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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 380
February Session, 2026
AN ACT IMPLEMENTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE TASK
FORCE TO SUPPORT PROMISE PROGRAMS IN THE STATE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) ( Effective July 1, 2026 ) (a) As used in this section, 1
"promise program" means a scholarship program that provides a 2
scholarship in conjunction with services and resources, including, but 3
not limited to, mentoring, peer support networks and internships, to 4
scholarship recipients to ensure the postsecondary academic success of 5
such recipients. 6
(b) (1) Not later than September 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, the 7
Office of Higher Education shall provide a grant to each promise 8
program in the state that was established during or prior to the previous 9
fiscal year. Such grant shall be in an amount equal to three thousand 10
dollars per student enrolled in such promise program. 11
(2) Not later than July 1, 2027, and annually thereafter, each promise 12
program that receives a grant pursuant to subdivision (1) of this 13
subsection shall report to the Office of Higher Education the rate of 14
graduation, postsecondary program enrollment and job placement 15
achieved by the students enrolled in such promise program during the 16
fiscal year in which such grant was received. 17
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(c) The Office of Higher Education shall establish a program to 18
support the establishment of new promise programs throughout the 19
state, with a goal of establishing eight new promise programs not later 20
than January 1, 2031, prioritizing the establishment of promise 21
programs that serve students in alliance districts, as defined in section 22
10-262u of the general statutes. The office shall coordinate with 23
municipalities and regional coalitions interested in establishing new 24
promise programs. The office shall support each new promise program 25
through the provision of (1) funding, in an amount designated by the 26
commissioner of said office, for the start -up expenses of such promise 27
program, and (2) technical assistance to start such promise program, 28
including, but not limited to, (A) initial funding strategies, (B) 29
stakeholder engagement, including, but not limited to, with each local 30
or regional board of education, legislative body and local nonprofit 31
organization and business of the municipality or region in which such 32
new promise program is located, (C) program design based on the local 33
environment, (D) development of evaluation metrics, and (E) 34
sustainability planning. The office shall hire a consultant with expertise 35
in the development and operation of promise programs to implement 36
the provisions of this subsection. 37
(d) Not later than January 1, 2027, and annually thereafter until 38
January 1, 2031, or until the establishment of eight new promise 39
programs, whichever is earlier, the Office of Higher Education shall 40
submit, in accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general 41
statutes, to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly 42
having cognizance of matters relating to higher education and 43
employment advancement a progress report from the consultant hired 44
pursuant to subsection (c) of this section on the establishment of new 45
promise programs in the state. 46
Sec. 2. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2026) (a) As used in this section: 47
(1) "Net cost of attendance" means the rate of tuition and required 48
fees that are established by an institution of higher education for the 49
academic year commencing with the fall semester of 2026, minus an 50
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average amount of financial aid received by a student in such student's 51
income bracket; 52
(2) "Financial aid" means the sum of all scholarships, grants and 53
federal, state and institutional aid received each academic year by a 54
qualifying student. "Financial aid" does not include any federal, state or 55
private student loans received by a qualifying student; 56
(3) "Qualifying student" means any person who (A) is a resident of 57
the state, (B) attended from grades nine to twelve, inclusive, and 58
graduated from a public or nonpublic high school in the state, with a 59
cumulative attendance rate of not less than ninety per cent, (C) enrolls, 60
not more than one year after graduating from such high school, as a full-61
time student for the academic year commencing with the fall semester 62
of 2026, or any academic year thereafter, at an institution of higher 63
education in a program leading to a bachelor's degree, (D) is making 64
satisfactory academic progress while enrolled at such institution, (E) 65
maintains good academic standing, as determined by such institution, 66
while enrolled at such institution, (F) has completed the Free 67
Application for Federal Student Aid, and (G) has accepted all available 68
financial aid; 69
(4) "Institution of higher education" means each (A) constituent unit, 70
as defined in section 10a-1 of the general statutes, of the state system of 71
higher education, and (B) nonprofit institution established in the state 72
(i) that has degree -granting authority in the state; (ii) that has its main 73
campus located in the state; (iii) that is not included in the state system 74
of public higher education; and (iv) whose primary function is not the 75
preparation of students for religious vocation; 76
(5) "Full -time student" means a student who is enrolled at an 77
