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General Assembly Committee Bill No. 5668
January Session, 2021
LCO No. 4394
Referred to Committee on HIGHER EDUCATION AND
EMPLOYMENT ADVANCEMENT
Introduced by:
(HED)
AN ACT REQUIRING THE OFFICE OF HIGHER EDUCATION TO
ESTABLISH A MICROCRE DENTIAL PILOT PROGRA M.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2021) (a) As used in this section: 1
(1) "Microcredential" means a digital badge earned in six months or 2
less through completion of for-credit or noncredit coursework and 3
demonstrated mastery of a specific skill; 4
(2) "Digital badge" means an indicator of accomplishment or skill that 5
can be displayed, accessed and verified online; and 6
(3) "Microcredential provider" means an institution of higher 7
education, an employer in the state, a professional association or other 8
entity that develops and offers a microcredential. 9
(b) Not later than January 1, 2022, the Office of Higher Education, in 10
consultation with the Board of Regents for Higher Education, shall 11
establish a pilot program to develop a virtual platform on which 12 Committee Bill No. 5668
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microcredentials may be earned or renewed by state residents and 13
offered by microcredential providers. The office may enter into a 14
contract with a third-party administrator to develop and administer the 15
virtual platform. Any such third-party administrator shall be required 16
under such contract to charge such third-party administrator's lowest 17
available rate for such services. Such virtual platform shall include, but 18
not be limited to, (1) a catalog of the available microcredentials with 19
information submitted by the microcredential provider pursuant to 20
subsection (c) of this section, (2) an access portal for a microcredential 21
provider to develop and offer microcredentials, (3) an access portal for 22
state residents to (A) earn or renew microcredentials, (B) share the 23
receipt of microcredentials with employers or institutions of higher 24
education, and (C) submit applications for jobs opportunities posted on 25
the virtual platform, (4) an access portal for employers in the state to 26
post job opportunities that require skills which may be demonstrated 27
through one or more microcredentials, (5) online support for all users of 28
the virtual platform, and (6) a means for employers and institutions of 29
higher education to prepurchase microcredentials for distribution to 30
employees or students. 31
(c) Each user of the virtual platform shall register in the form and 32
manner prescribed by the Office of Higher Education. Each 33
microcredential provider shall submit information for each new 34
microcredential offered by such provider, including, but not limited to, 35
(1) the name of the microcredential, (2) whether the microcredential is 36
industry-recognized, (3) whether a microcredential is offered through 37
synchronous or asynchronous coursework, (4) the enrollment fee, if any, 38
provided such fee shall not exceed an amount established by the office, 39
(5) the expected time for completion, (6) any required prerequisites, 40
provided related work experience shall be allowed in lieu of course 41
prerequisites whenever possible, (7) the effective period of a 42
microcredential if such microcredential is for a limited duration, (8) the 43
rubric by which a microcredential provider evaluates whether an 44
enrolled student successfully demonstrated mastery of the skill related 45
to the microcredential, and (9) if the microcredential provider is an 46 Committee Bill No. 5668
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institution of higher education, the number college credits earned upon 47
completion and the career pathway for such microcredential, including, 48
but not limited to, certificate or degree programs to which any 49
completed credits may be applied. 50
(d) The Office of Higher Education may deny access to the virtual 51
platform to any microcredential provider that offers one or more 52
microcredentials that do not meet the academic or industry standards 53
of employers and institutions of higher education in the state. The office 54
shall establish a process by which such microcredential provider may 55
appeal the office's denial of access. 56
(e) The Office of Higher Education shall consult with the Department 57
of Economic and Community Development and the Labor Department 58
to identify shortages in the state labor market and solicit the 59
participation of microcredential providers to offer microcredentials on 60
the virtual platform to meet such shortages. 61
(f) Not later than six months after a person has completed a 62
microcredential, the Office of Higher Education shall distribute a survey 63
to such person which shall include, but not be limited to, questions 64
regarding such person's (1) goals for completing the microcredential, (2) 65
employment status, (3) experience with the coursework and the virtual 66
platform, and (4) intention to use the virtual platform in the future to 67
earn other microcredentials or to seek employment. 68
(g) Each employer posting job opportunities on the virtual platform 69
shall submit a fee in an amount established by the Office of Higher 70
Education for each such posting. Any enrollment fee or job posting fee 71
shall be deposited into the microcredential account established 72
pursuant to subsection (h) of this section. The fees paid to the 73
microcredential account shall be expended by the office to compensate 74
microcredential providers and for reasonable and necessary expenses 75
for the administration of the virtual platform. 76
(h) There is established an account to be known as the 77 Committee Bill No. 5668
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"microcredential account" which shall be a separate, nonlapsing account 78
within the General Fund. The account shall contain any moneys 79
required by law to be deposited in the account. Moneys in the account 80
shall be expended by the Office of Higher Education as set forth in 81
subsection (g) of this section. 82
(i) Not later than January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, until 83
January 1, 2026, the Office of Higher Education shall submit a report, in 84
accordance with the provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, 85
to the joint standing committee of the General Assembly having 86
cognizance of matters relating to higher education. Such report shall 87
include (1) the catalog of microcredentials available on the virtual 88
platform, highlighting any new microcredentials offered and any 89
microcredentials ceased during the prior year, (2) the number of users 90
who registered on the virtual platform by type of user, (3) the number 91
of students who enrolled and the number of students who completed 92
each microcredential, (4) the results of the student survey conducted 93
pursuant to subsection (f) of this section, and (5) in the final report, the 94
office's decision on whether to establish the pilot program permanently 95
or whether to terminate the pilot program. 96
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2021 New section
HED Joint Favorable