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Regular Session, 2014
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 144
BY SENATOR APPEL
POSTSECONDARY ED. Requests the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education
management boards to conduct a comprehensive study of student articulation and transfer
in the state.
A RESOLUTION1
To urge and request the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education management2
boards to collaboratively conduct a comprehensive study of articulation and transfer3
policies and practices in the state's public institutions of postsecondary education.4
WHEREAS, Act 356 of the 2009 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature5
required the development and implementation of articulation and transfer programs and6
agreements to facilitate and maximize the seamless transfer of students and academic credits7
earned among and between the state's public secondary and postsecondary institutions; and8
WHEREAS, the clear intent of this legislation was to create a clear pathway for9
students to enable them to earn a postsecondary degree or credential in the most time10
effective and resource efficient manner; and11
WHEREAS, although the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education12
management boards were quick to respond and have made notable progress, there is much13
work yet to be done and there is a paucity of data upon which to accurately measure progress14
made and upon which to base future actions; and15
WHEREAS, the continually rising costs of postsecondary education and increasing16
workforce demands for employees with the skills and postsecondary credentials necessary17
for high quality jobs highlight the critical need to expand, refine, and institutionalize18 SR NO. 144
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comprehensive articulation and transfer practices at every school, in every degree and career1
and technical program; and2
WHEREAS, "two plus two" programs that enable students who successfully3
complete a two-year degree program at a community college to transfer to a four-year4
postsecondary institution to complete a baccalaureate degree program are proven to5
significantly increase student academic success and degree attainment; and6
WHEREAS, our state and our postsecondary institutions are failing our students if7
we do not rise to the challenge and take every step possible to create a postsecondary8
educational landscape that works collaboratively and collegially to provide every student9
with the program that best fits his needs and lay a clear, unobstructed pathway for each10
student to meet his educational and professional goals.11
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana12
does hereby urge and request the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education13
management boards to collaboratively conduct a comprehensive study of articulation and14
transfer policies and practices in the state's public institutions of postsecondary education.15
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this study shall include, at a minimum, the16
following:17
(1)Development of a broad definition of transfer.18
(2)The total number of students who transfer.19
(3)The institutions students transfer to and from.20
(4)An examination of transfer patterns.21
(5)The demographics of transfer students.22
(6)The academic majors or career and technical training focus of transfer23
students at both sending and receiving institutions.24
(7)The number of academic credits earned by transfer students at sending and25
receiving institutions.26
(8)Documented completion of any academic awards earned by students prior to27
transfer.28
(9)The academic performance of transfer students at sending and receiving29
institutions.30 SR NO. 144
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(10)A comparison of the academic performance of transfer students to that of1
native students.2
(11)The success rate of transfer students at receiving institutions in terms of3
degree or program completion.4
(12)The average number of credits earned by transfer students who complete a5
bachelor's degree, as compared to native students who complete a bachelor's6
degree.7
(13)The performance of students who completed the general education English8
requirements at the sending institution, and how these students performed in9
writing intensive courses at the receiving institution.10
(14)The performance of students who completed the general education math11
requirements at the sending institution, and how these students performed in12
math and science courses at the receiving institution.13
(15)A listing of the most commonly completed courses at sending and receiving14
institutions.15
(16)Any other elements of transfer as deemed necessary by the Board of Regents16
in consultation with the postsecondary education management boards.17
(17)A comparison of all statistics collected for this study regarding Louisiana's18
transfer activities to those of the other Southern Regional Education Board19
states.20
(18)Identification of obstacles preventing full implementation of Act 356 of the21
2009 Regular Session and strategies to overcome these obstacles, including22
any necessary legislation.23
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Regents shall submit a written24
report of the findings of the study, and a summary of the statistics and data required for the25
conduct of the study, to the Senate Committee on Education and the House Committee on26
Education not later than February 15, 2015.27
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the28
commissioner of higher education and the president of each public postsecondary education29
management system.30 SR NO. 144
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The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Jeanne C. Johnston.
DIGEST
Appel SR No. 144
Requests the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education management boards to
collaboratively conduct a comprehensive study of articulation and transfer policies and
practices in the state's public institutions of postsecondary education and provides a list of
data elements to be included in the study.
Requires the Board of Regents to submit a written report of study findings and supporting
statistics and data to the Senate and House committees on education not later than February
15, 2015.