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Students could receive more information about how to graduate early — and be offered an incentive of an enhanced scholarship.
The Senate passed SB33 on a 24-2 vote on Tuesday to approve those moves, and sent it to the House.
Its sponsor, Sen. Aaron Osmond, R-South Jordan, said it would require providing "parents and students in the eighth grade information about what it takes to graduate early, and what it takes to graduate early being college ready. There is a difference."
He added, "It also creates an incentive." The Centennial Scholarship, created to recognize students who graduate early, would be increased under the bill from $1,000 to $2,000.
He said the increase will not cost the state money, and actually will bring a slight savings of about $9,000 a year. "The reason why is there will be savings in the educational system when a student graduates early," he said.
Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, said he guesses that most high-school students now do not know that early graduation is possible.
He said they should be informed more about it so that instead of a "senior year twiddling their thumbs and being a nuisance," they "could have done something better with their lives."