Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas House Bill HB1409 Compare Versions

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1	1	83R23032 KEL-D
2	2	By: Wu H.B. No. 1409
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1409:
4	4	By: Branch C.S.H.B. No. 1409
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the granting of undergraduate course credit by
10	10	examination or assessment at public institutions of higher
11	11	education; authorizing a fee.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. The heading to Section 51.968, Education Code,
14	14	is amended to read as follows:
15	15	Sec. 51.968. ALTERNATE METHODS FOR EARNING UNDERGRADUATE
16	16	COURSE CREDIT [FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS COMPLETING
17	17	POSTSECONDARY-LEVEL PROGRAM].
18	18	SECTION 2. Section 51.968(a)(4), Education Code, is amended
19	19	to read as follows:
20	20	(4) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning
21	21	assigned [means an institution of higher education, as defined] by
22	22	Section 61.003[, that offers freshman-level courses].
23	23	SECTION 3. Section 51.968, Education Code, is amended by
24	24	adding Subsections (a-1), (a-2), (a-3), (d-1), and (f-1) and
25	25	amending Subsections (b), (c), and (e) to read as follows:
26	26	(a-1) This section applies only to an institution of higher
27	27	education that offers freshman-level and sophomore-level courses.
28	28	(a-2) To maximize opportunities for students to earn
29	29	undergraduate course credit at the institution, each institution of
30	30	higher education shall develop and, at least once during each
31	31	academic year, administer one or more institution-specific
32	32	examinations or assessments by which entering or current
33	33	undergraduate students may earn freshman-level or sophomore-level
34	34	course credit in the same manner as an entering freshman student may
35	35	earn course credit through a CLEP examination or advanced placement
36	36	examination. The institution may charge students a reasonable fee
37	37	for taking an examination or assessment described by this
38	38	subsection. The institution shall develop and administer
39	39	examinations or assessments for course credit for as many
40	40	freshman-level and sophomore-level courses as practicable and may
41	41	develop those examinations or assessments using source material
42	42	from other institutions of higher education.
43	43	(a-3) Each institution of higher education that ceases to
44	44	offer credit through the College-Level Examination Program or the
45	45	Advanced Placement Program for a specific course shall offer credit
46	46	for the course through an institution-specific examination or
47	47	assessment administered under Subsection (a-2).
48	48	(b) Each institution of higher education [that offers
49	49	freshman-level courses] shall adopt and implement a policy to grant
50	50	[undergraduate] course credit for freshman-level and
51	51	sophomore-level courses to undergraduate [entering freshman]
52	52	students who have:
53	53	(1) successfully completed the International
54	54	Baccalaureate Diploma Program;
55	55	(2)[, who have] achieved required scores on one or more
56	56	examinations in the Advanced Placement Program or the College-Level
57	57	Examination Program;
58	58	(3)[, or who have] successfully completed one or more
59	59	courses offered through concurrent enrollment in high school and at
60	60	an institution of higher education; or
61	61	(4) achieved required scores on one or more
62	62	institution-specific examinations or assessments administered by
63	63	the institution under Subsection (a-2).
64	64	(c) In the policy, the institution shall:
65	65	(1) establish the institution's conditions for
66	66	granting course credit, including the minimum required scores on
67	67	CLEP examinations, Advanced Placement examinations, [and]
68	68	examinations for courses constituting the International
69	69	Baccalaureate Diploma Program, and institution-specific
70	70	examinations or assessments administered by the institution under
71	71	Subsection (a-2); and
72	72	(2) based on the correlations identified under
73	73	Subsections [Subsection] (f) and (f-1), identify the specific
74	74	freshman-level or sophomore-level course credit or other academic
75	75	requirements of the institution, including the number of semester
76	76	credit hours or other course credit, that the institution will
77	77	grant to a student who successfully completes a course or program or
78	78	achieves a required score on an examination or assessment as
79	79	described by Subsection (b) [the diploma program, who successfully
80	80	completes a course through concurrent enrollment, or who achieves
81	81	required scores on CLEP examinations or Advanced Placement
82	82	examinations].
83	83	(d-1) Each institution of higher education shall:
84	84	(1) report to the coordinating board:
85	85	(A) a list of courses for which the institution
86	86	offers undergraduate students the opportunity to earn course credit
87	87	through an institution-specific examination or assessment;
88	88	(B) the institution's policy adopted under this
89	89	section; and
90	90	(C) any fee charged for an examination or
91	91	assessment administered under Subsection (a-2); and
92	92	(2) include a copy of the list, policy, and applicable
93	93	fee schedule with the institution's undergraduate student
94	94	application materials, including application materials available
95	95	on the institution's Internet website.
96	96	(e) On request of an applicant for admission as an entering
97	97	undergraduate student [freshman], an institution of higher
98	98	education, based on information provided by the applicant, shall
99	99	determine and notify the applicant regarding:
100	100	(1) the amount and type of any course credit that would
101	101	or could be granted to the applicant under the policy; and
102	102	(2) any other academic requirement that the applicant
103	103	would satisfy under the policy.
104	104	(f-1) An institution of higher education shall:
105	105	(1) identify correlations between the subject matter
106	106	and content of courses offered by the institution and the subject
107	107	matter and content of institution-specific examinations or
108	108	assessments administered by the institution under Subsection
109	109	(a-2); and
110	110	(2) make that information available to the public on
111	111	the institution's Internet website in a manner that conforms to the
112	112	requirements of Section 51.974.
113	113	SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies
114	114	beginning with the 2014-2015 academic year. An academic year
115	115	occurring before that academic year is covered by the law in effect
116	116	immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is
117	117	continued in effect for that purpose.
118	118	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.