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A4991
ASSEMBLY, No. 4991
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
222nd LEGISLATURE
�
INTRODUCED MAY 7, 2026
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman� AURA K. DUNN
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblyman Myhre
SYNOPSIS
���� Requires public institutions of higher education to
report certain information concerning remedial course placement to Office of
Secretary of Higher Education; requires secretary to produce report on course
placements.�
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
���� As introduced.
��
An Act
concerning the collection and reporting of
certain information by public institutions of higher education, supplementing
chapter 62 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending and
supplementing P.L.1995, c.235.
����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:
���� 1.� (New section)� a. As used
in this section, �remedial course� means a non-credit course or a course for
which credits earned are not applicable to minimum credit requirements leading
to a degree or certificate.
���� b. Each public institution of
higher education shall annually report to the Office of the Secretary of Higher
Education information on the number of newly admitted students who are placed
into or enroll in a remedial or developmental course at the institution. The
information shall include:
���� (1) the total number of newly
admitted students enrolled at the institution during the academic year;
���� (2) the total number of newly
admitted students placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses; and
���� (3) any other information
deemed relevant by the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.
���� c.� For each newly admitted
student placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses, the
information provided pursuant to subsection b. of this section shall also
include:
���� (1) the high school from which
the student graduated; and
���� (2) the subject area or areas
of remedial education placement.
���� d. The Secretary of Higher
Education shall annually compile the information required pursuant to
subsections b. and c. of this section into a report. The report shall include:
���� (1) the percentage and average
number of newly admitted students placed into or enrolled in one or more
remedial courses, disaggregated by institution, subject area, and the school
district and high school from which the students graduated;
���� (2) historical trend data; and
���� (3) any other information
deemed relevant by the secretary.
���� e. The secretary shall
annually publish the report required pursuant to subsection d. of this section
on the Internet website of the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.
���� f. Five years following the
first publication of the report, the secretary shall include in the report school
districts for which the number of newly admitted students enrolled in one or
more remedial courses is significantly greater than the five-year average. If
the number of newly admitted students enrolled in remedial courses in one year is
greater than a school district�s most recent five-year average by more than 33
percent, the secretary shall send the report to the State Auditor. If the
average number of newly admitted students enrolled in remedial courses in one
year is greater than a school district�s five-year average by more than 50
percent, the secretary shall send the report to the Department of Education,
and the department shall include the information in the School Report Card issued
pursuant to P.L.1995, c.235 (C.18A:7E-1 et seq.).
���� 2. Section 3 of P.L.1995,
c.235 (C.18A:7E-3) is amended to read as follows:
���� 3. Report cards issued
pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1995, c.235 (C.18A:7E-2) shall include, but not be
limited to, the following information for:
���� a.���� the school district and
for each school within the district, as appropriate:
���� (1) results of the elementary
assessment programs;
���� (2) results of the Early
Warning Test;
���� (3) results of the High School
Proficiency Test;
���� (4) daily attendance records
for students and professional staff;
���� (5) student graduation and
dropout rates;
���� (6) annual student scores on
the Scholastic Aptitude Test;
���� (7) total student enrollment,
percentage of limited English proficient students, percentage of students in
advanced placement courses, and any other school characteristics which the
commissioner deems appropriate;
���� (8) instructional resources
including teacher/student ratio, average class size and amount of instructional
time per day, as calculated by formulas specified by the commissioner;
���� (9) a written narrative by the
school principal or a designee which describes any special achievements,
events, problems or initiatives of the school or district;
���� (10) data identifying the
number and nature of all reports of harassment, intimidation, or bullying;
���� (11) indicators of student
career readiness;
���� (12) the number and percentage
of students who were chronically absent, as defined in rules and regulations
promulgated by the Commissioner of Education within 90 days of the effective
date of P.L.2018, c.23 (C.18A:38-25.1 et al.), including the number and percentage
of students who were chronically absent disaggregated by multiple student
subgroups to be determined by the commissioner;
���� (13) the number, percentage,
and demographics, including race, gender, disability, grade level, and
eligibility for free or reduced-price lunch under the National School Lunch
Program, of students who received one or more suspensions or expulsions or who
were reported to or arrested by law enforcement, by category of offense,
pursuant to the provisions of the Uniform State Memorandum of Agreement Between
Education and Law Enforcement Officials; and
���� (14) the number of school
psychologists, school counselors, social workers, student assistance
coordinators, and other mental health professionals employed by, or under
contract with, the school district to provide mental health services to
students, and the ratio of students to the total number of mental health
professionals providing services in the school and the district;
[
and
]
���� (15) the number of school
safety specialists; and
����
(16) the number of students
graduating high school from the school district who are newly admitted students
to a public institution of higher education placed into or enrolled in one or
more remedial courses at the institution if the number is greater than the
district�s most recent five-year average by more than 50 percent pursuant to section
1 of P.L.��� , c.���� (C.������� ) (pending before the Legislature as this
bill); and
���� b.��� the school district, as
appropriate:
���� (1)�� per pupil expenditures
and State aid ratio;
���� (2)�� percent of budget
allocated for salaries and benefits of administrative personnel;
���� (3)�� percent of budget
allocated for salaries and benefits of teachers;
���� (4)�� percentage increase over
the previous year for salaries and benefits of administrative and instructional
personnel;
���� (5)�� the number of
administrative personnel and the ratio of administrative personnel to
instructional personnel;
���� (6)�� a profile of the most
recent graduating class concerning their educational or employment plans
following graduation; and
���� (7)�� any other information
which the commissioner deems appropriate.
