Rhode Island House Bill H6058

Rhode Island 2025 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/12/25
• Refer: 3/12/25

Caption

Amends references in the dual enrollment act by using the phrase “public higher education institution”.

Summary

House Bill 6058 amends Rhode Island’s Dual Enrollment Equal Opportunity Act to clarify and update how the law refers to participating colleges and universities. The bill replaces or standardizes references to “public higher education institution” so the statute clearly applies to state community colleges, colleges, and universities. It also restates the statewide dual enrollment policy that allows high school students to take courses at public higher education institutions and receive credit toward both high school and postsecondary requirements. The bill also directs the Board of Education to maintain regulations governing dual enrollment, including how credits are awarded, minimum grades needed for high school credit, and other criteria the board considers appropriate. It requires a workgroup with K-12, higher education, and educator representatives to advise on funding effects, academic supports, transportation, shared costs, fee schedules, access for low-income students, and contracted tuition costs. The bill further preserves a limit on payments to public institutions for dual and concurrent enrollment within the appropriations act and exempts certain full-time grade 12 dual enrollment students from specified attendance requirements when taking courses on a higher education campus.

Impact

The bill primarily has a clarifying and administrative impact rather than creating a new program. It updates statutory language in Chapter 16-100 to align the dual enrollment law with Rhode Island’s public higher education system and reinforces the Board of Education’s authority to regulate statewide dual enrollment policy. It also preserves the existing funding cap tied to appropriations and maintains a special exemption for eligible full-time seniors enrolled on campus in dual enrollment programs. Schools, students, and public colleges would continue operating under the dual enrollment framework, but with clearer statutory terminology and an added mandate to study implementation issues.

Sentiment

The bill appears generally supportive of expanding and clarifying dual enrollment opportunities for Rhode Island students. Its stated purpose is to improve access and consistency in how dual enrollment is administered across public higher education institutions, suggesting a broad policy consensus in favor of the program. No committee transcript or recorded vote information was provided, so there is no evidence in the available record of formal opposition or divided sentiment.

Contention

The main areas of potential contention are not about whether dual enrollment should exist, but about how it is funded and implemented. The bill explicitly calls for a workgroup to examine school funding impacts, transportation, academic supports, shared costs, fee schedules, low-income student access, and contracted tuition rates, indicating these are the issues most likely to raise concerns among school districts, higher education institutions, and policymakers. The funding cap tied to the appropriations act may also be a point of concern for institutions that could face increased enrollment demand without additional resources.