BILL ANALYSIS
AB 37
Page 1
Date of Hearing: March 17, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Anthony Portantino, Chair
AB 37 (Furutani) - As Amended: March 10, 2009
SUBJECT : Public postsecondary education: honorary degrees.
SUMMARY : Requests the California State University (CSU) and
the California Community Colleges (CCC), and requests the
University of California (UC), to confer an honorary degree to
each person who was unable to continue and complete his or her
education at the public postsecondary educational institution in
which that person was enrolled as a result of federal Executive
Order 9066, which mandated the internment of Japanese Americans
in 1942.
EXISTING LAW establishes UC, CSU, and CCC as California's public
postsecondary education system and authorizes these institutions
to award various types of degrees.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Background : In 1942, President Franklin D.
Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9066, incarcerati ng
approximately 120,000 Americans of Japanese descent in detention
centers during World War II. The federal government issued an
official apology in 1988 and provided reparations to thousands
of Japanese Americans who were unconstitutionally in terned
during the war. A study originally published in 1949 (Robert
O'Brien, The College Nisei ) determined that 2,567 Japanese
American students were enrolled in higher education institutions
in California, including 729 at UC, 221 at CSU, and 1,245 at
CCC.
Purpose of this bill : The author seeks recognition for college
students who were forced to abandon their studies in 1942 as a
result of the federal government's illegal incarceration of
Japanese-American citizens, including those students who
returned to college and received diplomas. Since the bill does
not require recognition for the latter, staff suggests the
author clarify the bill to reflect this intent.
What is an honorary degree ? An honorary degree is an academic
degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding
AB 37
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institution) has waived the usual requirements (such as
matriculation, residence, study, and the passing of
examinations). The degree itself is typically a doctorate or,
less commonly, a master's degree and may be awarded to someone
who has no prior connection with the institution in question.
Often the degree is conferred as a way of honoring a
distinguished visitor's contributions to a specific field or to
society in general.
Honorary degree v. diploma or alumni status : The author has
chosen to require an honorary degree in place of a diploma or
alumni status because he believes that the higher recognition is
appropriate in light of the illegal government action that
halted these students' educational pursuits.
Should private institutions be included ? This bill is silent on
students who were enrolled in private colleges or universities
at the time of their internment. Should private institutions be
encouraged to recognize their students as well?
Recognition efforts : Several institutions in California and
other western states have recognized former students who were
unable to complete their studies as a result of Executive Order
9066 by awarding honorary degrees, diplomas, or honorary alumni
status. In 1992, UC Berkeley presented diplomas to surviving
students who graduated in spring 1942 but were not allowed to
return to campus to receive their diplomas. In 2008, the
University of Southern California extended honorary alumni
status to its former students who were unable to complete their
studies. San Francisco State University and Sierra College have
granted honorary degrees to their interned former students, as
have public universities in Oregon and Washington. Most
recently, UC established a task force to consider how best to
recognize its interned former students.
Previous legislation : AB 781 (Lieber), Chapter 130, Statutes of
2003, allowed school districts to grant high school diplomas
retroactively to Japanese Americans whose education was
disrupted because of their incarceration during World War II.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
AB 37
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California State Student Association
Community Works West
Japanese American Citizens League, Diablo Valley Chapter
Japanese American Citizens League, San Mateo Chapter
Japanese American Citizens League, Watsonville-Santa Cruz
Chapter
Japanese American Cultural and Community Center
Japanese American National Museum
Japanese Community Youth Council
Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California
Nisei Student Relocation Commemorative Fund
San Francisco Japanese American Citizens League
University of Southern California Asian Pacific Alumni
Association
Yu-Ai Kai/Japanese American Community Senior Service
Arlene Inouye, Individual
Lewis Kawahara, Individual
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960