���� For the purposes of this
section, the Commissioner of Education shall establish a uniform methodology
for the reporting of the data concerning administrative personnel on a
full-time equivalent basis.
(cf: P.L.2021, c.387, s.1)
���� 3. (New section) The
Commissioner of Education shall, in accordance with federal law, include the number
of students placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses at a public
�institution of higher education, as enumerated in paragraph (16) of section 3
of P.L.1995, c.235 (C.18A:7E-3), as an indicator for integration into the
summative scores calculated by the department for each school and school
district as part of the State�s accountability system developed in accordance
with the applicable provisions of the federal Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. s.6301 et seq.), as amended by the federal
�Every Student Succeeds Act,� Pub.L.114-95.
���� 4. This act shall take effect
immediately.
STATEMENT
���� This bill requires each public
institution of higher education to annually report to the Office of the
Secretary of Higher Education information on newly admitted students who are
placed into or enroll in a remedial course at the institution. The bill defines
a remedial course as a non-credit course or a course for which credits earned
are not applicable to minimum credit requirements leading to a degree or
certificate.
���� Under the bill, the
information provided by public institutions of higher education would include:
���� (1) the total number of newly
admitted students enrolled at the institution during the academic year;
���� (2) the total number of newly
admitted students placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses; and
���� (3) any other information
deemed relevant by the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.
���� Additionally, for each newly
admitted student placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses, the
public institution of higher education would also include information on the:
���� (1) high school from which the
student graduated; and
���� (2) subject area or areas of remedial
education placement.
���� The bill also requires the
Secretary of Higher Education to annually compile the information received from
the public institutions of higher education into a report. The report is
required to include:
���� (1) the percentage of newly
admitted students placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses,
disaggregated by institution, subject area, and the high school from which the
students graduated;
���� (2) historical trend data; and
���� (3) any other information
deemed relevant by the secretary.
���� The bill requires the
secretary to annually publish the report required under the bill on the
Internet website of the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.
���� The bill provides that five
years following the first publication of the report, the secretary is required
to include in the report school districts for which the number of newly
admitted students enrolled in one or more remedial courses is significantly
greater than the five-year average. If the number of newly admitted students
enrolled in remedial courses in one year is greater than a school district�s most
recent five-year average by more than 33 percent, the secretary is required to
send the report to the State Auditor. If the average number of newly admitted
students enrolled in remedial courses in one year is greater than a school
district�s five-year average by more than 50 percent, the secretary is required
to send the report to the Department of Education, and the department is
required to include the information in the �school report cards,� which are now
referred to as the �school performance reports.�
���� This bill also requires the Commissioner
of Education, in accordance with federal law, to include the number of students
placed into or enrolled in one or more remedial courses at a public institution
of higher education if the average number of newly admitted students enrolled
in remedial courses in one year is greater than a school district�s five-year
average by more than 50 percent five-year average as an indicator for
integration into the summative scores calculated by the department for each
school and school district as part of the State�s accountability system
developed in accordance with the applicable provisions of the federal
Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, as amended by the federal
�Every Student Succeeds Act.�
���� Remedial courses are often a
significant barrier to college progress, adding time and cost to the pursuit of
a college degree. The Office of the Secretary of Higher Education reports that as
of Fall 2024, 4,477 or 12 percent of all first-time students in the State were
enrolled in at least one remedial course at a four-year institution of higher
education. The Office reported that first-time community college students are even
more likely to enroll in remedial courses, with 33.8 percent of community
college students in the State taking at least one remedial course. Remedial
courses do not generally count towards the minimum credits required to earn a
degree or certificate, but often cost the same amount as for-credit courses. As
a result, remedial courses increase overall tuition costs and student debt,
delaying graduation and hindering student success.