{"data":{"id":"us-ky/krs-164.787","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRS 164.787","heading":"Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship Program -- Eligibility requirements --","body":"Scholarship amount -- Annual report -- Trust fund.\n(1) The General Assembly hereby establishes the Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship\nProgram to ensure that all Ken tuckians who have not yet earned a postsecondary\ndegree have affordable access to an industry -recognized certificate, diploma, or\nassociate of applied science degree and, for students with intellectual disabilities\nenrolled in comprehensive transition and postsecondary programs, affordable\naccess to meaningful credentials to prepare for competitive integrated employment.\n(2) For purposes of this section:\n(a) \"Academic term\" means a fall, spring, or summer academic term or other time\nperiod specified in an administrative regulation promulgated by the authority;\n(b) \"Academic year\" means July 1 through June 30 of each year;\n(c) \"Eligible institution\" means an institution as defined in KRS 164.001 that:\n1. Actively participates in the federal Pell Grant program;\n2. Executes a contract with the authority on terms the authority deems\nnecessary or appropriate for the administration of its programs; and\n3. Is a:\na. Kentucky Community and Technical College System institution;\nb. Kentucky public university; or\nc. College, university, or vocational -technical school that is\naccredited by a recognized regional or national accrediting body\nand licensed to operate at a site in Kentucky;\n(d) \"Eligible program of study\" means a program approved by the authority that\nleads to an industry -recognized certificate, diploma, or associate of applied\nscience degree in one (1) of Kentucky's top five (5) high -demand workforce\nsectors id entified by the Kentucky Workforce Innovation Board and the\nEducation and Labor Cabinet or a program of study in a comprehensive\ntransition and postsecondary program that leads to a credential, certificate,\ndiploma, or degree;\n(e) \"Fees\" means mandatory fees charged by an eligible institution for enrollment\nin a course, including but not limited to online course fees, lab fees, and\nadministrative fees. \"Fees\" does not include tools, books, or other\ninstructional materials that may be required for a course; and\n(f) \"Tuition\" means the in -state tuition charged to all students as a condition of\nenrollment in an eligible institution.\n(3) In consultation with the Education and Labor Cabinet and the Council on\nPostsecondary Education, the Kentucky Higher Education  Assistance Authority\nshall administer the Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship Program and promulgate\nadministrative regulations in accordance with KRS Chapter 13A as may be needed\nfor the administration of the scholarship.\n(4) An eligible workforce student shall:\n(a) Be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States;\n(b) Be a Kentucky resident as determined by the eligible institution in accordance\nwith criteria established by the Council on Postsecondary Education for the\npurposes of admission and tuition assessment;\n(c) 1. Have earned a high school diploma or a High School Equivalency\nDiploma or be enrolled in a High School Equivalency Diploma\nprogram; or\n2. For a student enrolled in a comprehensive transition and postsecondary\nprogram, have received an  alternate high school diploma described in\nKRS 158.140(2)(b), or a modified high school diploma under KRS\n156.160(1)(e), or have attended a Kentucky public high school and is a\nstudent with an intellectual disability as defined in 34 C.F.R. sec.\n668.231;\n(d) Not have earned an associate's degree or higher level postsecondary degree;\n(e) Complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid for the academic year\nin which the scholarship is awarded;\n(f) Complete and submit a Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship a pplication to the\nauthority;\n(g) Enroll in an eligible program of study at an eligible institution;\n(h) Not be enrolled in an ineligible degree program, such as a bachelor or\nunapproved associate program, at any postsecondary institution;\n(i) Following the first academic term scholarship funds are received, achieve and\nmaintain satisfactory academic progress as determined by the eligible\ninstitution; and\n(j) Not be in default on any program under Title IV of the federal act or any\nobligation to the authorit y under any program administered by the authority\nunder KRS 164.740 to 164.7891 or 164.7894, except that ineligibility for this\nreason may be waived by the authority for cause.\n(5) (a) The authority shall award a Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship each\nacademic term to any person who meets the requirements of this section to the\nextent funds are available for that purpose.\n(b) The scholarship amount awarded to an eligible workforce student for an\nacademic term shall be the amount remaining after subtracting th e student's\nfederal and state grants and scholarships from the maximum scholarship\namount. The maximum scholarship amount shall be the per credit hour in -\nstate tuition rate at the Kentucky Community and Technical College System\nmultiplied by the number of credit hours in which the student is enrolled and\nthe fees charged to the student. The authority shall promulgate an\nadministrative regulation in accordance with KRS Chapter 13A to specify the\nmaximum amount to be awarded for fees.\n(6) (a) Except as provid ed in paragraph (b) of this subsection, an eligible workforce\nstudent's eligibility for the scholarship shall terminate upon the earlier of:\n1. Receiving the scholarship for a total of sixty (60) credit hours; or\n2. Obtaining an associate's degree.\n(b) For an eligible workforce student enrolled in a comprehensive transition and\npostsecondary program, eligibility for the scholarship shall terminate upon the\nearlier of completing the program or receiving the scholarship for up to nine\n(9) academic terms within three (3) academic years.\n(7) The authority shall annually provide a report on the Work Ready Kentucky\nScholarship Program, prepared in collaboration with the Kentucky Center for\nStatistics, to the secretary of the Education and Labor Cabinet and the Legislative\nResearch Commission for referral to the Interim Joint Committee on Education that\nincludes, by academic term, academic year, institution, and workforce sector, the\nnumber of:\n(a) Students served by the scholarship and the total amount disbursed;\n(b) Credits, certificates, diplomas, and associate of applied science degrees earned\nby students receiving the scholarship; and\n(c) Students receiving the scholarship who are enrolled in a comprehensive\ntransition and postsecondary program and credential s earned by those\nstudents.\n(8) The authority shall report Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship program data to the\nKentucky Center for Statistics for analysis of the program's success in meeting the\ngoal of increasing skilled workforce participation rates.\n(9) (a) The Work Ready Kentucky Scholarship fund is hereby created as a trust fund\nin the State Treasury to be administered by the authority for the purpose of\nproviding scholarships as described in this section.\n(b) The trust fund shall consist of state gene ral fund appropriations, gifts and\ngrants from public and private sources, and federal funds.\n(c) Any unallotted or unencumbered balances in the trust fund shall be invested\nas provided in KRS 42.500(9). Income earned from the investments shall be\ncredited to the trust fund.\n(d) Notwithstanding KRS 45.229, any fund balance at the close of the fiscal year\nshall not lapse but shall be carried forward to the next fiscal year.","path":["KRS Chapter 164"],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=57192","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T20:51:17Z","sha256":"71ccde7ea5adcea8388fd0eb28a30b9bf4dcbf00323c5fa7d352889d1e4f550e","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/krs-164.786","next":"us-ky/krs-164.7870"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}