2014 -- H 7947 SUBSTITUTE A

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2014

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT

     

     Introduced By: Representatives McNamara, Valencia, Amore, Ackerman, and

     Date Introduced: March 19, 2014

     Referred To: House Health, Education & Welfare

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Chapter 16-97 of the General Laws entitled "The Rhode Island Board of

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Education Act" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

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     16-97-8. Pilot program to increase college persistence and success. – (a) Purpose: A

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significant percentage of Rhode Island adults have earned some college credit but have not

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completed the requirements, and obtained the requisite number of credits, to obtain a college

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degree. The lack of a college degree can prevent individuals from obtaining gainful employment

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and advancing in the workplace. Further, the fewer residents with degrees, the less likely

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employers can locate and obtain skilled, well-qualified candidates for open positions, and the less

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likely Rhode Island will attract and retain new businesses with growth potential. Many of the

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adults described above, due to life circumstances, face considerable challenges in pursuing further

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education by traditional means, and are left without a viable alternative to obtaining a degree.

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Specially-designed, innovative, and adoptable higher education alternatives involving distance

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education and instructional scaffolds may support underserved adult residents, remove barriers to

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educational opportunities, and increase higher education graduation rates for Rhode Island

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residents. Accordingly, there shall be a three (3) year pilot program designed to test these

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alternatives; to test the effectiveness of a regionally-accredited, non-profit, public, degree-

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completion institution in Rhode Island; to gather data related to distance learning with

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instructional supports; and to inform the Rhode Island board of education of the effect of certain

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higher education alternatives that may impact statewide, higher education policy. The pilot

 

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program shall be delivered through a partnership between the pilot program facilitators, Charter

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Oak State College and College Unbound, and the pilot program evaluator, the Rhode Island

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Partnership Project. The Rhode Island board of education is authorized to approve additional

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pilots.

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     (b) Pilot program facilitators: (1) Charter Oak State College (COSC): COSC is a public,

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non-profit, degree-completion, degree-granting institution accredited by the New England

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Association of Schools and Colleges that awards postsecondary degrees and certificates at the

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associate and baccalaureate levels. COSC (originally named Board for State Academic Awards)

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was founded in 1973 by the Connecticut State legislature to serve the educational needs of adults

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and, non-traditional students in innovative ways. Originally, COSC offered associate degrees

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based on validation of credits and, by 1977, had gained approval to offer baccalaureate degrees.

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It used the local libraries to host and assist with academic advising. It aggregated credits that

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students earned at other regionally accredited institutions; through nationally recognized testing,

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recognized review processes; and through its own special credit assessment, testing, and portfolio

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assessment.

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     (2) College Unbound, a division of The Big Picture Company, a duly-authorized

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domestic non-profit that has generated and sustained personalized learning environments for over

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fifteen (15) years, seeks to integrate students' own purposes and visions for learning with the

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needs of their workplaces and communities. College Unbound's curricular model of online

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instruction partnered with on-ground, in-person cohort learning is built to support adults, who

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work and attend school, both on a full-time basis. Coursework is connected to necessary

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workplace skills and on-ground cohorts are comprised of colleagues in the field or workplace, in

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order to develop cultures of collaboration and cooperation. It seeks to raise the quality and

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applicability of students' education, to improve post-secondary student accessibility, graduation,

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long-term success rates, and to build students as leaders in their professional and personal lives.

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College Unbound utilizes out-of-the-classroom settings and serves students who might not

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otherwise successfully achieve a higher education degree. College Unbound is in its fifth (5th)

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year of offering on-ground student instructional and support services to adult learners in Rhode

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Island.

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     (c) Method of delivering services: COSC, working collaboratively with College Unbound

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through the duration of this three (3) year pilot program, may establish and maintain within the

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borders of the state of Rhode Island facilities where instruction, student services and educational

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program administration are provided or postsecondary educational credentials are granted to

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persons in the state or to persons outside of the state by contracting with College Unbound to

 

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facilitate these services subject to the rules and approved process of the Rhode Island board of

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education. Further COSC and College Unbound, through its collaboration, in Rhode Island, may:

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(1) Give counsel to, enroll or seek to enroll students for education offered by the institution; (2)

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Offer to award educational credentials for remuneration; and (3) Assess non-collegiate learning to

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determine if its is deserving of college credit.

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     (d) Program components:

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     (1) Eligible program participants – An adult learner or student who:

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     (i) Has obtained at least nine (9) college-level credit hours prior to enrollment in the pilot

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program;

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     (ii) Is not younger than age twenty-one (21);

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     (iii) Has a secondary school diploma or its recognized equivalent; and

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     (iv) Does not have a degree from an institution of higher education.

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     (2) The program shall:

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     (i) Serve no more than one thousand (1,000) eligible program participants;

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     (ii) Use a proactive, team-oriented approach to learning;

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     (iii) Hold weekly, cohort, instructional and/or student support meetings with eligible

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program participants throughout the academic year; and

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     (iv) Provide a "teach out" plan subject to the rules and approval process of the Rhode

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Island Board of Education.

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     (3) Evaluations:

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     (i) Evaluations shall be conducted by the Rhode Island Partnership Project (RIPP), a

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project established in September, 2012 with support from the Rhode Island office of higher

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education to address the skills gap in Rhode Island and increase the number of its residents who

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complete postsecondary education and earn a bachelor’s degree, associate’s degree, or

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certificate. 

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     (ii) COSC, through its collaboration with College Unbound, shall work with RIPP to

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track persistence and completion outcomes for eligible program participants.

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     (iii) RIPP shall provide a report to the board of education and the appropriate

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committee(s) of the general assembly that include the evaluation and information on best

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practices and lessons learned during the pilot program described in this section.

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     (iv) RIPP shall disseminate the report to the public by making the report available on the

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office of higher education’s website.

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     (4) Supplement not supplant: The purpose of this pilot program is to supplement and not

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supplant other instructional or degree-granting programs in the state of Rhode Island, and other

 

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data-collection processes currently employed within the state to obtain such information.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO EDUCATION - THE RHODE ISLAND BOARD OF EDUCATION ACT

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     This act would establish a three (3) year pilot program to supplement and assist students

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formerly enrolled in college to obtain college degrees. The program would be limited to no more

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than one thousand (1,000) participants and would be delivered through a partnership between the

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pilot program facilitators and a program evaluator.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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