Public Act 102-1077
 
HB5506 EnrolledLRB102 22403 CMG 31543 b


  
    AN ACT concerning education.
  
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
represented in the General Assembly:
  
 
 
    Section 5. The Dual Credit Quality Act is amended  by 
changing Sections 16 and 20 and by adding Section 16.5 as 
follows:
 
    (110 ILCS 27/16)
    Sec. 16. High school and community college partnership 
agreements; dual credit. A community college district shall, 
upon the request of a school district within the jurisdiction 
of the community college district, enter into a partnership 
agreement with the school district to offer dual credit 
coursework.
    A school district may offer any course identified in the 
Illinois Articulation Initiative General Education Core 
Curriculum package under the Illinois Articulation Initiative 
Act as a dual credit course on the campus of a high school of 
the school district and may use a high school instructor who 
has met the academic credential requirements under this Act to 
teach the dual credit course.
    The partnership agreement shall include all of the 
following:
        (1) The establishment of the school district's and the 
    community college district's respective roles and 
    responsibilities in providing the program and ensuring the 
    quality and instructional rigor of the program. This must 
    include an assurance that the community college district 
    has appropriate academic control of the curriculum, 
    consistent with any State or federal law and as required 
    or negotiated with the Higher Learning Commission or other 
    applicable accrediting agency.
        (2) The dual credit courses that the school district 
    will offer its students and whether those courses will be 
    offered on the high school or community college campus or 
    through an online platform established by the Illinois 
    Community College Board.
        (3) The establishment of academic criteria for 
    granting eligibility for high school students to enroll in 
    dual credit coursework.  The academic criteria shall be 
    evidence-based and shall include multiple appropriate 
    measures to determine whether a student is prepared for 
    any dual credit coursework in which the student enrolls.
        (4)  The establishment of any limitations that the 
    school district or community college district may put on 
    course offerings due to availability of instructors, the 
    availability of students for specific course offerings, or 
    local board policy.
        (5) The requirement that the dual credit instructor 
    meet the academic credential requirements to teach a dual 
    credit course, consistent with paragraphs (1), (2), and 
    (3) of Section 20 of this Act, but shall not be required to 
    exceed those credentials.
        (6) The collaborative process and criteria by which 
    the school district shall identify and recommend and the 
    community college district shall review and approve high 
    school instructors of dual credit courses taught on the 
    campus of a high school.  This provision shall require that 
    the school district be responsible for hiring and 
    compensating the instructor.
        (7) The requirement that a community college district 
    take the appropriate steps to ensure that dual credit 
    courses are equivalent to those courses offered at the 
    community college in quality and rigor to qualify for 
    college credit.  The dual credit programs shall encompass 
    the following characteristics:
            (A) Student learning outcomes expected for dual 
        credit courses in General Education Core Curriculum 
        courses and the professional and career and technical 
        disciplines shall be the same as the student learning 
        outcomes expected for the same courses taught on the 
        postsecondary campus.
            (B) Course content, course delivery, and course 
        rigor shall be evaluated by the community college 
        chief academic officer or his or her designee, in 
        consultation with the school district's superintendent 
        or his or her designee. The evaluation shall be 
        conducted in a manner that is consistent with the 
        community college district's review and evaluation 
        policy and procedures for on-campus adjunct faculty, 
        including visits to the secondary class.   This 
        evaluation shall be limited to the course and the 
        ability of the instructor to deliver quality, rigorous 
        college credit coursework. This evaluation shall not 
        impact the instructor's performance evaluation under 
        Article 24A of the School Code.
            (C) The academic supports and, if applicable, 
        guidance that will be provided to students 
        participating in the program by the high school and 
        the community college district.
        (8) Identify all fees and costs to be assessed by the 
    community college district for dual credit courses.  This 
    provision shall require that any fees and costs assessed 
    for dual credit courses shall be reasonable and promote 
    student access to those courses, and may take into account 
    regional considerations and differences.
        (8.5) The collaborative process and criteria by which 
    a school district and a community college district shall 
    work to ensure that individual students with disabilities 
    have access to dual credit courses, provided that those 
    students are able to meet the criteria for entry into a 
    dual credit course.  Through this process and criteria, the 
    student shall have access to the supplementary aids and 
    accommodations included in the student's individualized 
    education program under Article 14 of the School Code or 
    Section 504 plan under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 
    1973 while the student is accessing a dual credit course 
    on a high school campus, in accordance with established 
    practices at the high school for providing these services. 
    A student who accesses a dual credit course on a community 
    college campus shall have access to supplementary aids and 
    accommodations provided in the partnership agreement, 
    including access to the community college's disability 
    services. A school district and community college district 
    shall work together to provide seamless communication 
    about the student's progress. 
        (9) The community college district shall establish a 
    mechanism for evaluating and documenting on a regular 
    basis the performance of students who complete dual credit 
    courses, consistent with paragraph (9) of Section 20 and 
    Section 30 of this Act, and for sharing that data in a 
    meaningful and timely manner with the school district. 
    This evaluation shall be limited to the course and the 
    coursework. This evaluation shall not impact the 
    instructor's performance evaluation under Article 24A of 
    the School Code.
        (10) The expectations for maintaining the rigor of 
    dual credit courses that are taught at the high school and 
    including students not deemed ready for college-level 
    coursework according to the standards of the community 
    college. 
        (11) A requirement that the school district and 
    community college annually assess disaggregated data 
    pertaining to dual credit course enrollments, completions, 
    and subsequent postsecondary enrollment and performance to 
    the extent feasible.  If applicable, this assessment shall 
    include an analysis of dual credit courses with credit 
    sections for dual credit and for high school credit only 
    pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 16.5 that reviews 
    student characteristics by credit section in relation to 
    gender, race and ethnicity, and low-income status. 
    If, within 180 calendar days of the school district's 
initial request to enter into a partnership agreement with the 
community college district, the school district and the 
community college district do not reach agreement on the 
partnership agreement, then the school district and community 
college district shall jointly implement the provisions of the 
Model Partnership Agreement established under Section 19 of 
this Act for which local agreement could not be reached.  A 
community college district may combine its negotiations with 
multiple school districts to establish one multi-district 
partnership agreement or  may negotiate individual partnership 
agreements at its discretion.

