On May 5 the U.S. House Subcommittee on 21st Century Competitiveness held a hearing to examine state and institutional policies intended to make it easier to transfer college credits between postsecondary institutions.
Witnesses from Ohio and Florida--two states with advanced transfer-of-credit programs--along with representatives from national organizations recommended that federal lawmakers push states to develop transfer-of-credit policies that ease the transfer process for students, while simultaneously preserving some level of institutional autonomy.
In February Subcommittee Chairman Howard "Buck" McKeon (R-Calif.) and full Committee Chairman John Boehner (R-Ohio) introduced the College Access and Opportunity Act (H.R. 609), as part of this year's Higher Education Act reauthorization.
Among other measures, H.R. 609 asks colleges and universities to establish and abide by specific institutional policies regarding transfer-of-credit and to make those policies available to the public. Critics have said the data collection required for full transparency places a burden on institutions.
In addition, H.R. 609 would make it illegal to deny credit to a transferring student based solely on the accreditor of an institution where the credits being transferred were earned, so long as that accreditor is recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education. At the heart of the issue is whether traditional four-year institutions should be able to justify denying credits from two-year and proprietary schools by citing non-regional accreditation.
In his opening statement McKeon said, "If students are blocked from transferring from a two-year institution to a four-year institution, or from a proprietary institution to any other institution for reasons considered to be territorial or political, the student is forced to repeat course work, extend the time to completion, and all this comes at an additional cost."
McKeon noted that this additional cost "is borne not just by the students, but by parents and taxpayers as well."
Philip Day, president of the National Articulation and Transfer Network (NATN), outlined the severity of the problem for subcommittee members.
Day testified that nationally, about half of the students enrolled in college begin their postsecondary education at a community college. Of those who enter a community college, 71% intend to earn a bachelors degree. "Still," he said, "the transfer rate hovers between 20% to 25% nationally, with minority students lagging as much as 10 to 20 percentage points below the transfer rate for white students."
Day concluded his testimony saying, "There is no question that higher education needs congressional support for a national effort. But we need the encouragement to do it on a voluntary, good faith basis, not on a mandatory basis and certainly not with burdensome reporting requirements."
Jerome Sullivan, executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) said, "The fundamental challenge with transfer, whether planned or unplanned, is to aggregate coursework conducted at different institutions with different academic policies, different curricula, and different levels of expected rigor into an academic credential that the issuing institution can stand behind."
In an effort to track policies and procedures for dealing with these complex problems, AACRAO has since 1977 maintained a database of institution-to-institution transfer credit practices, Sullivan said. He also commended NATN for its CollegeStepz Web site and its collection of nationwide articulation data.
Sullivan indicated that the reporting measures of H.R. 609 would be overly restrictive, but agreed that a federal role in improving credit transfer is appropriate. He outlined three steps in particular:
- "the federal government could facilitate a voluntary data collection to provide receiving institutions with more detailed information about courses for which credit is sought by incoming transfer applicants;"
- "federal policymakers should consider a disclosure requirement for institutions that make claims with regard to transferability of their coursework to other institutions;" and
- "Congress could authorize a grant program to promote articulation agreements and increase degree attainment."
Representatives from Florida and Ohio discussed how their states have addressed the challenge of transfer-of-credit.
Thanks to Ohio's newly implemented credit transfer program, "students enrolled this coming fall will have a statewide transfer guarantee that ensures they can make progress in one of 38 different baccalaureate degree pathways, anywhere within the public higher education system and in Ohios participating private institutions," said Nancy Zimpher, president of the University of Cincinnati, in her written testimony.
Buy-in from state leaders was critical to the implementation of the new program, Zimpher said. "Presidents, provosts and more than 300 faculty provided leadership for the development of the new policy." In addition, the Ohio Board of Regents and the General Assembly were the driving force behind the initiative, and the state's Articulation and Transfer Advisory Council played a major role.
Florida law provides for a "Statewide Articulation Agreement" that ensures a seamless transfer process between and among postsecondary institutions, noted Theresa Klebacha, director of strategic initiatives for the Florida Department of Education's Office of the Commissioner. This agreement ensures that if a student completes an Associate of Arts degree, admission to the state university system is guaranteed.
Klebacha applauded the committee's efforts "to strengthen policies on a national level to facilitate student movement; to put policies in place that do not require a student or taxpayer to pay twice for the same instruction; and to do it in a way that does not jeopardize the quality and integrity of instructional programs."
During the question and answer session, Rep. David Wu (D-Ore.) stated his apprehension that H.R. 609, as proposed, would be too prescriptive, thereby limiting the ability of institutional leaders and faculty to decide what credits transfer.
NATN's Day said H.R. 609 "is trying to go in the right direction," in terms of the federal government making sure states are following through on policy creation and dissemination requirements.
While she believes the role of the federal government ought to be voluntary rather than mandatory, Klebacha said "there is a benefit for the federal government to put some basic expectation right out front."
Day also urged against overly prescriptive federal policies on transfer-of-credit: "If we hold [institutions'] feet to the fire, they're not going to be able to come to the dance," he said.
By Elizabeth B. Guerard
NASFAA Assistant Director for Communications
Posted May 6, 2005 on www.NASFAA.org, the Web Site of the
National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA).
Copyright 2005. Redistribution to non-NASFAA institutions is prohibited
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