BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Carol Liu, Chair
2013-2014 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 850
AUTHOR: Block
AMENDED: April 10, 2014
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 24, 2014
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Kathleen Chavira
SUBJECT : Baccalaureate Degree Pilot Program.
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes the Board of Governors (BOG) of the
California Community Colleges (CCC), in consultation with
the California State University (CSU) and the University of
California (UC), to establish baccalaureate degree pilot
programs at up to 20 community college districts, as
specified, to be determined by the Chancellor of the CCC.
BACKGROUND
Current law differentiates the missions and functions of
public and independent institutions of higher education.
Under these provisions:
The primary mission of the CSU is required to offer
undergraduate and graduate instruction through the
master's degree. The CSU is authorized to establish
two-year programs only when mutually agreed upon by
the Trustees and the CCC Board of Governors. The CSU
is also authorized to jointly award the doctoral
degree with the UC and with one or more independent
institutions of higher education.
The UC is authorized to provide undergraduate and
graduate instruction and has exclusive jurisdiction in
public higher education over graduate instruction in
the professions of law, medicine, dentistry and
veterinary medicine. The UC is also the primary
state-supported academic agency for research.
The independent institutions of higher education
are required to provide undergraduate and graduate
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instruction and research in accordance with their
respective missions.
The mission and function of the California
Community Colleges is the offering of academic and
vocational instruction at the lower division level and
the CCC are authorized to grant the associate in arts
and the associate in science degree. The community
colleges are also required to offer remedial
instruction, English as a Second Language instruction,
and adult noncredit instruction, and support services
which help students succeed at the postsecondary
level. (Education Code § 66010.4)
ANALYSIS
This bill :
1) Authorizes the Board of Governors of the CCC, in
consultation with the CSU and the UC, to authorize
establishment of baccalaureate degree pilot programs
at selected districts, to be determined by the
Chancellor of the CCC and further:
a) Requires that the pilot program be
limited to no more than 20 districts.
b) Requires that a pilot program
established under these provisions expire after 8
years.
c) Sets the start time for the 8
years as the date that the first class of
students begins the program.
2) Establishes the following eligibility requirements for
a district to be considered for authorization by the
BOG:
a) Requires the district be
authorized to offer baccalaureate degree programs
through an appropriate accrediting body.
b) Requires the district maintain, as
its primary mission, the offering of lower
division academic and vocational instruction.
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c) Requires the district's new
additional mission to be to provide high-quality
undergraduate education at an affordable price
for students and the state.
d) Limits a district to offering only
one type of baccalaureate degree per campus, as
determined by the local governing board and
approved by the Board of Governors.
e) Requires, in identifying the
degree programs to be offered at its campuses,
that the district:
i) Identify and document
unmet workforce needs in the subject areas
of the baccalaureate degrees and offer that
program in that community or region.
ii) Be prohibited from duplicating
similar programs offered by public
postsecondary educational institutions,
unless approved by the Chancellor of the
CSU.
iii) Requires that a district have the
expertise, resources, and student interest
to offer a quality baccalaureate degree in
the chosen field of study.
f) Requires that the district
maintain separate records for students enrolled
in the upper and lower divisions of a
baccalaureate degree program and that the student
be reported as a community college student for
enrollment in lower division and as a BA degree
program student in upper division.
g) Requires the district to submit
the proposed governance system, curriculum,
faculty, facilities, and the level of
matriculation for the baccalaureate degree
program for review and approval by the Chancellor
and BOG.
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3) Requires the BOG to develop and adopt a funding model
to support the baccalaureate degree pilot programs and
further:
a) Requires the model be based on a
calculation of the number of FTES enrolled in the
program.
b) Requires that per FTES funding be
based upon a marginal cost calculation that
cannot exceed the marginal cost calculation of
the CSU.
c) Authorizes the program to charge
fees up to the amount charged for BA programs at
the CSU, subject to upper division coursework
fees being set and approved by the Legislature.
4) Authorizes the board of the local district to enter
into agreement with local businesses and agencies to
provide educational services to students participating
in the program.
5) Requires a district authorized to offer the
baccalaureate degree pilot program to submit a report
to the Chancellor's Office one year prior to the
expiration of the pilot program or one year after the
first graduating class, whichever comes first,
evaluating the completion rate of the program, the
extent to which the program is self-supporting, any
challenges to finding/paying instructors, whether
there was a decline in enrollment at CSU or UC
campuses in the regions served by the district as a
direct result of the pilot program, and the number of
students who received jobs in the baccalaureate degree
field of study.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill . According to the author, the state
faces an urgent need to increase the number of
Californian's with four-year degrees by 2025,
necessitating an additional 60,000 BA degrees per
year. This bill seeks to find new methods for
addressing this skills gap by authorizing the offering
of baccalaureate degrees at California's community
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colleges. According to the author, this bill is
patterned after the applied baccalaureate degree model
offered in community colleges of more than twenty
other states.
