Sec. 3.
As used in this act:
(a) "Center" means the center for educational performance and information created in section 94a of the school aid act of 1979, 1979 PA 94, MCL 388.1694a.
(b) "Department" means the department of labor and economic opportunity.
(c) "Eligible institution" means a postsecondary educational institution that meets all of the following:
(i) Is an accredited public community college in this state.
(ii) Complies with applicable restraints on fee and tuition rate increases, if any, provided for in article II of the school aid act of 1979, 1979 PA 94, MCL 388.1801 to 388.1830.
(iii) Participates in quality assurance protocols established by the department for purposes of accurately tracking student outcomes described in section 5(g) and (h).
(iv) Submits a written report of all of the following information to the department by not later than October 1, 2020 and each year thereafter by not later than June 30:
(A) The institution's goals, expressed numerically, for student persistence and credential completion.
(B) An inventory of the institution's currently implemented strategies to improve student success outcomes, including guided pathways, proactive advising, and remediation. Regarding remediation, the report must detail the institution's current policy for determining whether a student is to be placed in developmental or credit-bearing courses.
(C) Policies for converting prior learning into community college credit wherever possible, including, but not limited to, prior learning demonstrated by coursework completed at the institution or any other postsecondary educational institution, including coursework completed in the distant past, or by college level equivalent courses, college level equivalent credit examinations, military training, education, or certification, or other relevant work or life experience. As used in this sub-subparagraph, "college level equivalent courses" and "college level equivalent credit examinations" mean those terms as described in section 1472 of the revised school code, 1976 PA 451, MCL 380.1472.
(v) By not later than January 1, 2022, for Michigan reconnect grant students who need academic remediation, provides accelerated courses aimed at enabling those students to raise their skills to college level and complete credit-bearing courses. To meet this criterion, an eligible institution must provide a remediation program that follows 1 of the following:
(A) A corequisite model under which a student concurrently enrolls in a developmental education course and a freshman-level course in the same subject area for each subject area needing remediation, to be completed concurrently. An institution providing a remediation program that follows the model described in this sub-subparagraph or sub-subparagraph (B) or (C) remains eligible whether or not it charges tuition or fees for the program.
(B) A compression model under which a student enrolls in 2 or more courses, either a combination of developmental and college-level courses or 2 or more levels of developmental courses, within a single semester, to be completed sequentially.
(C) A modularization model under which the content of 1 or more developmental courses is divided into discrete sections with a student assigned to complete only the modules that he or she needs to qualify for the associated college-level gateway course required in his or her program of study.
(D) An independent model of the institution's own choosing. To be eligible under this sub-subparagraph, the institution must provide the remediation program at no charge to students or the Michigan reconnect grant program.
(vi) Provides reasonable accommodations to Michigan reconnect grant students with disabilities as required by section 504 of title V of the rehabilitation act of 1973, 29 USC 794, and subtitle A of title II of the Americans with disabilities act of 1990, 42 USC 12131 to 12134.
(vii) Designates an individual employed by the institution as the institution's primary contact with the department for purposes of coordinating the administration of the Michigan reconnect grant program in accordance with this act.
(d) "Gift aid" means federal Pell grants under 20 USC 1070a and tuition incentive program benefits under section 256 of the school aid act of 1979, 1979 PA 94, MCL 388.1856. The term does not include any of the following:
(i) Student loans.
(ii) Work-study awards.
(iii) Qualified withdrawals made from education savings accounts to pay higher education expenses pursuant to the Michigan education savings program act, 2000 PA 161, MCL 390.1471 to 390.1486.
(iv) Higher education expenses paid under the Michigan educational trust program, pursuant to the Michigan education trust act, 1986 PA 316, MCL 390.1421 to 390.1442.
(v) Higher education expenses paid under the Michigan promise zone authority act, 2008 PA 549, MCL 390.1661 to 390.1679.
(e) "Industry-recognized certificate or credential" means a certificate or credential that is portable and is sought or accepted by multiple employers within an industry for purposes of recruitment, hiring, or promotion.
(f) "Michigan reconnect grant student" means a student admitted to and enrolled in an eligible institution and receiving a Michigan reconnect grant under this act.
History: 2020, Act 84, Imd. Eff. Apr. 2, 2020