Gov. Sanders announces ACCESS higher ed details, seeks to remove DEI metrics

Gov. Sarah Sanders unveiled details of her Arkansas ACCESS higher education reform plan on Friday (Feb. 14). The roughly 110-page bill, sponsored by Sen. Jonathan Dismang, R-Searcy, and Rep. Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, is expected to be filed Feb. 17.

The acronym ACCESS stands for acceleration, common sense, cost, eligibility, scholarships and standardization. Sanders said higher education reform is her top priority this legislative session. She said she wants to reduce the system’s complexity so both high school seniors and middle-aged moms can access a college education.

“We all see the same issues,” she said. “The system has become too complicated, too woke, and far too often doesn’t fully prepare students for the jobs of the future. ACCESS will fix that.”

The cost component includes creating a funding model for non-degree credentials provided by colleges and universities. The bill also would fund concurrent credits for high school students using state foundation funding, and it would take into account the funding’s return on investment.

Sanders said the changes would support different educational pathways tailored to the needs of students.

“For far too long, we’ve told the lie that the only way to be successful is to graduate college with a four-year degree straight out of high school,” she said. “When I sign ACCESS, we will tell Arkansans the truth. Everyone is unique, and everyone’s education journey should be too.”

Sanders said ACCESS should be funded through repurposing existing funds, and she doesn’t expect to devote any additional general revenue funding to higher education.

She said the legislation would end the use of diversity/equity/inclusion (DEI) metics in accreditation standards and would prohibit professors from indoctrinating students with forced statements in support of DEI and other beliefs held by the professor. Secretary of Education Jacob Oliva said there was anecdotal evidence of students being compelled to adopt a certain belief and of being graded differently based on their answers to test questions.

Shepherd said professors should encourage issues to be debated and discussed, but students shouldn’t be compelled to affirm certain ideas. He said the bill will deal with different types of indoctrination, including conservative indoctrination, “even-handedly” and noted that the section dealing with that subject comprised only about 5 to 6 pages of the 110-page bill.

Other elements of the bill would prevent campuses from granting excused absences for student protests and other disruptive behavior. Students would be required to pay for damages they have caused by vandalizing school property before they can receive their degree. Professors’ work evaluations would be considered in tenure reviews. The bill would allow for “Purple Star Campus” designations for higher education institutions that support service members and military families.

As part of the scholarship component, ACCESS would increase the first year-funding for Academic Challenge scholarships funded by the state lottery from $1,000 to $2,000. Sanders noted that her dad, former Gov. Mike Huckabee, started that program, and she received one of the scholarships when she was a student.

Other elements of the scholarship component would:
• Establish scholarships for students graduating with merit or distinction;
• Expand Workforce Challenge scholarship opportunities;
• Establish a Governor’s Higher Ed Transition Scholarship Program for disabled students; and
• Establish the Arkansas Heroes Scholarship for Medal of Honor and Purple Heart recipients.

Oliva tied ACCESS to Sanders’ LEARNS Act, passed in 2023, that made many changes to the state’s K-12 education system. He said that while LEARNS made the system seamless, barriers remain to students transitioning to enrollment in higher education, employment, or enlistment in the military.

The acceleration component focuses on high schools. The legislation would:
• Broaden high school accelerated coursework opportunities;
• Standardize weights for concurrent credit, Advanced Placement, and International;
• Baccalaureate courses to encourage student participation;
• Create a system of grading school districts in addition to the current system of grading individual schools; and
• Shorten waivers from five years to one year for K-12 schools that are noncompliant in areas such as teacher licensing and class size.

The eligibility component would create more uniform and efficient admissions policies by:
• Expanding the types of eligible admission exams for higher education applicants;
• Granting provisional admission to students meeting baseline requirements;
• Creating one statewide college application for all public colleges and universities; and
• Offer in-state tuition for Arkansas military families.

The standardization component would:
• Standardize course numbering across all state-supported higher education institutions; and
• Increase the number of general education and career and technical education courses in the Arkansas Course Transfer System.

In a press release from the governor’s office, Jay Silveria, president of the University of Arkansas System, said, “We understand our obligation to provide the state with a strong return on its investment in our programs. Governor Sanders and her team have approached Arkansas ACCESS with a spirit of open dialogue, and we are looking forward to continuing that conversation as the bill makes its way through the legislative process.”

Dr. Brendan Kelly, president of the Arkansas State University System, said in that same press release, “The governor took time to personally engage with our system leadership about her vision for higher education. The Arkansas State University System is more interested in the future of higher education than in the way we’ve always done things. We look forward to advancing the conversation about deploying and implementing initiatives that result in positive outcomes and returns on investment for Arkansas.”