HOPE Scholarship; the inclusion of advanced placement and international baccalaureate fine arts courses in the calculation of grade point averages; provide

The bill now amends Titles 31, 47, 48, and 50 in addition to Title 20, covering health, retirement, taxation, and state government.

A new DREAMS scholarship was created with a maximum award of $3,000 per academic year, funded by a new endowment.

New eligibility criteria were added for the DREAMS scholarship, requiring students to complete FAFSA, maintain a 2.0 GPA, and engage in paid or unpaid work.

Educational institutions and units within the Technical College System are now required to possess and maintain stock supplies of opioid antagonists.

The effective date for the HOPE scholarship GPA calculation change was set to July 1, 2026, while new sections regarding the DREAMS scholarship and opioid storage were added without specific effective dates in this excerpt.

New definitions were established for the DREAMS scholarship, DREAMS Scholarship Endowment Fund, and eligible postsecondary institutions.

The definition of eligible courses was changed from 'fine arts' to 'advanced fine arts' to require a third-party standardized end-of-course assessment.

Removed explicit references to Cambridge and international baccalaureate courses in the list of subjects used for GPA calculation, limiting eligibility to advanced placement, dual credit, and the newly defined advanced fine arts courses.

Added a specific requirement that eligible fine arts courses must be graded by a third party and have a unique course number designated by the Department of Education.

Added Cambridge courses to the list of eligible coursework (AP, Cambridge, IB) used to calculate grade point averages for HOPE scholarship eligibility.

Updated the definition of 'fine arts' to include Cambridge courses alongside Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses.

Modified the requirement that Cambridge courses must be weighted uniformly with AP and IB courses when calculating student grade point averages.