Rep. Carpino Proposes Bill to Enhance Connecticut Community College Credit Transfers

HARTFORD – State Representative Christie Carpino (Cromwell/Portland) has introduced a bill to establish state-wide transfer and articulation agreements between the Connecticut Community College System and all public four year institutions in the State of Connecticut.

“In a time that we are acutely aware of rising education costs, the issue of difficult credit transfers is unacceptable. Neither the state nor the student should be financing duplicate course work. We need to do a better job of creating a seamless system,” explained Rep. Carpino. “This legislation seeks to create a solution where all stakeholders in Connecticut are privy to the credit acceptance policies. Although this should not require legislative involvement, it will be a win-win when a solution is created.”

The bill, House Bill 5739 – AN ACT CONCERNING THE CREATION OF GENERAL EDUCATION COURSES TO ALLOW FOR THE TRANSFER OF CREDITS BETWEEN PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION, will require the faculty and staff of the Connecticut Community Colleges, Connecticut State Universities, and University of Connecticut to develop transfer pathways to ensure the seamless transfer of community college credits. This will enable community college students to transfer more efficiently, thus guaranteeing that students are not paying twice to retake similar classes, and can graduate quicker with less debt.

Carpino was the Ranking Member of the bi-partisan Program Review and Investigations Committee when it documented the difficulties associated with credit and course transfers.

A study by John Mullane, a Counselor at Gateway Community College found that the University of Connecticut is rejecting over 20% of the credits from students transferring from the community college system. Students lost an average of 12 credits, delaying graduation by at least one semester and increasing the cost of attending college by $6,350 per transfer student, which translated to approximately $3 million in extra tuition and fees. Mullane has called on the state to address the problem, “Connecticut needs state-wide transfer and articulation agreements that guarantee seamless transfer to all public four-year institutions.”

The bill has been referred to the state legislature’s Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee. Over the coming weeks, the committee will consider several pieces of legislation including the credit transfer initiative.

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