Bill of the Day: Senate Bill 175 Would Cap the Top 10% Rule for University Admissions in Texas

For the past several legislative sessions, one of our Board's Legislative Positions has been the elimination of the top 10% rule for admission to Texas Universities.

Today's Bill of the Day is Senate Bill 175 by Senator Florence Shapiro (R-Plano) (Senator Shapiro serves as the Chair of the Senate Education Committee).  SB 175 would cap the number of students admitted under the top 10% rule at 50% of the class enrollment.  To the extent there were more top 10% students attempting to enroll than available admission spots within that 50%, students would be admitted based on class rank and GPA until the 50% enrollment level was achieved.

The full text of the bill is below after the jump.

	81R1085 KSD-D
	By: Shapiro	S.B. No. 175

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to limitations on the automatic admission of undergraduate
	students to general academic teaching institutions.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Section 51.803, Education Code, is amended by
	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (a-2) to
	read as follows:
	(a)  Subject to Subsection (a-1), each [Each] general
	academic teaching institution shall admit an applicant for
	admission to the institution as an undergraduate student if the
	applicant graduated with a grade point average in the top 10 percent
	of the student's high school graduating class in one of the two
	school years preceding the academic year for which the applicant is
	applying for admission and:
	(1)  the applicant graduated from a public or private
	high school in this state accredited by a generally recognized
	accrediting organization or from a high school operated by the
	United States Department of Defense;
	(2)  the applicant:
	(A)  successfully completed:
	(i)  at a public high school, the curriculum
	requirements established under Section 28.025 for the recommended
	or advanced high school program; or
	(ii)  at a high school to which Section
	28.025 does not apply, a curriculum that is equivalent in content
	and rigor to the recommended or advanced high school program; or
	(B)  satisfied ACT's College Readiness Benchmarks
	on the ACT assessment applicable to the applicant or earned on the
	SAT assessment a score of at least 1,500 out of 2,400 or the
	equivalent; and
	(3)  if the applicant graduated from a high school
	operated by the United States Department of Defense, the applicant
	is a Texas resident under Section 54.052 or is entitled to pay
	tuition fees at the rate provided for Texas residents under Section
	54.058(d) for the term or semester to which admitted.
	(a-1)  A general academic teaching institution is not
	required to admit under Subsection (a) more than 50 percent of the
	institution's first-time resident undergraduate students in an
	academic year. If the number of applicants who qualify for
	automatic admission to a general academic teaching institution
	under Subsection (a) exceeds 50 percent of the institution's
	enrollment capacity designated for first-time resident
	undergraduate students, the institution may elect to offer
	admission to those applicants as provided by this subsection and
	not as otherwise required by Subsection (a). If the institution
	elects to offer admission under this subsection, the institution
	shall offer admission to those applicants by percentile rank
	according to graduating class standing based on grade point
	average, beginning with the top percentile rank, until the
	applicants qualified under Subsection (a) have been offered
	admission in the number estimated in good faith by the institution
	as sufficient to fill 50 percent of the institution's enrollment
	capacity designated for first-time resident undergraduate
	students, except that the institution must offer admission to all
	applicants with the same percentile rank. The institution shall
	consider any remaining applicants qualified for automatic
	admission under Subsection (a) in the same manner as other
	applicants for admission as first-time undergraduate students in
	accordance with Section 51.805.
	(a-2)  In the manner prescribed by the Texas Education Agency
	and not later than April 15, a general academic teaching
	institution shall provide to each school district, for
	dissemination of the information to high school junior-level
	students and their parents, notice of which percentile ranks of
	high school senior-level students are anticipated by the
	institution to be automatically offered admission under Subsection
	(a-1) during the next school year if:
	(1)  the number of applicants to the institution during
	the current school year who qualify for automatic admission to the
	institution under Subsection (a) exceeds 50 percent of the
	institution's enrollment capacity designated for first-time
	resident undergraduate students; and
	(2)  the institution plans to offer admission under
	Subsection (a-1) during the next school year.
	SECTION 2.  Section 28.026, Education Code, is amended to
	read as follows:
	Sec. 28.026.  NOTICE OF AUTOMATIC COLLEGE ADMISSION. (a)
	The board of trustees of a school district shall require each high
	school in the district to post appropriate signs in each
	counselor's office, in each principal's office, and in each
	administrative building indicating the substance of Section 51.803
	regarding automatic college admission. To assist in the
	dissemination of this information, the school district shall:
	(1)  require that each high school counselor and class
	advisor be provided a detailed explanation of the substance of
	Section 51.803;
	(2)  provide each district student, at the time the
	student first registers for one or more classes required for high
	school graduation, with a written notification of the substance of
	Section 51.803;
	(3)  require that each high school counselor and senior
	class advisor explain to eligible students the substance of Section
	51.803; and
	(4) [(3)]  provide each eligible senior student under
	Section 51.803, at the commencement of a class's senior year, with a
	written notification of the student's eligibility with a detailed
	explanation of the substance of Section 51.803.
	(b)  The commissioner shall adopt forms to use in providing
	notice under Subsections (a)(2) and (4). In providing notice under
	Subsection (a)(2) or (4), a school district shall use the
	appropriate form adopted by the commissioner.
	(c)  The commissioner shall adopt procedures to ensure that,
	as soon as practicable after this subsection becomes law, each
	school district provides written notification of the substance of
	Section 51.803, as amended by the 81st Legislature, Regular
	Session, 2009, to each district student who, for the 2009-2010
	school year, registers for one or more courses required for high
	school graduation. The commissioner may adopt rules under this
	subsection in the manner provided by law for emergency rules. Each
	district shall comply with the procedures adopted by the
	commissioner under this subsection. This subsection expires
	September 1, 2010.
	SECTION 3.  The change in law made by this Act to Section
	51.803, Education Code, applies beginning with admissions to a
	general academic teaching institution for the 2010-2011 academic
	year. Admissions to a general academic teaching institution for an
	academic period before that academic year are governed by the law in
	effect immediately before the effective date of this Act, and the
	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
	SECTION 4.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2009.

Comments

[Allison]

i'm actually really glad to see this. It is a step in the right direction. As a college student affected by the top 10% rule, it was really hard for me to get into a university because I was in a high competitive school. I did really well to be in the top 50% of my graduating class. Even though the original bill was made to help students, it has hurt more students and universities.

I really want it to pass!

Allison
c/o 2005 Clements HS, Sugar Land
currently: Texas Tech University 5th year senior