Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB1987 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	88R30940 TYPED
2	2	By: Sparks S.B. No. 1987
3	3	(Guillen)
4	4	Substitute the following for S.B. No. 1987: No.
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the accreditation of certain postsecondary educational
10	10	institutions in this state or of certain programs offered by those
11	11	institutions.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. Sections 61.003(13) and (15), Education Code,
14	14	are amended to read as follows:
15	15	(13) "Recognized accrediting agency" means [the
16	16	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and] any [other]
17	17	association or organization so designated by the board.
18	18	(15) "Private or independent institution of higher
19	19	education" includes only a private or independent college or
20	20	university that is:
21	21	(A) organized under the Texas Non-Profit
22	22	Corporation Act (Article 1396-1.01 et seq., Vernon's Texas Civil
23	23	Statutes);
24	24	(B) exempt from taxation under Article VIII,
25	25	Section 2, of the Texas Constitution and Section 501(c)(3) of the
26	26	Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. Section 501); and
27	27	(C) accredited by:
28	28	(i) a recognized accrediting agency
29	29	designated by the board for the purpose of accrediting general
30	30	academic teaching institutions [Commission on Colleges of the
31	31	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools];
32	32	(ii) the Liaison Committee on Medical
33	33	Education; or
34	34	(iii) the American Bar Association.
35	35	SECTION 2. Section 61.0515(a), Education Code, is amended
36	36	to read as follows:
37	37	(a) To earn a baccalaureate degree, a student may not be
38	38	required by a general academic teaching institution to complete
39	39	more than the minimum number of semester credit hours required for
40	40	the degree by the institution's recognized accrediting agency
41	41	[Southern Association of Colleges and Schools or its successor]
42	42	unless the institution determines that there is a compelling
43	43	academic reason for requiring completion of additional semester
44	44	credit hours for the degree.
45	45	SECTION 3. Section 61.05151(a), Education Code, is amended
46	46	to read as follows:
47	47	(a) To earn an associate degree, a student may not be
48	48	required by an institution of higher education to complete more
49	49	than the minimum number of semester credit hours required for the
50	50	degree by the institution's recognized accrediting agency
51	51	[Southern Association of Colleges and Schools or its successor]
52	52	unless the institution determines that there is a compelling
53	53	academic reason for requiring completion of additional semester
54	54	credit hours for the degree.
55	55	SECTION 4. Section 61.222(a), Education Code, is amended to
56	56	read as follows:
57	57	(a) The coordinating board shall approve only those private
58	58	or independent colleges or universities that are private or
59	59	independent institutions of higher education as defined by Section
60	60	61.003 as it applied on January 1, 2023.
61	61	SECTION 5. Section 61.8235(f), Education Code, is amended
62	62	to read as follows:
63	63	(f) A student enrolled in a board-established program of
64	64	study who transfers from a public junior college, public state
65	65	college, or public technical institute to another public junior
66	66	college, public state college, or public technical institute that
67	67	offers a similar program, regardless of whether the institution has
68	68	adopted the board-established program of study, shall receive
69	69	academic credit from the institution to which the student
70	70	transferred for each of the courses that the student has
71	71	successfully completed in the program of study curriculum. Unless
72	72	otherwise required by the institution's recognized accrediting
73	73	agency [Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of
74	74	Colleges and Schools], the student may complete the program of
75	75	study at the institution to which the student transferred by
76	76	completing only the remaining number of semester credit hours the
77	77	student would need to complete the program of study at the
78	78	institution from which the student transferred.
79	79	SECTION 6. Section 107.151(c), Education Code, is amended
80	80	to read as follows:
81	81	(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter,
82	82	the university may operate as a general academic teaching
83	83	institution only after the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
84	84	Board certifies that the university is accredited by a recognized
85	85	accrediting agency, as defined by Section 61.003, [the Southern
86	86	Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges] and has
87	87	been approved by the coordinating board to offer one or more degree
88	88	programs. Until the coordinating board certifies that the
89	89	conditions of this subsection have been met, the board of regents
90	90	may operate a branch campus of Texas Woman's University in the city
91	91	of Dallas.
92	92	SECTION 7. Section 107.201(c), Education Code, is amended
93	93	to read as follows:
94	94	(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subchapter,
95	95	the university may operate as a general academic teaching
96	96	institution only after the Texas Higher Education Coordinating
97	97	Board certifies that the university is accredited by a recognized
98	98	accrediting agency, as defined by Section 61.003, [the Southern
99	99	Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges] and has
100	100	been approved by the coordinating board to offer one or more degree
101	101	programs. Until the coordinating board certifies that the
102	102	conditions of this subsection have been met, the board of regents
103	103	may operate a branch campus of Texas Woman's University in the city
104	104	of Houston.
105	105	SECTION 8. Section 130.301, Education Code, is amended by
106	106	adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
107	107	(3) "Recognized accrediting agency" has the meaning
108	108	assigned by Section 61.003.
109	109	SECTION 9. Section 130.305, Education Code, is amended to
110	110	read as follows:
111	111	Sec. 130.305. ACCREDITATION. A public junior college
112	112	offering a baccalaureate degree program under this subchapter must
113	113	meet all applicable accreditation requirements of a recognized
114	114	accrediting agency [the Commission on Colleges of the Southern
115	115	Association of Colleges and Schools].
116	116	SECTION 10. Section 130.307(c), Education Code, is amended
117	117	to read as follows:
118	118	(c) Before a public junior college may be authorized to
119	119	offer a baccalaureate degree program under this subchapter, the
120	120	public junior college must submit a report to the coordinating
121	121	board that includes:
122	122	(1) a long-term financial plan for receiving
123	123	accreditation from a recognized accrediting agency [the Commission
124	124	on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools];
125	125	(2) a long-term plan for faculty recruitment that:
126	126	(A) indicates the ability to pay the increased
127	127	salaries of doctoral faculty;
128	128	(B) identifies recruitment strategies for new
129	129	faculty; and
130	130	(C) ensures the program would not draw faculty
131	131	employed by a neighboring institution offering a similar program;
132	132	(3) detailed information on the manner of program and
133	133	course delivery; and
134	134	(4) detailed information regarding existing
135	135	articulation agreements and dual enrollment agreements indicating:
136	136	(A) that at least three articulation agreements
137	137	have been established with general academic teaching institutions
138	138	or medical and dental units, or the reasons why no articulation
139	139	agreements have been established; and
140	140	(B) that, with the agreement of the applicable
141	141	general academic teaching institution or medical and dental unit,
142	142	established articulation agreements are at capacity.
143	143	SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.