BILL ANALYSIS Ó ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1456| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ THIRD READING Bill No: SB 1456 Author: Lowenthal (D), et al. Amended: 4/26/12 Vote: 21 SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 9-0, 4/18/12 AYES: Lowenthal, Alquist, Blakeslee, Hancock, Huff, Liu, Price, Simitian, Vargas NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Vacancy SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-0, 5/24/12 AYES: Kehoe, Walters, Alquist, Dutton, Lieu, Price, Steinberg SUBJECT : Student Success Act of 2012 SOURCE : Board of Governors, California Community Colleges California Community Colleges Chancellors Office DIGEST : This bill establishes new requirements to be met by low-income students in order to receive a Board of Governor's fee waiver at the California Community Colleges (CCC), revises and recasts the Seymour-Campbell Matriculation Act of 1986 as the Seymour-Campbell Success Act of 2012, and establishes new requirements to be met in order for community college districts to receive matriculation funds. CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 2 ANALYSIS : Existing law requires the Board of Governors (BOG) to charge each student a $46 per unit per semester fee effective with the summer term of 2012. Existing law exempts certain students from the fee requirement including students enrolled in noncredit courses, California State University, and University of California students enrolled in remedial courses offered by the CCC, and students enrolled in credit contract education courses where the full cost of the course is paid by the contracting entity. Current law also authorizes an exemption from these fees for special part-time students. Existing law also requires a waiver of these fees for students meeting specified criteria which include; Students who meet specified income requirements. Students who are the dependent or surviving spouse of a National Guard member who die or was disabled as a result of their service. The surviving spouse or child of a deceased law enforcement or fire suppression personnel, as specified. The dependent of an individual killed on September 11, 2001, as specified. Existing law requires that the colleges make available a variety of "matriculation services" to students in order to ensure that students receive educational services necessary to optimize their opportunities for success. Matriculation requirements are only operative if funds are specifically appropriated for these purposes. This bill: 1.Establishes new requirements to be met by students in order to be eligible for a waiver of the community college per unit fee BOG fee waiver. Specifically this bill: CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 3 A. Requires a student to: (1) Meet academic and progress standards as defined by the BOG. (2) Demonstrate financial need, as specified. A. Requires the BOG, in consultation with students, faculty, and other key stakeholders to develop policies for determination of the conditions outlined in #1 and specifically directs that the BOG consider: (1) Minimum uniform academic performance and progress. (2) Criteria for reviewing extenuating circumstances and granting appeals. (3) A process for reestablishing fee waiver eligibility. A. Requires the BOG to establish a reasonable phased in implementation period for the policies outlined in (b) to: (1) Ensure that students are not unfairly impacted by the new requirements. (2) Provide students with adequate notification of requirements and information about support services. A. Deletes obsolete fee waiver requirements relative to students affected by Hurricane Katrina. 1.Renames and revises the Seymour-Campbell Matriculation Act of 1986 as the Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012 and changes the requirements to be met in order to receive matriculation funds. Specifically this bill: A. Revises the declaration of the Legislature's intent to provide students with resources and support to establish informed educational goals, optimize student's success in completing their goals/studies, recognize the shared responsibility of the institution CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 4 and student for success, and target state resources to provide critical student services and identify delivery mechanisms to reach a greater number of students. B. Redefines matriculation services and the purposes of the Act to be: (1) Increased student access and success by providing orientation, assessment and placement, counseling and education planning and academic intervention services. (2) Focus on entering students' transition into college with a priority toward serving students who enroll to earn degrees, career technical certificates, or transfer. (3) Target state resources on core matriculation services critical to increasing student ability to reach their educational goals. (4) Focus funding on core areas and leverage technology to more efficiently and effectively serve and provide a greater number of students with a solid foundation and opportunity for success in the community colleges. A. Expands the responsibilities to be met by students to include, but not be limited to: (1) Declaration of a program of study within a reasonable period, as defined by the BOG. (2) Maintenance of academic progress toward an educational goal and program of study as identified in the student's education plan. A. Establishes the institution's responsibility to include the provision of student services to support their academic success and ability to achieve their educational goals and to include, but not be limited to: CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 5 (1) Orientation services, as specified. (2) Administration of assessments that determine student competency in computational and language skills and readiness for college. (3) Counseling and education planning services A. Requires that funding for the Student Success and Support program to be targeted to fully implement orientation, assessment, counseling and advising, and education planning services, and to assist students in making informed decisions about educational goals, programs of study and the development of an education plan. B. Requires that districts and colleges use a system of common assessment, once adopted by the BOG, and authorizes districts and colleges to use supplemental measures for course placement. C. Using accountability metrics, as specified, requires participating districts to evaluate the effectiveness of their programs and services in helping students: (1) Define goals and declare programs of study. (2) Assess student needs and valid course placement. (3) Support successful completion of degree certificate or transfer objectives. A. Requires the BOG, in consultation with students, faculty, student services administrators, and other key stakeholders, to establish policies and processes (to be phased in over a reasonable period of time as determined by the BOG and in consideration of the resources available to provide core services to ensure students are not unfairly impacted by these requirements) for: (1) Requiring all nonexempt students to complete CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 6 orientation and assessment and to develop education plans. (2) Exempting students from participation in orientation, assessment testing, or required education planning services. (3) Requiring districts to adopt a student appeal process. A. Requires