Rep. Micah Caskey, R-West Columbia (left), looks on as Rep. Leon Stavrinakis, D-Charleston, talks with Rep. Case Brittain, R-Myrtle Beach, during the first day of session in Columbia, S.C. on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024. (Travis Bell/STATEHOUSE CAROLINA/Special to the SC Daily Gazette)
COLUMBIA — A Charleston County legislator wants to prevent South Carolina college students from losing their state-funded scholarships for misdemeanor mistakes.
State law gives students one pass for a misdemeanor drug or alcohol offense, such as drinking or possessing alcohol when under the age of 21. But a second conviction disqualifies students from lottery-funded scholarships that would otherwise help them pay for tuition.
And the scholarship suspension applies for a full academic year.
“I just don’t think they should be losing scholarships for minor things like that,” said Rep. Leon Stavrinakis.
The Charleston Democrat filed a bill ahead of the upcoming legislative session that would remove mentions of misdemeanor alcohol or drug offenses from scholarship criteria. Students would still be ineligible if they’re convicted of any felony.
Stavrinakis, who is an attorney, said he has represented college students in court over the minor offenses, helping them reduce their charges so as not to lose their eligibility. But not all students know about the law or, even if they do, can afford to pay a lawyer to help them keep their scholarship, he said.
The state’s higher education agency did not have data immediately available on how many students may have been impacted.
“Even if it affects a handful of kids, it’s not a good thing,” Stavrinakis said.
There can be a lot at stake for students, given the hefty cost of a college degree.
A Palmetto Fellows scholarship, the scholarship offered to the highest performing South Carolina students, is worth $6,700 in the first year and $7,500 per year in the three years after.
Scholarships for South Carolina students who earn and keep a grade point average of 3.0 or higher are worth $5,000 a year.
Students with the greatest financial needs can receive an additional $3,500 in aid. And students enrolled in science, technology or math-related programs can receive an additional $2,500. A law passed earlier this year added education majors to the list of those eligible for scholarship enhancements. Future teachers can get $2,500 to $3,300 more in aid yearly.
Those scholarships are only available for eight consecutive semesters, meaning if a student misses out on a semester or year of funding for any reason, they won’t be able to make it up at a later date.
Annual tuition and fees at the state’s four-year public colleges can range from $10,500 at the University of South Carolina’s satellite campuses in Aiken and Beaufort to more than $15,000 at Clemson University and Winthrop University, with USC’s main campus in Columbia in the middle at $12,700, according to the latest data from the state Commission on Higher Education.
“For someone to have their future impacted or their family financially impacted, the punishment is way disproportionate to the crime,” Stavrinakis said.
This isn’t his first attempt to change the misdemeanor ineligibility rule.
Stavrinkais has sponsored two previous bills to make the change, starting in February 2021, but they never even got a hearing.
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