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1		AN ACT concerning education.
2		Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3		represented in the General Assembly:
4		Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5		Student Transfer Achievement Reform Act.
6		Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
7		"Community college" means a public community college in
8		this State.
9		"State university" means a public university in this State.
10		Section 10. Associate degree for transfer.
11		(a) Commencing with the fall term of the 2016-2017 academic
12		year, a community college student who earns an associate degree
13		for transfer, an Associate of Arts, or an Associate of Science
14		that is consistent with degree requirements of the Illinois
15		Community College Board and the Board of Higher Education and
16		aligned with the policies and procedures of the Illinois
17		Articulation Initiative, granted pursuant to subsection (b) of
18		this Section is deemed eligible for transfer into the
19		baccalaureate program of a State university if the student
20		meets the requirements of the transfer degree and
21		major-specific prerequisites and obtains a minimum grade point
22		average of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.

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1		(b) As a condition of receipt of State funds, a community
2		college district shall develop and grant associate degrees for
3		transfer that meet the requirements of subsection (a) of this
4		Section. A community college district may not impose any
5		requirements in addition to the requirements of this Section
6		for a student to be eligible for an associate degree for
7		transfer and subsequent admission to a State university
8		pursuant to Section 15 of this Act without the approval of the
9		Illinois Community College Board and the Board of Higher
10		Education.
11		(c) The General Assembly encourages a community college
12		district to consider the articulation agreements and other work
13		between the respective faculties from the affected community
14		college and State universities in implementing the
15		requirements of this Section.
16		(d) The General Assembly encourages community colleges to
17		facilitate the acceptance of credits earned at other community
18		colleges toward an associate degree for transfer pursuant to
19		this Section.
20		(e) This Section does not preclude students who are
21		assessed below collegiate level from acquiring remedial
22		noncollegiate level coursework in preparation for obtaining an
23		associate degree for transfer. Remedial noncollegiate level
24		coursework and all other non-transfer coursework must not be
25		counted as part of the transferable units required pursuant to
26		subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this Section.

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1		Section 15. Admission to a State university.
2		Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, a
3		State university shall admit and grant junior status in a
4		program, subject to available program capacity, to any Illinois
5		community college student who:
6		(1) meets all of the requirements of Section 10 of this
7		Act;
8		(2) has completed all lower-division prerequisites;
9		and
10		(3) meets the admission requirements of the State
11		university's program or major.
12		Section 20. Coursework.
13		(a) A State university may not require a student
14		transferring pursuant to this Act to take more than 60
15		additional semester units beyond the lower-division major
16		requirements for majors requiring 120 semester units, provided
17		that the student remains enrolled in the same program of study
18		and has completed university major transfer requirements.
19		Specified high unit majors are exempt from this subsection (a)
20		upon agreement by the board of trustees of the State university
21		and the Board of Higher Education.
22		(b) A State university may not require students
23		transferring pursuant to this Act to repeat courses that are
24		articulated with those taken at the community college and

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1		counted toward an associate degree for transfer granted
2		pursuant to Section 10 of this Act.
3		(c) The General Assembly encourages State universities to
4		facilitate the seamless transfer of credits toward a
5		baccalaureate degree pursuant to the intent of this Act.
6		Section 25. Board of Higher Education reviews and reports.
7		(a) The Board of Higher Education shall review the
8		implementation of this Act and file a report on that review
9		with the General Assembly on or before May 31, 2017, as
10		provided in Section 3.1 of the General Assembly Organization
11		Act.
12		(b) The Board of Higher Education shall review both of the
13		following and file a report on that review with the General
14		Assembly within 4 years after the effective date of this Act,
15		as provided in Section 3.1 of the General Assembly Organization
16		Act:
17		(1) The outcomes of implementation of this Act,
18		including, but not limited to, all of the following:
19		(A) The number and percentage of community college
20		students who transferred to a State university and
21		earned an associate degree for transfer pursuant to
22		this Act.
23		(B) The average amount of time and units it takes a
24		community college student earning an associate degree
25		for transfer pursuant to this Act to transfer to and

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1		graduate from a State university, as compared to the
2		average amount of time and units it took community
3		college transfer students prior to the implementation
4		of this Act and compared to students using other
5		transfer processes available.
6		(C) Student progression and completion rates.
7		(D) Other relevant indicators of student success.
8		(E) The degree to which the requirements for an
9		associate degree for transfer take into account
10		existing articulation agreements and the degree to
11		which community colleges facilitate the acceptance of
12		credits between community college districts, as
13		outlined in subsections (c) and (d) of Section 10 of
14		this Act.
15		(F) It is the intent of the General Assembly that
16		student outcome data provided under this subsection
17		(b) include the degree to which State universities were
18		able to accommodate students admitted under this Act in
19		being admitted to the State university of their choice
20		and in a major that is similar to their community
21		college major.
22		(2) Recommendations for statutory changes necessary to
23		facilitate the goal of a clear and transparent transfer
24		process.
25		Section 30. Implementation of Act; intent. It is the intent

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1		of the General Assembly that the requirements placed on
2		community college districts pursuant to this Act be carried out
3		in the normal course of program development and approval,
4		course scheduling, and degree issuance and do not represent any
5		new activities or a higher level of service on the part of
6		community college districts.
7		Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding
8		Section 8.39 as follows:
9		(30 ILCS 805/8.39 new)
10		Sec. 8.39. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8
11		of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the
12		implementation of any mandate created by the Student Transfer
13		Achievement Reform Act.