Florida Senate - 2011                      CS for CS for SB 1732
       
       
       
       By the Committees on Budget Subcommittee on Higher Education
       Appropriations; and Higher Education; and Senator Lynn
       
       
       
       605-04510-11                                          20111732c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to postsecondary education; amending
    3         s. 1004.015, F.S.; requiring the Higher Education
    4         Coordinating Council to recommend plans and submit a
    5         report to the Governor and the Legislature relating to
    6         core responsibilities of postsecondary education
    7         institutions, performance outputs and outcomes,
    8         articulation policies, workforce development
    9         education, and baccalaureate degree authorization;
   10         requiring the council to submit a report to the
   11         Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of
   12         the House of Representatives, the State Board of
   13         Education, and the Board of Governors of the State
   14         University System by a date certain which includes
   15         certain recommendations; amending s. 1007.27, F.S.;
   16         requiring the Department of Education to use student
   17         performance data to determine appropriate credit-by
   18         examination scores and courses; requiring the
   19         Department of Education to review performance data for
   20         students who take Advanced Placement Examinations and
   21         to set minimum scores based on the review; deleting an
   22         exemption from summer-term enrollment in a public
   23         postsecondary education institution for students
   24         earning accelerated credit; amending s. 1007.33, F.S.;
   25         deleting an exemption from provisions governing the
   26         approval process for baccalaureate degrees; amending
   27         s. 1001.64, F.S.; requiring a community college board
   28         of trustees to ask the Commissioner of Education to
   29         authorize an investigation of a college president by
   30         the Department of Education’s inspector general in
   31         specified circumstances; requiring the inspector
   32         general to report on the investigation and make
   33         recommendations; requiring the inspector general to
   34         refer any potential legal violation to the Commission
   35         on Ethics, the Department of Law Enforcement, the
   36         Attorney General, or other appropriate authority;
   37         repealing s. 1000.07, F.S., relating to the Florida
   38         Business and Education Collaborative; providing an
   39         effective date.
   40  
   41  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   42  
   43         Section 1. Present subsection (4) of section 1004.015,
   44  Florida Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (6) and amended,
   45  and new subsections (4) and (5) are added to that section, to
   46  read:
   47         1004.015 Higher Education Coordinating Council.—
   48         (4)The council shall make detailed recommendations for:
   49         (a) Defining the primary core responsibilities of public
   50  and nonpublic postsecondary education systems in the context of
   51  meeting state access demands and economic development goals.
   52         (b) Establishing performance outputs and outcomes designed
   53  to meet annual and long-term state goals, including, but not
   54  limited to, increased student access, preparedness, retention,
   55  transfer, and completion. Performance measures must be
   56  consistent across sectors and allow for a comparison of the
   57  state’s performance to that of other states.
   58         (c) Evaluating the state’s articulation policies and
   59  practices to ensure that cost benefits to the state are
   60  maximized without jeopardizing quality. The evaluation shall
   61  consider return on investment for both the state and students.
   62         (d) Establishing a plan for workforce development education
   63  changes that:
   64         1. Align school district and Florida College System
   65  workforce development education programs to ensure cost
   66  efficiency and mission delineation, including an examination of
   67  the need for both college credit and noncollege credit
   68  certificate programs, an evaluation of the merit of retaining
   69  the associate in applied science degree, and the consolidation
   70  of adult general education programs within school districts.
   71         2. Improve the consistency of workforce education data
   72  collected and reported by Florida College System institutions
   73  and school districts, including the establishment of common
   74  elements and definitions for any data that are used for state
   75  and federal funding and program accountability.
   76         (e) Addressing baccalaureate degree authorization and
   77  production, which shall include the following:
   78         1. An assessment of the potential need to establish
   79  comprehensive undergraduate institutions that would primarily
   80  focus on the delivery of undergraduate instruction, including
   81  offering baccalaureate degrees. Such institutions may include
   82  Florida College System institutions, state universities, and
   83  university branch campuses. The assessment must recommend
   84  accountability options and address local and regional workforce
   85  needs and gaps that might result from an institution’s shift in
   86  primary mission.
