SB2977 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB101 17445 NHT 66854 b

101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020
SB2977

Introduced 2/4/2020, by Sen. William E. Brady

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Collegiate High School Act. Provides that, beginning on or before the 2022-2023 school year, each public community college must, in cooperation with each school board in its designated service area, establish one or more collegiate high school programs for students enrolled in the 11th grade. Provides that each school board must enter into a contract with at least one community college of the school board's choice to establish a collegiate high school program; specifies the contract's requirements. Provides for course requirements and faculty member credentials. Allows each community college to adopt policies to protect the academic standing of students who are not successful in a collegiate high school program. Provides for academic counseling; specifies the counseling requirements. Requires the Illinois Community College Board, in consultation with the Board of Higher Education and the State Board of Education, to adopt rules and annually evaluate collegiate high school programs. Effective immediately.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning education.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Collegiate High School Act.

Section 5. Findings. The General Assembly finds all of the following:

(1) Collegiate high school programs are innovative partnerships between public secondary schools and public community colleges that allow pupils to earn a high school diploma and up to 2 years of college credit in 5 years or less.

(2) In collegiate high school programs, students begin taking college courses as soon as they demonstrate readiness to take those courses and are provided with the opportunity to earn an associate degree or a career and technical certificate.

Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:

"Community college" means a public community college included in the definition of "community colleges" under the Public Community College Act.

"School board" has the meaning given to that term under Section 1-3 of the School Code.

Section 15. Collegiate high school program.

(a) Beginning on or before the 2022-2023 school year, each community college must, in cooperation with each school board in its designated service area, establish one or more collegiate high school programs for students enrolled in the 11th grade at the time of application under subsection (c). A community college may use an intergovernmental agreement with a school district to establish the program.

(b) At a minimum, a collegiate high school program established under this Section must include an option for qualified public school students in grades 11 and 12 to successfully complete an associate degree or a career and technical certification while simultaneously earning a high school diploma.

(c) To enroll in a collegiate high school program, a student must submit an application with the community college. In its decision to accept or reject the student admission into the program, the community college must use the same standards it ordinarily uses in deciding a student's admission into the community college. A student applying to participate in the program may not be refused admission solely because he or she has not graduated from a secondary school.

(d) Each school board must enter into a contract with at least one community college of the school board's choice to establish a collegiate high school program under this Section. Beginning with the 2022-2023 school year, if a community college fails to establish a program with a school board that requests to do so, a different community college may execute a contract with that school board to establish the program. The contract must be executed by January 1 of each school year for implementation of the program during the next school year. The contract must include all of the following:

(1) Clearly delineate the school board's and the community college's respective roles and responsibilities in providing the program to students and ensuring the quality and instructional rigor of the program. The community college must ensure that the content and rigor of a course offered in a collegiate high school program is adequate to warrant awarding course credit to a student in the same manner as if the student took the course as a student attending the community college.

(2) Describe the collegiate high school program and the delineation of courses and industry certifications offered, including online course availability, the high school and college course credits that may be earned for each postsecondary course completed under the program and industry certification that may be earned, student eligibility criteria, and the enrollment process and relevant deadlines.

(3) Describe the methods, medium, and process by which students and their parents or guardians are annually informed about the availability of the collegiate high school program, the return on investment associated with participation in the program, and the information described in paragraph (2).

(4) Identify the delivery methods for instruction and the instructors for all courses under the program.

(5) Identify the student advising services and progress monitoring mechanisms of the program.

(6) Establish a program review and reporting mechanism regarding student performance outcomes that includes the creation and maintenance of records for each student enrolled in the program that includes all of the following:

(A) The courses in which the student enrolls and the credit hours awarded for those courses.

(B) The courses that the student successfully completes and the courses that the student fails to complete.

(C) The postsecondary credit granted to the student.

(D) Any other information requested by the Board of Higher Education.

