BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ķ



                                                                  AB 790
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 27, 2011

                           ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
                                Julia Brownley, Chair
                   AB 790 (Furutani) - As Amended:  March 31, 2011
           
          SUBJECT  :   Pupil instruction: Multiple Pathway Pilot Program

           SUMMARY  :   Establishes the Multiple Pathway Pilot Program (MPPP) 
          to be administered by the California Department of Education 
          (CDE) according to specified requirements for the purpose of 
          implementing district-wide multiple pathway learning approaches 
          in all participating school districts.  Specifically,  this bill  : 
            

          1)Requires the pilot program to be administered by the CDE and 
            to contain all of the following requirements:

             a)   Small-sized schools and smaller groupings of pupils 
               within new and existing high schools;
             b)   Rigorous multiple pathway programs of study that guide 
               pupils through course sequences leading to mastery of 
               standards, high school graduation, and transition to 
               postsecondary education or employment, including career 
               technical education (CTE) courses as defined by the 
               California State Plan for Career Technical Education;
             c)   Policies and agreements adopted by participating school 
               districts that promote concurrent enrollment and dual 
               credit with community colleges and universities;
             d)   Problem-based instructional methodologies, inquiry 
               learning approaches, and applied learning strategies within 
               all subject areas;
             e)   A requirement that pupil progress through high school is 
               determined by mastery of grade-level standards-based 
               performance benchmarks developed by the participating 
               school district;
             f)   Multiple pathway programs that are implemented by 
               participating school districts within the district's 
               existing state and local resources;
             g)   Involvement of local business, labor, parent, and 
               community partners to advise the district on the 
               development, implementation, and ongoing evaluation of the 
               pilot program;
             h)   Eligibility for waivers pursuant to this bill to more 
               efficiently operate and adapt to the needs of pupils and 








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               communities; and,
             i)   A requirement that participating school districts 
               receive priority for appropriate competitive grant funding 
               distributed by the CDE.

          2)Authorizes a school district that maintains grades 9 to 12, 
            inclusive, to apply to the Superintendent of Public 
            Instruction (SPI) to operate a pilot program, and authorizes 
            the SPI to develop regulations necessary to implement the 
            provisions of this bill.

          3)Requires CDE to review the applications and the SPI to 
            initially approve up to 20 applications, and additional 
            applications on an annual basis thereafter, and specifies that 
            the review and approval of applications shall be conducted on 
            a competitive basis and consideration shall be given to 
            factors related to the geographic diversity, type, and size of 
            a school district, and the extent to which a school district's 
            pilot program would receive financial and in-kind support from 
            the business and civic community or funding from government or 
            foundation grants.

          4)Requires on or before January 18, 2018, the SPI to transmit a 
            report to the Legislature and the Governor that documents an 
            independent evaluation of the costs and merits of the pilot 
            program, and contains the SPI's recommendations regarding the 
            need for additional statutory changes to facilitate the 
            statewide expansion of the MPPP.

          5)Authorizes the SPI, upon application of a school district and 
            for the operation of a multiple pathway program, to waive any 
            provisions of the Education Code other than those relating to 
            earthquake safety and the provisions of this bill.

           EXISTING LAW:
            
          1)Requires the SPI, in conjunction with specified parties, to 
            develop a report that explores the feasibility of establishing 
            and expanding additional multiple pathway programs in 
            California, including the costs and merits associated with 
            expansion of these programs, and states that multiple pathway 
            programs created for high schools may include, but are not 
            limited to, California partnership academies, regional 
            occupational centers and programs, charter schools, academies, 
            small learning communities, and other career-themed small 








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            schools.

          2)Defines "multiple pathway program" as all of the following:

             a)   A multiyear, comprehensive high school program of 
               integrated academic and technical study that is organized 
               around a broad theme, interest area, or industry sector, 
               including, but not necessarily limited to, the industry 
               sectors identified in the CTE model standards adopted by 
               the SBE;

             b)   A program that ensures that all pupils have curriculum 
               choices that will prepare them for career entry and a full 
               range of postsecondary options, including two- and 
               four-year college, apprenticeship, and formal employment 
               training; and, 

             c)   A program that is comprised, at a minimum, of the 
               following components:

               i)     An integrated core curriculum that meets the 
                 eligibility requirements for admission to the University 
                 of California (UC) and the California State University 
                 (CSU) and is delivered through project-based learning and 
                 other engaging instructional strategies;

               ii)    An integrated technical core of a sequence of at 
                 least four related courses, that may reflect CTE 
                 standards-based courses, that provide pupils with career 
                 skills, that are aligned to and underscore academic 
                 principles;

               iii)   A series of work-based learning opportunities that 
                 begin with mentoring and job shadowing and evolve into 
                 intensive internships, school-based enterprises, or 
                 virtual apprenticeships; and

               iv)    Support services, including supplemental instruction 
                 in reading and mathematics, that help pupils master the 
                 advanced academic and technical content that is necessary 
                 for success in college and career.

