Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Arkansas General Assembly, fetched 2026-07-23. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. The official bill page.
Stricken language would be deleted from and underlined language would be added to present law.
1 State of Arkansas As Engrossed: H3/19/25 H3/31/25
2 95th General Assembly
A Bill
3 Regular Session, 2025 HOUSE BILL 1696
4
5 By: Representative McAlindon
6 By: Senator J. Dotson
7
8 For An Act To Be Entitled
9 AN ACT TO AMEND THE LAW REGARDING HIGHER EDUCATION;
10 TO ESTABLISH THE STRENGTHENING ARKANSAS EDUCATION
11 ACT; TO PROVIDE A CORE CURRICULUM AT STATE-SUPPORTED
12 INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION; AND FOR OTHER
13 PURPOSES.
14
15
16 Subtitle
17 TO ESTABLISH THE STRENGTHENING ARKANSAS
18 EDUCATION ACT; AND TO PROVIDE A CORE
19 CURRICULUM AT STATE-SUPPORTED
20 INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION.
21
22 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS:
23
24 SECTION 1. DO NOT CODIFY. Title -- Legislative intent.
25 (a) This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Strengthening
26 Arkansas Education Act".
27 (b) It is the intent of the General Assembly:
28 (1) That undergraduate students in state-supported institutions
29 of higher education acquire knowledge and skills that enable the students to
30 contribute to their state and country as informed, self-reliant, and civic-
31 minded citizens;
32 (2) To implement a fully transferrable core curriculum for
33 state-supported colleges and universities that ensures a general education
34 that provides students in Arkansas with a shared knowledge of the history,
35 ideals, and institutions of America, along with a proper introduction to
36 logic, reasoning, and communications;
*CRH109* 03-31-2025 12:07:28 CRH109
As Engrossed: H3/19/25 H3/31/25 HB1696
1 (3) To ensure that general education survey courses provide
2 students with a broad understanding of a subject's core ideas, theories, and
3 history, fulfilling breadth requirements and fostering a well-rounded
4 education;
5 (4) That the requisite core curriculum in this act serve as a
6 basis for a minimum general education core curriculum established by the
7 Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board for state-supported institutions
8 of higher education; and
9 (5) To promote a coordinated system of higher education in Arkansas
10 and to assure an orderly and effective development of each of the state-
11 supported institutions of higher education.
12
13 SECTION 2. Arkansas Code � 6-41-704(2), concerning the exemption under
14 the Building Better Futures Program from the state minimum core curriculum,
15 is repealed.
16 (2) Be exempt from the higher education state minimum core curriculum
17 as determined by the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board under � 6-
18 61-218;
19
20 SECTION 3. Arkansas Code � 6-41-804(2), concerning the exemption under
21 the Building Better Futures High School Program from the state minimum core
22 curriculum, is repealed.
23 (2) Be exempt from the higher education state minimum core curriculum
24 as determined by the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board under � 6-
25 61-218;
26
27 SECTION 4. Arkansas Code � 6-61-105 is repealed.
28 6-61-105. Course in American history or civil government required.
29 (a) A state-supported institution of higher education shall not grant
30 to any student a baccalaureate degree unless he or she has passed a course in
31 American history or civil government, including:
32 (1) Instruction in the essentials of the United States
33 Constitution; and
34 (2) The study of American institutions and ideals.
35 (b) The Division of Higher Education shall see to the strict carrying
36 out of this section and may take such steps and measures as may be necessary
2 03-31-2025 12:07:28 CRH109
As Engrossed: H3/19/25 H3/31/25 HB1696
1 to effectuate its provisions.
2
3 SECTION 5. Arkansas Code Title 6, Chapter 61, Subchapter 1, is amended
4 to add an additional section to read as follows:
5 6-61-144. Arkansas Requisite Core Curriculum -- Definitions.