2) Related Study Group Report . In 2013, the CCC
Chancellor appointed a study group to review the
various aspects of bachelor degrees at community
colleges. The Report from California Community
Colleges Baccalaureate Degree Study Group ,
acknowledges questions and reservations that community
college bachelor's degrees represent a further erosion
of the Master Plan, the potential for duplication of
programs, and concerns that broadening the CCC mission
would diminish attention to transfer, basic skills,
and career technical education, especially as the
system moves towards restoring access levels
compromised by recent economic conditions. The study
group recommended that the Chancellor's Office and the
BOG conduct necessary research and policy analysis
related to offering CCC baccalaureates including; a
cost study, Chancellor's Office workload projections
for related reviewing, approving and reporting, and a
definition of the types of baccalaureates appropriate
for the CCC. The group also recommended that further
work proceed with ongoing dialog with the CSU and UC,
and that further study should consider the potential
impact on the current mission of the CCC as well as on
existing programs at local campuses.
3) Other options ? Currently, only the UC and CSU are
authorized to offer baccalaureate degrees.
Recognizing the need to expand access to these degree
programs, several collaborative efforts to respond to
workforce needs have evolved. Canada College, within
the San Mateo Community College District, currently
partners with San Francisco State University and
private postsecondary institutions to offer
baccalaureate degrees in psychology, business
administration, allied health and nursing on its
campus. College of the Canyons partners with CSU Los
Angeles, Bakersfield and Northridge, and private
institutions to offer bachelor's degrees in liberal
arts, engineering and other majors through its
University Center.
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To the extent that existing collaborative efforts do
not meet demand or need, other options for the
committee to consider include:
a) Should additional funding be provided to
public baccalaureate degree granting institutions
to increase the number of degree slots available
in high demand areas?
b) Should the process for developing
collaborative efforts to address workforce needs
be modified to facilitate greater proliferation
of these programs?
c) Should a community college be required to
demonstrate that existing avenues for partnering
with other institutions are not possible or
viable before seeking authorization to offer a BA
degree?
4) Similar, but not ? Notwithstanding the differentiation
of the mission envisioned by the Master Plan and
outlined in statute, the Legislature has authorized
the CSU to go beyond its original mission to offer
three doctoral degrees. These include:
a) Authority to offer the Ed.D, an applied
doctorate in education.
(EC 66040-66040.7) Thirteen CSU campuses offer an
Ed.D under this authority.
b) Authority to offer the Doctor of Physical
Therapy (DPT) degree. This degree was to focus
on preparation of physical therapists to provide
health care services and required to be
consistent with meeting professional
accreditation requirements.
(EC 66042-66042.3)
c) Authorization, until July 1, 2018, to offer
a Doctor or Nursing Practice (DNP) through a
pilot program at three CSU campuses. This degree
was to focus on the preparation of clinical
faculty, and was prohibited from replacing or
supplanting CSU master's degree nursing programs.
Enrollment was capped at 90 FTES for all three
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campuses and enrollment of new students is
prohibited on or after July 1, 2018. In fall
2012, the CSU launched two programs, a joint
program with CSU Fresno and CSU San Jose, and a
CSU Fullerton-Long Beach-Los Angeles joint
program.
These programs were all subject to California
Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) review,
evaluation and recommendation. Fees were capped at
the rate charged at the UC, no additional funding was
provided by the state, and these programs were to be
implemented without diminishing or reducing enrollment
in undergraduate programs. Statewide evaluations of
the new programs were to be jointly conducted by the
CSU, the LAO and the Department of Finance.
These authorities were much more limited in scope than
that proposed by this bill. The Committee may wish to
consider the following:
d) Should the bill be amended to identify
specific areas of BA production not currently
offered at the UC or CSU?
e) Should the bill be amended to define an
"applied" baccalaureate, distinct from what may
be offered at the CSU or UC?
f) In the absence of a CPEC, what structure is
necessary to review, evaluate and recommend new
baccalaureate degree programs at the CCC?
g) Should there be provisions that ensure that
funding for baccalaureate degree programs does
not occur at the expense of expansion of adult
education programs, basic skills, CTE or
undergraduate transfer programs?
If it is the desire to advance the pilot proposed by
this bill, the Committee may want to consider the
amendments proposed in staff comment 5 through 8.
5) Too much too soon ? This bill proposes a broad
departure from the differentiation of
mission established by the Master Plan and by state
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statute. Prior authorizations to depart from these
differentiated missions have been much more limited in
scope. Additionally, the CPEC no longer exists to
provide an independent review, evaluation and
recommendations regarding a college's proposal for new
baccalaureate degree programs.
According to the author, the intent of the pilot
program is to authorize the offering of baccalaureate
degrees not currently offered by the UC or CSU in an
effort to meet workforce needs. If it is the desire
of the committee to advance the pilot program proposed
by this bill staff recommends the bill be amended on
page 5, to delete lines 1-4 and to instead insert, "A
pilot program shall not include a baccalaureate degree
already offered by public postsecondary educational
institutions."
