The following paragraph has been added to the Policy Manual, Section 307, Regents' Testing Program:

Scores on other standardized tests as specified by the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academics and Fiscal Affairs may be used to fulfill Regents' Test requirements. Such scores must be from a national test administration and must indicate a very high probability (at least .95) of passing the Regents' Test. Tests used to fulfill the essay requirement must include an externally-graded writing sample.

The following Administrative Procedures for implementation of the new provision were added to Section 2.08.02 of the Academic Affairs Handbook.

Administrative Procedures

Passing the Regents' Test is defined as having passed both parts of the test by scoring at or above the minimum passing score specified for each part. Students will also be considered as having passed a part of the test if they achieve a score on another standardized test as specified by the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academics and Fiscal Affairs (effective summer semester, 2003 for students graduating from a USG institution in summer semester, 2003 or later). Such scores must be from a national test administration and must indicate a very high probability (at least .95) of passing a part of the Regents' Test. Tests used to fulfill the essay requirement must include an externally-graded writing sample. The following tests and scores are approved, and other tests will be considered as data become available:

Students with SAT- I Verbal scores of at least 510 or ACT Reading scores of at least 23 will be considered to have fulfilled the reading comprehension requirement of the Regents' Test and do not need to take the reading portion of the Regents' Test. Scores must be from a national administration of the SAT or ACT. (Scores from institutional SAT or residual ACT tests will not be acceptable for this purpose.) Students must be reported on SIRS (S415B) as having met the Regents' Test reading requirement through scores on the SAT or ACT.

Students with College Board Advanced Placement (AP) English Language and Composition or English Literature and Composition scores of at least 3, International Baccalaureate (IB) higher-level English scores of at least 4, or SAT II English Writing scores of at least 650 will be considered as having fulfilled the essay requirement of the Regents' Test and do not need to take the essay portion of the Regents' Test. (There is no implication that such students should be given any course credit or exemption in English. This remains an institutional matter.) Students must be reported on SIRS (S415A) as having met the Regents' Test essay requirement through AP, IB, or SAT II scores.