the BOG to develop a formula for allocating Student Success Act funds that considers, among other things, the number of students who receive orientation assessment, counseling and advising, and education planning services. B. Requires that a district that receives matriculation funds agree to implement these provisions, common assessment and the accountability scorecard. C. Authorizes the BOG to identify other non-instructional support services that can be funded under matriculation, if a district is able to fully implement in person or technology strategies for orientation, assessment, and education planning services. D. Requires the BOG to require participating colleges to develop a Student Success and Support Program plan that reflects, among other things: (1) A description of the college's process to identify students at risk for academic or progress probation and the plan for student interventions or services. (2) Coordination with college student equity plan to ensure identification of strategies to monitor and address equity issues and mitigate any disproportional impacts on student access and achievement. A. Makes the matriculation provisions of the bill CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 7 operative, beginning in 2012-13, contingent upon the specific appropriation of funds for these purposes. B. Repeals the requirements that the CCC maintain career resource and placement centers, programs to instruct staff/faculty on performance of matriculation services, orientation programs, as specified, and publicity programs. C. Requires the LAO to review and report to the Legislature by July 1, 2014. Comments Pursuant to SB 1143 (Liu), Chapter 409, Statutes of 2010, the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges created the Student Success Task Force (SSTF); 20 individuals (community college chief executive officers, faculty, students, researchers, staff and external stake holders) who spent a year researching, studying and debating the best methods to improve student outcomes at the community colleges. According to the SSTF report, which was unanimously adopted by the Board of Governors in January 2012, it was their goal to identify best practices for promoting student success and to develop statewide strategies to take these approaches to scale while ensuring that educational opportunity for historically underrepresented students would not just be maintained, but bolstered. The report noted that while a number of disturbing statistics around student completion reflect the challenges faced by the students they serve, they also clearly demonstrate the need for the system to recommit to finding new and better ways to serve its students. The SSTF efforts resulted in 22 specific recommendations and the report, per the requirements of the legislation, was presented to the Legislature at a joint informational hearing of the Assembly Higher Education Committee and the Senate Education Committee in February 2012. Implementation of these recommendations will be accomplished through regulatory changes, system-wide administrative policies, local best practices and legislation. CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 8 This bill contains statutory changes necessary for implementation of some of the recommendations of the SSTF. Similar study/findings . In February 2012, the Little Hoover Commission issued a report Serving Students, Serving California: Updating the California Community Colleges to Meet Evolving Demands. The report noted that the findings and conclusions of this study were consistent with many of the findings of the Student Success Task Force. Similar to this bill, the report called for, among other things, the implementation of a student success scorecard, establishing additional criteria for BOG fee waivers, and strengthening of support for entering students. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes SUPPORT : (Verified 5/24/12) Board of Governors, California Community Colleges (co-source) California Community Colleges Chancellor's Office (co-source) Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges Advancement Project Alliance for a Better Community Association of California Community College Administrators AVID Barrio Logan College Institute Bay Area Council California Communities United Institute California Competes California State Student Association California State University Chancellor, San Diego Community College District College Opportunity College Options Families in Schools Girls, Inc. of Orange County Greater Sacramento Urban League Hispanas Organized for Political Equality Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley Kern Community College Districts CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 9 Little Hoover Commission Long Beach Community College District Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce Los Angeles Community College District Los Rios Community College District MALDEF North Bay Leadership Council Orange County Business Council Parent Institute for Quality Education Progressive Christians Uniting Project Grad, Los Angeles Regional Economic Association Leaders Coalition Sacramento Urban League San Bernardino Community College District San Diego Chamber of Commerce San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation San Francisco Chamber of Commerce San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce Silicon Valley Leadership Group Southern California College Access Network State Center Community College District The Education Trust-West The Women's Foundation of California Valley Industry and Commerce Association Youth Policy Institute OPPOSITION : (Verified 5/24/12) California Federation of Teachers President, Gavilan College Faculty Association California Teachers Association California Community College Independents San Jose - Evergreen Community College District Board of Trustees Faculty Association of the California Community Colleges ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "The California Community College system is an accessible and affordable gateway to educational advancement for the 2.6 million students it serves. However, budget reductions over the years have led to many first-time students being turned away, existing students not getting the classes they need, and student support services, such as counseling, CONTINUED SB 1456 Page 10 assessment and orientation to be drastically cut. The result has been too many students not getting the guidance and courses they need to reach their goals of a degree, certificate, transfer or career advancement." ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION : Opponents believe that without mandated enforcement mechanisms to leverage available resources, SB 1456 will create a two-tier system of students: those with life, family and educational experiences that foster their movement through the existing cumbersome community college system vs. students who lack the necessary language, computer and mathematical skills necessary for college success. While the goal of the bill on the surface might free up the time of counselors and advisors to assist the student that is unprepared for college work, history tells us that this does not occur. Data from the Chancellor's office aptly demonstrates that even with additional funding (Partnership for Excellence), many local districts failed to hire additional counseling faculty. PQ:nl 5/25/12 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END **** CONTINUED