In addition, as currently drafted a participating
district could offer multiple degrees by implementing
programs at each of its campuses. If each
participating district has an average of 3 campuses,
this bill could result in community colleges offering
up to 60 different baccalaureate degrees. Is this an
appropriate size for a pilot?
Last year this committee heard AB 955 (Williams,
Chapter 710, Statutes of 2013) which proposed an
intersession extension program. That bill was amended
by this committee to authorize a very narrow pilot
program limited to 15 campuses. Consistent with prior
actions of this committee staff recommends the bill be
amended to limit participation in the baccalaureate
degree pilot program to 15 campuses from 15 different
districts.
6) Independent evaluation necessary . This bill requires
districts to report specified information to the
Chancellor examining the program and evaluating
various factors. However, an independent evaluation,
similar to that required of the CSU doctoral programs,
would be more appropriate. Staff recommends the bill
be amended to replace the current reporting
requirements on pages 6 and 7 with provisions that
parallel the reporting and evaluation requirements
outlined for the doctoral programs in physical therapy
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in Education Code section 66042.3, and to additionally
require that the review evaluate time-to degree and
completion rate. In addition, require participating
districts to submit the information necessary to
conduct the evaluation, as determined by the
evaluators, to the Chancellor.
7) Clarification of program features . Several elements
of the program require clarification. These include:
a) As currently drafted it is unclear whether
the statewide program lasts eight years, or each
individual pilot program is authorized to operate
for eight years from the time it starts. Staff
recommends the bill be amended to clarify that
the statewide pilot program is authorized for 8
years beginning January 1, 2015, and sunsets on
July 1, 2023, that authorized programs must begin
no later than the 2017-18 academic year, and that
participating campuses be required to notify
students that their BA program must be completed
by the end of the 2022-23 academic year.
b) Currently, the bill requires an institution
to submit the "proposed governance system" for
the program and the "level of matriculation" for
enrolled students. Based upon the author's
intent, staff recommends the bill be amended to
clarify these provisions by replacing them with
requirements that the district submit the
administrative plan for the degree program, and
submit student enrollment projections.
c) The bill currently authorizes agreements
with local business and agencies to provide
educational services to pilot program students.
These provisions create confusion regarding who
provides instruction and whether it authorizes a
subsidy of contract education programs. The
intent of the author is to allow activities
already possible under current law, making these
provisions unnecessary. Staff recommends the
bill be amended to delete lines 15-18 on page 6.
8) Fees and Funding . This bill would authorize
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differential fees for students enrolled in BA
programs. Currently differential fees for California
residents at the community colleges are authorized for
only a very small intersession extension program
offered at a very limited number of campuses. It is
unclear whether higher fees for upper division courses
are necessary to offer these programs. However, staff
recommends the bill be amended to prohibit fees for
lower division coursework in a baccalaureate degree
program from exceeding the fees for other lower
division coursework.
The bill also provides the potential for higher FTES
funding for courses within a baccalaureate degree
program than for other community college courses.
Would funding for these programs be provided in
addition to the funding already provided to the CCC in
the annual budget? If additional funding is not
envisioned, how much would funding for basic skills,
career technical education and lower division transfer
and degrees be reduced for the system and at
participating districts? How would the Chancellor's
Office related support activities be funded?
9) Prior legislation .
a) AB 661 (Block, 2011) authorized
Grossmont-Cuyamaca and the San Mateo CCDs to
offer one baccalaureate degree pilot program per
campus. AB 661 as heard and passed in the
Assembly Higher Education Committee by a vote of
6-0 but was moved to the inactive file on the
Assembly Floor.
b) AB 2400 (Block, 2010) authorized the San
Diego, Grossmont-Cuyamaca and San Mateo CCDs to
establish baccalaureate degree pilot programs.
No vote was taken and AB 2400 was held in the
Assembly Higher Education Committee.
SUPPORT
American Legion - Department of California
AMVETS - Department of California
Bakersfield College
Barton Health Board of Directors
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California Association of County Veterans Service Officers
California State Commanders Veterans Council
Citrus Community College District
City of South Lake Tahoe
Coastline Community College
CEO'S of the CCC Board of the California Community College
League
Foothill-De Anza Community College District
Gavilan College
Golden West College
Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District
Kern Community College District
Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce
Lake Tahoe Visitor's Authority
Los Angeles Community College District
MiraCosta Community College District
Napa Valley Community College District
Oceanside Chamber of Commerce
Pasadena Community College District
San Diego and Imperial Counties Community Colleges
Association (SDICCCA)
San Diego Community College District
San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce
San Diego Unified School District
San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of Commerce
Santa Monica Community College District
Shasta-Tehama-Trinity Joint Community College District
South Orange Community College District
Tri-City Medical Center
Veterans of Foreign Wars - Department of California (VFW)
Vietnam Veterans of America - California State Council
(VVA)
West Kern Community College District
Yosemite Community College District
Yuba Community College District
Six individual letters
OPPOSITION
California Nurses Association
California Teachers Association
Faculty Association of the California Community Colleges
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