Juneau -- The Alaska Senate unanimously passed legislation Thursday that makes financing a college education easier for Alaskan students. Senate Bill 275, sponsored by the Senate Health, Education and Social Services Committee, changes the definition of an academic year for the purpose of the Alaska Post Secondary Loan Program.

The Alaska Post Secondary Loan Program limits the student loans that an individual may take within an academic year. Under current statutes, an academic school year is defined as the period from September 1 of one year through August 31 of the following year. SB 275 would change the definition to "a minimum of 30 weeks of instructional time that begins between September 1 of one year and August 31 of the following year."

This change allows students who complete one year's worth of study and begin a second within a calendar year to be able to receive student loans for all of their studies. It also makes the state definition conform with the U.S. Department of Education definition of an academic year.

"An academic year that begins in the fall and ends in the spring worked well when the United States was primarily an agricultural society, when students needed to be free in the summer to work on a farm," said Senator Mike Miller, Chair of the Health, Education and Social Services Committee. "Most students no longer have that obligation, and some colleges and universities are re-designing their academic calendars to accommodate students who prefer to accelerate their academic progress, becoming wage-earners in the shortest time possible. SB 275 allows them to do this, without unfairly limiting their financial aid."

SB 275 moves to the House for consideration.