BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 404
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Author: |Chiu |
|------------+-----------------------------------------------------|
|Version: |June 10, 2015 Hearing |
| |Date: July 1, 2015 |
------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: |Yes |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------
|Consultant: |Olgalilia Ramirez |
------------------------------------------------------------------
Subject: Community colleges: accreditation
SUMMARY
This bill requires the regional accrediting agency for the
California Community Colleges (CCC) to report to the CCC Board
of Governors (BOG) the date by which the agency's application
for continued recognition is due and requires the CCC BOG to
conduct a survey of community colleges, as specified, to develop
a report, transmitted to specified entities, that reflects a
systemwide evaluation of the regional accrediting agency.
BACKGROUND
Existing law confers upon the CCC BOG the ability to prescribe
minimum standards for the formation and operation of community
colleges and exercise general supervision over the community
colleges. (Education Code § 66700 and § 70901)
As such, regulations (Title 5 California Code of Regulations
(CCR) § 51016) have been adopted to require each community
college within a district to be an accredited institution - with
the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
(ACCJC) determining accreditation.
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1)Requires the regional accrediting agency for the community
colleges to report, as specified, to the CCC BOG the date by
AB 404 (Chiu) Page 2
of ?
which the agency's application for continued recognition is
due.
2)Requires the CCC BOG to conduct a survey of community colleges
including faculty and classified personnel to develop a report
that reflects a systemwide evaluation of the regional
accrediting agency based on the criteria use to determine an
accreditor's status.
3)Specifies that the report shall be transmitted to the United
States Department of Education (USDE) and the National
Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity
(NACIQI).
STAFF COMMENTS
1)Need for the bill. According to the author, current law provides
no mechanism for a CCC system-wide performance review of the
CCC's regional accrediting body and providing the overseeing
federal entities with such a review increases accountability
of the accrediting agency and improves participation by CCC
faculty and personnel in the process. This bill seeks to
provide a method for collecting stakeholder feedback during an
accrediting agency's performance review.
2)Accreditation, how it works. Accreditation is a voluntary,
non-governmental peer review process used to determine
academic quality. Accrediting agencies are private
organizations that establish operating standards for
educational or professional institutions and programs,
determine the extent to which the standards are met, and
publicly announce their findings.
Under federal law, the United States Department of Education
(USDE) establishes the general standards for accreditation
agencies and is required to publish a list of recognized
accrediting agencies that are deemed reliable authorities on
the quality of education provided by their accredited
institutions. There are three basic types of accreditation:
a) Regional Accreditation. There are six USDE-recognized
AB 404 (Chiu) Page 3
of ?
regional accrediting agencies. Each regional accreditor
encompasses public, the vast majority of non-profit private
(independent), and some for-profit postsecondary
educational institutions in the region it serves.
California's regional accrediting agency is separated into
two commissions: the Accrediting Commission for Community
and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) and the Senior College and
University Commission (WASC-Sr.).
b) National Accreditation. National accreditation is not
based on geography, but more focused to evaluate specific
types of schools and programs. National accreditation is
designed to allow nontraditional colleges (trade schools,
religious schools, certain online schools) to be compared
against similarly designed institutions. Different
standards and categories are measured, depending on the
type of institution.
c) Specialized/Programmatic Accreditation. Offered by
accrediting agencies that represent specific fields of
study, these agencies do not accredit entire colleges but
instead accredit the programs within colleges that prepare
students for the specific field or industry. In most
cases, specialized accreditation alone does not enable
participation in state and federal financial aid programs.
3)Accreditation of California community colleges. After an initial
accreditation, colleges must have their accreditation
reaffirmed every six years. This process includes a
self-study, a site visit by a team of peers, a recommendation
by the visiting team and an action by the Accrediting
Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC). In
addition to these core components, colleges must submit a
midterm report every three years and annual progress reports.
The college/district may also have to submit follow-up reports
and host visits as required by the Commission. There are
three levels of sanction prior to termination of
accreditation: Warning, Probation, and Show Cause. Follow up
reports and accreditation visits are required to retain full
accreditation.
Many California community colleges have faced various levels
of accreditation sanctions. Most recently the sanctions
imposed on City College of San Francisco have drawn attention
AB 404 (Chiu) Page 4
of ?
to ACCJC and its accreditation process. The heightened
attention lead to an audit by the California State Auditor,
who on June 26, 2014, issued a report on California Community
Colleges Accreditation. This audit report provided both a
review of the ACCJC and the accreditation process in general,
as well as a more in-depth examination of recent events
related to City College of San Francisco. The report raised
some concerns of the ACCJC and the accreditation process and
made a series of recommendations to address the identified
concerns. After the release of the State Auditor's report, the
Chancellor's Office reconvened its Accreditation Task Force
consisting of community college stakeholders. The
Accreditation Task Force is charged with providing input
through a report to the Chancellor's Office regarding the
accreditation process, including addressing the State
Auditor's recommendations. The Accreditation Task Force held
its final meeting at the end of May and is in the process of
finalizing and submitting its final report later this year.
This bill collects and processes information that may
compliment the work of the Accreditation Task Force.
4)National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and
Integrity (NACIQI). NACIQI advises the United State Department
of Education on matters related to postsecondary accreditation
and the eligibility and certification process for higher
education institutions to participate in Federal student aid
programs. Its primary function is to provide recommendations
to the U.S. Secretary of Education concerning whether
accrediting entities' standards are sufficiently rigorous and
effective in their application to ensure the entity is a
reliable authority regarding the quality of the education
provided by the institutions or programs it accredits. To
meet that standard, accrediting entities must demonstrate
compliance with all the criteria for recognition. Once a
recommendation is made, this process allows for public
comment. This bill seeks to provide California Community
College (CCC) faculty and personnel a method for providing
feedback and remain anonymous during the accrediting agencies
performance review.
5)Related and prior legislation.
AB 1385 (Ting, 2015) requires notification to the California
AB 404 (Chiu) Page 5
of ?
Community College (CCC) Board of Governors (BOG) before an
accrediting agency increases membership fees, special
assessments, or other payments charged to a community college.
AB 1385 is pending in this Committee.
AB 1397 (Ting, 2015) requires the accrediting agency for the
CCC to meet specified operational standards. AB 1397 is
pending in this Committee.
SB 1068 ( Beall, 2014) would have required the BOG CCC, by
January 1, 2016, to report on the feasibility of creating an
independent accrediting agency to accredit the California
Community Colleges (CCC) and other 2-year private
postsecondary educational institutions, and to make
recommendations relative to CCC accreditation. SB 1068 was
held on the Senate Appropriations suspense file.
SUPPORT
American Federation of Teachers, Local 2121
California Community College Independents
California Federation of Teachers
California School Employees Association
California Teachers Association
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
OPPOSITION
None received.
-- END --