1Establishing the Governor's Schools of Excellence<-; and making an 
2appropriation.

3The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
4hereby enacts as follows:

5Section 1. Short title.

6This act shall be known and may be cited as the Governor's
7Schools of Excellence Act.

8Section 2. Legislative intent.

9It is the intent of the General Assembly to establish the
10permanent operation of the Governor's Schools of Excellence in
11order to afford students of all socioeconomic backgrounds the
12opportunity to pursue in-depth and advanced studies in fields 
<-13that may include, but are not limited to, agricultural sciences, 
14engineering and technology or sciences <-determined by the 
15department.

16Section 3. Definitions.

1The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
2have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
3context clearly indicates otherwise:

4"Department." The Department of Education of the
5Commonwealth.

6"Governor's Schools of Excellence." Schools established by
7the department under section 5.

8"Host site." The college or university where a Governor's
9School of Excellence is located.

10"Program." The Governor's Schools of Excellence Program.

11Section 4. Governor's Schools of Excellence Program.

12The Governor's Schools of Excellence Program is hereby
13established within the department.

14Section 5. Duties of department.

15(a) Disciplines.--The department shall establish Governor's
16Schools of Excellence at host sites throughout this Commonwealth
17in disciplines <-that may include any of the following:

18(1) Agricultural sciences.

19(2) Engineering and technology.

20(3) Sciences.

21(4) Other disciplines determined by the department.

22(b) Locations.--Governor's Schools of Excellence may be
23sponsored by and located at Pennsylvania institutions of higher
24education designated by the department.

25(c) Administration.--In administering the program, the
26department shall do all of the following:

27(1) Make student applications available to every public
28and nonpublic school in this Commonwealth and include the
29application on the department's publicly accessible Internet
30website.

1(2) Ensure that each Governor's School of Excellence is
2utilizing a process whereby students are selected on the
3basis of their performance and achievement through a
4competitive selection process and seek to ensure an
5economically, socially and geographically diverse student
6population.

7(3) Ensure the program complies with subsection (e),
8enabling all qualified students the opportunity to enroll in
9the program regardless of their economic circumstances.

10(d) Scheduling.--Governor's Schools of Excellence shall be
11held, to the extent possible, during the summer months between
12the end and the beginning of the school year. The department may
13grant permission for a school to be held at other times during
14the school year when circumstances and programming options
15warrant such a change.

16(e) Costs.--Students attending a Governor's School of
17Excellence shall not be required to pay any tuition or fees to
18attend and participate in a Governor's School of Excellence.
19Students are responsible for their own costs relating to
20transportation to and from the program.

<-21Section 6. Appropriation.

22For the 2014-2015 fiscal year, the General Assembly shall
23appropriate funding in the amount of $350,000 to the department
24for the purpose of the Governor's Schools of Excellence Program.

25Section <-7 6. Effective date.

26This act shall take effect immediately.