          3)Requires the multiple pathways report to meet all of the 
            specified elements and make recommendations on specific 
            issues.








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          4)Authorizes school districts to establish and maintain one or 
            more alternative schools within the district, defines 
            alternative school for this purpose, and authorizes the SPI, 
            for the operation of an alternative school, to waive any 
            provision of the Education Code, except as specified. 

           FISCAL EFFECT  :   Unknown 

           COMMENTS  :  Multiple pathway programs are high school programs 
          that seek to make core academic subjects more relevant and 
          engaging for pupils and are designed to provide access to 
          academic and technical study that is based on a broad theme or 
          an industry sector.  The idea behind multiple pathways is to 
          integrate career based themes and content across all academic 
          subject areas in order to give students the opportunity to 
          access both core academic content and CTE without having to 
          choose one over the other.  Multiple pathway programs are found 
          in several districts across the state in various forms; for 
          example some districts have implemented California Partnership 
          Academies (CPAs), small learning communities, or other 
          career-themed small schools.  In most cases, these programs are 
          found at one or a few schools in one particular district however 
          this bill seeks to encourage the implementation of these 
          programs in all high schools of the MPPP participating school 
          districts.   

          A previously enacted measure, AB 2648 (Bass, Carter & Furutani), 
          Chapter 681, Statutes of 2008, required the SPI to develop, in 
          conjunction with specified individuals, a report to explore the 
          feasibility of expanding and establishing career multiple 
          pathway programs.  According to the author, this bill "Is a 
          direct response to the Multiple Pathways to Student Success 
          report that the California Department of Education released in 
          2010, pursuant to AB 2648 - Chapter 681, Statutes of 2008."  The 
          author further states, "In particular, the multiple pathways 
          approach has been identified as one of the most promising models 
          for high school transformation.  Research has shown multiple 
          pathways-like programs have helped to turn around high school 
          achievement, graduation and job placement rates for high school 
          students matriculating through multiple pathways-like programs.  
          The pilot program established by AB 790 would build off that 
          success and resolve issues that make it challenging for multiple 
          pathways to thrive as a model of school improvement.  The intent 
          is for each pilot high school to operate within a construct of 








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          greater flexibility with existing programmatic and fiscal 
          resources."

          This bill establishes a multiple pathways pilot program for 
          purposes of implementing district-wide multiple pathway 
          approaches in participating school districts and specifies that 
          multiple pathway programs shall be implemented within the 
          participating district's existing state and local resources.  
          Additionally, this bill requires participating school districts 
          to receive priority for appropriate competitive grant funding 
          distributed by the CDE.  According to the sponsor of this bill, 
          the SPI, no specific source of funding has been identified, 
          however the sponsor states that the intent is not to seek new 
          funding for purposes of this bill.  Under the provisions of this 
          bill, participating school districts and any other district that 
          operates a multiple pathway program are eligible for Education 
          Code (EC) waivers by applying to the SPI to waive any provision 
          of the EC, except those related to earthquake safety.  

          The waiver provisions apply to districts other than just those 
          participating in the pilot program thus raising the question of 
          whether this policy may be too broad.  Allowing the SPI to waive 
          any provision of the EC, begs the question as to whether the 
          Legislature would be interested in relinquishing its authority 
          to the SPI relative to which laws particular school districts 
          would not have to abide by.  On the other hand, some may argue 
          that certain laws can make it prohibitive for districts to 
          implement multiple pathway programs, however no evidence has 
          been provided to demonstrate which specific provisions of the EC 
          are particularly problematic in implementing multiple pathway 
          programs.  Furthermore, it is important to note that multiple 
          pathway or similar programs have been operating successfully 
          throughout the state within existing laws.  For example, Laguna 
          Creek High School in Elk Grove has a very successful 
          Manufacturing Production Technology Academy; Health Professions 
          High School in Sacramento uses the theme of healthcare to 
          deliver instruction across subject areas; and the Stanley E. 
          Foster Construction Tech Academy at Kearny High Educational 
          Complex in San Diego provides students opportunities for 
          exploring careers in construction, architecture and engineering. 
           

