BILL ANALYSIS

 

 

                                                                                                                                            S.B. 1572

                                                                                                                                      By: Shapleigh

                                                                                                                                 Public Education

                                                                                                       Committee Report (Unamended)

 

 

 

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

 

Currently, only public institutions of higher education in Texas are required to submit to the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) student and institutional performance data.  This makes it difficult to assess current performance results of private institutions of higher education.

 

S.B. 1572 requires private or independent institutions of higher education to report relevant student and institutional data to the board. 

 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

 

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. 

 

ANALYSIS

 

The bill requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (board) to administer a program to publish performance data provided to the board under Section 61.0903, Education Code, as added by this bill, relating to private or independent institutions of higher education (institutions) that admit entering freshman and offer one or more baccalaureate degrees.

 

The bill requires each such institution, not later than January 1 following the completion of an academic year, to provide to the board one or more reports containing certain data as specified in the bill related to the qualifications of the entering freshman class for the academic year covered by the report, and certain data related to student performance and institution efficiency, as specified in the bill.

 

The bill requires the board, each year, to publish and post in a grid format on the board's Internet site the names of such institutions, the required performance data for the most recent academic year for which the data is available, and any other information considered appropriate by the board.

 

The bill provides that such institutions are not required to report to the board the required data if the data is available to the board from another source.

 

The bill requires each such institution to provide the performance data as required by Section 61.0903, Education Code, as added by this Act, beginning with the data for the 2008-2009 academic year.

 

The bill requires the board to publish and post on its Internet site the performance data provided by such institutions in this state as required by Section 61.0903, Education Code, as added by this Act, not later than March 1, 2010.

 

EFFECTIVE DATE

 

Upon passage, or, if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act takes effect September 1, 2007.