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Board approves ASU Universal Learner Courses partnership after debate over course catalog and fees
Summary
Mesa Public Schools approved an agreement with Arizona State University to give students access to ASU’s Universal Learner Courses; board members asked for a curated district catalog, assurances about which classes would earn high‑school credit, and a follow‑up agreement to set lower flat fees for transcripted college credit.
The Mesa Public Schools Governing Board voted unanimously to approve a partnership agreement with Arizona State University that opens the district to ASU’s Universal Learner Courses (ULC), a set of online college‑level classes. The agreement was approved after board members questioned which ASU catalog items would be made available, how credits would align with Mesa course requirements and how fees would be handled.
What passed: The board approved an initial agreement that allows district staff to work with ASU to align ULC courses to Mesa’s course catalog and graduation pathways and to make them available to high school students for dual‑enrollment or early‑college credit. Under the agreement, students would initially pay a small registration fee (listed in staff materials as $25) to take a course; if the student later elects to transcript for college credit, the current transcript fee cited in the packet was $400 per course. Staff said they would bring a second agreement that would allow Mesa to prepay a block of transcriptable seats at a lower flat fee (for example, $250) and apply the district’s tiered student fee schedule for families who qualify for reduced fees.
Board concerns and clarifications: Several board members pressed staff to clarify three points before broad rollout: (1) which ASU courses the district would actually align to Mesa graduation requirements (staff said they will curate a district catalog and present it to the board before offering courses for transcripted credit); (2) whether certain theoretically oriented courses listed on ASU’s public ULC catalog (for example, intersectionality or advanced theory classes) would be embedded into Mesa high school offerings (staff said they would not bring ASU catalog courses into Mesa’s K‑12 course catalog unless explicitly aligned and approved by the district); and (3) whether students could earn both high school and college credit (staff confirmed that when a ULC course is formally aligned to Mesa’s catalog and meets dual‑enrollment requirements, students could elect to transcript it for college credit).
Public comment and context: Public commenters who addressed the item urged selective course choices and called for local staff involvement in course selection and alignment. Board members agreed to return the curated list of courses to the board before ASU‑transcripted options are made widely available.
Why it matters: The agreement creates another pathway for students to access college‑level coursework and potential early college credit outside traditional community college dual‑enrollment arrangements. The district will control which courses are curated for transcripted credit and will present a second, follow‑up agreement to set district payment terms and a tiered fee approach before wide implementation.
