House Bill hb1275e1
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Florida Bright Futures
3 Scholarship Program; amending s. 240.4015,
4 F.S., relating to the Florida Bright Futures
5 Scholarship Testing Program; revising
6 provisions relating to the use of specified
7 examinations for purposes of awarding college
8 credit; clarifying provisions relating to the
9 award of credit; deleting obsolete provisions;
10 revising provisions relating to payment for
11 examinations; requiring the Department of
12 Education to provide a financial incentive to
13 students for passing examinations; authorizing
14 Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars to take
15 up to five approved examinations; requiring the
16 department to contract for centralized
17 administrative services; providing a limitation
18 to the cost associated with contracting for
19 centralized administrative services; providing
20 for funding; amending s. 240.40202, F.S.;
21 requiring a Florida Bright Futures Scholarship
22 Evaluation Report and Key; requiring student
23 report cards to contain certain information;
24 amending s. 240.40203, F.S.; revising
25 provisions relating to the maximum number of
26 credit hours for which a student may receive a
27 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship; requiring
28 Florida Academic Scholars and Florida Merit
29 Scholars award recipients to meet certain
30 requirements in order to renew scholarships;
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 amending s. 240.40207, F.S.; conforming
2 provisions; providing an effective date.
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4 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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6 Section 1. Section 240.4015, Florida Statutes, is
7 amended to read:
8 240.4015 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Testing
9 Program.--
10 (1) By January 1, 2002, The Articulation Coordinating
11 Committee shall identify the minimum scores, maximum credit,
12 and course or courses for which credit is to be awarded for
13 each College Level Examination Program (CLEP) general
14 examination, CLEP subject examination, College Board Advanced
15 Placement Program examination, and International Baccalaureate
16 examination, or other nationally recognized examination
17 approved by the Florida Board of Education. In addition, the
18 Articulation Coordinating Committee shall identify such
19 courses in the general education core curriculum of each state
20 university and community college.
21 (2) Each community college and state university must
22 award credit for specific courses for which competency has
23 been demonstrated by successful passage of one of these
24 examinations unless the award of credit duplicates credit
25 already awarded. Community colleges and universities may not
26 exempt students from courses without the award of credit if
27 competencies have been so demonstrated. If a student achieves
28 a passing score as identified by the Articulation Coordinating
29 Committee on an examination required by this section, the
30 student shall receive credit equivalent to successfully
31 completing the equivalent course as identified by the
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 Articulation Coordinating Committee in a state university or
2 community college, provided that such credit is not
3 duplicative of credit already earned by the student.
4 (3) Beginning with initial award recipients for the
5 2002-2003 academic year and continuing thereafter, students
6 eligible for a Florida Academic Scholars award or a Florida
7 Merit Scholars award who are admitted to and enroll in a
8 community college or state university shall, prior to
9 registering for courses that may be earned through a CLEP
10 examination or an approved examination and no later than
11 registration for the their second term, complete at least five
12 examinations from those specified in subsection (1) in any of
13 the following areas: English; humanities; mathematics; natural
14 sciences; and social sciences. Successful completion of dual
15 enrollment courses, Advanced Placement examinations, and
16 International Baccalaureate examinations in these areas may be
17 used to taken prior to high school graduation satisfy this
18 requirement. The Articulation Coordinating Committee shall
19 identify the examinations that satisfy each component of this
20 requirement.
21 (4) Initial award recipients for the 2001-2002
22 academic year who are eligible for a Florida Academic Scholars
23 award or a Florida Merit Scholars award and who are admitted
24 to and enroll in a community college or state university may
25 choose, prior to registering for courses that may be earned
26 through CLEP examination, to complete up to five CLEP
27 examinations, one in each of the following areas: English;
28 humanities; mathematics; natural sciences; and social
29 sciences.
30 (5) Each community college and state university shall
31 pay for the CLEP examinations required pursuant to this
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 section from the funds appropriated from the Educational
2 Enhancement Trust Fund. Institutions shall pay no more than
3 $46 per examination for the program, which shall include
4 access to a student guide to prepare for the test. The
5 Department of Education shall negotiate with the College Board
6 for a reduced rate for the examinations. The institution shall
7 not charge the student for preparation and administration of
8 the test, access to a student guide to prepare for the test,
9 or recordkeeping and reporting of each student's test results
10 to the department.
11 (4)(6) The credit awarded pursuant to this section to
12 students who are enrolled in associate or baccalaureate degree
13 level programs shall apply toward the 120 hours of college
14 credit required pursuant to s. 240.115(6).
15 (5) The Department of Education shall negotiate with
16 examination providers to provide for examinations and test
17 administration services on a cost-effective, lowest cost per
18 test available basis.
19 (6) The Department of Education shall provide a $50
20 incentive to each student for each CLEP examination or
21 approved examination passed that is required in this section.
