Title 6 — Education

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Forming Open and Robust University Minds (FORUM) Act”.

(1) The General Assembly finds that:(1) The First Amendment to the United States Constitution and the Arkansas Constitution protect the rights of free speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and freedom of association for all citizens;(2) The United States Supreme Cour…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Benefit” means the following:(A) Recognition;(B) Registration;(C) The use of facilities of a state-supported institution of higher education for meetings or speaking purposes;(D) The use of channels of communication; and(E) Funding sources that…

(1) Expressive activities protected under this subchapter consist of speech and other conduct protected by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, including without limitation:(1) Communicating through any lawful verbal, written, or electronic means;(2) Participati…

(a) An outdoor area of campus of a state-supported institution of higher education shall be deemed a public forum for members of the campus community. (b) State-supported institutions of higher education:(1) Shall not create free-speech zones or other designated outdoor areas of …

(1) A state-supported institution of higher education shall not deny a student organization any benefit or privilege available to any other student organization or otherwise discriminate against an organization based on the expression of the organization, including any requiremen…

(1) State-supported institutions of higher education shall:(1) Make public in their handbooks, on their websites, and through their orientation programs for students the policies, regulations, and expectations of students regarding free expression on campus consistent with this s…

(1) Each state-supported institution of higher education shall submit to the Governor and Legislative Council a report that details:(1) The course of action implemented to ensure compliance with the requirements of this subchapter by ninety (90) days after July 24, 2019; and(2) A…

(a) A person or student organization aggrieved by a violation of this subchapter may:(1) Bring an action against the state-supported institution of higher education and any other persons responsible for the violation and seek appropriate relief, including without limitation:(A) I…

(a) The State of Arkansas signifies and declares her assent to the grant of land and land scrip as authorized and contained in the Act of Congress entitled, “An act donating public lands to the several states and territories, which may provide colleges for the benefit of agricult…

A person or student organization is required to bring suit for violation of this subchapter not later than three (3) years after the day the cause of action accrues.

(a) The purpose of this section is to create incentives for more efficient management of the public higher education resources of the State of Arkansas by allowing public higher education institutions and their boards of trustees to merge or consolidate on a voluntary basis and t…

A.C.A. § 6-60-103Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Employee” means an individual who provides services or labor for wages or other remuneration for an institution of higher education;(2) “Institution of higher education” means a public or private institution that provides postsecondary education o…

(a) (1) Annually, the Division of Workforce Services shall prepare or contract with an entity to prepare an economic security report of employment and earning outcomes for degrees, diplomas, and certificates earned at state-supported institutions of higher education and state-sup…

(a) On and after November 3, 2015, the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board, in collaboration with all public university and community college presidents and chancellors or their designees, shall develop an action plan to address the prevention of unplanned pregnancies am…

(a) (1) The Division of Higher Education shall act as the disbursing entity for all funds for the Workforce Initiative Act of 2015.(2) The Division of Higher Education shall establish procedures for the request for proposals under subdivision (b)(2) of this section that shall:(A)…

(a) (1) After an audit report is presented to the governing board of the institution of higher education, the audit report and copies of any documents contained in the working papers related to the audit report are open to public inspection under the Freedom of Information Act of…

A.C.A. § 6-60-109Current through all legislation of the 2025 Regular Session.Arkansas Code of 1987 Annotated Official EditionCopyright © 2026 by the State of Arkansas All rights reserved

A state-supported institution of higher education shall fly the flag of the United States of America and the flag of the State of Arkansas on campus on all national and state holidays and at other times determined by the state-supported institution of higher education.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Protected activity” means an expression of free speech or freedom of the press as guaranteed by the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Arkansas Constitution, Article 2, § 6;(2) (A) “School-sponsored media” means any material …

(a) (1) Except as provided in § 6-60-1103, a student journalist has the right to engage in protected activities in school-sponsored media.(2) This right exists regardless of whether the school-sponsored media are:(A) Supported financially by the public institution of higher educa…

(1) The following types of expression by a student journalist are not protected activities under this subchapter:(1) School-sponsored media that are libelous, slanderous, or obscene, as defined by state law;(2) School-sponsored media that constitute an unwarranted invasion of pri…

(a) On and after November 3, 2017, the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board, in collaboration with all public university and community college presidents and chancellors or their designees, shall develop an action plan to address the prevention of sexual assault. (b) The …

(a) As used in this section, “institution of higher education” means an institution of higher education that is a:(1) State-supported two-year or four-year college or university; or(2) Private, nonprofit two-year or four-year college or university with its primary headquarters lo…

