BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 440
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Date of Hearing: August 14, 2013
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Mike Gatto, Chair
SB 440 (Padilla) - As Amended: August 5, 2013
Policy Committee: Higher
EducationVote:11-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill establishes deadlines for California Community
Colleges (CCC) to establish associate degrees for transfer,
pursuant to the Student Transfer Achievement Reform (STAR) Act
of 2010, requires the California State University (CSU) to
accept these degrees, and requires CCC and CSU to take actions
to increase student awareness of the transfer degree option.
Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires associate degrees for transfer to meet the
requirements of an approved transfer model curriculum (TMC).
2)Requires every community college:
a) Before the 2015-16 academic year, to create a
TMC-aligned associate degree for transfer in every major
and every area of emphasis offered by that college for
which a TMC was approved before the 2013-14 academic year.
b) To create a TMC-aligned associate degree for transfer in
every major and every area of emphasis offered by that
college for which a TMC is approved subsequent to the
2013-14 academic year within 18 months following approval.
3)Requires the development of at least two TMCs in areas of
emphasis before 2015-16 and at least two additional TMCs in
areas of emphasis before 2016-17.
4)Requires CSU, in guaranteeing admission with junior status to
any CCC student meeting associate degree for transfer
requirements, to provide admission to a program or major or
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"concentration" (area of specialization within a major degree
program) that is either:
a) Similar to the student's associate degree for transfer,
as determined by the CSU campus, or
b) May be completed with 60 units, with the completion
ability to be determined by the CSU campus.
5)Requires every CSU campus to accept associate degrees for
transfer in every major and concentration offered by that
campus, and to make every effort to accept these degrees in
every CSU concentration.
6)Requires CCC and CSU to develop an outreach program, including
specified actions, to increase the visibility of the associate
degree for transfer pathway.
FISCAL EFFECT
1)One-time GF (Prop 98) costs of $100,000 and GF costs of
$40,000 for CCC and CSU faculty, respectively, to create four
TMCs in areas of emphasis.
2)One-time costs for all community college districts and
campuses to implement outreach efforts would be significant on
a statewide basis. Since these activities are to be part of
the strategy to be developed per (6) above, implementation by
districts is not compulsory and is thus not a reimbursable
state mandate. Some of the listed activities that would be
part of the strategy, such as prominently displaying
information about the program in counseling offices, transfer
centers, course catalogs, and websites, if not already
accomplished, should entail minor costs. Other
activities-outreach to high schools, incorporating pathway
information into development of first-year students'
educational plans, and targeted outreach through campus
orientations and student support services programs-could
entail planning and start-up costs. Assuming all districts
participate in these activities and have costs ranging from
$2,500 to $5,000 per campus, statewide costs would be $280,000
to $560,000, and would come out of base district budgets.
3)The bill also calls for CSU and the CCC, in consultation with
stakeholders, to develop a student-centered communication and
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marketing strategy. It is not clear how this effort relates to
the mandated, campus-specific activities, but to the extent
the strategy would involve, for example, media communications
on statewide or regional level, additional costs for these
activities could be significant.
4)The bill mandates that community colleges develop TMC-aligned
associate degrees for transfer within specific timeframes
following approval of the TMC. Such curricula- and
degree-development efforts are part of the normal duties of
faculty, and the timelines specified seem adequate. Therefore,
this requirement should not entail additional costs, except to
the extent that meeting the mandate would require additional
release time for faculty beyond that normally anticipated by
the colleges.
COMMENTS
1)Background . SB 1440 (Padilla)/Chapter 428 of 2010, established
the STAR Act, which required CCC to develop two-year (60-unit)
associate degrees for transfer, which deem the student
eligible for transfer into CSU. These degrees are required to
include a minimum of 18 units in a major or area of emphasis,
as determined by CCC, and an approved set of general education
requirements. CSU is required to guarantee admission with
junior status to CCC students who meet these requirements.
Students are not guaranteed admission for specific majors or
campuses, but CSU is required to provide priority admission to
a student's local CSU campus and to a program or major that is
similar to his or her associate degree for transfer major or
area of emphasis. Unless enrolled in a high unit major,
students are required to complete only two additional years
(60 units) of coursework at the CSU campus to earn a
bachelor's degree.
While the STAR Act required individual community colleges to
develop degrees for transfer, the CCC and CSU academic senates
opted instead for a statewide approach to prevent significant
variation in student lower-division coursework. Specifically,
faculty from each segment worked together to develop statewide
TMC, which identify a pattern of lower-division courses in a
major or area of emphasis that are deemed to adequately
prepare CCC transfer students for the upper-division
coursework within that major or area of emphasis. As of June
2013, TMC for 24 majors have been developed; there are
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currently no TMC in an area of emphasis.
Once a TMC is approved, each community college designs a
TMC-aligned associate degree for transfer in that particular
major or area of emphasis. The CCC Chancellor's Office
(CCCCO), which reviews and approves each district-approved
associate degree for transfer, has set a goal of all colleges
having such a degree, by the end of 2014, in all programs for
which they currently offer an associate degree and there is an
approved TMC. As of June 2013, however, only 760 out of a
statewide total 1,654 possible degrees have been developed.
2)Purpose . According to the author, while significant progress
has been made, three years after enactment of the STAR Act
there are still foundational elements lacking in the areas of
access, flexibility, and communication of this new transfer
pathway. The author believes that more robust implementation
of the STAR Act will enhance the state's transfer mission and
student success. SB 440 requires the following:
a) Establishing timelines for campuses to adopt associate
degrees for transfer. This is consistent with a
recommendation of the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) in
a May 2012 progress report on SB 1440 implementation.
b) Creation of TMC in "areas of emphasis." The STAR Act
required the CCC to create associate degrees for transfer
that included 18 semester units within a major or area of
emphasis. The term "area of emphasis," while not defined
in statute, is generally accepted as a less-specialized
degree program, one with a broader curriculum within an
academic subject area.
In its November 2012 report on SB 1440, "Meeting
Compliance, but Missing the Mark," the Campaign for College
Opportunity identified a number of CCCs offering associate
degrees in areas of emphasis. For example, American River
College offers degrees in Interdisciplinary Studies that
are marketed as a pathway for students to prepare to
transfer into a variety of majors, and Modesto Junior
College offers an associate degree in "University
Preparation, Emphasis in Humanities."
c) Acceptance by CSU campuses of TMC-aligned associate
degrees for transfer in every major offered by a campus
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that is deemed "similar" or where degree completion can
occur within 60 units. According to the LAO, "while all CSU
campuses have deemed at least some of their degree options
similar to certain TMC-aligned associate degrees,
acceptance is far from universal. Responses have varied
across campuses and majors."
d) Improved outreach to students. According to the
Campaign's report, the associate degree for transfer option
is not being communicated well to students. While there are
statewide marketing campaigns led by the two systems
consisting of a website, radio advertisements, and direct
outreach to counselors and staff, the benefits of the
degrees are not being fully communicated to students on the
individual campuses. An informal survey by the Campaign
found that only 30% of 407 students surveyed at 42 CCC
campuses had heard about the associate degree for transfer
program, and of those students intending to transfer, only
33% were aware of the program. This bill requires the
segments, in coordination with stakeholders, to take
specific actions to improve and expand outreach.
Analysis Prepared by : Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081