SB 1378 — Higher Education: Honorary Degrees (Illinois)
Status and Timeline
- Bill enacted by the Illinois General Assembly and signed by the Governor on May 19, 2025.
- Effective date: September 1, 2025.
- Introduced: January 29, 2025. Passed both chambers during spring 2025 legislative session.
Purpose / Intent
- To amend the Academic Degree Act to clarify who may award honorary degrees at public universities in Illinois by vesting that authority exclusively in the university’s board of trustees and removing any formal role for the university faculty in awarding honorary degrees.
Key Provisions
- Amends Section 3 of the Academic Degree Act (110 ILCS 1010/3).
- Retains the existing requirement that honorary degrees be clearly identified as honorary on any document or object that evidences the award.
- Adds a new, express provision: for a public university, only the board of trustees may award an honorary degree, and the university’s faculty shall have no role in the award of the honorary degree.
Who Is Affected
- All public universities subject to Illinois law (their boards of trustees).
- University faculty bodies (faculty senates, committees) — their formal participation in the honorary-degree award process is removed.
- Prospective honorary-degree recipients and institutional offices that administer commencement and awards processes will follow the revised authorization procedure.
Practical Effects and Considerations
- Centralizes final awarding authority with each public university board of trustees; existing practices that relied on faculty committees, faculty nomination or approval steps must be revised to reflect the statutory change.
- May require universities to update internal policies, bylaws, nomination forms, and communications around honorary-degree procedures prior to the effective date.
- Potential implications for shared-governance norms and customary faculty involvement in honorary recognitions, though the statute is limited to removing the faculty’s formal role in awarding honorary degrees (it does not otherwise regulate nominations or advisory input unless institutions adopt implementing policies).
Fiscal Impact
- No legislative fiscal note provided in the bill text; changes are procedural and likely to have minimal direct state fiscal effect. Administrative or policy-update costs would be borne by affected institutions.
Statutory Reference
- Academic Degree Act, 110 ILCS 1010, as amended (changes to Section 3).
