A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to  provide in‑STATE TUITION FOR PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  Article 14 of Chapter 116 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 116-143.6.  Tuition of prospective teachers.
(a)	Notwithstanding G.S. 116-143.1, any person who enrolls in a constituent institution of The University of North Carolina and who enrolls in the University of North Carolina Prospective Teacher Program shall be entitled to be charged the in-State tuition rate as long as the person (i) pursues a full-time course of study that will lead to teacher certification in North Carolina, (ii) agrees to teach and teaches in a North Carolina public school or a school operated by the United States government in North Carolina for four of the seven years following the person's graduation, and (iii) complies with any other terms and conditions that the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina shall provide. Persons who are not residents of North Carolina and who indicate their intention to become certified teachers shall be admitted to the North Carolina Prospective Teacher Program to the extent that space is available after the admission of qualified North Carolina residents.
(b)	Any person who enrolls in the University of North Carolina Prospective Teacher Program shall sign an agreement, and may be required to sign a promissory note, along with a surety, agreeing that if the person does not fulfill the requirements of subsection (a) of this section, the person shall repay the State the differential between the in-State and out-of-state tuition for the years the person was charged in-State tuition at a constituent institution. The person shall also agree to pay the State interest on that amount at the rate of ten percent (10 %) per year beginning on September 1 after the applicable date of the person's graduation, the date that the person ceases to be enrolled at a constituent institution as a full-time student pursuing a course of study that will lead to teacher certification, or the date the person fails to comply with the conditions set out in subsection (a) of this section.
(c)	The University of North Carolina shall forgive the repayment if it finds that it is impossible for a person to comply with the requirements of subsection (a) of this section because of the person's death or permanent disability. The University of North Carolina may forgive the repayment if it finds that a person could not comply with the requirements of subsection (a) for reasons specified in the policies or regulations of the University.
(d)	The University of North Carolina may establish such policies or rules as it finds necessary or proper to administer the North Carolina Prospective Teachers Program."
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2002.