LAW – Mississippi Law Enforcement Officers & Firefighters Scholarship
Program Overview:
The Mississippi Law Enforcement Officers and Firefighters Scholarship Program offers financial assistance to dependent children and spouses of any Mississippi law enforcement officer, full-time firefighter or volunteer firefighter who has suffered fatal injuries or wounds or become permanently and totally disabled as a result of injuries or wounds which occurred in the performance of the official and appointed duties of his or her office. This financial assistance is offered as an eight-semester tuition and room scholarship at any state-supported college or university in Mississippi.
Rules and Regulations:
Important Dates:
Online application: October 1 – September 15
Initial Eligibility Requirements:
- Enroll full-time at the undergraduate level at any one state-supported (public) college or university in Mississippi.
- Be certified as a dependent child (must not have reached the age of 23) or spouse of any Mississippi law enforcement officer, full-time firefighter or volunteer firefighter who suffered fatal injuries or wounds which occurred in the performance of the official and appointed duties of his or her office or who became permanently and totally disabled as a result of injuries or wounds which occurred in the performance of the official and appointed duties of his or her office.
Eligibility Requirements for Returning College Students:
- Maintain a minimum 2.5 cumulative college GPA of 2.5 on a 4.0 scale each term of enrollment.
- Enroll full-time and maintain full-time enrollment (complete with passing grades) at the undergraduate level at any one state-supported (public) college or university in Mississippi. Full-time enrollment is 15 hours per semester or 9 hours per trimester.
Award Amount:
- The annual award covers the cost of tuition, including required fees, and the average cost of campus housing at any state-supported college or university within the state of Mississippi.
Maximum Length of Eligibility:
- Funding cannot exceed eight (8) semesters or bachelor’s degree completion, whichever comes first.
(Note: No student may receive undergraduate grant aid through more than one state-supported undergraduate grant program in the same term of enrollment. If a student is eligible for aid through multiple grant programs, the student shall be awarded from the program that awards the larger sum. No student shall receive undergraduate grant aid from any program or any combination of programs for more than eight semesters or twelve trimesters.)
To Apply:
- Complete the online application. The online application must be completed each and every academic year for which the applicant seeks aid.
- New applicants must submit required supporting documents.
Documentation of Eligibility as Child or Spouse:
- Child: Certificate of live birth or proof of adoption
- Spouse: Marriage license
Documentation of Permanent and Total Disability (all four documents required):
- A letter from the officer’s or firefighter’s former supervisor or employer stating whether the officer or firefighter is disabled as a result of injuries or wounds that occurred in the performance of the official duties of his office
- A statement from the officer’s or firefighter’s physician stating whether the officer or firefighter is disabled and the reason for that disability
- Verification from the Public Employees’ Retirement System
- Verification from the Social Security Administration
Documentation of Death (both documents required):
- A letter from the officer’s or firefighter’s former supervisor or employer stating whether he suffered fatal injuries in the performance of the official duties of his office
- A death certificate
NOTE: For additional information on the application process and required documentation, please contact Shirley Mitchell, Program Administrator, at or by calling 1-800-327-2980.
How to Submit Supporting Documents
Frequently Asked Questions
- What if I do not attend school after receiving the LAW Scholarship for a semester or year? Do I have to repay the funds I have previously received? Will I be eligible if I return to school at later date?
There is no repayment of this scholarship if you leave school. If you return to school as a full-time student at a later date, you may re-apply; however, you may be required to certify certain initial eligibility requirements again, and you will be required to re-establish full-time enrollment. - Am I required to maintain a certain GPA?
Yes, you must make steady academic progress and have a cumulative GPA of at least a 2.5 calculated on a 4.0 scale. - How long am I eligible to receive the LAW scholarship?
You are eligible to receive this scholarship as a full-time student for a maximum of eight (8) semesters or bachelor’s degree completion, whichever comes first. - Why must I reapply for LAW every year?
Current legislation requires “…the board shall create a renewal application for each student who received the award for one or more terms during the immediately preceding academic year.” At a minimum, a student must file an online application no later than the close of business on the deadline date of September 15. - When and how are the funds awarded?
All LAW Scholarship funds are made payable to the institution with the student designated as the recipient of a specified amount. - May I transfer this scholarship to another school?
Yes. If you remain in good standing at your previous school, the LAW Scholarship is portable to another in-state public school. - What is the definition of “child” or “children” as it applies to this scholarship?
“Child” or “children” means natural children, adopted children, or stepchildren. A child must not have reached the age of twenty-three (23) years on the first day of the first term for which the LAW scholarship is awarded. For proof of dependency, additional documentation may be required for adopted or stepchildren. - What is the definition of a spouse as it applies to the scholarship?
A “spouse” as it applies to this scholarship is a person who was legally married to a Mississippi law enforcement officer, full-time firefighter or volunteer firefighter at the time of the death, or, in the case of the law enforcement officer or firefighter who was permanently and totally disabled, has not remarried. - What is the definition of a Mississippi law enforcement officer as it applies to this scholarship?
— “State highway patrolmen” means all law enforcement officers, regardless of department or bureau, of the Mississippi Highway Safety Patrol.
— “Municipal police officer” means all law enforcement officers of any municipality who are regular duty personnel on full-time status, but not including auxiliary officers or those serving on a temporary or part-time status.
— “Sheriffs” and “deputy sheriffs” mean all law enforcement officers of full-time duty status on a regular basis serving the sheriff’s department or any county at the time of death or injury, but not including deputy sheriffs who are engaged in administrative or civil duty, or deputy sheriffs serving in a temporary capacity or part-time basis.
— “Constables” means all duly elected constables of any beat of any county within the state who were permanently or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of their duties concerning the criminal laws of the county and state.
— “Conservation officers” including all duly appointed game wardens employed by the State of Mississippi on a full-time status who were permanently or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of their duties concerning the game laws of the state.
— “Alcoholic Beverage Control Division agents and inspectors” including all duly appointed agents and investigators of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Division of the Mississippi State Tax Commission on a full-time duty status who were permanently or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of their duties concerning the alcoholic beverage control laws of the state.
— Members of the National Guard serving as peace officers when ordered to state emergency duty under authority vested in the Governor by the Constitution and laws of the state and who during that service were fatally or permanently injured.
— “Tax commission scales enforcement officers” including all duly appointed scales enforcement officers of the Mississippi State Tax Commission on a full-time duty status who were permanently or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of their duties.
— Duly appointed agents of the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics.
— Correctional, Probation and Parole officers employed by the Mississippi Department of Corrections. - What is the definition of a full-time firefighter as it applies to the scholarship?
A full-time firefighter is defined as any firefighter employed by any subdivision of the State of Mississippi on full-time duty status that was permanently and totally disabled or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of their duties. - What is the definition of a volunteer firefighter as it applies to this scholarship?
A volunteer firefighter is defined as any volunteer firefighter registered with the State of Mississippi or a political subdivision thereof on a volunteer firefighting status that was permanently and totally disabled or fatally injured while actually engaged in the performance of firefighting duties.
