Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3676 Compare Versions

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1	1	88R2111 KJE-F
2	2	By: Rogers H.B. No. 3676
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the creation of a rural dual credit pilot program by the
8	8	Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 61, Education Code, is
11	11	amended by adding Section 61.0765 to read as follows:
12	12	Sec. 61.0765. RURAL DUAL CREDIT PILOT PROGRAM. (a) The
13	13	board shall establish a pilot program under which the board awards
14	14	grants to participating public junior colleges to provide financial
15	15	assistance to educationally disadvantaged high school students for
16	16	all or part of the cost of enrolling in dual credit courses at the
17	17	college.
18	18	(b) The board shall select not more than 10 public junior
19	19	colleges in the small or medium public junior college peer group, as
20	20	identified by the board, to participate in the pilot program. In
21	21	selecting public junior colleges, the board shall, to the extent
22	22	practicable, ensure that at least one public junior college from
23	23	each region of the state is included.
24	24	(c) A participating public junior college must:
25	25	(1) use grant funds awarded under this section to
26	26	provide financial assistance to eligible students for all or part
27	27	of the cost of tuition and required fees for dual credit courses at
28	28	the college;
29	29	(2) work with high schools that partner with the
30	30	college to provide dual credit courses and elect to participate in
31	31	the pilot program to:
32	32	(A) inform eligible students regarding the pilot
33	33	program and how those courses relate to postsecondary education and
34	34	career paths; and
35	35	(B) assist eligible students in applying to
36	36	enroll in those courses; and
37	37	(3) collect and report to the board data on:
38	38	(A) participation rates of eligible students in
39	39	the pilot program;
40	40	(B) outreach efforts regarding the pilot
41	41	program; and
42	42	(C) the percentage of eligible students
43	43	receiving financial assistance under the pilot program who graduate
44	44	from high school:
45	45	(i) in the top 10 percent of the student's
46	46	high school class; or
47	47	(ii) with a workforce certificate or
48	48	credential.
49	49	(d) A student is eligible to receive financial assistance
50	50	under the pilot program if the student:
51	51	(1) is educationally disadvantaged, as defined by
52	52	Section 5.001;
53	53	(2) is enrolled in a participating public or private
54	54	high school, including a home school, in the service area of a
55	55	participating public junior college; and
56	56	(3) has completed less than 60 semester credit hours
57	57	at an institution of higher education.
58	58	(e) Funds provided to an eligible student under the pilot
59	59	program must be used for the cost of tuition or required fees for
60	60	dual credit courses at the participating public junior college.
61	61	(f) A public or private high school, including a home
62	62	school, that partners with a participating public junior college to
63	63	provide dual credit courses and elects to participate in the pilot
64	64	program must provide to students in grade nine or the equivalent
65	65	information regarding dual credit opportunities and the funding
66	66	available for dual credit courses under the pilot program.
67	67	(g) Not later than December 1, 2024, the board shall
68	68	evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot program and report the
69	69	results of the evaluation to the legislature. In evaluating the
70	70	pilot program, the board shall determine:
71	71	(1) any increase in:
72	72	(A) the rate of participation of eligible
73	73	students in dual credit courses;
74	74	(B) the number of dual credit semester credit
75	75	hours or the equivalent attempted by eligible students; and
76	76	(C) the number of eligible students who graduate
77	77	from high school:
78	78	(i) in the top 10 percent of the student's
79	79	high school class; or
80	80	(ii) with a workforce certificate or
81	81	credential; and
82	82	(2) whether the pilot program should be expanded to
83	83	all public junior colleges in the small and medium peer groups, as
84	84	identified by the board.
85	85	(h) This section expires September 1, 2025.
86	86	SECTION 2. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
87	87	shall establish the pilot program under Section 61.0765, Education
88	88	Code, as added by this Act, as soon as practicable following the
89	89	effective date of this Act.
90	90	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
91	91	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
92	92	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
93	93	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
94	94	Act takes effect September 1, 2023.