(1) The Legislature recognizes that community colleges and established branch campuses and centers throughout the state have a special mission to provide comprehensive higher education opportunities for financially needy students, at geographically disbursed locations and at favorable tuition rates.

(2) The Legislature further recognizes that tuition and general fee costs to students at Utah community colleges and established branch campuses and centers represent significant challenges for many of the students they serve, and that additional scholarship money for financially needy students attending those institutions is needed to ensure financial access to higher education.

(3) It is the purpose of this part to establish a program of matching grants as an incentive for institutions to raise money for scholarships at community colleges, branch campuses, and centers.