H.B. No. 2978

AN ACT

relating to engineering recruitment programs established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Chapter 61, Education Code, is amended by adding Subchapter Q to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER Q. ENGINEERING RECRUITMENT PROGRAMS

Sec. 61.791. ENGINEERING SUMMER PROGRAM. (a) The board shall establish and administer, using funds appropriated for that purpose, a one-week summer program to take place on the campus of each general academic teaching institution that offers an engineering degree program. The summer program must be designed for middle and high school students and to expose those students to math, science, and engineering concepts that a student in an engineering degree program may encounter.

(b) The board by rule shall establish the requirements for admission to a summer program established under this section. In adopting rules under this subsection, the board must consider the demographics of the state and adopt rules that encourage the program to enroll students in the program that reflect the demographics of the state. The governing board of each institution to which this section applies shall cooperate with the board in administering this section.

Sec. 61.792. ENGINEERING SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM. (a) The board shall establish and administer, using funds appropriated for that purpose, scholarships for students pursuing a degree in engineering at a general academic teaching institution.

(b) To qualify for a scholarship under this section, a student must:

(1) have graduated with a grade point average in the top 20 percent of the student's high school graduating class;

(2) have graduated from high school with a grade point average of at least 3.5 on a four-point scale or the equivalent in mathematics and science courses offered under the recommended or advanced high school program under Section 28.025(a); and

(3) maintain an overall grade point average of at least 3.0 on a four-point scale at the general academic teaching institution in which the student is enrolled.

(c) The board shall adopt rules as necessary for the administration of this section, including rules providing for the determination of the amount of each scholarship.

Sec. 61.793. FUNDING. The board shall administer this subchapter using available appropriations and gifts, grants, and donations made for the purposes of this subchapter.

SECTION 2. (a) Subchapter Q, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, applies beginning with the 2007-2008 academic year.

(b) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall adopt rules for the administration of Subchapter Q, Chapter 61, Education Code, as added by this Act, as soon as practicable after this Act takes effect. For that purpose, the coordinating board may adopt the rules in the manner provided by law for emergency rules.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2007.

______________________________ ______________________________

President of the Senate Speaker of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 2978 was passed by the House on April 25, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 134, Nays 1, 1 present, not voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2978 on May 25, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 0, 2 present, not voting.

______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 2978 was passed by the Senate, with amendments, on May 23, 2007, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0.

______________________________ Secretary of the Senate APPROVED: __________________

Date

__________________

Governor