| 1 | 1 | | By: Alonzo H.B. No. 3518 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | relating to dropping courses |
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| 7 | 7 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 8 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is |
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| 9 | 9 | | amended Section 51.907 to read as follows: |
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| 10 | 10 | | Sec. 51.907. LIMITATIONS ON NUMBER OF COURSES THAT MAY BE |
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| 11 | 11 | | DROPPED UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES. (a) In this section, |
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| 12 | 12 | | "governing board", [and] "institution of higher education" and "a |
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| 13 | 13 | | general academic teaching institution" have the meanings assigned |
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| 14 | 14 | | by Section 61.003. |
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| 15 | 15 | | (b) This section applies only to an undergraduate student |
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| 16 | 16 | | who drops a course at [an institution of higher education] a general |
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| 17 | 17 | | academic teaching institution and only if: |
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| 18 | 18 | | (1) the student was able to drop the course without |
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| 19 | 19 | | receiving a grade or incurring an academic penalty; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (2) the student's transcript indicates or will |
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| 21 | 21 | | indicate that the student was enrolled in the course; and |
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| 22 | 22 | | (3) the student is not dropping the course in order to |
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| 23 | 23 | | withdraw from the institution. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (c) Except as provided under rules adopted under Subsection |
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| 25 | 25 | | (d), [an institution of higher education] a general academic |
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| 26 | 26 | | teaching institution may not permit a student to drop more than six |
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| 27 | 27 | | courses, including any course a transfer student has dropped at |
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| 28 | 28 | | another [an institution of higher education] general academic |
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| 29 | 29 | | teaching institution, under circumstances described by Subsection |
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| 30 | 30 | | (b). |
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| 31 | 31 | | (d) The governing board of [an institution of higher |
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| 32 | 32 | | education] a general academic teaching institution, may adopt a |
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| 33 | 33 | | policy under which the maximum number of courses a student is |
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| 34 | 34 | | permitted to drop under circumstances described by Subsection (b) |
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| 35 | 35 | | is less than the maximum number of courses that a student may drop |
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| 36 | 36 | | under Subsection (c). |
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| 37 | 37 | | (e) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall |
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| 38 | 38 | | adopt rules under which [an institution of higher education] a |
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| 39 | 39 | | general academic teaching institution shall permit a student to |
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| 40 | 40 | | drop more courses under circumstances described by Subsection (b) |
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| 41 | 41 | | than the number of courses permitted to be dropped under Subsection |
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| 42 | 42 | | (c) or under a policy adopted under Subsection (d) if the student |
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| 43 | 43 | | shows good cause for dropping more than that number, including a |
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| 44 | 44 | | showing of: |
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| 45 | 45 | | (1) a severe illness or other debilitating condition |
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| 46 | 46 | | that affects the student's ability to satisfactorily complete a |
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| 47 | 47 | | course; |
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| 48 | 48 | | (2) the student's responsibility for the care of a |
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| 49 | 49 | | sick, injured, or needy person if the provision of care affects the |
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| 50 | 50 | | student's ability to satisfactorily complete a course; |
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| 51 | 51 | | (3) the death of a person who: |
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| 52 | 52 | | (A) is considered to be a member of the student's |
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| 53 | 53 | | family under a rule adopted under this subsection for purposes of |
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| 54 | 54 | | this subdivision; or |
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| 55 | 55 | | (B) is otherwise considered to have a |
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| 56 | 56 | | sufficiently close relationship to the student under a rule adopted |
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| 57 | 57 | | under this subsection that the person's death is considered to be a |
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| 58 | 58 | | showing of good cause; or |
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| 59 | 59 | | (4) the active duty service as a member of the Texas |
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| 60 | 60 | | National Guard or the armed forces of the United States of: |
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| 61 | 61 | | (A) the student; or |
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| 62 | 62 | | (B) a person who is considered to be a member of |
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| 63 | 63 | | the student's family under a rule adopted under this subsection for |
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| 64 | 64 | | purposes of this subdivision. |
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| 65 | 65 | | (f) In determining the number of courses dropped by a |
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| 66 | 66 | | student for purposes of this section, a course, such as a laboratory |
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| 67 | 67 | | or discussion course, in which a student is enrolled concurrently |
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| 68 | 68 | | with a lecture course is not considered to be a course separate from |
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| 69 | 69 | | the lecture course if: |
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| 70 | 70 | | (1) concurrent enrollment in both courses is required; |
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| 71 | 71 | | and |
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| 72 | 72 | | (2) in dropping the lecture course, the student would |
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| 73 | 73 | | be required to drop the laboratory, discussion, or other course in |
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| 74 | 74 | | which the student is concurrently enrolled. |
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| 75 | 75 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 76 | 76 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 77 | 77 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 78 | 78 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 79 | 79 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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