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The Florida Senate

2015 Florida Statutes

Title XLVIII K-20 EDUCATION CODE
Chapter 1006 SUPPORT FOR LEARNING Entire Chapter
SECTION 735
Complete Florida Plus Program.
F.S. 1006.735
1006.735 Complete Florida Plus Program.—The Complete Florida Plus Program is created at the University of West Florida.
(1) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Complete Florida Plus Program is to:
(a) Facilitate degree completion for the state’s adult learners through the Complete Florida Degree Initiative.
(b) Provide information regarding and access to distance learning courses and degree programs offered by public postsecondary education institutions within the state.
(c) Coordinate with the Florida College System and the State University System to identify and provide online academic support services and resources when the multi-institutional provision of such services and resources is more cost effective or operationally effective.
(d) Administer the Florida Academic Library Services Cooperative established in s. 1006.73 and consult with the chancellors of the Florida College System and the State University System regarding the implementation and operations of the cooperative.
(2) COMPLETE FLORIDA DEGREE INITIATIVE.—The Complete Florida Degree Initiative is established within the Complete Florida Plus Program for the purpose of recruiting, recovering, and retaining the state’s adult learners and assisting them in completing an associate degree or a baccalaureate degree that is aligned to high-wage, high-skill workforce needs. As used in this section, the term “adult learner” means a student who has successfully completed college-level coursework in multiple semesters but has left an institution in good standing before completing his or her degree. The initiative shall give priority to adult learners who are veterans or active duty members of the United States Armed Forces.
(a) The Complete Florida Degree Initiative shall be implemented in coordination with Florida College System institutions, state universities, and private postsecondary institutions, as appropriate. The initiative shall include the associate, applied baccalaureate, and baccalaureate degree programs that these institutions have selected. Other partnering public postsecondary education institutions shall provide areas of specialization or concentration.
(b) In determining the degree programs that will be given priority, the Complete Florida Degree Initiative shall partner with public and private job recruitment and placement agencies and shall use labor market data and projections, including those identified in the Board of Governors’ gap analysis, to identify specific workforce needs and targeted occupations of the state.
(c) The Complete Florida Degree Initiative shall provide adult learners with a single point of access to information and links to innovative online and accelerated distance learning courses, student and library support services, and electronic resources that will guide the adult learner toward the successful completion of a postsecondary degree.
(d) The Complete Florida Degree Initiative must:
1. Use existing and, if necessary, develop new competency-based instructional and evaluation tools to assess prior performance, experience, and education for the award of college credit in order to reduce the time required for adult learners to complete their degrees. The tools may include the use of the American Council on Education’s collaborative link between the United States Department of Defense and higher education through the review of military training and experiences for the award of equivalent college credit for members of the United States Armed Forces.
2. Develop and implement an evaluation process that collects, analyzes, and provides to the chancellors of the Florida College System and the State University System, the participating postsecondary education institutions, the chairs of the legislative appropriations committees, and the Executive Office of the Governor information on the effectiveness of the initiative and the attainment of its goals. Such a process shall include a management information system that collects the appropriate student, programmatic, and fiscal data necessary to complete the evaluation of the initiative. Institutions involved in the initiative shall also collect job placement and employment data on the adult learners who have completed their degrees as a result of the initiative.
3. Develop and implement a statewide student recruitment campaign targeted toward adult learners, particularly veterans and active duty members of the United States Armed Forces, for enrollment in the degree programs offered through the initiative.
(e) For purposes of the Complete Florida Degree Initiative, each institution’s current tuition and fee structure shall be used. However, all participating institutions shall collaboratively identify the applicable cost components involved in the development and delivery of distance learning courses, collect information on these cost components, and submit the information to the chancellors of the Florida College System and the State University System. The chancellors shall submit a report to the chairs of the legislative appropriations committees no later than December 31, 2014, on the need for a differentiated tuition and fee structure for the development and delivery of distance learning courses.
(3) STATEWIDE INTERNET-BASED CATALOG OF DISTANCE LEARNING COURSES.—The Complete Florida Plus Program shall develop and manage a statewide Internet-based catalog of distance learning courses, degree programs, and resources offered by public postsecondary education institutions which is intended to assist in the coordination and collaboration of articulation and access pursuant to parts II and III of chapter 1007. The program shall establish operational procedures for the catalog which must:
(a) Require participating institutions to provide specific information concerning the distance learning course or degree program, including course number, classification of instructional programs number, and information on the availability of the course or degree program; any prerequisite course or technology competency or skill; the availability of academic support services and financial aid resources; and course costs, fees, and payment policies.