          A process exists under current law, whereby a school district is 
          authorized to operate an alternative school and apply to the SPI 
          for a waiver of any provision of the EC for purposes of 








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          operating that alternative school.  Should this Committee be 
          interested in studying or exploring which provisions of the EC 
          make it prohibitive for districts to develop and implement 
          multiple pathway programs,  staff recommends  an amendment to 
          delete Section 3 of the bill, and instead authorize  only  MPPP 
          participating districts to be eligible for a waiver under the 
          existing SPI waiver provisions.  Since there is no additional 
          funding that participating districts would receive as part of 
          this pilot program, offering districts the opportunity to 
          receive EC waivers may provide an incentive for districts to 
          participate.  

           Reporting  :  This bill requires a report to be submitted to the 
          Legislature and the Governor that documents an independent 
          evaluation of the costs and merits of the pilot program.  The 
          bill has little specificity on what measures will be used to 
          assess and evaluate the effectiveness or success of multiple 
          pathway programs.   Staff recommends an amendment to specify that 
          at a minimum, the report shall include graduation and drop out 
          data, the number and percentage of participating pupils that are 
          eligible for admission to the University of California and 
          California State University and the number of students that are 
          employed upon high school graduation.  While there is some 
          research that support the role of multiple pathway programs in 
          high school reform efforts, there is limited data to demonstrate 
          actual outcomes of these programs.  This bill creates an 
          appropriate opportunity to collect data and demonstrate the 
          effectiveness of implementing district-wide multiple pathway 
          programs.  In addition to outcome data, this bill should require 
          the report to include information on the waivers that are 
          granted for this purpose and a description of how the waivers 
          facilitate the operation of multiple pathway programs.   This 
          can then provide the information necessary to assess and 
          evaluate what, if any, might be the statutory obstacles in 
          operating multiple pathway programs.  

           Additional technical amendments  :  The purpose of this pilot 
          program is to implement district-wide multiple pathway learning 
          approaches; however the bill does not define multiple pathway 
          program.  Since there is already an existing definition of 
          multiple pathways in the EC, staff recommends that the bill be 
          amended to insert a cross-reference to EC Section 52372.5, which 
          defines "multiple pathway programs."

          Arguments in support  :  The State Superintendent of Public 








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          Instruction, the sponsor of the bill, writes, " . . the multiple 
          pathways approach has been identified as one of the most 
          promising models for high school transformation.  However, we 
          have yet to fully capitalize on its potential.  While it is 
          unlikely the state will emerge from the current economic crisis, 
          and budget shortfalls in the near future, this should not 
          dissuade us from pursuing a promising model of secondary school 
          reform that can be built within existing program and fiscal 
          resources."

           Related legislation  :  AB 1330 (Furutani) adds career technical 
          education (CTE), as defined, as an option for pupils to fulfill 
          the existing high school graduation requirement to complete a 
          course in visual or performing arts or foreign language and 
          sunsets these provisions on January 1, 2017.  AB 1330 is pending 
          in this Committee.  

          AB 1304 (Block) authorizes the Commission on Teacher 
          Credentialing (CTC) to convene a workgroup to develop program 
          standards for the issuance of a recognition of study for linked 
          learning competence for holders of a single subject credential 
          that will be teaching pupils enrolled in linked learning 
          programs, defined as multiple pathway programs.  AB 1304 is 
          pending in this Committee. 

           Previous legislation  :  AB 2172 (Carter) of 2010 requires the SPI 
          to convene an advisory board that includes specified parties to 
          review the recommendations of a report required pursuant to 
          existing law, and advise the SPI on the implementation of those 
          recommendations.  AB 2172 was held in the Assembly 
          Appropriations Committee suspense file. 

          AB 2445(Furutani) of 2010 requires the SPI to report to the 
          Legislature, by December 31 of each year, on the status of the 
          advisory board that is established by AB 2172 (Carter) of the 
          2009-2010 legislative session, and makes several findings and 
          declarations relative to multiple pathway programs and the 
          enactment of AB 2648 (Bass, Carter, Furutani), Chapter 681, 
          Statutes of 2008.  AB 2445 was held in the Assembly 
          Appropriations Committee suspense file. 

          AB 2648 (Bass, Carter & Furutani), Chapter 681, Statutes of 
          2008, requires the SPI to develop, in conjunction with specified 
          individuals, a report that explores the feasibility of expanding 
          and establishing career multiple pathway programs.








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           REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION  :   

           Support 
           
          State Superintendent of Public Instruction (Co-sponsor)
          Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce  (Co-sponsor)
          California Association of Leaders for Career Preparation (If 
          amended)
          Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom 
          Silicon Valley Leadership Group

           Opposition 
           
          None on file. 
           
          Analysis Prepared by  :    Marisol Aviņa / ED. / (916) 319-2087