Reverse Transfers: A Follow-Up

It turns out the 2011 Regular Session addressed reverse transfers after all. (For background please see this previous post. Many thanks to Ray Martinez, chief of staff and general counsel of the Senate Committee on Higher Education, for the heads up.)

The issue is about helping community college students receive associate degrees, even when some courses are completed later at a university. As all educators know, many students transfer prior to graduation.

In the final days of the Session, SB 945, a bill co-authored by Judith Zaffirini (D-Laredo) that intended a number of significant changes to current policy, failed to achieve final passage. However, crucial language was inserted subsequently into another bill, HB 3025, which did pass and was signed into law. Sen. Zaffirini also sponsored this bill in the Senate.

HB 3025 takes effect immediately.

Henceforth, if a student has earned at least 30 semester hours at a community college, transfers to a university, and then earns the credits to qualify for an associate degree, the university is required to notify the community college, after permission is granted to release the transcript. The student must have earned at least 90 semester hours at the university (including the hours from the community college).

If all credits match up, the community college may then grant the degree. The exact language is included below.

This new law should produce an increase in associate degrees from community colleges. And, most importantly, more students will possess a two-year degree in case they don't complete their baccalaureate program.

Here's the language from HB 3025:

Sec. 61.833.  CREDIT TRANSFER FOR ASSOCIATE DEGREE.  (a)  In this section, "lower-division institution of higher education" means a public junior college, public state college, or public technical institute.
(b)  This section applies to a student enrolled in a general academic teaching institution who:
(1)  transferred to the institution from or previously attended a lower-division institution of higher education;
(2)  earned at least 30 credit hours for course work successfully completed at the lower-division institution of higher education; and
(3)  has earned a cumulative total of at least 90 credit hours for course work successfully completed.
(c)  As soon as practicable after a student who is enrolled in a general academic teaching institution has met the criteria established by Subsection (b)(3), the institution by e-mail or other reasonable method shall request authorization from the student for the institution to release the student's transcript to the lower-division institution of higher education that the student previously attended for the purpose of determining whether the student has earned the credits required for an associate degree awarded by the lower-division institution of higher education.  On receipt of a student's authorization under this subsection, the general academic teaching institution shall release the student's transcript to the lower-division institution of higher education.
(d)  After receiving a student transcript from a general academic teaching institution under Subsection (c), a lower-division institution of higher education shall review the transcript and, if the lower-division institution of higher education determines the student has earned the credits required to receive an associate degree awarded by the lower-division institution of higher education, may award the student the degree.

Comments

[David]

Several states are in crouching on this very objective of awarding an earned associates degree through reverse transfer. I hope that someone from Texas or another state in this similar situation can provide me with assistance with the following questions. Are the students required to complete an application for associates or does the community college automatically award the degree provide the degree requirements are satisfied? Also, have financial aid implications been considered? If so, for any negative outcomes how have they been addressed? Any additional insight that can be provided would be sincerely appreciated.

Thanks from Michigan!