Texas Statutes
Subchapter B. Advancement, Placement, Credit, and Academic Achievement Record
Section 28.0253. Texas First Early High School Completion Program

Sec. 28.0253. TEXAS FIRST EARLY HIGH SCHOOL COMPLETION PROGRAM. (a) In this section:
(1) "Coordinating board" means the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
(2) "Eligible institution" means an institution of higher education that is designated as a research university or emerging research university under the coordinating board's accountability system.
(3) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning assigned by Section 61.003.
(4) "Program" means the Texas First Early High School Completion Program established under this section.
(b) The agency, in coordination with the coordinating board, shall establish the Texas First Early High School Completion Program to allow public high school students who demonstrate early readiness for college to graduate early from high school. The purpose of the program, in conjunction with the Texas First Scholarship Program established under Subchapter K-1, Chapter 56, is to promote efficiency in the state public education system and incentivize the enrollment of high performing students at eligible institutions.
(c) The coordinating board, in consultation with the agency and eligible institutions, shall by rule establish standards for use in the program regarding:
(1) the specific competencies that demonstrate a student's mastery of each subject area for which the coordinating board and the commissioner have adopted college readiness standards;
(2) the specific competencies that demonstrate a student's mastery of a language other than English; and
(3) acceptable assessments or other means by which a student may demonstrate the student's early readiness for college with respect to each subject area and the language described by Subdivision (2), subject to Subsection (d).
(d) The assessments or other means the coordinating board establishes under Subsection (c)(3) must be equivalent to the assessments or other means eligible institutions commonly use to place students at the institutions in courses that may be credited toward a degree requirement.
(e) A school district or open-enrollment charter school may issue a high school diploma to a student under the program if, using the standards established under Subsection (c), the student demonstrates mastery of and early readiness for college in each of the subject areas described by that subsection and in a language other than English, notwithstanding any other local or state requirements.
(f) A student who earns a high school diploma through the program is considered to have earned a distinguished level of achievement under the foundation high school program adopted under Section 28.025. The student is not guaranteed admission to any institution of higher education or to any academic program at an institution of higher education solely on the basis of having received the diploma through the program. The student may apply for admission to an institution of higher education for the first semester or other academic term after the semester or other academic term in which the student earns a diploma through the program.
(g) On a student's initial enrollment in high school in a grade level below grade 12 in a school district or open-enrollment charter school, the district or school shall provide to the student and the student's parent or guardian information regarding:
(1) the requirements to earn a high school diploma under the program; and
(2) the Texas First Scholarship Program established under Subchapter K-1, Chapter 56.
(h) The agency and the coordinating board shall jointly prepare and post on their respective Internet websites a publication that includes the information required to be provided under Subsection (g) in a form that enables a school district or open-enrollment charter school to reproduce the publication for distribution under that subsection.
Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 895 (H.B. 3), Sec. 32, eff. June 19, 2009.
Amended by:
Acts 2013, 83rd Leg., R.S., Ch. 211 (H.B. 5), Sec. 17(a), eff. June 10, 2013.
Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 962 (S.B. 1888), Sec. 1, eff. June 18, 2021.

Structure Texas Statutes

Texas Statutes

Education Code

Title 2 - Public Education

Subtitle F - Curriculum, Programs, and Services

Chapter 28 - Courses of Study; Advancement

Subchapter B. Advancement, Placement, Credit, and Academic Achievement Record

Section 28.021. Student Advancement

Section 28.0211. Accelerated Learning Committee; Accelerated Instruction; Modified Teacher Assignment

Section 28.0212. Junior High or Middle School Personal Graduation Plan

Section 28.02121. High School Personal Graduation Plan

Section 28.02122. Inclusion of Mental Health Professions in Health Science Career Information

Section 28.02123. Notification of Certain High School Graduation Requirements

Section 28.02124. Parental Option for Student Retention

Section 28.0213. Intensive Program of Instruction

Section 28.0214. Finality of Grade

Section 28.0216. District Grading Policy

Section 28.0217. Accelerated Instruction for High School Students

Section 28.022. Notice to Parent of Unsatisfactory Performance

Section 28.023. Credit by Examination

Section 28.024. Credit for Enrollment in Certain Academies

Section 28.025. High School Diploma and Certificate; Academic Achievement Record

Section 28.0251. High School Diploma for Certain Veterans

Section 28.0252. Computation of High School Grade Point Average

Section 28.0253. Texas First Early High School Completion Program

Section 28.0254. Posthumous High School Diploma for Certain Students

Section 28.02541. Diploma for Certain Students Who Entered Ninth Grade Before 2011-2012 School Year

Section 28.0255. Pilot Program: Three-Year High School Diploma Plan

Section 28.0256. Financial Aid Application Requirement for High School Graduation

Section 28.0258. High School Diploma Awarded on Basis of Individual Graduation Committee Review

Section 28.0259. School District Reporting Requirements for Students Graduating Based on Individual Graduation Committee Review Process

Section 28.02591. Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Reporting Requirements for Students Graduating Based on Individual Graduation Committee Review Process

Section 28.026. Notice of Requirements for Automatic College Admission and Financial Aid

Section 28.027. Applied Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Courses