College Savings Bond Bonus Incentive Grant (BIG) Program

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Program Description
Eligibility
How to Apply (and Obtaining the Application)
     Applications Accepted Beginning August 1, and Continuing
     Until All Available Funds Awarded - Applications for the
     2008-09 Academic Year No Longer Being Provided or
     Accepted
Details
Funding
Processing Updates
Participating Schools

If you are the beneficiary of an Illinois College Savings Bond, you may be eligible to receive a Bonus Incentive Grant (BIG). The amount of your grant will depend on the amount of the bond, ranging from a $40 to $440 grant per $5,000 of the bond. As explained in the Official Statement that is provided to bondholders at the time of purchase, all grants made under the BIG Program are subject to annual appropriation by the Illinois General Assembly.*

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) about Illinois College Savings Bonds are available on the State of Illinois Web site.

Eligibility

To be eligible, the bondholder must:

• Have continuously owned the bond(s) for at least 12 months preceding the date of maturity
• Use, directly or indirectly, at least 70 percent of the proceeds received when the bond(s) matures to finance the student beneficiary's educational expenses incurred at an eligible Illinois institution
• Use the proceeds from the bond(s) in either the academic year in which the bond(s) matured, or the academic year immediately following maturity
• Designate only one student beneficiary for each bond that matures, but the same student beneficiary may be named to five bonds with no more than $25,000 of aggregate compound accreted value at maturity for each academic year

In addition, the student beneficiary must:

• Be enrolled on at least a half-time basis as an undergraduate or graduate student at an ISAC-approved 2- or 4-year college in Illinois
• Not attend an educational institution organized solely for the purpose of religious instruction
• Not be enrolled in an academic program of divinity for any religious denomination or pursuing a course of study to become a minister, priest, rabbi, etc.

How to Apply

Note: Applications for the 2008-09 BIG Program are no longer being provided or accepted.

To apply, you must work with your college to complete and submit an application for the BIG Program, in order for the complete application to be submitted to ISAC as soon as possible after August 1. ISAC will continue to accept applications until, based upon each academic year's application volume and annual appropriations, all available funding has been awarded. During periods when applications are being provided and accepted by ISAC, you may download and print the application via  College Zone, or request an application from ISAC. Complete applications must be submitted to ISAC's Deerfield office. Included on the application is a section for the college to provide ISAC with verification of the student's enrollment and program eligibility. In order to be considered complete, an application submitted to ISAC must have the bondholder, student beneficiary and college's information.

You must apply for this program as soon as possible after August 1 of the academic year in which the bond(s) matured, or in the academic year immediately following maturity. You must submit a new application each year you wish to be considered for a grant. Because the number of grants awarded each year is based on limited funding, it is likely that not all applicants who meet eligibility requirements will receive a grant. Complete applications will be processed according to the date they are received at ISAC.

Details

• The application process cannot begin prior to redemption of the matured bond(s)
• The State of Illinois disburses the funds to the student beneficiary on the school's behalf.

Funding

The money used to award grants through this program is funded via annual appropriations by the Illinois General Assembly and the Governor. Grants are made until all appropriations (i.e., money) have been fully awarded (i.e., until no money remains).

During the 2006-07 academic year, funding was sufficient to award grants for applications received through mid-fall (October 2006). For the 2007-08 academic year, a 50% reduction in appropriated funds resulted in grants being awarded for applications received through approximately the third week of August 2007. Appropriated funds for the 2008-09 academic year (which are the same as those for 2007-08), combined with the high volume of applications received, has resulted in grants being awarded for applications received within the first five days of August 2008.

For each academic year, applicants are encouraged to work with their college to ensure that completed applications are submitted as soon after August 1 as possible.

Processing Updates

Note that ISAC routinely updates this section as new information becomes available. Be sure to check back periodically for the current processing status.

For the 2008-09 Academic Year (last updated on August 18, 2008):

Due to limited funding and high application volume, ISAC is no longer providing or accepting applications for the 2008-09 BIG Program. All applications received at ISAC after August 5, 2008 are returned to the applicant. In the unlikely event that funding becomes available to allow ISAC to accept additional applications after August 5th, this page will be updated and notification will be sent to those who sign up for the College Zone e-Messaging service.

Complete applications submitted on or before August 5th will be processed within four to six weeks from the date of receipt at ISAC. Complete applications will be processed according to the date they were received at ISAC, until all available funds have been awarded. Qualified applicants will be approved and the student beneficiary will receive a copy of the voucher that is submitted to the State Comptroller for payment. The State Comptroller's Office will send a check within a minimum of six to eight weeks from the date listed on the voucher.

Applicants who are not approved for payment will receive notification from ISAC.

The appropriation (funding) level for the 2008-09 BIG Program has been determined, and is the same as the 2007-08 funding level.

To view a listing of Illinois colleges approved to participate in this program, click on the link for the appropriate academic year:

2008-09