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Regular Session, 2014 ENROLLED
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 144
BY SENATOR APPEL
A RESOLUTION
To urge and request 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.
WHEREAS, Act 356 of the 2009 Regular Session of the Louisiana Legislature
required the development and implementation of articulation and transfer programs and
agreements to facilitate and maximize the seamless transfer of students and academic credits
earned among and between the state's public secondary and postsecondary institutions; and
WHEREAS, the clear intent of this legislation was to create a clear pathway for
students to enable them to earn a postsecondary degree or credential in the most time
effective and resource efficient manner; and
WHEREAS, although the Board of Regents and the postsecondary education
management boards were quick to respond and have made notable progress, there is much
work yet to be done and there is a paucity of data upon which to accurately measure progress
made and upon which to base future actions; and
WHEREAS, the continually rising costs of postsecondary education and increasing
workforce demands for employees with the skills and postsecondary credentials necessary
for high quality jobs highlight the critical need to expand, refine, and institutionalize
comprehensive articulation and transfer practices at every school, in every degree and career
and technical program; and
WHEREAS, "two plus two" programs that enable students who successfully
complete a two-year degree program at a community college to transfer to a four-year
postsecondary institution to complete a baccalaureate degree program are proven to
significantly increase student academic success and degree attainment; and
WHEREAS, our state and our postsecondary institutions are failing our students if
we do not rise to the challenge and take every step possible to create a postsecondary
educational landscape that works collaboratively and collegially to provide every student SR NO. 144 ENROLLED
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with the program that best fits his needs and lay a clear, unobstructed pathway for each
student to meet his educational and professional goals.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
does hereby urge and request 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.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this study shall include, at a minimum, the
following:
(1)Development of a broad definition of transfer.
(2)The total number of students who transfer.
(3)The institutions students transfer to and from.
(4)An examination of transfer patterns.
(5)The demographics of transfer students.
(6)The academic majors or career and technical training focus of transfer
students at both sending and receiving institutions.
(7)The number of academic credits earned by transfer students at sending and
receiving institutions.
(8)Documented completion of any academic awards earned by students prior to
transfer.
(9)The academic performance of transfer students at sending and receiving
institutions.
(10)A comparison of the academic performance of transfer students to that of
native students.
(11)The success rate of transfer students at receiving institutions in terms of
degree or program completion.
(12)The average number of credits earned by transfer students who complete a
bachelor's degree, as compared to native students who complete a bachelor's
degree.
(13)The performance of students who completed the general education English
requirements at the sending institution, and how these students performed in SR NO. 144 ENROLLED
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writing intensive courses at the receiving institution.
(14)The performance of students who completed the general education math
requirements at the sending institution, and how these students performed in
math and science courses at the receiving institution.
(15)A listing of the most commonly completed courses at sending and receiving
institutions.
(16)Any other elements of transfer as deemed necessary by the Board of Regents
in consultation with the postsecondary education management boards.
(17)A comparison of all statistics collected for this study regarding Louisiana's
transfer activities to those of the other Southern Regional Education Board
states.
(18)Identification of obstacles preventing full implementation of Act 356 of the
2009 Regular Session and strategies to overcome these obstacles, including
any necessary legislation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board of Regents shall submit a written
report of the findings of the study, and a summary of the statistics and data required for the
conduct of the study, to the Senate Committee on Education and the House Committee on
Education not later than February 15, 2015.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to the
commissioner of higher education and the president of each public postsecondary education
management system.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE