Eligibility Rules

To be eligible for GCSP, a person must satisfy the eligibility requirements set forth below:

Admissions Requirement
The individual must apply for admission to GC, satisfy its admissions requirements, and be admitted.

High School Standing Requirement
The applicant must be one of the following:

a. A member of the current graduating class of NHS or SHS as designated by the BOE. Current means the student graduated in the spring immediately prior
to the beginning of fall classes at Garrett College.

b. A student who is certified by the BOE as home schooled and whose date of
birth falls during a specific period of time as specified annually by the BOE in
order to validate equivalency to the high school graduating class of the current year.

c. A student who is certified by a state-approved non-public school located and
operating in Garrett County, who is a documented graduate of the current school year, and whose date of birth falls during a specific period of time as
specified annually by the BOE in order to validate equivalency of a high school graduate of the current school year.

d. Aperson who was a recipient of a General Equivalency Diploma during the BOE's immediately previous academic year.

e. A student registered at SHS or NHS as a full time equivalent student as
determined by the BOE and who has been approved to enroll in a designated
BOE/GC selective admissions dual enrolled program of study by which
Garrett County high school students can earn high school and college credit
simultaneously.

lf. A SHS or NHS member of the senior class who is enrolled as a full time
equivalent student as determined by the BOE and who has been approved to
enroll in a selective admissions mixed schedule of study by which s/ he may
take courses concurrently at the high school and GC, spending part of the
school day or school week at his/her high school and part attending GC.

g. A student who, subject to the approval of the BOE and GC, is enrolled in GC's selective admissions Early College Admissions Program (ECAP)in order to attend GC full time in the senior year.

Hereinafter the students enrolled in GCSP under (e) - (f) above are referred to
collectively as "Jointly Enrolled" or "JE" students.

Effective Date of GCSP Enrollment
Eligible persons must enroll in GCSP for the Fall semester immediately following the traditional High School graduation except under extraordinary circumstances such as, but not limited to, documented severe illness or death in the family. The decision as to whether to grant an exception shall be at the sole discretion of GC.

Residency
The applicant must be a legally documented resident of Garrett County for a period of two full years prior to September first of the Effective Date of GCSP enrollment. The determination of residency status shall be at the sole discretion of GC.

Matriculation Status
Only students enrolled in an approved GC credit degree or certificate program are eligible. This does not apply to JE students.

Full Time Status Requirement
All students, other than eligible JE students, must be enrolled full-time at GC (12 credits minimum) during the Fall and Spring semesters and may at their election also enroll for a minimum of 8 credits during each summer session selected and 4 credits during Intersession.

RULES
The following rules apply to GCSP and its recipients:

1. Students are required to apply for various forms of financial aid. Grant and scholarship aid, which the student receives from any source, is applied to the cost of GC's tuition and the combined fee. However, students are not required to apply for loans of any kind. JE and ECAP students who are eligible for GC's 50% tuition waiver as permitted by state law will have that waiver applied to the cost of GC's tuition and combined fee.

To be eligible for GCSP, students must complete and submit the following in a
timely manner:

• Garrett College admission application
• GCSP application form
• FAFSA free application for federal financial aid
• Guaranteed Access Grant
• Application forms for Maryland financial aid programs
• Gear Up application (if an eligible Gear Up participant

These forms will be available at NHS, SHS, and Garrett College.

2. Applicants must provide documentation to the satisfaction of GC that all eligibility standards have been met. The decision to accept or reject documentation shall be at the sole discretion of GC.

3. Students are not required to maintain continuous enrollment in order to be
eligible for GCSP. However, students must graduate within three years from
the date of original attendance.

4. Students may enroll in approved programs of study articulated between GC
and another institution of higher education. However, GCSP will only cover the
cost of education taken at GC.

5. GCSP will only fund courses applicable to the student's chosen program of
study.

6. GCSP will cover the tuition and the combined fee for required developmental
studies with the exception of developmental courses taken by JE students
who are ineligible in this regard unless approved by BOE and GC due to
special circumstances. The decision to grant an exception shall be at the sole
discretion of GC in consultation with the BOE.

7. GCSP funding will pay only for required developmental courses and for an
additional 64 credit hours of study at the maximum. However, GCSP will not
pay for any repeated courses whatsoever. Students must self-fund any such
courses.

8. Students who are required to be full time yet reduce their course loads to part-time status lose their GCSP eligibility thereafter except under extraordinary
circumstances such as documented severe illness or death in the family. The
decision as to whether to grant an exception shall be the sole discretion of
GC.

9. To sustain eligibility, GCSP participants must earn a minimum 2.0 average in every semester of study including grade equivalents for developmental course work as indicated in the College Catalog. Students who fail to maintain this academic standard become ineligible for the GCSP henceforth unless they attain good standing through taking courses on a self-paying basis. Then
their eligibility is restored.

10. Any student who has not been determined eligible for GCSP by the start of a semester must pay for his or her courses in accordance with GC's standard
payment policies but will be reimbursed in the event that eligibility is subsequently established for that semester of study.

11. Subject to student eligibility, GCSP shall apply to courses taken during summer sessions and intersession toward the degree in which the student is
matriculated up to a maximum of 8 credits per summer session and 4 credits
per intersession.

12. GC and the Commissioners make no warranty either implied or explicit that GCSP will be fully funded in any semester of study. The amount of the awards each semester is dependent on the amount of funds allocated to the program and the number of students qualifying. For example, students might receive the full amount of GCSP funding for which they are eligible in the Fall semester of a year but receive only 75% in the Spring semester. GC will announce prior to the start of each semester the percent of funding that GCSP will provide so that students can decide whether they wish to enroll.

13. In collaboration with the Board of Education, Garrett College shall act as the regulatory body regarding the proper implementation of the terms and
conditions of the GCSP as stated herein. The decisions of the college are not
subject to appeal.