A bill could make transferring between Pennsylvania state schools easier, but critics say it could hurt the schools' curricular diversity.
The bill proposes a statewide agreement requiring publicly funded colleges and universities to accept credit transfers from all other state schools for core curriculum courses, such as general education or graduation requirements.
Because the bill would create a uniform definition of core courses, opponents have said the proposal could yield a problematic statewide core curriculum.
State Senator James Rhoades (R-Schuylkill), chairman of the Senate Education Committee, introduced the legislation in a public hearing March 22.
Tysen Kendig, Penn State University's spokesman, called the potential statewide curriculum unnecessary and unworkable.
"It may actually end up reducing the quality of education in the state to a lowest common denominator," he said.
Temple University spokesman Mark Eyerly agreed that the mention of a core curriculum will detract from the uniqueness of individual state schools.
"A statewide curriculum would ignore the different missions of Pennsylvania's colleges and universities," he wrote in an e-mail. "It is difficult to imagine a scenario where there is statewide consensus on what constitutes a core curriculum."
The bill's "unproven assumption" that transfer students suffer many lost credits conflicts with Penn State data showing that students typically lose only 3 or 4 credits when transferring to the university, Kendig said.
Furthermore, the agreements to accept transfer credits proposed by the bill are already prevalent among state schools, school officials said.
The Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, which includes 14 state institutions, holds agreements to accept transfer credits with many community colleges, system spokesman Kenn Marshall said.
Kendig added that Penn State maintains similar agreements with most public Pennsylvania institutions.
"The language of the bill makes it sound like we're not already making it easy for students to transfer," Kendig said.
Though they already foster agreements between schools, the system schools support the bill, Marshall said.
The schools are working with Rhoades and state Rep. Josh Shapiro (D-153) -- who has introduced similar legislation in the House of Representatives -- on the bill's language, Marshall said.
Professor Laura Pernam of Penn's Graduate School of Education said the bill likely reflects the rising cost of education. As more students begin at two-year schools, they want to maintain their relatively inexpensive credits when entering four-year schools, she said.
Perna also cited a trend toward ensuring accountability and comparability in higher education.
Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director for the American Association of College Registrars and Admissions Officers, said his organization tends to support such state-level legislation.
"They're all quality institutions, and the state has every right to attempt to promote and ease transfer of credit," Nassirian said.
The bill states that private colleges and universities can elect to participate.
