DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Colorado State Board of Education
1 CCR 301-103
RULES FOR THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE ACCELERATED COLLEGE OPPORTUNITY EXAM FEE GRANT PROGRAM 
1.00	STATEMENT AND BASIS OF PURPOSE
The statutory basis for these rules is found in section 22-95.5-101, et. seq. C.R.S, which establishes the Accelerated College Opportunity Exam Fee Grant Program to increase the number of eligible students who take an Advanced Placement exam or International Baccalaureate exam and receive scores for which college academic credit is awarded by providing funds to high schools, to pay all or a portion of Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate exam fees on behalf of eligible students.  Section 22-95.5-102(2), C.R.S., states that the Department shall administer the grant program in accordance with state board rules.
2.00	DEFINITIONS
2.01	“Advanced Placement” means the Advanced Placement program administered by the College Board.
2.02	“Applicant” means a public high school, either on its own behalf or through its authorizer or fiscal agent, which serves grades nine through twelve and has one or more students who plan to take an Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate exam 
2.03	“Department” means the Department of Education created pursuant to section 24-1-115, C.R.S.
2.04	“Eligible student” means a student enrolled in a high school who is a low-income student, as defined in 20 U.S.C. sec. 9832 and who is planning to take one or more Advanced Placement exams or International Baccalaureate exams.
2.05       “Exam” means an Advanced Placement exam or International Baccalaureate exam.
2.06	“Grant program” means the Accelerated College Opportunity Exam Fee Grant Program created in section 22-95.5-102, C.R.S.
2.07	“High school” means any public school that serves grades nine through twelve and has one or more students who plan to take an Advanced Placement exam or International Baccalaureate exam.  
2.08	“International Baccalaureate” means the grades nine through 12 educational programs offered by the International Baccalaureate foundation.  
3.00	APPLICATION INFORMATION 
3.01	Application Timeline
3.01(1)	Grant applications must be submitted to the Department no later than April 1st, annually.
3.02	Application Procedures
3.02(1)	The Department will implement the grant program and develop a grant application form. Each application must specify:
	3.02(1)(a)	applicant name, including name of high school and district or other authorizer;
	3.02(1)(b)	total number of exams for which the applicant requests funding;
	3.02(1)(c)	total number of eligible students planning to take exams  for which the applicant requests funding;
	3.02(1)(d)	subject matter or name of exams for which the applicant is requesting funding; 
	3.02(1)(e)    	amount of federal funding (e.g. Title IV Part A  and  Title I) set aside,  pledged or received to pay for exam  fees, and for how many students and exams funding applies, if applicable; 
	3.02(1)(e)(i)  assurance that funds from this program will not supplant federal funding pledged or received for the payment exam  fees.	
	3.02(1)(f). 	assurance that grant funds will be used only for Advanced Placement exam or International Baccalaureate exam fees of eligible students as verified through the process outlined in section 3.03 of these rules;	
	3.02(1)(g)	if the applicant is a high school that applies on its own, an assurance that its fiscal agent or authorizer has not applied for funding on its behalf for the same eligible students for which the high school is requesting funds.
3.02(2) By June 1st, applicants must verify in writing to the department the number of exams actually administered to eligible students. 

3.03 Process for Student Eligibility
3.03 (1)  An applicant must verify and provide an assurance to the Department that  a student for whom the applicant seeks a grant award for exam fees  is an eligible student. In verifying and providing the assurance, applicants must confirm that an eligible student is a child ages five through 19, and from a low-income family, based on the following eligibility criteria
	3.03(1)(a)	The student qualifies  for free or reduced-price lunches under the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (42 U.S.C. 1751); or
	3.03(1)(b)	The student or his or her family is eligible for assistance under part A of title IV of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 601); or
	3.03(1)(c)	The student is eligible to receive medical assistance under the Medicaid program under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396); or
	3.03(1)(d)	The student qualifies as low-income based on data used by the federal Department of Education to determine basic grants to states under 20 U.S.C. 6333; or
	3.03(1)(e)	The student is determined to be low-income  through an alternate method that combines or extrapolates from the data in sections 3.03(1)(a) through 3.03(1)(d) of these rules.
3.04 Application Review Criteria
3.04(1)	In reviewing applications, the Department shall consider the following criteria:
	3.04(1)(a)	the number of eligible students participating in  exams, and the number of exams administered by the high school;
	3.04(1)(b)	whether or not funds will be used for an eligible student  as verified by the applicant pursuant to section 3.03 of these rules; and
	3.04(1)(c)	whether or not the high school  receives and uses federal funding to cover  exam fees.  
3.05	Duration and Amount of Grant Awards
3.05(1)	Subject to available appropriations, the Department will award grants to applicants based upon the amount set for each exam administered to an eligible student.
	3.05(1)(a)The amount allocated per exam will be set by the Department on an annual basis based on available appropriations, reduced fee prices as set by the exam vendor, amount of federal funding received by applicants for payment of exam fees, and total number of exams to be funded for eligible students. 
	3.05(1)(b)All exam fees must be funded equally at a minimum amount.  If one exam fee is higher than another, and if funding remains after all exam fees have been funded equally at the minimum amount, the Department may fund the more expensive exam fees equally at a higher amount. 
	3.05(1)(c)	The Department’s total distribution for the grant program shall not exceed the annual appropriation. 
	3.05(1)(d)	Applicants may request and receive funding for multiple exams per eligible student.
	3.05(1)(e)	Grantees may not use grant awards to supplant federal funds already available  to pay for exam fees for eligible students.
3.05(2)	The Department will award grants to applicants to reimburse all or a portion of exam fees actually paid on behalf of eligible students. Grant awards will be made on an annual basis as soon as practicable before June 30th of each fiscal year.  
3.05 (3)  Additional grant funding for subsequent years will be contingent upon annual appropriations by the General Assembly. Funded applicants are not guaranteed any additional funding in subsequent years. There will be no carryover of funds; funds must be expended by June 30th of each grant year.