Wis. Stat. § 36.31 — WI Code / Chapter 36 / Section 36.31
Coordination with other educational agencies; credit for military education.
Status: in_force

(1) The board shall not, without the approval of the technical college system board, broaden the system’s post-high school training mission to include the preparation of persons for semiprofessional or skilled-trade occupations beyond those offered during the 1972-73 academic year. The technical college system board shall not, without the approval of the board of regents, broaden its system’s collegiate transfer program offerings beyond those in existence during the 1972-73 academic year. In this section, “collegiate transfer program” has the meaning given in s. 38.01 (3) .

(2) The technical college system board, in agreement with the board may designate courses other than those covered under sub. (1) as transferable for collegiate credit between the 2 systems.

(2m)

(a) In this subsection:

1. “Association” means the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

2. “Core general education courses” means courses generally required for an undergraduate degree that are prerequisite or otherwise in addition to the courses required for an undergraduate degree in a specific course of study.

3. “Private college” means a private, nonprofit institution of higher education that is a member of the association.

4. “Program-to-program articulation agreement” means an agreement that articulates how the completion of requirements for a specified program of study at an educational institution transfers toward completion of requirements for a specified program of study at another educational institution.

(am)

1. Notwithstanding s. 36.09 (3) (a) , the Board of Regents and the technical college system board shall, and the governing boards of tribally controlled colleges in this state and the association, on behalf of private colleges, may, enter into an agreement to promote and support program-to-program articulation agreements that will apply to programs of study specified in the agreements between institutions of the system, technical colleges, and the tribally controlled colleges and private colleges that elect to participate in the agreement. The agreement shall identify and prioritize program-to-program articulation agreements in fields of study that are in high demand or included under program-to-program articulation agreements between institutions and technical colleges that are entered into before November 23, 2019.

2. No later than April 1, 2021, the Board of Regents and the technical college system board shall jointly submit a report on progress in complying with subd. 1. to the joint committee on finance and the appropriate standing committees of the legislature under s. 13.172 (3) .

(b) Notwithstanding s. 36.09 (3) (a) , the Board of Regents and the technical college system board shall, and the governing boards of tribally controlled colleges in this state and the association, on behalf of private colleges, may, enter into and implement an agreement that identifies an array of not less than 72 credits of core general education courses and establishes policies for ensuring that, beginning in the 2022-23 academic year, credits for completing the courses are transferable and would satisfy general education requirements at the receiving institution or college, between and within each institution and technical college, and each tribally controlled college and private college that elects to participate in the agreement.

(c) The Board of Regents and the technical college system board shall ensure that the governing bodies of tribally controlled colleges and the association, on behalf of private colleges, have an opportunity to elect to participate in the agreements specified in pars. (am) and (b) .

(d) Notwithstanding pars. (am) 1. and (b) , no agreement under this subsection may limit the transfer of credits for core general education courses between institutions within the system.

(4)

(am) Except as provided in par. (bm) , upon receiving from the federal department of defense a student’s official joint services transcript or Community College of the Air Force transcript, the institution or college campus in which the student is enrolled shall do the following:

1. Accept all American Council on Education credit recommendations included in the official joint services transcript and award academic credit to the student in accordance with these recommendations.

2. Accept all credits included in the Community College of the Air Force transcript and award academic credit to the student accordingly.

(bm) An institution or college campus may not award academic credit to a student under par. (am) for each course for which the student, upon consultation with the institution’s or college campus’s staff, objects to the awarding of credit for that course.

History: 1973 c. 335 ; 1977 c. 29 ; 1979 c. 34 ; 1991 a. 39 ; 1993 a. 399 ; 2013 a. 20 ; 2013 a. 168 s. 21 ; 2015 a. 55 ; 2017 a. 59 ; 2019 a. 46 , 147 ; 2025 a. 15 .