22 (7) Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars award
23 recipients may choose, prior to registering for courses in
24 which credit may be earned through an approved examination, to
25 complete up to five approved examinations in any of the
26 following areas: English; humanities; mathematics; natural
27 sciences; and social sciences. Such students who achieve a
28 passing score on a CLEP examination or an approved examination
29 shall receive credit equivalent to successfully completing the
30 equivalent course as provided in subsection (2). Florida Gold
31 Seal Vocational Scholars who achieve a passing score on an
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 approved examination shall also receive the $50 per test
2 incentive provided in subsection (6).
3 (7) The maximum number of credit hours for which a
4 student is eligible to receive a Florida Bright Futures
5 Scholarship Program award shall be reduced by the number of
6 hours for which credit is awarded pursuant to this section.
7 (8) Beginning with the 2002-2003 award recipients, The
8 Department of Education shall administer this testing program
9 for all students in the state in order to track and annually
10 report on the effectiveness of the program., and These reports
11 shall include information on the number of students
12 participating in the program; the number of CLEP examinations
13 taken and the passage rate of Florida Academic Scholars, and
14 Florida Merit Scholars, and Florida Gold Seal Vocational
15 Scholars award recipients; the use of Advanced Placement and
16 International Baccalaureate examinations and dual enrollment
17 courses to satisfy the requirements of the program; and the
18 course credit provided.
19 (9) The Department of Education shall contract for
20 centralized administrative services for this program, to
21 include a website with appropriate links for student
22 registration; delivery of online test preparation, study
23 guides, and practice tests; recordkeeping; and technical
24 support. The cost per student associated with contracting for
25 centralized administrative services shall not exceed the cost
26 incurred to administer the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship
27 Testing Program in the 2001-2002 fiscal year.
28 (10) Funding for the Florida Bright Futures
29 Scholarship Testing Program as set forth in this section must
30 be allocated from the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund and
31 must be provided for after allocations to the Classrooms First
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 Program and the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program but
2 prior to the calculation of allocations for disbursement to
3 other educational entities. Such funding shall include, but
4 is not limited to, payment for the required examinations,
5 payment for the optional examinations, payment of the
6 incentives, and payment for the contracted administrative
7 services.
8 Section 2. Subsection (4) of section 240.40202,
9 Florida Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (5) and a new
10 subsection (4) is added to said section to read:
11 240.40202 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program;
12 student eligibility requirements for initial awards.--
13 (4) Each school district shall annually provide to
14 each high school student a complete and accurate Florida
15 Bright Futures Scholarship Evaluation Report and Key. The
16 report shall be disseminated at the beginning of each school
17 year. The report must include all high school coursework
18 attempted, the number of credits earned toward each type of
19 award, and the calculation of the grade point average for each
20 award. The report must also identify all requirements not met
21 per award, including the grade point average requirement, as
22 well as identify the awards for which the student has met the
23 academic requirements. The student report cards must contain a
24 disclosure that the grade point average calculated for
25 purposes of the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program may
26 differ from the grade point average on the report card.
27 Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 240.40203,
28 Florida Statutes, is amended, and subsection (3) is added to
29 said section, to read:
30 240.40203 Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program;
31 student eligibility requirements for renewal awards.--
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 (2) A student who is enrolled in an associate or
2 baccalaureate degree level a program that terminates in an
3 associate degree or a baccalaureate degree may receive an
4 award for not more than the a maximum of 110 percent of the
5 number of credit hours required to complete the program. A
6 student who is enrolled in a program that terminates in a
7 technical certificate may receive an award for a maximum of
8 110 percent of the credit hours or clock hours required to
9 complete the program up to 90 credit hours. A student who
10 transfers from one of these program levels to another becomes
11 eligible for the higher of the two credit hour limits.
12 (3) Beginning with the initial award recipients for
13 the 2002-2003 academic year and continuing thereafter, Florida
14 Academic Scholars and Florida Merit Scholars award recipients
15 must also have met the required test requirements in s.
16 240.4015(3) in order to renew the scholarship.
17 Section 4. Subsection (4) of section 240.40207,
18 Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
19 240.40207 Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars
20 award.--The Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars award is
21 created within the Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program
22 to recognize and reward academic achievement and vocational
23 preparation by high school students who wish to continue their
24 education.
25 (4) A student may earn a Florida Gold Seal Vocational
26 Scholarship for 110 percent of the number of credit hours
27 required to complete the program, up to 90 credit hours or the
28 equivalent. A Florida Gold Seal Scholar who has a cumulative
29 grade point average of 2.75 in all postsecondary education
30 work attempted may apply for a Florida Merit Scholars award at
31 any renewal period. All other provisions of that program
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CS/CS/HB 1275, First Engrossed
1 apply, and the credit-hour limitation must be calculated by
2 subtracting from the student's total eligibility the number of
3 credit hours the student attempted while earning the Gold Seal
4 Vocational Scholarship.
5 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.
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