Relating to establishing the Applied Sciences Pathway program, the official text

H.B. No. 20

AN ACT

relating to establishing the Applied Sciences Pathway program.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 29, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 29.914 to read as follows:

Sec. 29.914. APPLIED SCIENCES PATHWAY PROGRAM. (a) In this

section:

(1) "Certificate program" and "institution of higher

education" have the meanings assigned by Section 61.003.

(2) "Program" means the Applied Sciences Pathway

program established under this section.

(b) The commissioner shall establish and administer the

Applied Sciences Pathway program to provide opportunities for

students to concurrently earn high school diplomas and certificates

from institutions of higher education.

(c) The commissioner shall approve for participation in the

program partnerships between school districts or open-enrollment

charter schools and institutions of higher education to provide

courses in a non-duplicative sequence of progressive achievement

that lead to:

(1) a high school diploma; and

(2) completion of a certificate program with a

successful job placement rate in high-wage, high-growth jobs in one

of the following industries:

(A) plumbing and pipe fitting;

(B) electrical;

(C) welding;

(D) sheet metal;

(E) carpentry;

(F) masonry;

(G) diesel and heavy equipment;

(H) aviation maintenance;

(I) heating, ventilation, and air conditioning;

(J) construction management and inspection;

(K) mechanical and aerospace engineering;

(L) industrial maintenance and processes;

(M) robotics and automation;

(N) information technology and cybersecurity;

(O) oil and gas exploration and production;

(P) refining and chemical processes;

(Q) transportation distribution and logistics;

(R) manufacturing and industrial technology;

(S) electronics technology; or

(T) automotive technology.

(c-1) Beginning with the 2027-2028 school year, the

commissioner may revise the industries approved for purposes of

Subsection (c)(2) once every five years to reflect current labor

market trends.

(d) A partnership participating in the program must:

(1) enable the school district or open-enrollment

charter school to provide at least one course of study described by

Subsection (c) through a partnership with an institution of higher

education under the program;

(2) provide for a course of study described by

Subsection (c) that enables a participating student in grade level

11 or 12 to concurrently:

(A) enroll in a certificate program described by

Subsection (c)(2) at the partnering institution of higher education

under which the student may receive instruction from an instructor

employed by the institution and any appropriate work-based learning

opportunities from the institution and earn:

(i) a level one or level two certificate, as

defined by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; or

(ii) a credential recognized as a

credential of value by Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board

rule and approved by the commissioner for purposes of the program;

and

(B) satisfy high school graduation requirements

and receive a high school diploma;

(3) require the partnering school district or

open-enrollment charter school to permit all district or school

students in grade level 11 or 12 to enroll in a course of study

provided under Subdivision (2);

(4) be governed by an institutional agreement between

the partnering school district or open-enrollment charter school

and institution of higher education that meets the requirements for

a dual credit partnership adopted by Texas Higher Education

Coordinating Board rule; and

(5) meet any other requirements established by

commissioner rule.

(e) Except as provided by Subsection (e-1), the

commissioner may approve the substitution of a credit in a subject

area required for high school graduation under Section 28.025 with

a credit in a career and technology education course provided by an

institution of higher education under the program that

substantially covers the essential knowledge and skills of the

course for which it is substituted. This subsection may not be

construed to limit the number of substituted credits a student may

earn while participating in the program.

(e-1) Before a student may earn substituted credit under

Subsection (e) for a secondary-level course in a subject described

by Section 28.025(b-1)(1), (2), (3), or (4), the student must

perform satisfactorily on each end-of-course assessment instrument

required for courses in the corresponding subject that precede the

course for which the student seeks substituted credit in the

district's prescribed course sequence.

(f) A career and technology education course authorized as a

substitute credit under Subsection (e) may not count:

(1) for more than one credit toward the student's high

school graduation requirements; or

(2) as a credit for more than one subject area.

(g) Time that a student spends participating in the program

is counted as part of the minimum number of instructional hours

required for a student to be considered a full-time student in

average daily attendance for purposes of Section 48.005.

(h) This section may not be construed to:

(1) prevent a student's participation in career and

technology education or dual credit courses before the student

begins participating in the program; or

(2) authorize the commissioner to require approval by

the commissioner for partnerships between school districts or

open-enrollment charter schools and institutions of higher

education for purposes other than the program, including

partnerships to provide dual credit courses.

(i) The commissioner shall adopt rules as necessary to

administer the program.

(j) This section expires September 1, 2031.

SECTION 2. This Act applies beginning with the 2025-2026

school year.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives

a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as

provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this

Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

______________________________
______________________________

President of the Senate
Speaker of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 20 was passed by the House on April

16, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 144, Nays 1, 1 present, not

voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.

No. 20 on May 30, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 134, Nays 0, 2

present, not voting.

______________________________

Chief Clerk of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 20 was passed by the Senate, with

amendments, on May 29, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays

0.

______________________________

Secretary of the Senate

APPROVED: __________________

Date

__________________

Governor