A JOINT MEMORIAL

REQUESTING THE COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION AND THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC EDUCATION TO STUDY CONCURRENT ENROLLMENT PROGRAMS, DEVELOP AN ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE LEGISLATIVE EDUCATION STUDY COMMITTEE.

WHEREAS, "concurrent enrollment" means the enrollment of secondary level students in academic and vocational courses at post-secondary educational institutions for which the students are eligible to receive credit at both the secondary and post-secondary levels; and

WHEREAS, a written agreement between the cooperating school district and the post-secondary educational institution is required for concurrent enrollment; and

WHEREAS, pursuant to Laws 1990, Chapter 25, the tuition and fees of a student shall be transferred from a school district to the post-secondary educational institution that the student attends if the student is counted in the membership of the school district and will receive high school credit for course work taken at the post-secondary educational institution; and

WHEREAS, for several years, the state board of education and the commission on higher education have received feedback regarding the state concurrent enrollment program; and

WHEREAS, in 2002, the commission on higher education and the state department of public education developed electronic surveys to gather information on the concurrent enrollment program; and

WHEREAS, the survey data shows that there is confusion at all levels about the program and its implementation; and

WHEREAS, many concurrent enrollment agreements, as reported in the survey and as analyzed by commission and department staffs, are out of compliance with state regulations regarding requirements for funding and are inconsistent in terms of eligibility requirements, payment methods, curriculum levels and faculty arrangements; and

WHEREAS, in addition to compliance and consistency issues, there are questions as to what kinds of courses can be taught under the concurrent enrollment agreements and whether classes at the post-secondary educational institutions are aligned with the level of instruction in the school districts; and

WHEREAS, requests have been made by post-secondary educational institutions, school districts and parents of students for the state to review, clarify and coordinate concurrent enrollment programs;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO that the commission on higher education and the state department of public education be requested to study concurrent enrollment programs in collaboration with school districts and other appropriate organizations to improve the state's concurrent enrollment program; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission on higher education and the state department of public education

establish an advisory committee to gain input from students, parents, public school administrators and post-secondary educational institution administrators and to create a more user-friendly approach to supporting students who could benefit from an accelerated learning experience; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the commission on higher education and the state department of public education establish a concurrent enrollment program policy that includes a definition of acceptable course content areas and tuition transfer requirements; methods for collecting and sharing information between the commission and the department; program accountability requirements, including enrollment verification and accreditation visits; a plan to disseminate policy information to school districts, post-secondary educational institutions and students; and a review of statutes to determine any changes needed to implement the policy; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the findings and conclusions of the study and recommendations for legislation be presented to the legislative education study committee; and