§18-31-3. West Virginia Hope Scholarship Board; members; terms; compensation; proceedings generally.

(a) The West Virginia Hope Scholarship Program shall be administered by the West Virginia Hope Scholarship Board.

(b) The board shall consist of nine members and include the following:

(1) The State Treasurer, or his or her designee;

(2) The State Auditor, or his or her designee;

(3) The State Attorney General, or his or her designee;

(4) The State Superintendent of Schools, or his or her designee;

(5) The Chancellor of Higher Education, or his or her designee;

(6) The Director of the Herbert Henderson Office of Minority Affairs, or his or her designee; and

(7) Three members appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate who are parents of Hope Scholarship students, or for the initial appointments of board members following the effective date of this article, parents who intend to apply for the Hope Scholarship on behalf of eligible recipients, to be appointed as follows:

(A) Only state residents are eligible for appointment to the board;

(B) The parent members shall reside in geographically diverse areas of the state;

(C) For appointments made after July 1, 2024, the parent members shall represent parents of students engaged in a diverse range of educational options, such as microschools or other individualized instruction;

The Governor shall make appointments necessary to satisfy the requirements of subdivision (7) of this section to staggered terms as determined by the Governor. After the initial staggering of terms, appointed parent board members shall serve for three-year terms and are eligible for reappointment at the expiration of their terms; and

(D) If there is a vacancy among appointed members, the vacancy shall be filled by appointment to the unexpired term of a person meeting the requirements of this section by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. Members of the board shall serve until the later of the expiration of the term for which the member was appointed or the appointment of his or her successor.

(c) Members of the board shall serve without compensation. The board may reimburse members for all reasonable and necessary expenses, including travel expenses, actually incurred by board members in the conduct of their official duties. Any expense reimbursements shall be made from the West Virginia Hope Scholarship Program Expense Fund at the same rate paid to state employees.

(d) The Treasurer is the chairman and presiding officer of the board. The Treasurer may provide office space and staff to the board upon request of the board.

(e) The State Superintendent of Schools may provide staff to the board, upon request of the board.

(f) A majority of the members of the board constitutes a quorum for the transaction of the business of the board.

(g) Members of the board are subject to the ethical standards and financial disclosure requirements of the West Virginia Governmental Ethics Act in §6B-1-1 et seq. of this code.