Bill > S3621

Introduced Session

Except for certain egregious criminal offenses, this bill prohibits institutions of higher education and degree-granting proprietary institutions from using applications for admission that inquire about an applicant's criminal history. The bill exempts certain egregious offenses including, but not limited to, criminal homicide, human trafficking, kidnapping, sexual assault, and aggravated sexual assault. The provisions of the bill do not apply to an application for admission to law school. This bill also establishes a Universal College Application Development Task Force. The task force will consist of 24 members, including: the Secretary of Higher Education, the President of the New Jersey Presidents' Council, and the Commissioner of Education, or their designees; one member appointed by the President of the Senate, one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, one member appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and one member appointed by the Minority Leader of the General Assembly, all four of whom are members of the public with demonstrated knowledge and expertise in issues relating to the work of the task force; and 17 members appointed by the Governor, including one representative from each of the following: the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority; the New Jersey Council of County Colleges; the New Jersey Association of State Colleges and Universities; the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in New Jersey; the American Federation of Teachers; the New Jersey Association of School Administrators; the New Jersey Education Authority; the New Jersey School Boards Association; the New Jersey Counselor Association; the New Jersey Parent Teacher Association; the New Jersey Public Charter Schools Association; the New Jersey Principal and Supervisors Association; and one representative from each public research university. Under the bill, it will be the duty of the task force to develop a standard, universal application for admission to be used by each institution of higher education and degree-granting proprietary institution. The application will enable an applicant to apply to any public or independent institution of higher education and any degree-granting proprietary institution in the State. Except for the same egregious criminal offenses previously specified, this bill prohibits the application developed by the task force from having any questions related to, or any requests for information about, the criminal history, including the juvenile criminal history, of a prospective student. The bill provides that, in the event that a student elects to use the "Common Application" developed and administered by the not-for-profit membership organization, The Common Application, Inc., an institution may accept the application in lieu of the standard application developed by the task force provided that the common application does not have any question related to, or information requested about, the criminal history, including the juvenile criminal history, of a prospective student except as previously specified. Law schools are exempt from this requirement. If an institution denies an applicant admission based on the conviction of any of the egregious offenses previously specified, the institution is required to notify the applicant, who may appeal the decision to the entity that considers the institution's disciplinary matters. Under the bill, in the event that an institution accepts an applicant for admission, the institution is authorized to make inquiries relative to the criminal conviction history of the applicant for the purposes of offering supportive counseling services, and making decisions relative to a student's participation in campus life and determining if the institution will limit such participation. The bill provides that the institution may make such inquiries when obtaining secondary information, such as information pertaining to immunizations, financial aid, or housing. If an institution elects to make such inquiries, the institution is required to consider all of the following:· the nature and gravity of the criminal conduct and whether it bears a direct relationship to a particular aspect of a student's participation in campus life, including but not limited to, campus residency and campus activities;· the time that has passed since the occurrence of the criminal conduct;· the age of the student at the time of the conduct underlying the criminal conviction; and· any evidence of rehabilitation or good conduct produced by the student. According to the American Bar Association's standards and rules of procedure, a law school is only permitted to admit applicants who appear capable of satisfactorily completing its program of legal education and being admitted to the bar. Certain criminal convictions disqualify applicants from admittance to the bar.

Committee Categories

Joe Cryan (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee (on 09/19/2024)

Official Document