(a) The Division of Higher Education shall maintain a link to the website of each state-supported institution of higher education on the division's website. (b) To further enhance accountability and transparency at each state-supported institution of higher education, the followi…

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Chancellor” means a chief executive officer of a state-supported institution of higher education; and(2) “President” means an individual who is appointed or elected as the president of a state-supported institution of higher education. (1) “Chance…

(a) As used in this section, “institution of higher education” means a college or university that is a:(1) State-supported two-year or four-year college or university; or(2) Private, nonprofit two-year or four-year college or university that is eligible to receive Title IV federa…

(a) This section shall be known and may be cited as the “Star-Spangled Banner Act”. (b) The General Assembly finds that:(1) It is of the utmost importance that Arkansas youth learn the importance of the national anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner”;(2) The regular playing of “The S…

(a) By August 1, 2022, the Division of Higher Education, in collaboration with all public university and community college presidents and chancellors or their designees, shall develop an asynchronous module on the concepts of personal finance and macroeconomics. (b) The module sh…

(a) Beginning with the 2021-2022 school year, if a state-supported two-year or four-year institution of higher education issues identification cards or identification badges to enrolled students, the identification card or identification badge shall, in addition to basic student …

(a) As used in this section:(1) “Advanced Placement examination” means an examination administered through the Advanced Placement Program;(2) “CLEP examination” means an examination administered through the College Level Examination Program; and(3) “International Baccalaureate Di…

(a) An institution shall not:(1) Require an institutional employee to complete or participate in implicit bias training; or(2) Take adverse employment action against an institutional employee for the institutional employee's failure or refusal to complete or participate in implic…

This subchapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Transparency in Foreign Investment Act”.

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Confucius Institute” means a Confucius Institute operated by the Office of Chinese Language Council International, also known as the “Haban”, which is affiliated with the Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China;(2) “Contract” me…

(1) An institution shall not host:(1) A Confucius Institute; or(2) Any entity with an affiliation with:(A) The People's Republic of China;(B) The Chinese Communist Party; or(C) China's People's Liberation Army. (1) A Confucius Institute; or (2) Any entity with an affiliation with…

(a) An institution shall not accept a gift from a foreign source or enter into a contract with a foreign source if the institution believes that doing so would threaten:(1) The integrity of the institution's research, instruction, or operations;(2) The institution's intellectual …

(a) By July 31, 2021, and by July 31 of each year thereafter, each institution shall prepare a gifts and contracts disclosure report that includes the information required under § 6-60-1204 regarding gifts from foreign sources and contracts entered into with foreign sources. (b) …

(a) The Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board, in collaboration with all public university and community college presidents and chancellors or their designees, shall develop and adopt rules to require that:(1) An automated external defibrillator be placed in appropriate lo…

(a) The Division of Higher Education shall consult and collaborate with the Arkansas Drug Director within the Department of Human Services to implement requirements related to ensuring that each campus of each institution in the State of Arkansas, by January 1, 2024, has an opioi…

(a) As used in this section, “prohibited foreign party” means the same as defined in § 18-11-802. (b) An institution of higher education shall not participate in the following activities with a prohibited foreign party:(1) Conduct classified research;(2) Conduct agricultural rese…

(a) As used in this section, “career-related resources” includes without limitation information about:(1) Available career and technical training; and(2) Trade industries that provide employment opportunities. (1) Available career and technical training; and (2) Trade industries …

(a) The General Assembly finds that:(1) The state does not collect or report statewide data to examine the postsecondary outcomes for students with disabilities;(2) The lack of information on postsecondary outcomes for students with disabilities prevents the state from connecting…

(a) The state shall withhold funding for a state-supported institution of higher education that has a Confucius Institute or similar institute related to the People's Republic of China, including without limitation a Chinese cultural center. (b) (1) A state-supported institution …

A state-supported institution of higher education shall not invest in a Chinese company or a restricted investment product consistent with § 25-1-1501 et seq.

As used in this subchapter, “college” means a state-supported two-year or four-year institution of higher education.

(a) The Division of Higher Education shall collect and compile the following information without limitation on an annual basis:(1) The most in-demand jobs in the state, including without limitation the approximate starting salaries and education levels required for those jobs;(2)…

(a) The Division of Higher Education shall partner with the Ready for Life initiative to include information required under § 6-60-1302 in the Ready for Life searchable database, which shall include without limitation:(1) Approximate average annual cost;(2) Average graduation rat…

(1) The Department of Education shall publish and distribute to middle and high school students in the State of Arkansas on an annual basis a comparison, using the information collected under § 6-60-1302, that contains the following information without limitation:(1) The top fift…

The requirements of this subchapter shall be effective no later than July 1, 2022.