Moria Dailey
Published: April 26, 2006
Recent Florida legislation brings good news for Bright Futures Medallion Scholars.
Florida legislatures passed House Bill 5005, which grants Bright Futures Medallion Scholars, the second level of Bright Futures, 100 percent paid tuition and fees at community colleges. Medallion Scholars previously received only 75 percent paid tuition and fees, and will continue to receive only 75 percent paid at universities.
“The neat thing is the legislators did this,” Dr. James Martin, PJC’s vice president of student affairs, said. “It’s an incentive to get good students coming to community colleges.”
Martin explained that eligible students will be notified through mail by the Department of Education.
According to the Department of Education’s Bright Futures brochure, to qualify for Medallion Scholar status, a student must have attended a Florida public high school, have a 3.0 weighted GPA, including at least 15 credits of college preparatory coursework. Students may also qualify by meeting guidelines outlined in the brochure.
To keep their Medallion Scholar status, students must maintain a 2.75 GPA and complete at least six credit hours per semester. Students must also be enrolled in an Associate in Arts, Associate in Science or an Associate in Applied Science degree program and take college credit courses to maintain their scholarship, Martin said.
Current PJC students who qualify as Medallion Scholars will be able to receive 100 percent paid tuition and fees beginning in August 2006 with the start of the fall semester.
According to statistics provided by Virginia Santoni, scholarship coordinator at PJC, there were 924 Medallion Scholars enrolled at PJC in the 2005-2006 school year.
All 924 students will be notified by mail by that they are eligible to return to PJC for free, Martin said.
For more information on Bright Futures Scholarship programs, students can pick up brochures at the Financial Aid Office.