Higher Education Coordinating Board considers new GPA recommendations

AUSTIN -- Students taking pre-Advanced Placement and pre-International Baccalaureate classes may earn some extra points from colleges they're applying to.

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board is expected to consider a new list of recommendations from the higher education commissioner on Thursday that would allow state universities and colleges award a half point for students applying to college who have taken those advanced courses.

Board members are in the process of establishing a uniform system in which state colleges and universities determine high school grade point averages of students applying to those schools. A previous recommendation made by Commissioner of Higher Education Raymund Paredes did not provide a weighted scale for pre-AP and pre-IB courses.

Paredes said earlier that universities and colleges would not know how rigorous those courses were because the College Board and International Baccalaureate Organization, which run the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs, respectively, did not recognize those classes.

That proposal drew criticism from school districts across the state that said it would discourage freshmen and sophomores from taking challenging classes.

The new proposal still offers one extra point for AP, IB and dual enrollment courses for students who earn A's. B's and C's in those classes. But it will require all pre-AP courses to meet the Laying the Foundation or comparable standards and pre-IB courses to be a part of the IB program, according to the coordinating board.

A 15-member advisory committee made up of representatives from public education, higher education and workforce would be created to oversee how GPA is determined and whether schools are complying with the board's rules, according to the coordinating board.

If approved, the new recommendations will be available to the public for review and comments for a 30-day period before the board takes a final vote, according to the coordinating board.

--

Jennifer L. Berghom covers education and general assignments for The Monitor. She can be reached at (956) 683-4462.