6 (a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the "Arkansas
7 Requisite Core Curriculum".
8 (b) As used in this section:
9 (1) "Minimum general education core curriculum means" the
10 minimum general education core curriculum requirements for associate and
11 baccalaureate degree programs at state-supported institutions of higher
12 education;
13 (2) "Requisite core curriculum" means the fifteen (15) semester
14 credit hours of introductory survey courses as determined by the Division of
15 Higher Education;
16 (3) "State-supported institution of higher education" means a
17 public postsecondary institution or a department in a public postsecondary
18 institution that:
19 (A) Provides:
20 (i) An eligible program of training to prepare a
21 student for gainful employment in a recognized occupation; or
22 (ii) A program leading to an associate degree or a
23 baccalaureate degree; and
24 (B) Is accredited by a recognized accrediting agency or
25 association and has continuously held the accreditation for the number of
26 years required by the division.
27 (c)(1) Beginning with the entering class of fall 2027, the division,
28 in consultation with the state-supported institutions of higher education,
29 shall establish a minimum general education core curriculum that shall:
30 (A) Include the requisite core curriculum; and
31 (B) Apply toward the minimum requirements for associate
32 and baccalaureate degrees at the state-supported institutions of higher
33 education.
34 (2) The general education core curriculum shall be fully
35 transferable among all state-supported institutions of higher education.
36 completed the minimum general education core curriculum as determined by the
3 03-31-2025 12:07:28 CRH109
As Engrossed: H3/19/25 H3/31/25 HB1696
1 division.
2 (d) The requisite core curriculum shall include the following fifteen
3 (15) semester credit hours of introductory survey courses:
4 (1) Two (2) three-semester credit hours of oral or written
5 communication designed to develop the ability to organize ideas and to
6 communicate, with clarity, precision, and syntactical maturity;
7 (2) A three-semester credit hour course that cultivates critical
8 thinking, problem-solving, and logical reasoning skills; and
9 (3) A three-semester credit hour course in American history and
10 a three-semester credit hour course in American government, including:
11 (A) Instruction in the essentials of the United States
12 Constitution; and
13 (B) The study of American institutions and ideals.
14 (e) To ensure compliance with this section, the division may establish
15 reporting requirements for state-supported institutions of higher education
16 detailing implementation of the requisite core curriculum.
17 (f) In determining whether a course meets the general education core
18 curriculum requirements, the division may:
19 (1) Exempt Applied Science degrees;
20 (2) Grant credit hour equivalency for competency-based and
21 proficiency-based baccalaureate degree programs; and
22 (3) Allow for substitution of advanced coursework with specified
23 majors, with the exception that American Government and American History are
24 required for every student.
25 (g) The division may promulgate rules to implement this section.
26
27 SECTION 6. Arkansas Code � 6-61-218 is repealed.
28 6-61-218. Minimum college core -- Transferability.
29 To promote a coordinated system of higher education in Arkansas and to
30 assure an orderly and effective development of each of the state-supported
31 institutions of higher education, the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating
32 Board shall establish in consultation with state-supported institutions of
33 higher education a minimum core of courses which shall apply toward the
34 general education core curriculum requirements for associate and
35 baccalaureate degrees at state-supported institutions of higher education and
36 which shall be fully transferable among all state-supported institutions of
4 03-31-2025 12:07:28 CRH109
As Engrossed: H3/19/25 H3/31/25 HB1696
1 higher education.
2
3 SECTION 7. Arkansas Code � 6-61-231(a)(4)(A), concerning the
4 definition of "state minimum core curriculum" related to statewide transfer
5 agreements, is amended to read as follows:
6 (4)(A) "State minimum core curriculum" means sixty (60) semester
7 hours of lower-division coursework that include the thirty-five-hour general
8 education core, major program prerequisites, and elective requirements that
9 satisfy the requirements of an associate of arts degree, an associate of
10 science degree, an associate of arts in teaching degree, and selected
11 baccalaureate degrees at all public institutions of higher education as
12 determined by the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
13
14 /s/McAlindon
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
5 03-31-2025 12:07:28 CRH109Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.