HR0296 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0296 LRB098 11903 NHT 45195 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Senate Joint Resolution 69 of the 97th General Assembly called upon the Illinois Student Assistance Commission (ISAC) to form a task force to deliberate options for the adoption of new rules for the Monetary Award Program (MAP), with the goal of improving the outcomes for students who receive these awards; and

WHEREAS, The task force reported to the General Assembly and Commission with its findings on December 31, 2012; and

WHEREAS, Task force members concluded that MAP recipients, many of whom are the first in their families to attend college, could benefit from additional nonfinancial support, such as increased academic and financial counseling before and during college, as this guidance could help to increase retention and to minimize both time-to-degree and student loan debt; and

WHEREAS, Student success in college is a shared responsibility, requiring effort, commitment, and clear communication on the part of both students and the institutions of higher learning where they are enrolled, which, in the case of advising, requires the institution to provide support and the student to take advantage of this support; and

WHEREAS, Task force members also noted that additional, school-provided support for MAP recipients would demonstrate an institution's partnership with this State in promoting MAP recipients' college access and success; and

WHEREAS, Task force members believed that additional expertise and time were needed in order to refine this recommendation and develop specific new requirements for student advising, based on identifiable best practices in student advising and support; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the Illinois Student Assistance Commission is directed, consistent with the recommendations of the Monetary Award Program (MAP) task force, to form a working group to examine the best practices for academic advising of higher education students who are Monetary Award Program recipients, with an emphasis on support services for low-income and first-generation college students; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the working group shall endeavor to catalog existing student academic advising and support programs in this State and available information on those programs' outcomes, along with surveying existing literature on the effectiveness of similar programs within this State and outside of it; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the working group shall make a recommendation to the Commission regarding minimum standards for student support and advising that should be available to encourage retention and degree completion of MAP recipients, as well as minimum requirements for students to take advantage of such support and advising; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the working group may consider not only the potential benefits that an academic advising requirement may bring to MAP recipients, but also such concerns as whether students would have adequate access to such advisors, whether current advising staff at institutions could properly provide appropriate levels of support given time constraints, what means of documentation might be warranted to document a MAP recipient's participation in advising, and any additional costs that may be incurred by schools in implementing a new advising requirement; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the working group shall report its findings and recommendations to the Commission and the General Assembly on or before February 3, 2014; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Illinois Student Assistance Commission shall implement requirements related to academic advising and student support services as soon as this is feasible, but not later than the 2015-2016 academic year; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be delivered to the Illinois Student Assistance Commission.