BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Senator Carol Liu, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular
Bill No: AB 1145
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|Author: |Medina |
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|Version: |May 6, 2015 Hearing |
| |Date: June 24, 2015 |
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|Urgency: |No |Fiscal: | Yes |
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|Consultant:|Kathleen Chavira |
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Subject: Pupils: Early Commitment to College program
SUMMARY
This bill modifies and expands existing reporting requirements
regarding the Early Commitment to College program.
BACKGROUND
Existing law establishes the Early Commitment to College (ECC)
program, a voluntary program in which school districts may
participate for the purpose of providing schoolwide college
information and college preparation events. Under the program, a
student signs a pledge declaring a commitment to prepare for
college, finish high school, and enroll in college. In addition,
the student commits to meeting all high school graduation
requirements, enrolling in college preparatory coursework,
seeking to achieve proficiency in math and English, completing
the federal application for student aid, submitting a grade
point average to the Student Aid Commission and meeting
application and other requirements for university admission or
community college enrollment within 12 months of high school
graduation.
(Education Code § 54710-54716)
Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction
to submit data relating to the ECC program to the Legislature on
the number of districts and pupils participating, the number of
pupils who fulfilled the requirements of the pledge, and any
relevant outcome data reported by districts by November 1, 2017.
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(EC § 54715)
ANALYSIS
This bill:
1)Modifies existing reporting requirements regarding the Early
Commitment to College Program. It:
a) Requires the SPI to submit the specified data to
the LAO, rather than the Legislature.
b) Changes the year by which the SPI must report the
data from 2017 to 2016.
c) Eliminates the requirement that the SPI report
include recommendations on the program's continuance.
2)Requires the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) to submit a
report by November 1, 2017 to the Legislature relating to the
Early Commitment program. It:
a) Requires that the report include the data
gathered by the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI).
b) Establishes the following new elements to be
included in the report:
i) To the extent available, data on the rate of
enrollment of program participants in university or other
postsecondary educational program.
ii) Local or state factors contributing to the
program's success/failure.
iii) The level of technical expertise and guidance
provided to school districts by the SPI.
c) Requires that LAO make a recommendation on the
program's continuance as part of the report.
STAFF COMMENTS
1)Need for the bill. According to the author, there has been a lack
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of support and funding for completion of the reporting
requirements relative to implementation of the Early
Commitment to College program. According to the California
Department of Education (CDE), staffing changes, coupled with
the reduction in resources which occurred shortly after the
original bill's passage have created challenges to the
production of the required report. Without leadership and
support, it does not appear that the CDE report will be useful
to the Legislature in determining the strengths and weaknesses
of the existing program. This bill is intended to ensure that
the Legislature receives the information necessary to inform
the creation of a stronger program that connects low-income
students to higher education.
2)History of the program. SB 890 (Scott, Statutes of 2008)
established the Early College Commitment program, a voluntary
program administered by the SPI. Districts volunteering to
participate in this program are required to undertake a
variety of activities aimed at increasing high school
completion rates and motivating pupils to take rigorous
college preparatory or career technical coursework. It also
provides participating pupils a California Community College
(CCC) fee waiver for two or more years of enrollment, as long
as the pupil is a California resident and continues to show
financial need on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid
(FAFSA). The program sunsets on January 1, 2019.
According to the Campaign for College Opportunity, the
original sponsors of the bill, the Early Commitment to College
(ECC) program was a way for California to renew the 1960
Master Plan (that any California student with interest in
attending college, could pursue a college education in
California), and for the first time, make college directly
accessible to students and their families beginning in middle
school.
According to the CDE, the ECCP was launched by the CDE in
2009, but under the prior administration, never requested or
received funding to administer the program. The California
Department of Education (CDE) did send information to school
districts as required, and post program information on its
website. However, no data has been collected about program
participation, and CDE currently has no information on the
number of districts that are participating.
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3)CDE Status/LAO Capacity. The Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO)
is currently responsible for a large number of statutorily
required evaluations, at least six of which are required in
2017, and in recent years has increasingly been assigned
responsibility for reports in the area of higher education
policy. This is likely due to the elimination of the
California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) in 2011.
These reports are in addition to the existing responsibilities
of the LAO.
As drafted, this bill would still require the CDE to
administer the program and collect the data, so it is unclear
whether incorporation of the LAO addresses the underlying
concerns which resulted in the bill. In addition, the CDE
reports that it is their intent to comply with the reporting
requirements and has begun to discuss information gathering
methodology and timelines for completing the statutorily
required report.
Staff recommends the bill be amended to delete the LAO
reporting responsibilities and to incorporate the new
reporting requirements into the existing statute as part of
the SPI report.
Staff further recommends the bill be amended to require the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to inform the
appropriate legislative committees of their plans for
complying with the reporting requirements by January 31, 2016.
SUPPORT
California School Boards Association
Campaign for College Opportunity
Dave Jones, Insurance Commissioner
OPPOSITION
None received.
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