Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2740 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R11910 KSD-D
2	2	By: Capriglione H.B. No. 2740
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the automatic admission of students to general academic
8	8	teaching institutions.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 51.803(a), Education Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	(a) Subject to Subsection (a-1), each general academic
13	13	teaching institution shall admit an applicant for admission to the
14	14	institution as an undergraduate student if the applicant graduated
15	15	with a grade point average in the top eight [10] percent of the
16	16	student's high school graduating class in one of the two school
17	17	years preceding the academic year for which the applicant is
18	18	applying for admission and:
19	19	(1) the applicant graduated from a public or private
20	20	high school in this state accredited by a generally recognized
21	21	accrediting organization or from a high school operated by the
22	22	United States Department of Defense;
23	23	(2) the applicant:
24	24	(A) successfully completed:
25	25	(i) at a public high school, the curriculum
26	26	requirements established under Section 28.025 for the
27	27	distinguished level of achievement under the foundation high school
28	28	program; or
29	29	(ii) at a high school to which Section
30	30	28.025 does not apply, a curriculum that is equivalent in content
31	31	and rigor to the distinguished level of achievement under the
32	32	foundation high school program; or
33	33	(B) satisfied ACT's College Readiness Benchmarks
34	34	on the ACT assessment applicable to the applicant or earned on the
35	35	SAT assessment a score of at least 1,500 out of 2,400 or the
36	36	equivalent; and
37	37	(3) if the applicant graduated from a high school
38	38	operated by the United States Department of Defense, the applicant
39	39	is a Texas resident under Section 54.052 or is entitled to pay
40	40	tuition fees at the rate provided for Texas residents under Section
41	41	54.241(d) for the term or semester to which admitted.
42	42	SECTION 2. Section 28.02121(a), Education Code, is amended
43	43	to read as follows:
44	44	(a) The agency, in consultation with the Texas Workforce
45	45	Commission and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, shall
46	46	prepare and make available to each school district in English and
47	47	Spanish information that explains the advantages of the
48	48	distinguished level of achievement described by Section
49	49	28.025(b-15) and each endorsement described by Section
50	50	28.025(c-1). The information must contain an explanation:
51	51	(1) concerning the benefits of choosing a high school
52	52	personal graduation plan that includes the distinguished level of
53	53	achievement under the foundation high school program and includes
54	54	one or more endorsements to enable the student to achieve a class
55	55	rank that qualifies the student for automatic admission under
56	56	Section 51.803(a) [in the top 10 percent for students at the
57	57	campus]; and
58	58	(2) that encourages parents, to the greatest extent
59	59	practicable, to have the student choose a high school personal
60	60	graduation plan described by Subdivision (1).
61	61	SECTION 3. Section 28.026(a), Education Code, is amended to
62	62	read as follows:
63	63	(a) The board of trustees of a school district and the
64	64	governing body of each open-enrollment charter school that provides
65	65	a high school shall require each high school in the district or
66	66	provided by the charter school, as applicable, to post appropriate
67	67	signs in each school counselor's office, in each principal's
68	68	office, and in each administrative building indicating the
69	69	substance of Section 51.803 regarding automatic college admission
70	70	and stating the curriculum requirements for financial aid
71	71	authorized under Title 3. To assist in the dissemination of that
72	72	information, the district or charter school shall:
73	73	(1) require that each school counselor and class
74	74	advisor at a high school be provided a detailed explanation of the
75	75	substance of Section 51.803 and the curriculum requirements for
76	76	financial aid authorized under Title 3;
77	77	(2) provide each district or school student, at the
78	78	time the student first registers for one or more classes required
79	79	for high school graduation, with a written notification, including
80	80	a detailed explanation in plain language, of the substance of
81	81	Section 51.803, the curriculum requirements for financial aid
82	82	authorized under Title 3, and the benefits of completing the
83	83	requirements for that automatic admission and financial aid;
84	84	(3) require that each school counselor and senior
85	85	class advisor at a high school explain to eligible students the
86	86	substance of Section 51.803; and
87	87	(4) not later than the 14th day after the last day of
88	88	classes for the fall semester or an equivalent date in the case of a
89	89	school operated on a year-round system under Section 25.084,
90	90	provide each senior student eligible under Section 51.803 and each
91	91	student enrolled in the junior year of high school who has a grade
92	92	point average that would qualify the student for automatic
93	93	admission under Section 51.803(a) [in the top 10 percent of the
94	94	student's high school class], and the student's parent or guardian,
95	95	with a written notification of the student's eligibility with a
96	96	detailed explanation in plain language of the substance of Section
97	97	51.803.
98	98	SECTION 4. The heading to Subchapter R, Chapter 56,
99	99	Education Code, is amended to read as follows:
100	100	SUBCHAPTER R. SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDENTS GRADUATING IN TOP EIGHT
101	101	[10] PERCENT OF HIGH SCHOOL CLASS
102	102	SECTION 5. Section 56.481, Education Code, is amended to
103	103	read as follows:
104	104	Sec. 56.481. PURPOSE. The purpose of this program is to
105	105	encourage attendance at public institutions of higher education in
106	106	this state by outstanding high school students in the top eight [10]
107	107	percent of their graduating class.
