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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 60th Legislature (2025)
SENATE BILL 1054 By: Goodwin
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program; amending 70 O.S. 2021,
Sections 2621, 2623, and 2625, which relate to
creation of and eligibility for the program;
modifying eligibility for program; updating statutory
language; increasing income limit for certain
eligibility; exempting certain applicants from
certain income limit; allowing certain form to b e
used to verify income; removing certain eligibility
criteria; directing the O klahoma State Regents for
Higher Education to give first priority status to
certain applicants; modifying process for verifying
documentation of lineage; requiring application f orm
to include certain language; directing awards to be
made in certain specified manner; directing the State
Regents to involve certain community advisory
committee in selection process; providing for
composition of and appointments to advisory
committee; directing certain university president to
submit a list of proposed members; d irecting advisory
committee to review certain applications and make
certain recommendations; directing the State Regents
to select recipients from certain list; allowing
certain remaining scholarship award funds to be used
for certain purposes; directing certain applicants to
always be given first priority status; and declaring
an emergency.
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2621, is
amended to read as fo llows:
Section 2621. There is hereby created the Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program. The purpose of the program is to
provide a scholarship award to reside nts of the Tulsa School
District, which was greatly impacted both socially and economically
by the civil unrest that occurred in the City of Tulsa during 1921.
Beginning with the 2002 -2003 school year, or as soon thereafter as
practicable, and subject to the availability of funds, the program
shall each year make scholarships availa ble to as many students as
feasible, up to three hundred scholarships, to qualified residents
of the Tulsa School District , and to qualified students of any other
public school district in the United States who are direct lineal
descendants as defined in subsection C of Section 2623 of this title
and who meet the criteria set forth in Sections 2623 and 2624 of
this title, and who are intending to pursue studies at an
institution of higher education in The Oklahoma State System of
Higher Education or a priva te institution of higher education , in
this state or who are intending to pursue studies in a postsecondary
career and technology education program in this state. The
scholarship shall be an amount of not more than not exceeding the
equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition for which an
eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
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participant enrolled at an institution of higher education in The
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education or a postsecondary career
and technology education program, whichever is applicable, is
obligated to pay. The scholarship shall be paid as provided for in
Section 2625 of this title. The further purpose of this prog ram is
to establish and maintain a variety of educational support services
whereby residents students who qualify for the program will be
prepared for success in postsecondary endeavors.
SECTION 2. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2623, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2623. A. Subject to the availab ility of funds, the
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may annually award a
maximum of three hundred full -time-equivalent scholarships for the
Tulsa Reconciliation Educ ation and Scholarship Program to residents
of the Tulsa School District and to qualified students of any other
public school district in the United States who are direct lineal
descendants as defined in subsection C of this section and who are
intending to pursue studies at an institution of higher education in
The Oklahoma State Sys tem of Higher Education or a private
institution of higher education in this state or who are intending
to pursue studies in a postsecondary career and technology education
program in this state.
B. To qualify for a scholarship, the family income of an
applicant shall satisfy the following criteria:
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1. The family income of the applicant , from taxable sources is
not more than Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00) , not exceed One
Hundred Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($125,000.00) per year. There
shall be no family income limit for an applicant who is a direct
lineal descendant as defined in subsection C of this section. The
Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form m ay be used to
verify family income ;
2. The applicant attended a Tulsa public school where seventy -
five percent (75%) or more of the students enrolled in the school
qualify for the free and reduced lunch program; and
3. The applicant resides in a census b lock area within the
Tulsa School District where thirty percent (30%) or more o f the
residents are at or below the poverty level established by the
United States Bureau of the Census .
