An Act To Require the Maine Community College System, the University of Maine System and the Maine Maritime Academy To Report the Number of Students Enrolled in Remedial Courses
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 20-A MRSA §10012 is enacted to read:
§ 10012. High school graduates data; remedial courses
1. Remedial courses. Using information that is already collected by the Maine Community College System, the University of Maine System and the Maine Maritime Academy as part of the admissions and academic placement process, the President of the Maine Community College System, the Chancellor of the University of Maine System and the President of the Maine Maritime Academy shall annually compile the data so as to demonstrate:
A. The total number of traditional students who are enrolled in remedial courses in English language arts and mathematics, which must be disaggregated by campus and by subject area;
B. The name of each secondary school in the State from which a traditional student enrolled in a remedial course received a high school diploma and the number of those students from each of those schools; and
C. The retention and graduation rates for traditional students who were enrolled in remedial courses in English language arts and mathematics, which must be disaggregated by campus.
For the purposes of this subsection and subsection 2, "traditional student" means a student who has attended any accredited public school or private school in the State and received a high school diploma from a secondary school in the State or who has participated in a home instruction program pursuant to section 5001-A, subsection 3, paragraph A and who in the following academic year matriculates in the Maine Community College System, in the University of Maine System or at the Maine Maritime Academy.
2. Personally identifiable information. In reporting pursuant to subsection 3 the information compiled under subsection 1, the Maine Community College System, the University of Maine System and the Maine Maritime Academy shall manage education records in compliance with the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, 20 United States Code, Section 1232g. Those public institutions of higher education may not make public any information that could identify an individual student and shall ensure that the purpose of reporting disaggregated data for students enrolled in remedial courses is to conduct research for the purpose of evaluating and improving education programs. To ensure that personally identifiable information that would make a student's identity easily traceable is not disclosed, the public institutions of higher education may not report disaggregated information compiled under subsection 1 if the total number of traditional students who received high school diplomas from the same secondary school and enrolled in the same remedial course at the same campus is 5 or fewer.
3. Report. Beginning with the 2012-2013 academic year, the President of the Maine Community College System, the Chancellor of the University of Maine System and the President of the Maine Maritime Academy shall each report the information compiled under subsection 1, including recommendations for strategies that may result in fewer students enrolling in remedial courses at postsecondary educational institutions and strategies for improving the retention and graduation rates for students who were enrolled in remedial courses. The reports must be submitted by January 1st of each year to the Commissioner of Education and to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over education and cultural affairs. The Maine Community College System, the University of Maine System and the Maine Maritime Academy shall publish the annual reports on their publicly accessible websites.
4. Contingent repeal. This section is repealed July 1, 2016 unless the Commissioner of Education certifies to the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Senate, the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Revisor of Statutes before that date that the United States Congress has enacted legislation requiring public institutions of higher education to compile and report substantially the same data.
Effective 90 days following adjournment of the 125th Legislature, Second Regular Session, unless otherwise indicated.