Bill Text: NJ S593 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires reporting of the graduation rates of State tuition aid grant recipients.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-01-12 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee [S593 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-S593-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
217th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2016 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator SANDRA B. CUNNINGHAM
District 31 (Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
Requires reporting of the graduation rates of State tuition aid grant recipients.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act concerning State tuition aid grants and supplementing chapter 71B of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority shall provide for public inspection on its website detailed information on the graduation rates of State tuition aid grant recipients. In the case of county colleges, the authority shall also provide the transfer rates of State tuition aid grant recipients. The purpose of the information shall be to provide greater transparency and accountability in the State tuition aid grant program and to determine the success of grant recipients in completing an academic degree program.
b. Beginning with the 2007-2008 entering class cohort for baccalaureate degrees and the 2010-2011 entering class cohort for associate degrees, each institution of higher education and each proprietary degree-granting institution shall provide the authority with data necessary for the authority to meet the requirements of subsection c. of this section. The data shall be provided to the authority by November 15 of each year.
c. The authority shall post the information on its website by December 1 of each year. The information shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) the average graduation rates for 100 percent and 150 percent of the normal amount of time it takes to graduate of tuition aid grant recipients for each of the following sectors,
(a) county colleges;
(b) four-year public colleges and universities;
(c) independent colleges and universities; and
(d) proprietary degree-granting institutions.
In the case of county colleges, the authority shall also post the average transfer rate of tuition aid grant recipients; and
(2) the graduation rate for 100 percent and 150 percent of the normal amount of time it takes to graduate of tuition aid grant recipients at each institution of higher education and each proprietary degree-granting institution. In the case of a county college, the authority shall also post the transfer rate for tuition aid grant recipients at each county college.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority to annually post the graduation rates of State tuition aid grant recipients on its website. In the case of the county colleges, the authority will also provide the transfer rates of State tuition aid grant recipients. The information will include, but not be limited to: (1) the average graduation rates for 100 percent and 150 percent of the normal amount of time it takes to graduate of tuition aid grant recipients for county colleges, four-year public colleges and universities, independent colleges and universities, and proprietary degree-granting institutions; and (2) the graduation rate for 100 percent and 150 percent of the normal amount of time it takes to graduate of grant recipients at each institution of higher education and each proprietary degree-granting institution. The authority will use data beginning with the 2007-2008 entering class cohort for baccalaureate degrees and the 2010-2011 entering class cohort for associate degrees.
Under the bill, each institution of higher education and each proprietary degree-granting institution, by November 15 of each year, is required to provide the authority with the graduation rates and transfer rates, as applicable, in order for the authority to post the information on its website. The authority is then required to post the information on its website by December 1 of each year.
The bill would further: (1) require that the authority also provide the transfer rates for county college State tuition aid grant recipients; (2) require the authority to use data beginning with the 2007-2008 entering class cohort for baccalaureate degrees and the 2010-2011 entering class cohort for associate degrees; (3) eliminate reference to the two-year, four-year, and six-year graduation rates and provide that graduation rates will be reported for 100 percent and 150 percent of the normal time it takes to graduate from an institution; (4) revise the date by which an institution must provide the data to the authority from September 1 to November 15 of each year; and (5) revise the date by which the authority must post the data on its website from November 1 to December 1 of each year.
