All scholarship, fellowship or traineeship programs administered by the Commission under the provisions of Sections 65.05, 65.10, 65.15, 65.20, 65.25, 65.30, 65.35, 65.45, and 65.50 involving financial awards may be consolidated into one program whereby awards are made in the areas of outstanding students, minorities and shortage areas. When sufficient funds are not available to award all applicants, preference shall be given based upon financial need. Awards made under the provisions of this Section shall be contingent upon a commitment to teach in the Illinois public schools in the area of the award unless the recipient elects to repay the amount of the award in lieu of teaching. The Commission shall adopt rules for the implementation and administration of this Section; provided that no rule or regulation promulgated by the State Board of Education prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1993 pursuant to the exercise of any right, power, duty, responsibility or matter of pending business transferred from the State Board of Education to the Commission under this Section shall be affected thereby, and all such rules and regulations shall become the rules and regulations of the Commission until modified or changed by the Commission in accordance with law.
This Section is substantially the same as Section 30-14.7 of the School Code, which Section is repealed by this amendatory Act of 1993, and shall be construed as a continuation of that prior law and not as a new or different law. The State Board of Education shall transfer to the Commission, as the successor to the State Board of Education for all purposes of administering and implementing the provisions of this Section, all books, accounts, records, papers, documents, contracts, agreements, and pending business in any way relating to the consolidation of scholarship, fellowship, and traineeship programs under this Section; and all scholarship, fellowship or traineeship grants awarded by the State Board of Education prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of 1993 under the consolidated financial awards program continued in this Section shall be unaffected by the transfer to the Commission of all responsibility for administering and implementing the provisions of this Section. The State Board of Education shall furnish to the Commission such other information as the Commission may request to assist it in administering this Section.
110 ILCS 947/65.55