C. The State Regents may consider as a Regents’ selection
process shall factor, when determining the order of preference of
give first priority status to applicants, whether an applicant who
is a direct lineal descendant of a person who resided in the
Greenwood Area in the City of Tulsa between April 30, 1921, and June
1, 1921. If the Regents use Use of descent as a preference factor ,
it shall be applied to all applicants regardless of race. The
applicants shall be required to present verifiable documentation of
their lineage. The Oklahoma Historical Society An organization or
individual engaged in genealogy and research of descendants and
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history of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre and Greenwood Area shall
verify the authenticity and accuracy of the documentation submitted
by an applicant and shall establish confirm the boundaries of the
Greenwood Area. Verifiable documentation shall include, but not be
limited to, the following:
1. Family records including family bibles, vital records,
correspondence, memoirs, journals, diaries, unrecorded deeds,
diplomas, certificates, or te stimonials;
2. Public records including censuses, government records,
military records, pensions, land bounty records, passport
applications, passenger lists, original grants, naturalization or
immigration records, records of entry, or state, province, or local
records; or
3. Institutional records including church records, cemetery
records and inscriptions, education institutions, insurance records,
or societies and fraternal organizations.
D. The State Regents shall promulgate rules establishing the
application requirements for the program and the system for
evaluating applications based on the preference factors. The
application form shall include a small outlined box graphic,
followed by the following language: “Mark the box if you are a
direct lineal descendant of a person greatly impacted socially and
economically during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre who resided in the
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Greenwood Area of Tulsa, Oklahoma, between April 30, 1921 , and June
1, 1921.”
E. Applicants shall also meet the eligibility criteria
established in Section 2624 of this title.
F. The Oklahoma In addition to the scholarships authorized
pursuant to Section 2621 of this title and this section, the State
Regents for Higher Education shall also be authorized to annually
award scholarships for the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
Scholarship Program to two students at each of the high schools in
the Tulsa School District for the purpose of preserving awareness of
the history and meaning of the civil unrest that occurred in Tulsa
in 1921. The following provisions shall apply to the scholarship
scholarships provided in this subsection:
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection B of this
section, eligibility for the scholarships awarded pursuant to this
subsection shall be:
a. enrollment in the appropriate high school,
b. family income of the applicant from taxab le sources
not to exceed Seventy Thousand Dollars ($70,000.00)
One Hundred Twenty-five Thousand Dollars ($125,000.00)
per year. There shall be no family income limit for
an applicant who is a direct lineal descendant as
defined in subsection C of this section ,
c. made as provided for in subsection C of this section,
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d. satisfaction of the criteria specified in Section 2624
of this title, and
d. e. any other relevant criteria det ermined by the
Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education;
2. The State Regents shall involve the administration of the
Tulsa School District and a community advisory committee in the
selection process. The community advisory committee shall be
comprised of seven (7) members appointed by the Chancellor of Higher
Education. The community advisory committee shall be comprised of:
a. the President of Langston University or his or her
designee,
b. the Superintendent of Tulsa Public Schools or his or
her designee,
c. two members of the Legislature representing the
Greenwood area in the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, or
their designees,
d. two descendants of socially and economically adversely
impacted persons who resided in the Greenwood Area in
the City of Tulsa, Oklahoma, between April 30, 1921
and June 1, 1921, and
e. a citizen with ties to the historic Greenwood
community who may be engaged in faith -based,
education, or social, business, or advocacy work.
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The President of Langston University, or his or her designee,
shall be responsible for coordinating with the community advisory
committee and shall submit to the Chancellor of Higher Education a
list of proposed committee members for review and approval . The
community advisory committee shall review scholarship applications
and make recommendations for scholarship recipients and scholarship
award amounts. The State Regents shall select scholarship
recipients from the list of recommendations provided pursuant to
this paragraph;
3. The award shall be limited to a one-year full-time-
equivalent period. Following successful completion of suc h award,
recipients who meet the criteria provided in subsection B of this
section shall be eligible to apply and be considered for continued
participation in the full Tulsa Rec onciliation Education and
Scholarship Program. Any student subsequently awarded such
scholarship shall have the duration of the scholarship provided
pursuant to this subsection deducted from the limits set in
subsection D of Section 2625 of this title;
4. The award may only be funded with state funds appropriated
to the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund and
income therefrom, and shall be made subject to the availability of
such funds; and
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5. The awards made pursuant to this subsec tion shall be
included within the maximum number of scholarships specified in
subsection A of this section.