(7) Describe the terms of funding arrangements to implement the collegiate high school program. Students who are enrolled in the program are not responsible for tuition, fees, or other expenses related to the program.

(8) Establish any limitations that the school board or community college may put on course offerings due to the availability of instructors, the availability of students for specific course offerings, or local board policy. These limitations may not arbitrarily prohibit students from participating in the program.

(9) Establish academic criteria for eligibility for high school students to enroll in the program. The academic criteria must be evidence-based and must include multiple appropriate measures to determine if a student is prepared for any dual credit coursework in which the student enrolls and must include a standard for continued enrollment. Exceptions to the academic criteria may be granted to a student on a case-by-case basis if the school board and community college agree on the exceptions and the terms of the agreement are contained within the contract established under this subsection. A community college's board of trustees may establish additional initial student eligibility requirements or prerequisites, which must be included in the contract, to ensure student readiness for postsecondary instruction.

Any additional requirements included in the contract may not arbitrarily prohibit students who have demonstrated the ability to master advanced courses from participating in a collegiate high school program. Regardless of whether a student meets the eligibility requirements for continued enrollment, a student may lose the opportunity to participate in a collegiate high school program if he or she is disruptive to the learning process in a manner that hinders the progress of other students or the efficient administration of the course.

(e) Each student participating in a collegiate high school program must enter into a student performance contract, which must be signed by the student, his or her parent or guardian, and a representative of the school district and the community college. The performance contract must include the schedule of courses, by semester, and industry certifications to be taken by the student, student attendance requirements, and course grade requirements.

(f) In addition to executing a contract with a community college under this Section, a school board may execute a contract to establish a collegiate high school program with a private, nonprofit, independent college or university located and chartered in this State that is accredited by the Board of Higher Education. The contract must meet all of the requirements specified under subsection (d).

Section 20. Collegiate high school program courses.

(a) Each course that is part of a collegiate high school program must adhere to the requirements of the Dual Credit Quality Act. Based on the demand for enrollment in the identified courses and the resources available, collegiate high school program courses may be offered through (i) on-site instruction, (ii) online instruction, or (iii) a combination of those methods at on-campus or off-campus sites. However, at least 50% of the credits must include exposure to community college faculty and be on the community college campus.

(b) Any faculty member providing course instruction as part of a collegiate high school program must meet the academic credential requirements to teach a dual credit course under Section 20 of the Dual Credit Quality Act.

Section 25. Student academic standing. Each community college may adopt policies to protect the academic standing of students who are not successful in a collegiate high school program, including, but not limited to, options for late withdrawal from a course, taking the course on a pass-fail basis, or both. All policies related to the academic standing of students enrolled in a collegiate high school program must be made publicly available by the community college and provided to each student enrolled in the program.

Section 30. Academic counseling. Prior to enrollment in a collegiate high school program, a representative of the school district, by agreement with the community college, must meet with each student who intends to participate in a collegiate high school program to offer academic counseling. At a minimum, all of the following must be discussed during the counseling:

(1) The courses in which the student may enroll, including prerequisites needed for completion of those courses.

(2) The postsecondary credit the student may earn after successful completion of a course.

(3) The consequences of the student's failure to successfully complete a course.

(4) Notice of the courses and their schedule.

(5) The financial obligations of the student, the school district, and the community college.

(6) The responsibilities of the student, the student's parent or guardian, the school district, and the intuition under the collegiate high school program.

(7) Any other matter deemed significant by the school district or community college concerning the collegiate high school program.

Section 35. Illinois Community College Board; duties. The Illinois Community College Board, in consultation with the Board of Higher Education and the State Board of Education, must do all of the following:

(1) Adopt rules to establish guidelines to implement this Act. The guidelines must encourage participation by students at all achievement levels, at all income levels, and in a variety of academic and vocational subjects.

(2) Annually evaluate collegiate high school programs and report to the Board of Higher Education and State Board of Education on the availability and success of the programs.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.