A bill to increase the possibilities for degrees and college credit in Indiana is on its way to the governor

Indianapolis, Indiana – A comprehensive higher education measure aimed at simplifying the process of earning college credits and degrees for students is currently its route to the governor of Indiana.

Sen. Jean Leising, a Republican from Oldenburg, is the sponsor of Senate Bill 8, which would make Indiana College Core courses more widely available to high school students throughout the state.

Additionally, it mandates that by July 2025, all Hoosier schools and universities—aside from Vincennes University and Ivy Tech Community College—offer three-year degree programs.

On Thursday, the House and Senate chambers approved the bill’s final version unanimously.

A since-deleted clause in the legislation, however, permits Indiana’s attorney general to bring legal action against state-run universities if they neglect to disclose any gifts or contracts of value with foreign “sources” that are situated in hostile nations like North Korea, China, Iran, or Russia. The wording was transferred to a different bill.

Through backdoor discussions, the Indiana Department of Education’s (IDOE) 2027 deadline to offer all College Core courses online was also lifted. Rather, the request was weakened in the final version of the bill, which permits the state education department to collaborate with a minimum of one university to offer those courses online by 2025.

One option for students to transfer easily is through the Indiana College Core, a block of 30 general education credits that are accepted at universities all around the state. Currently, 1,800 high school students receive the Indiana College Core each year through dual credit.