Authority: Regional Grants and Contracts: Discretionary Inclusion; Eminent Scholars: Discretionary Inclusion; Outstanding Faculty Recognition Program: Discretionary Inclusion; Graduate and Undergraduate Assistance; § 23-38.19:1.

A. No amount, or part of an amount, listed for any subprogram in this appropriation shall be expended for any other subprogram in this appropriation.

Appropriations in this Item are subject to the conditions specified in paragraphs B, C, D, and E hereof.

B. Eminent Scholars

1. Out of this appropriation, $7,846,960 the first year and $7,846,960 the second year from the general fund is designated for attracting and retaining eminent scholars in institutions of higher education.

2. These sums shall be apportioned, in accordance with plans approved by the Secretary of Education, to institutions of higher education, to match the interest earned by endowments created for this purpose after June 30, 1966.

3. However, this stipulation shall not prohibit the appropriation and expenditure of interest earned on these endowments that exceed the match for the state appropriation.

C. Regional Grants and Contracts

1. Out of this appropriation the following sums for regional education and scholarships are made available, to be expended in accordance with agreements between the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Southern Regional Education Board and for additional places in other out-of-state institutions:

a. For library science scholarships, $56,100 the first year and $56,100 the second year from the general fund.

b. For optometry scholarships, $202,632 the first year and $202,632 the second year from the general fund.

c. For forensic science scholarships, $40,000 the first year and $40,000 the second year from the general fund.

d. For the Commonwealth of Virginia's participation in the Southern Regional Educational Board initiative to increase the number of minority doctoral graduates, $255,000 the first year and $255,000 the second year from the general fund.

2. Out of the amounts for Regional Grants and Contracts the following sums are made available for third-year and fourth-year students from Accomack and Northampton Counties: $80,000 the first year and $80,000 the second year from the general fund for tuition grants for attendance at Salisbury State College and the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore, in the State of Maryland.

3. Out of the amounts for Regional Grants and Contracts the following sums are made available for forestry scholarships: $79,475 the first year and $79,475 the second year from the general fund, out of which shall be paid the cost differential in tuition for any Virginia student to pursue the third and/or fourth years in specialized courses in pulp and paper technology, and forest products or utilization at an accredited out-of-state school of forestry to which he is accepted, when such specialized courses leading to an accredited degree are not offered by a state institution of higher education in Virginia.

4. Out of this appropriation $300,000 the first year from the general fund shall finance a contract with the College of Health Sciences in Roanoke to provide Virginia residents from federally-designated Medically Underserved Areas (MUAs) and Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs) with Associate and Baccalaureate degree programs in preprofessional and Allied Health professions, including Physician's Assistants, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy Assistants, Respiratory Therapy, Occupational Therapy Assistants, Nursing and Radiologic Sciences.

5. Out of the amounts for Regional Grants and Contracts, $55,350 the first year from the general fund shall be made available as tuition or training grants for Virginia residents to participate in programs sponsored by the Regional Printing Institute.

C1. Sponsored Programs

1. Out of this appropriation, $1,050,000 the second year from the general fund is designated as the state match associated with the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant.

2. Out of this appropriation, $2,042,857 the second year from nongeneral funds is designated for the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP) grant.

D. Outstanding Faculty Recognition Program

1. Out of this appropriation, $55,000 the first year and $55,000 the second year from the general fund is designated for the Outstanding Faculty Recognition Awards program.

2. The State Council of Higher Education shall annually provide a grant of not more than $5,000 to no more than 13 faculty members selected to be honored under this program.

3. The faculty members shall be selected from public and private institutions of higher education in Virginia, but recipients of Outstanding Faculty Recognition Awards shall not be eligible for the Awards in subsequent years.

E. Virginia Graduate and Undergraduate Assistance Program

1. Out of this appropriation, $125,000 the first year and $125,000 the second year from the general fund is designated for the Virginia Graduate and Undergraduate Assistance Program.

2. These sums shall be apportioned, in accordance with plans approved by the Secretary of Education, to institutions of higher education, to match interest earned on endowments created for this purpose after June 30, 1991, notwithstanding § 23-38.19:2, Code of Virginia.

3. However, this stipulation shall not prohibit the appropriation and expenditure of interest earned on these endowments that exceed the match for the state appropriation.