Scholarships

Eliminate barriers to scholarships and ensure clear residency requirements.

Creates a uniform residency requirement of six months across all scholarships unless otherwise specified in law. Currently, residency requirements for scholarships range from six months to three years.
Implementation expected by Fall 2025.
- Section 63 (p.78)

Requires the Federal Cost of Attendance method to be used for all students receiving state aid. Federal aid must be applied before state aid.
Institutions must award aid based on the stacking order:
- Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship,
- Any other state scholarship excluding the Arkansas Future Grant Program, the Arkansas Teacher Academy Scholarship Program, and the Arkansas National Guard Tuition Waiver Program, then
- Institutional aid.
This ensures students cannot receive more than the cost of attendance.
Implementation expected by Fall 2025.
- Section 61 (p.75)

For licensed teachers returning to school seeking dual licensure training or additional training. Provides tuition and fees for up to six semester hours per academic year and distributes funds as a scholarship rather than reimbursement. This award is up to $3,000 a year.
Allows a teacher to seek dual licensure in an additional subject area thus, repealing the Dual Licensure Incentive Program.
Implementation expected by October 1, 2025, for the Fall 2026 semester.
- Sections: 64, 65, 66, 67

This scholarship is being codified after previously only being appropriated in special language and promulgated as a rule.
This scholarship if for Arkansas students with disabilities admitted to qualifying programs at state-supported institutions of higher education. Qualifying programs are those for students with intellectual disabilities accredited by the Inclusive Higher Education Accreditation Council. Students maintain eligibility for up to eight continuous semesters or until credentialing is obtained. The maximum award per semester is $2,500.
- Section 79 (p. 103)

For workforce training in high-demand fields; funded by the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery. Currently the award amounts for individuals are capped at $800 at two-year and four-year state institutions.
ACCESS removes the $800 cap. Awards are now determined based on program costs, workforce demands, credentials of value, and projected wages. May be used at public or private vocational-technical schools and public or private technical institutes.
Implementation expected by the Fall 2026 semester.
- Sections: 84, 85, 86, 87

This scholarship honors the heroic efforts of Arkansas families who served as Arkansas heroes or in the United States Armed Forces. It is available to certain U.S. Armed Forces spouses and dependents, dependents of law enforcement or heroic state personnel who suffered fatal injury or permanent disability.
Arkansas Heroes replaces the Law Enforcement Officer's Dependents Scholarship (Section 72, p. 85) and the Military Dependents Scholarship (Section 73, p. 91), and covers the tuition, fees, and board for eligible dependent students.
Adds DOD Medical Retirees, Medal of Honor and Purple Heart recipient dependents as eligible for scholarships.
Implementation expected by October 1, 2025, for the Fall 2026 semester.
- Sections: 79, 93, 94

This scholarship is for workforce education including certificate and associate degree programs. It allows students to be eligible for an award for a maximum of 75 course credit hours. It covers the tuition and fees at two-year institutions or $3,800 at four-year institutions. Part-time students are eligible to receive this award.
Implementation expected by the Fall 2025 semester.
- Sections: 74, 75, 76

Given to aspiring teachers who commit to teaching in an Arkansas public school. Funds are dedicated to students who have already been accepted into a teacher preparation program. Awards are up to $12,000 a year.
Gives preference to juniors and seniors in college for best use of scholarship funds according to the logic that older students have had more time to demonstrate a commitment to the teaching profession.
Implementation expected to include private schools and implement academy attendees by Fall 2026.
- Sections: 77, 78

Higher education scholarship funded by the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery. ACCESS updates eligibility to include students earning a Diploma of Merit or based on high school GPA, thus providing further incentive for Arkansas high school students to excel.
Increases the Freshman award to $2,000 for the school year.
First year of implementation expected by Fall 2026 with full integration expected four years after initial implementation.
- Sections: 80, 81, 82, 83

This scholarship is being repealed. It is being replaced by the new scholarship ACCESS to Acceleration Program.
It has been used for concurrent high school courses funded by the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery and allowed for $125 per course for up to two courses.
- Section 88 (p. 112)
- Additional cleanup sections related to the repeal of the Concurrent Challenge and it being replaced by ACCESS to Acceleration include Sections: 89, 90, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99

Replaces the Concurrent Challenge Scholarship Program.
Students are eligible to receive lottery scholarship funds, if available, while enrolled in a concurrent credit course, except for courses at vocational centers that are reimbursed under Arkansas Code § 6-51-305. Funds are award at $65 per concurrent credit course hour for a maximum of fifteen course credit hours per semester, not to exceed $2,000 in any given academic year.
Implementation is expected to happen is phases: the concurrent course reimbursement increase will be implemented by Fall 2025; the impact on the Arkansas Academic Challenge Scholarship funding is expected to start by Fall 2027; and full implementation is expected by Fall 2029.
- Section 91 (p. 116)
- Additional cleanup sections related to the repeal of the Concurrent Challenge and it being replaced by ACCESS to Acceleration include Sections: 68, 73, 89, 90, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99

This is the most academically rigorous scholarship based on test scores and GPA. It now defines "exemplary academic achievement" for students distinguished as Governor's Scholars in situations in which there are no recipients of the Governor's Distinguished Scholarship. Students may now qualify by earning their associate degree upon graduation or by graduating with a diploma of distinction. This scholarship award is up to $5,000 an academic year.
Implementation of the updated application including a question regarding associate degrees is expected by October 2025.
- Sections: 69, 70, 71