   87         2. Recommendations related to appropriate student
   88  enrollment and institutional expenditure thresholds for upper
   89  division programs that justify legislative consideration in
   90  order to establish or reestablish an institution under the
   91  governance and oversight of the State Board of Education, the
   92  Board of Governors, or another statutorily established or
   93  created governing or advisory organization.
   94         3. Recommendations related to funding options and
   95  strategies, student tuition and fees, student financial aid
   96  funding, and other strategies to encourage performance-based
   97  funding.
   98  
   99  The councils first priority shall be to address baccalaureate
  100  degree authorization and production.
  101         (5) The council shall submit a report to the Governor, the
  102  President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
  103  Representatives, the State Board of Education, and the Board of
  104  Governors by December 31, 2011, which specifically includes
  105  recommendations for consideration by the Legislature for
  106  implementation in the 2012-2013 fiscal year.
  107         (6)(4) The Board of Governors and the Department of
  108  Education shall provide administrative support for the council.
  109         Section 2. Subsections (2), (6), and (10) of section
  110  1007.27, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  111         1007.27 Articulated acceleration mechanisms.—
  112         (2) The Department of Education shall annually identify and
  113  publish the minimum scores, maximum credit, and course or
  114  courses for which credit is to be awarded for each College Level
  115  Examination Program (CLEP) general examination, CLEP subject
  116  examination, College Board Advanced Placement Program
  117  examination, Advanced International Certificate of Education
  118  examination, and International Baccalaureate examination.
  119  Beginning with the fall term in 2012, the department shall use
  120  student performance data in subsequent postsecondary courses to
  121  determine the appropriate examination scores and courses for
  122  which credit is to be granted. In addition, the department shall
  123  identify such courses in the general education core curriculum
  124  of each state university and community college.
  125         (6) Advanced placement shall be the enrollment of an
  126  eligible secondary student in a course offered through the
  127  Advanced Placement Program administered by the College Board.
  128  Postsecondary credit for an advanced placement course shall be
  129  limited to students who score a minimum of 3, on a 5-point
  130  scale, on the corresponding Advanced Placement Examination. The
  131  specific courses for which students receive such credit shall be
  132  identified in the statewide articulation agreement required by
  133  s. 1007.23(1). Students of Florida public secondary schools
  134  enrolled pursuant to this subsection shall be exempt from the
  135  payment of any fees for administration of the examination
  136  regardless of whether or not the student achieves a passing
  137  score on the examination. The department shall review
  138  performance data in postsecondary courses for students who
  139  achieved a score of 3 or more points on the Advanced Placement
  140  Examination for each course for which an exam is given, and
  141  shall establish the minimum score for each examination which a
  142  student must earn in order to receive postsecondary credit for
  143  that subject. The department must consider establishing
  144  different minimum scores for different subject areas and
  145  establishing different scores for different postsecondary
  146  institutions. The review must be completed and minimum scores
  147  based on the review must be established by July 1, 2012.
  148         (10) Any student who earns 9 or more credits from one or
  149  more of the acceleration mechanisms provided for in this section
  150  is exempt from any requirement of a public postsecondary
  151  educational institution mandating enrollment during a summer
  152  term.
  153         Section 3. Subsections (6) and (7) of section 1007.33,
  154  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
  155         1007.33 Site-determined baccalaureate degree access.—
  156         (6)(a) Beginning July 1, 2010, and each subsequent July 1,
  157  the Division of Florida Colleges may accept and review
  158  applications from a Florida college to obtain an exemption from
  159  the State Board of Education’s approval for subsequent degrees
  160  as required in subsection (5), if the Florida college is
  161  accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern
  162  Association of Colleges and Schools as a baccalaureate-degree
  163  granting institution and has been offering baccalaureate degree
  164  programs for 3 or more years. The division shall develop
  165  criteria for determining eligibility for an exemption based upon
  166  demonstrated compliance with the requirements for baccalaureate
  167  degrees, primary mission, and fiscal, including, but not limited
  168  to:
  169         1. Obtaining and maintaining appropriate SACS
  170  accreditation;
  171         2. The maintenance of qualified faculty and institutional
  172  resources;
  173         3. The maintenance of enrollment projections in previously
  174  approved programs;
  175         4. The appropriate management of fiscal resources;
  176         5. Compliance with the primary mission and responsibility
  177  requirements in subsections (2) and (3);
  178         6. The timely submission of the institution’s annual
  179  performance accountability report; and
  180         7. Other indicators of success such as program completers,
  181  placements, and surveys of students and employers.
