3) Children and spouses of members of the active Armed Forces of the United States who since January 1, 2001 have died while on active duty and who, at the time of death, were either Vermont residents, nonresident members of the Vermont National Guard who were mobilized to active duty, or nonresident active Reserve Force members of a Vermont-based reserve unit who were mobilized to active duty. A child or spouse of a deceased nonresident member of the active Reserve Forces shall be ineligible for an Armed Services Scholarship if he or she is eligible for a death benefit from the last state of residence of the deceased parent or spouse, that helps finance attendance at a postsecondary institution in that state.

  (b) Definitions:

  (1) “Vermont National Guard” as used in this section will be deemed to include Vermont Army National Guard and Vermont Air National Guard.

  (2) “Active duty for Vermont National Guard and for active Reserve Forces” means full-time duty in the active military service of the United States and includes full-time training duty, annual training duty, and attendance, while in the active military service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the secretary of the military department concerned.

  (3) “Inactive duty” means training performed by members of a reserve component while not on active duty and includes unit training assemblies, training periods, military flight periods, and other equivalent duty and while on State duty on order of the Governor or the Governor’s representative.

  (4) “Armed Forces of the United States” means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, Space Force, and Coast Guard.

  (5) “Child” means a natural or adoptive child of a member of the Vermont National Guard or Armed Forces, and includes a stepchild. (Added 1967, No. 199, § 1; amended 1973, No. 233 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. April 4, 1974; 2003, No. 21, § 1; 2003, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 2011, No. 149 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 2023, No. 85 (Adj. Sess.), § 34, eff. July 1, 2024.)

• § 2538. Amount, duration

  (a) Subject to subsection (c) of this section, an Armed Services Scholarship shall pay tuition for academic credit at a Vermont postsecondary institution eligible for student assistance funds under Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 and leading to an undergraduate certificate or degree as follows:

  (1) If the person attends the University of Vermont, the scholarship shall pay an amount equal to the actual tuition charged by the University to the person.

  (2) If the person attends a Vermont State College, the scholarship shall pay an amount equal to the actual tuition charged by the institution to the person.

  (3) If the person attends any other postsecondary institution located in Vermont, the scholarship shall pay an amount equal to the actual tuition charged by the institution to the person, or an amount equal to that which the scholarship would have paid if the person attended the University of Vermont pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, whichever is less.

  (b) An Armed Services Scholarship may be used for a maximum of 130 academic credits for an undergraduate certificate or degree.

  (c) A person eligible and applying for an Armed Forces Scholarship shall apply for a federal Pell Grant. The amount of the Armed Services Scholarship awarded shall be the remaining tuition to be paid pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, following receipt of a Pell Grant.

  (d) A person who has obtained a bachelor’s degree is not eligible for an Armed Services Scholarship. (Added 1967, No. 199, § 2; amended 1973, No. 38; 2003, No. 21, § 3; 2003, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 4; 2013, No. 50, § E.219.1.)

• § 2539. Application, award, renewal

  (a) Applications for Armed Services Scholarships shall be processed as follows:

  (1) for a child or spouse of a member of the Vermont National Guard or of the active Reserve Forces of the United States, by the Vermont Adjutant General who shall verify the eligibility of the applicant as provided in section 2537 of this title; and

  (2) for a child or spouse of a member of the Armed Forces of the United States, by the Office of Veterans’ Affairs who shall verify the eligibility of the applicant as provided in section 2537 of this title.

  (b) On being notified of an eligible applicant’s matriculation at an institution as specified in subsection 2538(a) of this title, the Adjutant and Inspector General or the Office of Veterans’ Affairs shall provide funds from the special fund established in section 2541 of this title to the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation, which, upon verifying enrollment, shall disburse the scholarship award to the institution.

  (c) Application for renewal of an Armed Services Scholarship shall be made annually with written endorsement by the proper officer of the institution attended that the holder of the scholarship has maintained satisfactory scholastic standing. On receipt of this certification, the Adjutant and Inspector General or the Office of Veterans’ Affairs shall provide funds from the special fund established in section 2541 of this title to the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation, which, upon verifying enrollment, shall disburse the scholarship award to the institution. (Added 1967, No. 199, § 3; amended 2003, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 5; 2013, No. 50, § E.219.2.)

• § 2540. Repealed. 2003, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 7.

• § 2541. Armed Services Scholarship Fund

  (a) An Armed Services Scholarship Fund is established to comprise appropriations made by the General Assembly. The Fund shall be managed pursuant to 32 V.S.A. chapter 7, subchapter 5 and shall be available to the Military Department for the Armed Services Scholarships established in section 2537 of this title.

  (b) All balances in the Fund at the end of any fiscal year shall be carried forward and used only for the purposes set forth in this section. Earnings of the Fund that are not withdrawn pursuant to this section shall remain in the Fund. (Added 2003, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.), § 6; amended 2013, No. 50, § E.219.3.)