BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 515
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Date of Hearing: April 12, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION
Marty Block, Chair
AB 515 (Brownley) - As Amended: April 5, 2011
SUBJECT : Public postsecondary education: community colleges:
extension program.
SUMMARY : Authorizes California Community College (CCC)
districts to implement extension programs offering credit
courses without the approval of the CCC Board of Governors.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes the governing board of any CCC district to
establish and maintain an extension program offering credit
courses without the approval of the CCC Board of Governors
(BOG).
2)Requires an extension program to meet the following
requirements:
a) Self-supporting, and all costs associated with the
program must be recovered;
b) Open to the public;
c) Developed in conformance with the Education Code and
Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations governing CCC
credit courses; and,
d) Subject to collective bargaining agreements.
3)Prohibits CCC district governing boards from expending General
Fund moneys to establish and maintain extension courses.
4)Prohibits credit extension courses from supplanting courses
funded with state apportionments or reducing state-funded
course sections needed by students to achieve basic skills,
workforce training, or transfer goals, with the intent of
reestablishing those course sections as part of the extension
program, and requires CCC district governing boards to
annually certify compliance with these requirements by board
action taken at a regular session of the district governing
board.
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5)Allows CCC district governing boards to charge students
enrolled in extension classes a fee not to exceed the cost of
maintaining extension courses, which shall include the actual
cost of instruction, the cost of necessary equipment and
supplies, student services and institutional support costs,
and other costs of the district used in calculating the costs
of education for nonresident students.
6)Requires degree credit courses offered as extension courses to
meet all of the requirements in subdivision (a) of Section
55002 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations, as
specified, which governs the development and approval of new
curriculum for CCC credit courses.
7)Requires each CCC district maintaining an extension program to
do the following:
a) Collect and keep records that measure student
participation, student demographics, and student outcomes
in a manner consistent with measures collected by CCC
districts in regular credit programs supported through
state apportionment, including an analysis of program
effects, if any, on district workload and district
financial status.
b) Submit this information to the CCC Chancellor's office
by October 1 of each year for each participating college.
8)Requires the CCC Chancellor to submit all CCC district
information to the Legislative Analyst by November 1 of each
year.
9)Requires the Legislative Analyst to submit to the Legislature,
by January 1, 2015, a written report that includes a summary
of the information provided to the CCC Chancellor, an
assessment of the extent to which CCC extension programs are
operated in a manner consistent with the provisions of this
bill, and suggestions to the Legislature for needed statutory
improvements.
10)Sunsets and repeals these provisions on January 1, 2019,
unless a later-enacted statute deletes or extends that date.
EXISTING LAW :
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1)Authorizes CCC districts, without the approval of the CCC BOG,
to operate fee-based community service not-for-credit classes
in civic, vocational, literacy, health, homemaking, technical,
and general education, as specified. CCC districts may not
receive General Funds to support these programs.
2)Authorizes CCC districts to establish fee-based contract
education programs by agreement with any public or private
agency, corporation, association, or any other person or body,
to provide specific educational programs or training to meet
the specific needs of these bodies. CCC districts may not
receive General Funds to support these programs, and the
programs are not open to the public.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : Background . CCCs offer four basic types of
instruction, including credit, noncredit, community service, and
contract education. Noncredit, community service, and contract
education courses do not generate maximum apportionment for CCC
districts as do credit courses. Title 5 of the California Code
of Regulations provides a framework for the development and
approval of new curriculum at any CCC district or college, and
no course can be offered without thorough local review.
Need for the bill . According to the author, through extension
programs CCC could expand course offerings to meet local
workforce needs at no additional cost to the state, provide
additional credit courses to meet student demand, more fully
utilize facilities, and provide greater access to CCC courses
because they could be offered closer to home and work.
Budget cuts and course reductions . Ongoing budget shortfalls
and the economic downturn have combined to increase CCC
enrollment as the state has reduced CCC's budget, resulting in
greater student demand for CCC courses than the system can
accommodate. Consequently, according to CCC Chancellor Jack
Scott, approximately 140,000 students have effectively been
denied CCC access, over 95% of all classes are at capacity, and
an estimated 10,000-15,000 students are on wait lists for
courses. A proposed $400 million reduction in the Governor's
2011-12 Budget will likely result in more course reductions,
closing the doors to an anticipated 350,000 students. In recent
years the Legislature has directed CCC to prioritize transfer,
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basic skills, and career technical education courses in
implementing budget reductions.
What courses will be offered ? According to sponsors, Santa
Clarita Community College District and Santa Monica Community
College District, CCC extension programs would typically operate
in parallel with State-funded programs, either as separate
sections offered during the spring or fall semester or quarter,
or possibly as separate sessions during winter or summer. The
sponsors also indicate that they would offer workforce training
and degree programs that are currently available primarily at
for-profit institutions at a higher cost than CCCs would charge.
Financial aid . If the same programs were offered through
extension as those offered through the State-supported program,
students would likely be eligible for federal aid. According to
the California Student Aid Commission, if the U.S. Department of
Education deems extension courses eligible for federal aid, they
would be eligible for Cal Grant awards, as well. However,
extension courses would not be eligible for the BOG Fee Waiver.
The author may wish to consider explicitly authorizing Cal Grant
eligibility for extension programs.
Applicability of existing statutes, regulations, and collective
bargaining agreements . Existing collective bargaining
agreements and the 75/25 full-time to part-time faculty ratio
should apply to extension programs because faculty would be
teaching credit courses. However, the 50% law, which requires
at least 50% of state expenditures to be spent on instruction,
would not.
Related legislation . AB 1029 (Lara), pending in this Committee,
would extend by one year the sunset date on AB 1943 (Nava),
Chapter 817, Statutes of 2006, which deleted the requirement
that the CCC Board of Governors approve stand-alone credit
courses offered by CCCs and authorized CCC districts to offer
stand-alone credit courses that are not part of an educational
program without prior approval by the CCC Board of Governors.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
College of the Canyons
Santa Monica College
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Opposition
California Federation of Teachers
Faculty Association of the California Community Colleges
Analysis Prepared by : Sandra Fried / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960