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SCHOLARSHIP TERMS AND CONDITIONS

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​ The polices and disclosures that govern the GK Legacy Foundation’s (GK Legacy) Keep Your Chin Up Scholarship Fund (KYCU) recipient selection and award distribution are detailed below.  GK Legacy developed its scholarship program in compliance with IRS and other federal government regulations, anti-discrimination laws, residency rules for the State of Arizona, and in a manner to ensure applicant information is secured and managed appropriately. The KYCU Scholarship Fund is being administered and awarded directly by GK Legacy Foundation Inc., a non-profit foundation.
 
Eligibility Requirements

  • Arizona resident

  • Adults 25 years or older

  • High school diploma or GED

  • Proof of financial need

  • Proof of school enrollment (must be provided prior to award distribution)

  • Completed application and all required documents

  • U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident

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Documents required:

  • Arizona driver's license

  • Letter of recommendation

  • Most recent tax return (first 3 pages)

  • Job History

  • College transcripts (if applicable)

  • Copy of FAFSA determination letter

 

This is a competitive program and submission of an application is not a guarantee of an award.

​Awards:

The Foundation has two main scholarship cycles in February and September of each year.  Awards will range between $500 to $5,000 and award recipients will be chosen based on need, merit and answers to essay questions.  The Selection Committee will select the award recipient (in their sole discretion) and all decisions will be final.  All winners will be notified by email so please make sure you add the following email address to your safe sender list: KeepYourChinUp@gklegacyfoundation.org.  Award recipient will be required to sign a FERPA Release Form before funds are released and award check will be written directly to recipient's school.

Award Renewal:
Scholarship awards are not renewable, but award recipients are eligible to reapply so long as they are not in breach of the Scholarship Award Agreement (see above).   Award recipients can win a maximum of 4 awards in their lifetime.

Non-Discrimination Rules:

GK Legacy and KYCU do not discriminate or request information to make award decisions based on ethnicity, national origin, gender, identity, sexual orientation, disability, religion or age, in accordance with federal anti-discrimination laws and the statutes below.


Scholarship award processes – whether at public or private institutions or administered by private organizations – must not discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, sex or gender (per the Equal Protection Clause in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 p.18).


I. For the award of privately funded scholarships, two federal statutes may be applicable:
a. Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 protects the right to make and enforce contracts free of discrimination. In some cases, scholarships may be described as “contracts” when both parties are expected to perform a certain task.
b. Section 1985 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866 prohibits private and public conspiracies to discriminate intentionally on the basis of race by interfering with civil rights created by other laws.

Applicant Records Security and Retention:
All information collected during the application process is managed safely and not shared with anyone outside of GK Legacy’s scholarship selection committee for application review and awarding purposes, and the company’s accounts payable department to distribute awards to scholarship winners. GK Legacy does not sell, license or otherwise use applicant information or data for any additional purposes. To track scholarship tuition reimbursement payments and to ensure that each awardee only receives one scholarship, GK Legacy will permanently retain the names and details of the scholarship winners. Additional electronic applicant records will be purged after the scholarship award selection process has concluded.

Consent for Marketing and Media Activities:

KYCU Scholarship award recipients authorize that their name and image may be shared publicly in GK Legacy and KYCU communications, and agree to participate in marketing activities as appropriate, which include but are not limited to media interviews, and inclusion in GK Legacy’s website, blog and social media content. GK Legacy may request from you at a later time that you sign a lengthier, more detailed consent provision.

IRS Reporting:

GK Legacy is not required to report scholarship award funds to U.S. residents as income, either to the IRS or the student recipient, or to withhold taxes from scholarship payments. Federal tax laws consider it the student’s sole responsibility to know when income is taxable or not, and to report income accordingly on his or her personal tax returns.
Scholarship awards are tax-free for the recipient when:

  •  The scholarship award is used to pay for tuition and fees, or books, supplies and equipment required for courses at the institution.

  • The recipient is a candidate for a degree at an educational institution that maintains a regular faculty and curriculum and has a regularly enrolled student body (i.e. an accredited college or university).

 

Applicant Residency Rules:

The KYCU scholarship is only made available to Arizona residents who are enrolled as a full-time or part-time student at an accredited two-year or four-year college, university or technical school in the State of Arizona. Residency eligibility requirements by state are outlined below.

