Title: An act relating to college in the high school.

Brief Description: Establishing the college in the high school program.

Sponsors: Senators McAuliffe, Pridemore, Kohl-Welles and Rockefeller.

Brief History:

Committee Activity: Early Learning, K-12 & Higher Education: 2/18/05.

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EARLY LEARNING, K-12 & HIGHER EDUCATION

Staff: Brian Jeffries (786-7422)

Background: Currently, state colleges and universities throughout the state offer students opportunities to earn dual high school and college credit via multiple programs, including Running Start, Tech Prep, Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and College in the High School (CHS). CHS is, technically, a set of guidelines that have been individually adopted by the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges and the public baccalaureate institutions under the auspices of the Council of Presidents. These guidelines set forth policies for institutions of higher education to award college credits for eligible courses offered through state high schools. Approximately 5000 students earned dual high school and college credit through CHS courses in the 2003-04 school year.

Summary of Bill: The Superintendent of Public Instruction, the State Board for Community and Technical Colleges, and the Higher Education Coordinating Board are required to jointly develop and adopt rules governing the CHS program. Under the program, eligible 11th and 12th grade students may earn dual high school and college credit. The high school credits must be applied toward graduation and subject area requirements. Participating school districts must provide CHS program information to all students in grades 9, 10, and 11 and their families, and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) must develop counseling guidelines that ensure that students and parents understand that college credits earned in dual enrollment programs count toward the total number of credits allowed for financial aid.

Students participating in the program pay to the college or university participating in the program an amount that is no more than 7 percent of the statewide full-time equivalent (FTE) allocation. The institution of higher education retains this amount to cover the cost of supervising the award of college credit.

A student whose family income would qualify the student for the state need grant would pay to the institution of higher education no more than the 3.5 percent of the statewide FTE. Additionally, OSPI must send to school districts 3.5 percent of the statewide FTE for each program course for each student whose family income would qualify the student for the state need grant. The school district would then transfer this amount to the appropriate institution of higher education to offset the participation fees of the students receiving the reduced charge by the institution of higher education. The participating institutions of higher education would, therefore, receive in total the entire amount per student per course that is 7 percent of the statewide FTE. High schools offering the program course would claim and retain the FTE for the students enrolled in the program course.

Other statutes pertaining to other dual enrollment programs are amended to include recognition of the CHS program.

Appropriation: This bill would appropriate 3.5 percent of the statewide FTE to school districts to be transferred to an institution of higher education to offset the participation fee of those students whose family income who qualify the student for the state need grant, as determined by the Higher Education Coordinating Board.

Fiscal Note: Requested on February 9, 2005.

Committee/Commission/Task Force Created: No.

Effective Date: Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.