(Source: P.A. 102-516, eff. 8-20-21.)
 
    (110 ILCS 27/16.5 new)
    Sec. 16.5. High school and community college partnership 
agreements; student enrollment eligibility.
    (a) A partnership agreement under Section 16 that is 
entered into, amended, renewed, or extended after the 
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 102nd General 
Assembly shall allow a high school student who does not 
otherwise meet the community college district's academic 
eligibility requirements to enroll in a dual credit course 
taught at the high school, but only for high school credit. 
Instructors, in coordination with their higher learning 
partner, may differentiate instruction by credit section. 
    (b) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to allow 
the award of dual credit to a student who does not meet the 
requirements of the partnership agreement. 
    (c) High schools shall establish procedures, prior to the 
first day of class, to notify all individual high school 
students enrolled in a mixed enrollment dual credit course 
that includes students who have and have not met the criteria 
for dual credit coursework of whether or not they are eligible 
to earn college credit for the course. 
 
    (110 ILCS 27/20)
    Sec. 20. Standards.  All institutions offering dual credit 
courses shall meet the following standards:
        (1) High school instructors teaching credit-bearing 
    college-level courses for dual credit must meet any of the  
    academic credential requirements set forth in this 
    paragraph or paragraph (2) or (3) of this Section and need 
    not meet higher certification requirements or those set 
    out in Article 21B of the School Code:
            (A) Approved instructors of dual credit courses 
        shall meet any of the faculty credential standards 
        allowed by the Higher Learning Commission to determine 
        minimally qualified faculty. At the request of an 
        instructor, an instructor who meets these credential 
        standards shall be provided by the State Board of 
        Education with a Dual Credit Endorsement, to be placed 
        on the professional educator license, as established 
        by the State Board of Education and as authorized  
        under Article 21B of the School Code and promulgated 
        through administrative rule in cooperation with the 
        Illinois Community College Board and the Board of 
        Higher Education.
            (B) An instructor who does not meet the faculty 
        credential standards allowed by the Higher Learning 
        Commission to determine minimally qualified faculty 
        may teach dual credit courses if the instructor has a 
        professional development plan, approved by the 
        institution and shared with the State Board of 
        Education no later than January 1, 2025 , within 4 
        years of January 1, 2019 (the effective date of Public 
        Act 100-1049), to raise his or her credentials to be in 
        line with the credentials under subparagraph (A) of 
        this paragraph (1).   The institution shall have 30 days 
        to review the plan and approve an instructor 
        professional development plan that is in line with the 
        credentials set forth in paragraph (2) of this 
        Section. The institution shall not unreasonably 
        withhold approval of a professional development plan.  
        These approvals shall be good for as long as 
        satisfactory progress toward the completion of the 
        credential is demonstrated, but in no event shall a 
        professional development plan be in effect for more 
        than 3 years from the date of its approval or after 
        January 1, 2028, whichever is sooner. A high school 
        instructor whose professional development plan is not 
        approved by the institution may appeal to the Illinois 
        Community College Board or the Board of Higher 
        Education, as appropriate.
            (C) The Illinois Community College Board and Board 
        of Higher Education shall report yearly on its 
        Internet website the following: 
                (i) the number of teachers presently enrolled 