SECTION 3. AMENDATORY 70 O.S. 2021, Section 2625, is
amended to read as follows:
Section 2625. A. Subject to the availab ility of funds, an
amount of not more than the equivalent of the average amount of
resident tuition for which an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program participant enrolled in an
institution in The Oklahoma State System of Higher E ducation, or
enrolled in a postsecondary career and technology education program,
whichever is applicable, is obligated to pay shall be awarded by
allocation from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship
Trust Fund.
B. Subject to the availabilit y of funds, for each eligible
Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Pr ogram participant
enrolled at a private institution of higher education, the Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education shall award from the Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund an amount of not
more than the equivalent of the average amount of resident tuition
for which the participant would be eligible if the participant were
enrolled in a program at an institution of The Oklahoma State System
of Higher Education.
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C. Subject to the availability of funds, an amount of not more
than the equivalent of the average amount of tuition for which an
eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program
participant enrolled in a postsecondary career and technology
education program is obligated to pay shall be awarded by allocation
from the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund.
The allocation shall not exceed the amount a participant would have
received for enrollment at a two -year institution within The
Oklahoma State System of Higher Education.
D. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program shall not be allowed for courses or other
postsecondary units taken in excess of the requirements for
completion of a baccalaureate program or taken more than five (5)
years after the student ’s first semester of participation in the
program. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may award
the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program ben efits
for courses of postsecondary units taken more than five (5) years
after the student’s first semester of participation in the program
only in hardship circumstances. No Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program participant may receive be nefits beyond a
cumulative time period of five (5) years. The Oklahoma State
Regents for Higher Education may establish a maximum limit on the
number of courses or other postsecondary units to which Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program b enefits will
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apply. An award to an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
Scholarship Program participant who is enrolled in a postsecondary
career and technology education program may be used to pay for both
career and technology education and colle ge work if both are
required by the program.
E. Benefits awarded under the Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program shall be awarded to not more than 300 three
hundred (300) eligible participants annually, subject to the amount
of funds available for the program and the number of eligible
participants. Subject to the provisions of subsection F of this
section, if funds are not sufficient to provide awards for the
maximum number of eligible participants each year, the Oklahoma
State Regents for Higher Education shall make awards on the basis of
need. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education shall take
into consideration other grants and scholarships received by an
eligible student when making awards. If an eligible student
receives other grants and scholarships scholarship award funds
remain after payment of res ident tuition, the benefits awarded under
the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Program may cover
any additional educational costs not covered by the other grants a nd
scholarships including fees, required textbooks or materials, and
room and board. If the family of an eligible Tulsa Reconciliation
Education and Scholarship Program participant may qualify for the
federal Hope Scholarship or Lifetime Learning tax cred it as provided
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for in the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, P.L. No. 105 -34, the
participant may elect to use the award allowed by this section to
pay for fees, required textbooks or materials and, if any funds
remain, to pay for room and board instead of resid ent tuition.
F. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education may, at the
time an award is made on behalf of a Tulsa Reconciliation Education
and Scholarship Program participant, set aside in the Tulsa
Reconciliation Education and Scholarship Trust Fund funds for the
full commitment made to such Tulsa Reconciliation Education and
Scholarship Program participant. For all academic years,
participants who have previously received awards under the
provisions of the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Scholar ship Act
and who have continued at all times to fulfill the requirements for
eligibility to receive awards provided pursuant to this program
shall be given an absolute priority for continued financial support
by the Tulsa Reconciliation Education and Schol arship Program
superior to any residents students who are applying for such
benefits for the first time ; provided, however, that scholarship
applicants who are direct lineal descendants as defined in
subsection C of Section 2623 of this title shall always be given
first priority status .
SECTION 4. It being immediately necessary for the preservation
of the public peace, health, or safety, an emergency is hereby
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declared to exist, by reason whereof this act shall take effect and
be in full force from and after its passage and approval.
60-1-789 EB 1/16/2025 2:53:06 PM