108	108	SECTION 6. Section 56.484, Education Code, is amended to
109	109	read as follows:
110	110	Sec. 56.484. INITIAL ELIGIBILITY FOR SCHOLARSHIP. To be
111	111	eligible for a scholarship under this subchapter, a student must:
112	112	(1) have graduated from a public or accredited private
113	113	high school in this state while ranked:
114	114	(A) in the top 10 percent of the student's
115	115	graduating class, if the student graduated in a school year before
116	116	the 2015-2016 school year, subject to Section 56.487(b); or
117	117	(B) in the top eight percent of the student's
118	118	graduating class, if the student graduated in the 2015-2016 school
119	119	year or a subsequent school year, subject to Section 56.487(b);
120	120	(2) have completed the recommended or advanced high
121	121	school curriculum established under Section 28.025 or its
122	122	equivalent;
123	123	(3) have applied for admission as a first-time
124	124	freshman student for an [the 2010-2011] academic year [or a
125	125	subsequent academic year] to an institution of higher education
126	126	that has elected to offer admissions for that academic year to
127	127	applicants as provided by Section 51.803(a-1);
128	128	(4) enroll as a first-time freshman student in an
129	129	institution of higher education not later than the 16th month after
130	130	the date of the student's high school graduation;
131	131	(5) have been awarded a TEXAS grant under Subchapter M
132	132	for the same semester or other academic term for which the
133	133	scholarship will be awarded;
134	134	(6) be a Texas resident under Section 54.052; and
135	135	(7) comply with any other eligibility requirements
136	136	established by coordinating board rule.
137	137	SECTION 7. Section 61.0902(b), Education Code, is amended
138	138	to read as follows:
139	139	(b) Not later than the next November 1 following the
140	140	completion of an academic year, each general academic teaching
141	141	institution shall provide to the board one or more reports
142	142	containing data related to:
143	143	(1) the qualifications of the entering freshman class
144	144	for the academic year covered by the report, including:
145	145	(A) the average Texas Academic Skills Program
146	146	Test scores of the class;
147	147	(B) the average scores of the class on each
148	148	generally recognized test or assessment used in college and
149	149	university undergraduate admissions, including the Scholastic
150	150	Assessment Test and the American College Test;
151	151	(C) the range of scores of the class from the 25th
152	152	to the 75th percentile on each generally recognized test or
153	153	assessment used in college and university undergraduate
154	154	admissions, including the Scholastic Assessment Test and the
155	155	American College Test;
156	156	(D) the overall grade point average of the class
157	157	for the academic year covered by the report;
158	158	(E) the number of students in the class who
159	159	graduated from [in the top 10 percent of the student's] high school
160	160	with a grade point average that would qualify the student for
161	161	automatic admission under Section 51.803(a) [graduating class];
162	162	and
163	163	(F) enrollment percentages by ethnicity; and
164	164	(2) student performance and institution efficiency,
165	165	including:
166	166	(A) the retention rate of full-time students
167	167	after the completion of one academic year at the institution;
168	168	(B) the percentage of full-time degree-seeking
169	169	undergraduate students who earn a baccalaureate degree before the
170	170	sixth anniversary of the date of the student's first enrollment at
171	171	the institution;
172	172	(C) the percentage of lower-division semester
173	173	credit hours taught by tenured or tenure-track faculty;
174	174	(D) the percentage of undergraduate classes with
175	175	fewer than 20 students;
176	176	(E) the percentage of undergraduate classes with
177	177	more than 50 students;
178	178	(F) the student-to-faculty ratio for
179	179	undergraduate students;
180	180	(G) the percentage of students receiving
181	181	financial aid;
182	182	(H) the average cost of tuition and fees for an
183	183	undergraduate student enrolled for 12 semester credit hours;
184	184	(I) the average cost of on-campus room and board
185	185	for an academic year, excluding summer sessions;
186	186	(J) the number of disciplines in which master's
187	187	degrees are offered;
188	188	(K) the number of disciplines in which doctoral
189	189	degrees are offered;
190	190	(L) a description of any departments, schools, or
191	191	certificate or degree programs of the institution that have a
192	192	statewide or national reputation for excellence; and
193	193	(M) statistics regarding job placement rates for
194	194	students awarded certificates or degrees by the institution.
195	195	SECTION 8. (a) The change in law made by this Act to Section
196	196	51.803(a), Education Code, applies beginning with admission to a
197	197	general academic teaching institution for the 2016-2017 academic
198	198	year, except as provided by Subsection (b) of this section.
199	199	Admissions to a general academic teaching institution for an
200	200	academic period before that academic year are governed by the law in
201	201	effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the
202	202	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
203	203	(b) For purposes of admissions to a general academic
204	204	teaching institution for the 2016-2017 academic year, Section
205	205	51.803(a), as that section existed on January 1, 2015, applies to an
206	206	applicant for admission who graduated from high school in the
207	207	2014-2015 school year.
208	208	SECTION 9. The changes in law made by this Act to Sections
209	209	28.02121(a) and 28.026(a), Education Code, apply beginning with the
210	210	2015-2016 school year.
211	211	SECTION 10. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of
212	212	this section, this Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
213	213	(b) Section 7 of this Act takes effect January 1, 2016.