institution of higher education and is carrying twelve or more credit 78
hours in a semester; and 79
(6) "First-year experience program" means a program of support to 80
assist a student in the student's transition from high school to higher 81
education through the provision of specialized academic support, peer 82
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mentorship, orientation and connection to campus resources 83
throughout the student's first academic year at an institution of higher 84
education. 85
(b) The Office of Higher Education shall establish a grant program 86
known as the Scholar Success Grant Program. For the academic year 87
commencing with the fall semester of 2026, and each academic year 88
thereafter, the office shall award a Scholar Success Grant to each 89
qualifying student at the following percentage of the net cost of 90
attendance at (1) a public institution of higher education in the state: (A) 91
Forty per cent for a qualifying student with a household income of thirty 92
thousand dollars or less, (B) thirty -six per cent for a qualifying student 93
with a household income greater than thirty thousand dollars, but not 94
more than forty -eight thousand dollars, (C) thirty -two per cent for a 95
qualifying student with a household income greater than forty -eight 96
thousand dollars, but not more than seventy -five thousand dollars, (D) 97
twenty-eight per cent for a qualifying student with a household income 98
greater than seventy -five thousand dollars, but not more than one 99
hundred ten thousand dollars, and (E) twenty -four per cent for a 100
qualifying student with a household income greater than one hundred 101
ten thousand dollars, or (2) an independent institution of higher 102
education, as defined in section 10a -173 of the general statutes: (A) 103
Twenty per cent for a qualifying student with a household income of 104
thirty thousand dollars or less, (B) sixteen per cent for a qualifying 105
student with a household income greater than thirty thousand dollars, 106
but not more than forty -eight thousand dollars, (C) twelve per cent for 107
a qualifying student with a household income greater than forty -eight 108
thousand dollars, but not more than seventy -five thousand dollars, (D) 109
eight per cent for a qualifying student with a household income greater 110
than seventy-five thousand dollars, but not more than one hundred ten 111
thousand dollars, and (E) eight per cent for a qualifying student with a 112
household income greater than one hundred ten thousand dollars. Such 113
grant shall be available to such qualifying student for not more than six 114
consecutive academic years or until such qualifying student graduates, 115
whichever occurs sooner. The office shall provide each Scholar Success 116
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Grant directly to the institution of higher education in which such 117
student enrolls, provided such institution complies with the 118
requirements set forth in subsection (c) of this section. 119
(c) To receive a Scholar Success Grant from the Office of Higher 120
Education for any qualifying student who enrolls at an institution of 121
higher education, such institution shall: (1) Enroll each qualifying 122
student in a first-year experience program at such institution, (2) enroll 123
each qualifying student in a financial literacy program during the spring 124
or summer prior to such qualifying student's first academic year at such 125
institution, (3) provide to each qualifying student a transparent 126
multiyear financial aid award letter in an easily understood format that 127
includes, but is not limited to, the net cost of attendance, designation of 128
any one -time awards or costs and an explanation of student loan 129
expectations, and (4) assign to each qualifying student an advisor who 130
shall advise such qualifying student when making financial, academic 131
or career decisions from the time such qualifying student accepts 132
admission to such institution until such qualifying student graduates. 133
(d) Not later than January 1, 2027, and annually thereafter, the Office 134
of Higher Education shall submit a report, in accordance with the 135
provisions of section 11 -4a of the general statutes, to the joint standing 136
committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters 137
relating to higher education and employment advancement. Such report 138
shall include, but need not be limited to, the (1) number of qualifying 139
students receiving Scholar Success Grants during the current academic 140
year, (2) household income brackets of such students, and (3) amount of 141
such grants received by each institution of higher education for the 142
academic year during which the office submits such report. 143
Sec. 3. (Effective July 1, 2026 ) The sum of four million eight hundred 144
thousand dollars is appropriated to the Office of Higher Education, 145
from the General Fund, for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027, for 146
grants to promise programs pursuant to section 1 of this act. 147
Sec. 4. ( Effective July 1, 2026 ) The sum of thirty million dollars is 148
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appropriated to the Office of Higher Education, from the General Fund, 149
for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027, for the Scholar Success Grant 150
Program established pursuant to section 2 of this act. 151
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 2 July 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 3 July 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 4 July 1, 2026 New section
HED Joint Favorable Subst.
APP Joint Favorable