2015 New Mexico Statutes
Chapter 21 - State and Private Education Institutions
Section 21N Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship
Section 21-21N-3 Tuition scholarships authorized; qualified students.

21-21N-3. Tuition scholarships authorized; qualified students.

A. To the extent that funds are made available by the legislature from the fund, the boards of regents or governing bodies of public post-secondary educational institutions shall award tuition scholarships in department-approved amounts to qualified students and legacy students attending their respective public post-secondary educational institutions.

B. Beginning in fiscal year 2015:

(1) a legacy student is eligible to receive a tuition scholarship until the total number of semesters for which the legislative lottery scholarship was received pursuant to the former provisions of Sections 21-1-4.3, 21-13-10 and 21-16-10.1 NMSA 1978 or the Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship Act reaches eight; provided that the legacy student maintains residency in New Mexico, maintains a grade point average of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale and completes twelve or more credit hours per semester; and

(2) a qualified student who is not a legacy student is eligible to receive the tuition scholarship for a maximum of seven program semesters, and in an amount determined pursuant to the provisions of Section 4 [21-21N-4 NMSA 1978] of the Legislative Lottery Tuition Scholarship Act.

C. Except as otherwise provided in this section, a tuition scholarship may be awarded to a qualified student who:

(1) maintains residency in New Mexico;

(2) maintains a grade point average of 2.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale; and

(3) completes:

(a) for a student attending a four-year public post-secondary educational institution, fifteen or more credit hours per semester; and

(b) for a student attending a two-year public post-secondary educational institution, twelve or more credit hours per semester.

D. For students with disabilities who may require accommodations, the department, in consultation with the student and the office at the public post-secondary educational institution that serves students with disabilities, shall review both the definition of "full time" and the maximum number of consecutive semesters of eligibility and adjust either or both as deemed reasonable and appropriate, based on the student's disability needs. In no case, however, shall "full time" mean fewer than six credit hours per semester, and in no case shall eligibility extend beyond fourteen consecutive semesters.

History: Laws 2014, ch. 80, 3.