  182         (b) If the Florida college has demonstrated satisfactory
  183  progress in fulfilling the eligibility criteria in this
  184  subsection, the Division of Florida Colleges may recommend to
  185  the State Board of Education that the institution be exempt from
  186  the requirement in subsection (5) for approval of future
  187  baccalaureate degree programs. The State Board of Education
  188  shall review the division’s recommendation and determine if an
  189  exemption is warranted. If the State Board of Education approves
  190  the application, the Florida college is exempt from subsequent
  191  program approval under subsection (5) and such authority is
  192  delegated to the Florida college board of trustees. If the State
  193  Board of Education disapproves of the Florida college’s request
  194  for an exemption, the college shall continue to be subject to
  195  the State Board of Education’s approval of subsequent
  196  baccalaureate degree programs.
  197         (c) Prior to developing or proposing a new baccalaureate
  198  degree program, all Florida colleges, regardless of an exemption
  199  from subsection (5), shall:
  200         1. Engage in need, demand, and impact discussions with the
  201  state university in their service district and other local and
  202  regional, accredited postsecondary providers in their region.
  203         2. Send documentation, data, and other information from the
  204  inter-institutional discussions regarding program need, demand,
  205  and impact required in subparagraph 1. to the college’s board of
  206  trustees, the Division of Florida Colleges, and the Chancellor
  207  of the State University System.
  208         3. Base board of trustees approval of the new program upon
  209  the documentation, data, and other information required in this
  210  paragraph and the factors in subsection (5)(d).
  211  
  212  The Division of Florida Colleges shall use the documentation,
  213  data, and other information required in this subsection,
  214  including information from the Chancellor of the State
  215  University System, in its compliance review.
  216         (d) The board of trustees of a Florida college that is
  217  exempt from subsection (5) must submit newly approved programs
  218  to the Division of Florida Colleges and SACS within 30 days
  219  after approval.
  220         (e) Within 30 days after receiving the approved
  221  baccalaureate degree program, the Division of Florida Colleges
  222  shall conduct a compliance review and notify the college if the
  223  proposal meets the criteria for implementation based upon the
  224  criteria in paragraphs (5)(d) and (6)(c). If the program fails
  225  to meet the criteria for implementation as determined by the
  226  Division of Florida Colleges, the college may not proceed with
  227  implementation of the program until the State Board of Education
  228  reviews the proposal and the compliance materials and gives its
  229  final approval of the program.
  230         (6)(7) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to
  231  prescribe format and content requirements and submission
  232  procedures for notices of intent, proposals, and alternative
  233  proposals under subsection (5).
  234         Section 4. Subsection (3) of section 1001.64, Florida
  235  Statutes, is amended to read:
  236         1001.64 Community college boards of trustees; powers and
  237  duties.—
  238         (3) A board of trustees shall have the power to take action
  239  without a recommendation from the president and shall have the
  240  power to require the president to deliver to the board of
  241  trustees all data and information required by the board of
  242  trustees in the performance of its duties. A board of trustees
  243  shall ask the Commissioner of Education to authorize an
  244  investigation of the president’s actions by the department’s
  245  inspector general if the board considers such investigation
  246  necessary. The inspector general shall provide a report
  247  detailing each issue under investigation and shall recommend
  248  corrective action. If the inspector general identifies potential
  249  legal violations, he or she shall refer the potential legal
  250  violations to the Commission on Ethics, the Department of Law
  251  Enforcement, the Attorney General, or another appropriate
  252  authority.
  253         Section 5. Section 1000.07, Florida Statutes, is repealed.
  254         Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011.