BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 461
Page A
Date of Hearing: August 17, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
SB 461 (Blakeslee) - As Amended: July 13, 2011
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:10-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable: No
SUMMARY
This bill requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction
(SPI) to issue a California high school equivalency certificate
to a person who meets existing eligibility and who is at least
17 years old, has accumulated fewer than 100 units of high
school credit, and has successfully completed the academic
program offered by a dropout recovery high school that provides
the pupil with all of the following:
1)Instruction aligned to state academic content standards.
2)The opportunity to complete the requirements for a high school
diploma.
3)At least one year of instruction followed by services related
to the academic program.
FISCAL EFFECT
GF administrative costs of at least $225,000 to SDE to implement
this measure. Costs are associated with staff to oversee the
development of a memorandum of understanding for the state to
participate in the GED Option Program and a subsequent
regulatory process to implement this program.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . Current law defines a "dropout recovery high school"
as one where 50% or more of its pupils have been designated as
dropouts pursuant to SDE.
According to the author, "California has a large number of
students who have either dropped out or are at risk of
SB 461
Page B
dropping out of high school. In the 2007-08 school year, 20.1
percent of California students dropped out of traditional high
schools.<1> For a variety of reasons, these students have not
succeeded in the traditional school setting. Charter schools
and other alternative completion schools are excellent
alternatives to help non-traditional and at-risk students
receive their high school diploma."
According to information provided by the author, the
California National Guard operates one charter school and one
community school for students who have dropped out or at risk
of dropping out of a traditional school. The schools are
located in San Luis Obispo and Orange counties respectively
and offer high school equivalency programs to pupils. Prior
to 2007, pupils at these schools were allowed to take the
General Education Development (GED) tests at age 17.
In 2008, the San Luis Obispo Unified School District changed
their GED policy to require students to take the GED at 17
years and 10 months. This policy change led to fewer students
taking the GED.
This bill requires the SPI to issue a high school equivalency
certificate to pupils enrolled in dropout recovery high
schools, like those operated by the California National Guard,
as specified.
2)GED Testing Service (GEDTS) prohibition on individuals
enrolled in high school from taking the GED . According to
information provided by SDE, GEDTS has a policy that states:
"Individuals may not be enrolled in an accredited high school,
including those accredited by regional accrediting bodies and
also those approved by the jurisdiction of the state
department or ministry of education."
GEDTS does provide a limited option to states for individuals
enrolled in high school to take the GED. The GED Option
Program, administered by GEDTS, requires schools/programs to
enter into a contract to comply with GED testing requirements.
Specifically, SDE would need to enter into a contract on
behalf of schools to participate in this program.
The GED Option Program was established to avoid creating
--------------------------
<1> California Department of Education Press Release, May 12,
2009 http://www.cde.ca.gov/nr/ne/yr09/yr09rel073.asp
SB 461
Page C
incentives for schools to track students who are performing
below grade level into a GED program rather than helping them
graduate via regular means. According to SDE, eleven states
currently participate in this program.
3)Existing law requires the SPI to provide a high school
equivalency certificate to any person who has not completed
high school and who meets all of the following requirements:
a) Is a resident of the state or is a member of the armed
services assigned to duty in this state.
b) Has passed a GED test approved by the State Board of
Education (SBE) and administered by a testing center
approved by the SDE, as specified.
c) Meets one of the following:
i) Is at least 18 years old.
ii) Would have graduated from high school had he or she
remained in school and followed the usual course of study
toward graduation.
iii) Is at least 17 years old, has accumulated fewer than
100 units of high school credit, and is confined to a
state or county hospital or to an institution maintained
by a state or county correctional agency.
This bill maintains existing requirements related to residency
and the type of GED test; it does, however, allow persons who
are at least 17 years old, with fewer than 100 unities of high
school credit, and enrolled at a dropout recovery high school
to receive a high school equivalency certificate, as
specified.
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081