The Florida Senate

1008.29  College-level communication and mathematics skills examination (CLAST).--

(1)  It is the intent of the Legislature that the examination of college-level communication and mathematics skills serve as a mechanism for students to demonstrate that they have mastered the academic competencies prerequisite to upper-division undergraduate instruction. It is further intended that the examination serve as both a summative evaluation instrument prior to student enrollment in upper-division programs and as a source of information for student advisers. It is not intended that student passage of the examination supplant the need for a student to complete the general education curriculum prescribed by an institution.

(2)  Public postsecondary educational institutions shall administer a minimum of two administrations, one of which may consist of an alternative administration, of the college-level communication and computation skills examination per academic term. Such administrations shall be available to all lower-division students seeking associate in arts or baccalaureate degrees upon completion of at least 18 semester hours or the equivalent. Public postsecondary educational institutions shall report at a minimum the examination scores of all students tested at each administration of the college-level communication and computation skills examination.

(3)  No public postsecondary educational institution shall confer an associate in arts or baccalaureate degree upon any student who fails to complete successfully the examination of college-level communication and computation skills. Students who received their associate in arts degree prior to September 1, 1982, shall be exempt from the provisions of this subsection.

(4)  The State Board of Education, by rule, shall set the minimum scores that constitute successful completion of the examination. In establishing the minimum scores that constitute successful completion of the examination, the State Board of Education shall consider any possible negative impact of the tests on minority students. Determinations regarding a student's successful completion of the examination shall be based on the minimum standards prescribed by rule for the date the student initially takes the examination.

(5)  Any student who, in the best professional opinion of the university, has a specific learning disability such that the student can not demonstrate successful completion of one or more sections of the college-level communication and computation skills examination and is achieving at the college level in every area except that of the disability, and whose diagnosis indicates that further remediation will not succeed in overcoming the disability, may appeal through the appropriate dean to a committee appointed by the president or vice president for academic affairs for special consideration. The committee shall examine the evidence of the student's academic and medical records and may hear testimony relevant to the case. The committee may grant a waiver for one or more sections of the college-level communication and computation skills examination based on the results of its review.

(6)  Each public postsecondary educational institution president shall establish a committee to consider requests for waivers from the provisions of subsection (3). The committee shall be chaired by the chief academic officer of the institution and shall have four additional members appointed by the president: a member of the mathematics department, a member of the English department, the institutional test administrator, and a fourth faculty member from a department other than English or mathematics. Any student who has taken a subtest of the examination required by this section at least four times and has not achieved a passing score, but has otherwise demonstrated proficiency in coursework in the same subject area, may request a waiver from that particular subtest. Waivers shall be considered only after students have been provided test accommodations or other administrative adjustments to permit the accurate measurement of the student's proficiency in the subject areas measured by the examination authorized in this section. The committee shall consider the student's educational records and other evidence as to whether the student should be able to pass the subtest under consideration. A waiver may be recommended to the president upon majority vote of the committee. The president may approve or disapprove the recommendation. The president may not approve a request which the committee has disapproved. If a waiver for a given subtest is approved, the student's transcript shall include a statement that the student did not meet the requirements of subsection (3) and that a waiver was granted.

(7)  The State Board of Education, by rule, shall establish fees for the administration of the examination to private postsecondary students.

(8)  The State Board of Education, by rule, shall establish fees for the administration of the examination at times other than regularly scheduled dates to accommodate examinees who are unable to be tested on those dates. The board shall establish the conditions under which examinees may be admitted to the special administrations.

(9)  Any student fulfilling one or both of the following requirements before completion of associate in arts degree requirements or baccalaureate degree requirements is exempt from the testing requirements of this section:

(a)  Achieves a score that meets or exceeds a minimum score on a nationally standardized examination, as established by the State Board of Education; or

(b)  Demonstrates successful remediation of any academic deficiencies identified by the college placement test and achieves a cumulative grade point average of 2.5 or above, on a 4.0 scale, in postsecondary-level coursework identified by the State Board of Education. The Department of Education shall specify the means by which a student may demonstrate successful remediation.

Any student denied a degree prior to January 1, 1996, based on the failure of at least one subtest of the CLAST may use either of the alternatives specified in this subsection for receipt of a degree if such student meets all degree program requirements at the time of application for the degree under the exemption provisions of this subsection. This section does not require a student to take the CLAST before being given the opportunity to use any of the alternatives specified in this subsection. The exemptions provided herein do not apply to requirements for certification as provided in s. 1012.56

History.--s. 372, ch. 2002-387; s. 50, ch. 2004-41.