Bill Text: IL HR0049 | 2021-2022 | 102nd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Urges the public universities in Illinois to examine the use of standardized testing in their admissions processes.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-07-18 - Rule 19(b) / Re-referred to Rules Committee [HR0049 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2021-HR0049-Introduced.html

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HOUSE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
Representatives call upon the public universities in Illinois
to study the usefulness and fairness of standardized tests in
their admission processes; and
WHEREAS, The ultimate goal of analyzing the use of
standardized testing in higher education is to move to a
test-optional admittance process; and
WHEREAS, There are clear benefits to standardized testing
merely being an optional step in the admission process, one of
which is increased diversity; low income students typically
score lower than their more affluent peers, putting them at a
disadvantage in the admissions process; in 2016, the average
ACT composite score for a high-income student was 23.6, while
the average composite score for low income students was 19.5;
and
WHEREAS, After the University of Chicago made the decision
to go test-optional, it reported record enrollments of
first-generation, low-income, and rural students; and
WHEREAS, Public universities in Illinois making the choice
to go test-optional would not be unique; currently, one in

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four institutions of higher education no longer requires a
standardized test score for admittance, and, in the last year
alone, 41 schools have eliminated their standardized testing
requirement; and
WHEREAS, A university moving to a test-optional admittance
process is not at all synonymous with a university abandoning
its prestige, as the standards for admittance would simply be
shifted to the students' GPA, extracurricular activities, and
references; a standardized test is not the only way to measure
a student's potential; the choice to eliminate mandatory
standardized testing from admittance processes can lead to a
larger applicant pool for universities, thus creating a
stronger student body; and
WHEREAS, The test-optional switch will be extremely
beneficial to the low-income students of Illinois who have
hopes of attending one of the State's exceptional public
universities; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
we urge the public universities in Illinois to examine the use
of standardized testing in their admissions processes; and be
it further

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RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
delivered to all the public universities in Illinois.