            in an who have approved professional development 
            plan plans under this Section; .
                (ii)  the number of instructors who 
            successfully completed an approved professional 
            development plan;
                (iii)  the number of instructors who did not 
            successfully complete an approved professional 
            development plan after 3 years;
                (iv)  a breakdown of the information in 
            subdivisions (i), (ii), and (iii) of this 
            subparagraph (C) by subject area; and
                (v)  a summary, by community college district, 
            of professional development plans that are in 
            progress, that were successfully completed, or 
            that have expired. 
        (2) For a high school instructor entering into a 
    professional development plan prior to January 1, 2023, 
    the A high school instructor shall qualify for a 
    professional development plan if the instructor:
            (A) has a master's degree in any discipline and 
        has earned 9 graduate hours in a discipline in which he 
        or she is currently teaching or expects to teach; or
            (B) has a bachelor's degree with a minimum of 18 
        graduate hours in a discipline that he or she is 
        currently teaching or expects to teach and is enrolled 
        in a discipline-specific master's degree program; and
            (C) agrees to demonstrate his or her progress 
        toward completion to the supervising institution, as 
        outlined in the professional development plan.
        (2.5) For a high school instructor entering into a 
    professional development plan on or after January 1, 2023, 
    the high school instructor shall qualify for a 
    professional development plan if the instructor: 
            (A) has a master's degree in any discipline, has 
        earned 9 graduate hours in a discipline in which he or 
        she currently teaches or expects to teach, and agrees 
        to demonstrate his or her progress toward completion 
        to the supervising institution, as outlined in the 
        professional development plan; or 
            (B) is a fully licensed instructor in career and 
        technical education who is halfway toward meeting the 
        institution's requirements for faculty in the 
        discipline to be taught and agrees to demonstrate his 
        or her progress toward completion to the supervising 
        institution, as outlined in the professional 
        development plan. 
        (3) An instructor in career and technical education 
    courses must possess the credentials and demonstrated 
    teaching competencies appropriate to the field of 
    instruction.
        (4) Course content must be equivalent to 
    credit-bearing college-level courses offered at the 
    community college.
        (5) Learning outcomes must be the same as 
    credit-bearing college-level courses and be appropriately 
    measured.
        (6) A high school instructor is expected to 
    participate in any orientation developed by the 
    institution for dual credit instructors in course 
    curriculum, assessment methods, and administrative 
    requirements.
        (7)  Dual credit instructors must be given the 
    opportunity to participate in all activities available to 
    other adjunct faculty, including professional development, 
    seminars, site visits, and internal communication, 
    provided that such opportunities do not interfere with an 
    instructor's regular teaching duties.
        (8)  Every dual credit course must be reviewed annually 
    by faculty through the appropriate department to ensure 
    consistency with campus courses.

        (9)  Dual credit students must be assessed using 
    methods consistent with students in traditional 
    credit-bearing college courses.


        (10) Within 15 days after entering into or renewing a 
    partnership agreement, the institution shall notify its 
    faculty of the agreement, including access to copies of 
    the agreement if requested. 
(Source: P.A. 102-558, eff. 8-20-21.)