You must be a registered Family Child Care Learning Home provider.

You must earn $18.50 or less in W-2 wages or 1099 reported income or $38,480 or less in net income if self-employed (on Schedule C or K) and be able to document wages.

You must be a registered Family Child Care Learning Home provider:

Credential or Degree	Required Tenure
TCC (Technical College Certificate)	3 consecutive months
TCD (Technical College Diploma)	6 consecutive months
AAS (Associate's Degree)	6 consecutive months
BA (Bachelor's Degree)	12 consecutive months
MA (Master's Degree)	12 consecutive months

If you meet the eligibility requirements each term you are enrolled, you will receive SCHOLARSHIPS funds as follows:

80% of tuition and mandatory fees not covered by HOPE or PELL if you are enrolled in a public college or university. These funds are paid directly to the school.
A maximum of $2,152 per semester (2021-2022 academic year) toward the cost of tuition and mandatory fees not covered by HOPE or PELL if you are enrolled in a private institution. These funds are paid directly to the school.

You will also receive a support stipend of $750 per semester for 1-3 credit hours or $1,500 per semester for 4 or more credit hours.

Applications are accepted throughout the year, but we ask that you apply no earlier than 60 days prior to the term you plan to attend. You may apply for the SCHOLARSHIPS by mail or online. In both cases, the supporting documents listed in the application are required to be submitted with your application. You will receive a letter indicating your eligibility status in one to two weeks. 

If you are approved and your tuition and mandatory fees are not fully covered by HOPE, PELL, or other grants or scholarships, SCHOLARSHIPS will email an award notification to your school. You will receive an email letter of your award notification. Your stipend will be mailed to your home address around the week of your school's drop/add date for the semester.

If your tuition and mandatory fees are fully covered by HOPE, PELL, or other grants or scholarships, you will receive an award letter indicating that your stipend will be mailed to your home address around the week of your school's drop/add date for the semester.

A copy of last year's Schedule C, Schedule K or other federal tax form documenting net business income.

A copy of your award/denial letter from HOPE and/or Pell.

Your schedule of classes.

A copy of your Professional Development System (GaPDS) profile reflecting your GaPDS number, the name of your current employer, and a "Pending” or "Active” status.

A legible copy of the FRONT and BACK of a secure and verifiable document. This is required to accompany the signed and notarized Affidavit for Lawful Presence Verification. The most common secure and verifiable documents you may submit are a driver's license, a United States passport, or a birth certificate (if you are still using your maiden name). Legal permanent residents, qualified aliens or nonimmigrants must submit the government document that establishes legal status in the United States (e.g., permanent resident card, employment authorization document).

Yes. To be considered for funding through the SCHOLARSHIPS program, you must apply for traditional federal and state financial aid (i.e., Pell Grant based on family income, HOPE Grant based on Georgia residency and HOPE Scholarship based on academic performance) and submit proof of award or denial. You will receive a support stipend each semester enrolled even if tuition and mandatory fees are covered by another source. If you have already earned a bachelor’s degree in another field, you are not eligible for HOPE or PELL. Submit a copy of your diploma or an unofficial transcript with your SCHOLARSHIPS application.

The one-step method of determining the financial aid available to you is to fill out the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) either online at www.fafsa.ed.gov or with assistance through the financial aid office of the educational institution you plan to attend. Upon notification of the outcome, your school will determine your eligibility for both federal and state aid (i.e., HOPE Grant, HOPE Scholarship and Pell Grant). However, if you are attending a private educational institution, you must also fill out the HOPE Scholarship/Tuition Equalization Grant form available online at www.gafutures.org or through your school's financial aid office to be considered for state aid. If you are applying for the HOPE grant only, the form is also available online at www.gafutures.org.

If you are not eligible for Pell or other financial aid because your student loans are in default, then you cannot receive SCHOLARSHIPS. You must submit proof that your loans are no longer in default before you can receive SCHOLARSHIPS. To find out more information about managing loans in default, visit https://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/repay-loans/default/get-out#loan-rehab.

The Professional Development System (GaPDS) is an innovative service provided by Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning for the early care and education workforce. It allows you to develop a profile of your career in early care and education including employment history, training hours and credentials/degrees earned. 

Registering is easy! You can sign up immediately even if you have not earned a credential or degree.  To learn more about the GaPDS or to create your own GaPDS account visit gapds.decal.ga.gov.

If you have questions or need technical support, contact the GaPDS at 404-334-6461 (866-258-7737 outside the metro Atlanta area) or email gapds@decal.ga.gov.

The "Affidavit for Lawful Presence Verification" is the form whereby you attest under oath to your legal presence in the United States which is required under O.C.G.A. 50-36-1(a)(3)(A) in order to be eligible to participate in the SCHOLARSHIPS program.

A Notary Public must witness your signature. Therefore, your signature date must be the same as or earlier than the Notary Public's signature date.

The names on your "Affidavit for Lawful Presence Verification" and on your secure and verifiable document must be the same.

A Notary Public's service is usually free of charge at a United States Post Office, a library or your bank.

The following list of secure and verifiable documents, published under the authority of O.C.G.A. 50-36-2, contains documents that are verifiable for identification purposes, and documents on this list may not necessarily be indicative of residency or immigration status.

• A driver's license issued by one of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, or the Swain Islands, providing that it contains a photograph of the bearer or lists sufficient identifying information regarding the bearer, such as name, date of birth, gender, height, eye color, and address to enable the identification of the bearer [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A United States passport or passport card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• An original or certified copy of a birth certificate issued by a State, county, municipal authority, or territory of the United States bearing an official seal [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A United States Permanent Resident Card or Alien Registration Receipt Card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A United States military identification card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• An identification card issued by one of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, or the Swain Islands, providing that it contains a photograph of the bearer or lists sufficient identifying information regarding the bearer, such as name, date of birth, gender, height, eye color, and address to enable the identification of the bearer [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A tribal identification card of a federally recognized Native American tribe, provided it contains a photograph of the bearer, such as name, date of birth, gender, height, eye color, and address to enable the identification of the bearer. A listing of federally recognized Native American tribes may be found at: http://www.bia.gov/WhoWeAre?BIA/OIS/TribalGovernmentServices/TribalDirectory/index.htm [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• An Employment Authorization Document that contains a photograph of the bearer [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A passport issued by a foreign government [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A Merchant Mariner Document or Merchant Mariner Credential issued by the United States Coast Guard [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A Free and secure Trade (FAST) card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A NEXUS card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A Secure Electronic Network for Travelers Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) card [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A driver's license issued by a Canadian government authority [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A Certificate of Citizenship issued by the United States Department of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (Form N-560 or Form N-561) [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• A Certificate of Naturalization issued by the United States Department of Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) (Form N-550 or Form N-570)[O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• Certification of Report of Birth issued by the United States Department of State (Form DS-1350) [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• Certification of Birth Abroad issued by the United States Department of State (Form FS-240) [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued by the United States Department of State (Form FS-240) [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(b)(3);8 CFR 274a.2]
• In addition to the documents listed herein, if, in administering a public benefit or program, an agency is required by federal law to accept a document or other form of identification for proof of or documentation of identity, that document or other form of identification will be deemed a secure and verifiable document solely for that particular program or administration of that particular public benefit. [O.C.G.A. 50-36-2(c)]

US Citizens are only required to submit a notarized Affidavit and the FRONT and BACK of a secure and verifiable document to SCHOLARSHIPS once. Georgia law (O.C.G.A. 50-36-1) requires all legal permanent residents, qualified aliens, and nonimmigrants to submit a new Affidavit and a secure and verifiable document at the beginning of each new academic year (fall semester).