Policies + Procedures — Governance + Compliance — Public Safety Survivors Tuition Waiver

1.26 Public Safety Survivors Tuition Waiver

I. Purpose

This policy recognizes the sacrifice of Bucks County public safety officers by providing a tuition waiver to survivors of those killed in the line of duty or while in the performance of their duties.

II. Scope

This policy applies to those individuals for whom survivor status eligibility is confirmed under the definitions established in this policy.

III. General

This waiver shall provide tuition and fees for spouses and dependent children of public safety personnel who are killed in the line of duty or who die while in the performance of their duties and who are Bucks County residents and work for a county department and/or agency at the time of their death.

Public safety personnel are defined as:

Sworn officers who are full and part-time members of a Bucks County police department, Bucks County sheriff department and Pennsylvania constables.
Full and part-time firefighters (paid or volunteer) of a Bucks County fire department.
Officer members of the Bucks County Department of Corrections.
Full and part-time (paid or volunteer) members of a Bucks County EMT squad providing transportation and/or treatment and care for persons with emergency medical needs. Members of private ambulance squads are not included.

IV. Procedures

Eligibility

Eligible individuals will be identified by the Director, Financial Aid, and verified by the Vice President, Student Affairs. Survivor status, as killed in line of duty or died while in performance of duty, will be determined by verification of benefit status with the appropriate county, municipal or volunteer organization.

The Financial Aid Office will administer this tuition waiver program. Student Accounts will apply a tuition and fee waiver to each recipient’s student account after eligibility has been verified.

Terms

The tuition will be available for award starting in Fall 2012 and will cover up to 65 credits toward an academic degree at the in-county tuition rate. The tuition waiver is not financial need based and is intended to be used for up to 48 consecutive months. Students who have a legitimate reason for interrupting their studies must notify the Director, Financial Aid in writing to verify their continued eligibility.

The college reserves the right to ask those eligible to apply for available financial aid grants to mitigate the cost of the program without reduction of the total benefit. Additionally, this waiver will be the primary tuition/fees award for dependent children with the existing “Heroes” scholarship program covering the gap, if any, between college awards and the costs of attendance at Bucks County Community College.

Additional terms:

Spouses may begin their studies at any time.
Dependent children must begin their studies on or before their 21st birthday.
Dependent children must remain in dependent status to qualify.
Spouses and dependent children must be Bucks County residents during the time of their studies.
All recipients must remain in good academic standing and comply with the college Code of Conduct and must complete their studies within 48 months of starting their studies at the college.

Program Review

The Board of Trustees will receive a written report (provided below) on the use of the tuition waiver program in September 2014 and in September 2016, at which time the Trustees may elect to modify the program, extend it, or terminate it with notice to those currently enrolled.