BILL ANALYSIS Ó ACR 158 Page 1 Date of Hearing: June 29, 2016 ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS Lorena Gonzalez, Chair ACR 158 (Holden) - As Introduced March 29, 2016 ----------------------------------------------------------------- |Policy |Higher Education |Vote:|12 - 0 | |Committee: | | | | | | | | | | | | | | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Urgency: State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No SUMMARY: This measure encourages the Academic Senates of the University of California (UC), the California State University (CSU), and the California Community Colleges (CCC) to expedite their current efforts to streamline the transfer process and ensure that all general education credits can transfer between the UC, CSU, and the CCC systems. FISCAL EFFECT: ACR 158 Page 2 No direct state costs. COMMENTS: Purpose. According to the author, "This resolution is seeking to streamline the student credit transfer process from and across University of California campuses and California State Universities. AB 2303, from 2010, requires UC, CSU, and CCC to develop an intersegmental common core transfer curriculum in major preparation courses in which the major preparation common core curriculum shall be the same for all transfer students, regardless of the public four-year institution or the campus to which the student transfers, yet in 2016 this still is not happening. It appears that the Community Colleges hold most of the articulation agreements and therefore students need to go to a CCC in order to take advantage of transferring credits in the most effective way. Community Colleges are measured on their transfer rates of students who go to UC and Cal States. California State Universities and University of California do not have the same incentive to help students transfer across or within their two systems." A constituent of the author, after completing three semesters at one CSU decided to change majors and sought to transfer to another CSU campus that offers the new major. During the transfer process, only three of the constituent's classes transferred. The constituent had to enroll in a CCC, which accepted his credits from the initial CSU campus, and continues to seek ways as to how to allow all of the credits to be accepted at the new CSU. It is unknown how many students are impacted by similar circumstances. According to CSU, this student's case will soon have an appeal hearing. According to CSU, in general, a pathway for transfer from one CSU to another CSU exists, but it requires a student to transfer ACR 158 Page 3 as an upper division student and to have completed the "Golden Four" requirements-basic skills required of all university students: oral communication, written communication, critical thinking, and mathematics/quantitative reasoning. Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916) 319-2081