Requirements for Arizona Resident Status:
a) The general rule is that in order to obtain resident status for tuition purposes, a student must establish his or her domicile in Arizona at least one year immediately prior to the last day of regular registration for the semester in which the student proposes to attend the university. Arizona domicile occurs when a financially independent person is physically present in Arizona with the intention of making Arizona his or her permanent home.
b) Objective evidence of financial independence. Indicators of financial independence include:
1) Place of employment and proof of earnings
2) Other sources of support
3) Proof of filing an Arizona state income tax return
4) Residence claimed on federal income tax returns of applicant and/or parents
5) Veteran status
6) Whether claimed as a dependent for income tax purposes by a parent or any other individual for two years immediately preceding the request for residency classification. A student will generally be considered financially independent if he or she:
i. Is a veteran of the U.S. Armed Forces, or ii. Was not claimed as an income tax deduction by his or her parents or any other individual for the two years immediately preceding the request for residency classification, and has demonstrated objective evidence of self-support for the two tax years immediately preceding the request for residency classification.
c) An adult student (age 18 or older) or legally emancipated minor must couple his or her physical presence within Arizona for one year with objective evidence of financial independence and objective evidence that such presence is consistent with his or her intent in making Arizona his or her permanent home. If these steps are delayed, the durational period will be extended until all requirements have been demonstrated for one full year, with financial independence for two years.
d) The domicile of an unemancipated minor is that of his or her mother, father or legal guardian provided there is no evidence indicating that the guardianship was
created primarily for the purpose of conferring the classification of resident on the individual. In addition, an unemancipated person who is enrolled at the university and who remains in Arizona after his or her parents establish a domicile elsewhere does not lose resident status while in continuous attendance toward the degree for which currently enrolled.
e) There are certain exceptions to the general rule. A student may also be eligible for resident status if he or she can establish that, on or before the last day of regular registration, he or she meets one of the following criteria:
I. DEPENDENT The student is domiciled in Arizona and has not met the one-year durational requirement, but one or both of the student's parents are domiciled in Arizona and are entitled to claim him or her as a dependent child for state and federal tax purposes (whether or not the parent actually claimed the student as a dependent child).
II. MARRIED TO AZ RESIDENT The student is domicile in Arizona and has not met the one-year durational requirement, but the student’s spouse has established domicile in this state for at least one year and has demonstrated financial independence, and the person’s spouse is entitled to claim the person as an exemption for federal and state tax purposes.
III. TRANSFERRED EMPLOYEE The student is domiciled in Arizona and has not met the one-year durational requirement, and is an employee or spouse of an employee transferred to Arizona by his or her employer for employment purposes, AND is NOT self-employed or employed in a family owned business not previously operating in Arizona, AND can provide proof of payment or reimbursement of moving expenses by his or her employer.
IV. TEACHERS ON CONTRACT The person is an employee of a school district in this state and is under contract to teach on a full-time basis, or is employed as a full-time non-certified classroom aide, at a school with that school district. The person is eligible for classification as an in-state student only for courses necessary to complete the requirements for certification by the State Board of Education to teach in a school district in this state. This does not include other members of the family.
V. MILITARY STATIONED IN AZ The student is a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, including Reserves and National Guards, stationed in Arizona pursuant to military orders or is a member's spouse or dependent child at the time of admission. A student does not lose resident status while in continuous attendance toward the degree for which currently enrolled if military service is discontinued. In addition, a person domiciled in Arizona immediately prior to becoming a member of the U.S. Armed Forces will not lose resident status because of his or her absence
from Arizona while a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, provided that he or she has demonstrated continued intent to maintain Arizona domicile.
VI. MILITARY OUTSIDE AZ The person is a member of the Armed Forces of the United States stationed outside of this state pursuant to military order or is the spouse or dependent child, and the person claimed Arizona as the person’s legal residence for at least twelve consecutive months prior to the last date of registration. The person claiming in-state status under this section shall be required to provide a copy of the Military Form DD-2058 which verifies their state of legal residence; and the person demonstrated objective evidence of intent to be a resident of Arizona by at least one of the items set forth in Section 4-205(A)(3); and provide evidence of having filed an Arizona Resident Income Tax Return with the Arizona Department of Revenue for the prior tax year on all income from all sources.
VII. MILITARY HONORABLY DISCHARGED If you are an Honorably Discharged Veteran you need to submit an Honorably Discharged Veteran Residency Classification Exception Form, a copy of your DD-214 Member 4 or Service 2 showing Honorable Discharge and a copy of a document that illustrates your intent to be a resident of Arizona. This may be fulfilled with one of the following: * Arizona driver's license * Arizona vehicle registration * Arizona voter registration * Employment history in Arizona * Transfer of major banking services in Arizona * Change of permanent address on all pertinent records
* Other materials of whatever kind or source relevant to domicile or residency status
VIII. Recently Discharged Veteran if you can demonstrate the conditions below, submit the Recently Discharged Veteran Residency Classification Exception form.
1 ) In the term noted on this form the student will use Chapter 30 Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty (MGIB-AD) or the Chapter 33 or FRY Post-9/11 GI Bill at this institution, AND 2) The student lives in Arizona, AND 3) The student is enrolled within 3 years of the benefit holder's discharge or death in the line of duty from a period of active duty service of 90 days or more.
Attach the following documentation in support of your claim to the Recently Discharge Veteran Exception: ·Certificate of Eligibility, AND
·DD-214 Member 4 or Service 2 showing date of entry into active duty and date of discharge, AND ·Evidence of living in Arizona and intent to become a resident by at least one of the following: * Arizona driver's license * Arizona vehicle registration * Arizona voter registration * Employment history in Arizona * Transfer of major banking services to Arizona * Change of permanent address * Other Materials of whatever kind or source relevant to domicile or residency status
IX. NATIVE AMERICAN The student is an enrolled member in a federally recognized Arizona tribe; verified by completion of a Native American Exception form and copy of a Certificate of Indian Blood or Tribal Identification Card. X. The person is domiciled within 75 miles of the Arizona border in San Bernardino, Imperial or Riverside Counties in California, enrolling for no more than six (6) credit hours offered by Arizona State University, Northern Arizona University of University of Arizona in Mohave, La Paz or Yuma Counties, Arizona. XI. The person is a doctoral graduate student who is a candidate for degree, having completed all requirements for the degree except dissertation and who qualified as a resident student immediately prior to being eligible to begin dissertation.


f) An alien may qualify as a resident
(a) by meeting the general one-year durational requirement,
(b) by meeting one of the exceptions to the general rule, or
(c) by having been granted refugee status and meeting all other requirements for domicile in this state; provided that in establishing domicile, the alien must not hold a visa that prohibits establishing domicile in this state.

 

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