(b) Require that distance learning courses and degree programs meet applicable accreditation standards and criteria.
(c) Require that the catalog is reviewed and updated frequently to ensure that distance learning courses and degree programs comply with operational procedures.
(d) Define and describe the catalog’s search and retrieval options that, at a minimum, will allow users to search by academic term or course start date; institution, multiple institutions, or all institutions; and course or program delivery methods, course type, course availability, subject or discipline, and course number or classification of instructional programs number.
(e) Use an Internet-based analytic tool that allows for the collection and analysis of data, including, but not limited to:
1. The number and type of students who use the catalog to search for distance learning courses and degree programs.
2. The number and type of requests for information about distance learning courses and degree programs that are not listed in the catalog.
3. A summary of specific requests by course type or course number, delivery method, offering institution, and semester.
(4) STATEWIDE ONLINE STUDENT ADVISING SERVICES AND SUPPORT.—The Complete Florida Plus Program shall make available on a statewide basis online services and support, including:
(a) A streamlined online admissions application process, which shall be used by all postsecondary institutions, for undergraduate transient students currently enrolled and pursuing a degree at a public postsecondary education institution who enroll in a course offered by a public postsecondary education institution that is not the student’s degree-granting institution. The University of West Florida shall work with Florida College System institutions and state universities to:
1. Use the transient student admissions application available through the statewide computer-assisted student advising system established pursuant to paragraph (b). This admissions application is the only application required for enrollment of a transient student as described in this paragraph.
2. Implement the financial aid procedures required by the transient student admissions application process.
3. Transfer credit awarded by the institution offering the course to the transient student’s degree-granting institution.
4. Provide an interface between the institutional advising system and the statewide computer-assisted student advising system established pursuant to paragraph (b) in order to electronically send, receive, and process the transient student admissions application.
(b) A K-20 statewide computer-assisted student advising system which shall support career and education planning for the K-12 system and the process of advising, registering, and certifying postsecondary students for graduation and which shall include a degree audit and an articulation component. Florida College System institutions and state universities shall interface institutional advising systems with the statewide computer-assisted student advising system. At a minimum, the statewide computer-assisted student advising system shall:
1. Allow a student to access the system at any time.
2. Support K-12 career and education planning required by s. 1003.4156(1)(e).
3. Allow a student to search public postsecondary education institutions and identify course options that will meet the requirements of a selected path toward a degree.
4. Audit transcripts of students enrolled in a public postsecondary education institution to assess current academic standing, the requirements for a student to transfer to another institution, and all requirements necessary for graduation.
5. Serve as the official statewide repository for the common prerequisite manual, admissions information for transferring programs, foreign language requirements, residency requirements, and statewide articulation agreements.
6. Provide information relating to career descriptions and corresponding educational requirements, admissions requirements, and available sources of student financial assistance.
7. Provide the admissions application for transient students pursuant to paragraph (a) which must include the electronic transfer and receipt of information and records for:
a. Admissions and readmissions.
b. Financial aid.
c. Transfer of credit awarded by the institution offering the course to the transient student’s degree-granting institution.
(c) A method for identifying and evaluating new technologies and instructional methods for improving distance learning instruction and development for faculty, student learning outcomes, student access, the efficient delivery of student support services, the alignment of degrees to career needs, and the overall quality of postsecondary distance learning courses and degree programs.
(d) Help desk support and training and consultation services to institutions and students using the services and resources of the Complete Florida Plus Program.
(e) Negotiation of statewide licensing resources and preferred pricing agreements, issuing purchase orders, and entering into contracts for the acquisition of distance learning resources, student and support services, electronic resources, and other goods and services necessary to carry out duties under this section.
(f) Development and implementation of a plan, in consultation with public postsecondary education institutions, that describes the services and resources available through the Complete Florida Plus Program to encourage current and prospective students’ use of such services and resources.
(5) REPORT ON COMPLETE FLORIDA PLUS PROGRAM.—Beginning December 31, 2014, and each year thereafter, the University of West Florida shall submit a report to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives regarding the implementation and operation of all components of the Complete Florida Plus Program, including, but not limited to, information and associated costs relating to the services and functions of the program.
(6) DATA CENTER SERVICES.—The Northwest Regional Data Center established pursuant to s. 1004.649 shall provide all data center services necessary to support the statewide Internet-based catalog established in subsection (3) and the statewide online student advising services and support established in subsection (4).
History.—s. 15, ch. 2012-134; s. 51, ch. 2013-27; s. 16, ch. 2014-56.