BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó






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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                       AB 1741|
          |Office of Senate Floor Analyses   |                              |
          |(916) 651-1520    Fax: (916)      |                              |
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                                   THIRD READING 


          Bill No:  AB 1741
          Author:   Rodriguez (D) and O'Donnell (D), et al.
          Amended:  8/2/16 in Senate
          Vote:     21 

           SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE:  9-0, 6/29/16
           AYES:  Liu, Block, Hancock, Huff, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan,  
            Vidak

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE:  7-0, 8/11/16
           AYES:  Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, McGuire, Mendoza, Nielsen

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  80-0, 6/1/16 - See last page for vote

           SUBJECT:   California College Promise Innovation Grant Program


          SOURCE:    Author


          DIGEST:  This bill establishes the California College Promise  
          Innovation Grant Program until January 1, 2021, to be  
          administered by the Chancellor's Office of the California  
          Community Colleges (CCC), to distribute grants to support the  
          colleges in establishing or expanding regional programs to  
          address college preparedness, attendance, and graduation, as  
          specified, in partnership with school districts and public  
          postsecondary universities in California. 


          ANALYSIS:  

          Existing law:








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          1)Establishes the Early Commitment to College Program, with  
            voluntary participation by pupils and school districts, for  
            the purposes increasing college attendance and success rates  
            among low-income students.  The program requires participating  
            school districts to provide specified information on college  
            attendance and to participate in the "Save Me a Spot in  
            College" pledge.  The Superintendent of Public Instruction is  
            required to administer the voluntary program and report on  
            participation rates in 2017.  The program sunsets on January  
            1, 2019.  (Education Code § 54710, et seq.)

          2)Establishes the College Promise Partnership Act until June 30,  
            2017, which authorizers the Long Beach Community College  
            District and Long Beach Unified School District to enter into  
            a partnership, as specified, to provide participating pupils  
            with an aligned sequence of rigorous high school and college  
            coursework, as specified.  The purpose of the program is  
            required to be the provision of a seamless bridge to college  
            for students not already college bound and a reduction of the  
            time for advanced students to complete programs.  Existing law  
            also provides for the crediting of additional units of  
            full-time equivalent students attributable to the attendance  
            of partnership students at the community college, as  
            specified. An evaluation of the program is due to the  
            Legislature, by December 30, 2016.  (EC § 48810-48814)

          This bill:

          1)Establishes the California College Promise Innovation Grant  
            Program until January 1, 2021, under the administration of the  
            CCC Chancellor's Office, and authorizes the distribution of  
            grants, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the  
            governing boards of community college districts for this  
            purpose.  It:

             a)   Establishes the goals of the program as supporting CCC  
               districts in establishing or expanding regional Promise  
               programs in partnership with school districts and public  
               postsecondary universities in California.

             b)   Outlines the specific goals to be accomplished by these  
               programs to include:








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               i)     Increasing the number and percentage of high school  
                 students within the region who:

                   (1)        Are prepared for and attend college directly  
                     from high school.

                   (2)        Are placed in college level math and English  
                     at the University of California (UC) or California  
                     State University (CSU).

                   (3)        Successfully transfer from a CCC to a UC or  
                     CSU.

                   (4)        Graduate with a bachelor's degree. 

               ii)Reducing and eliminating achievement gaps for groups  
                 underrepresented in postsecondary education, as  
                 specified.

               iii)Leveraging of existing state and local funding to  
                 better align efforts to improve student success. 

          2)Establishes the criteria for receiving a grant under the new  
            program. It:

             a)   Requires that the application demonstrate that the CCC  
               will partner with one or more school districts and one or  
               more CSU or UC campuses in a program that includes all of  
               the following practices/principles:

               i)     Partnership with one or more school districts to  
                 establish an Early Commitment to College Program  
                 consistent with that authorized under specified Education  
                 Code provisions.

               ii)Partnership with one or more school districts to support  
                 and improve high school student preparation for college  
                 and reduce postsecondary remediation through specified  
                 practices. 

               iii)   Utilization of evidence-based placement and student  
                 assessment indicators at the CCC district, as specified.

               iv)    Providing access to courses through its registration  







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                 practices for enrolled students, as well as outreach to  
                 these students regarding the Associate Degree for  
                 Transfer and the Transfer Entitlement Cal Grant Program. 

             b)   Requires the Chancellor's Office to be responsible for  
               developing application criteria, administrative guidelines,  
               and other requirements for administering the program and  
               outlines specific application and prioritization criteria.  
               It:

               i)     Requires the application criteria to encourage  
                 applicants to (and assigns first priority to these  
                 applications):

                   (1)        Identify public and private sources of  
                     funding for purposes of sustainability; and/or,

                   (2)        Leverage local and state funding to align  
                     efforts to improve student success; and/or,

               ii)    Assigns second priority to applicants that develop  
                 partnerships with school districts predominately within  
                 the CCC residential boundaries, or serve a greater  
                 proportion of students, or develop at least one  
                 partnership with a CSU campus. 

             c)   Requires the Chancellor's Office to post all  
               applications that receive funding on its Web site.

          3)Declares the Legislature's encouragement of:

             a)   Various entities, as specified, to provide support  
               services as needed in coordination with the CCCs.

             b)   The Chancellor's Office to coordinate implementation of  
               the program with other funded college readiness and  
               pathways programs.

             c)   The governing board of a recipient community college  
               district to coordinate with a partnering school district or  
               public postsecondary university to coordinate the programs  
               and activities proposed in the district's application, as  
               specified. 








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          Comments
          
          Need for the bill.  According to the author, this bill is  
          inspired by the success of Long Beach College Promise and other  
          similar programs. AB 1741 will incentivize community college  
          districts to enter into similar partnerships with their local  
          school districts and community organizations.  It will also  
          permit already existing partnerships to apply for grant funding  
          to expand their programs. According to the author, funding  
          provided in the Budget and the awards program created by AB 1741  
          will enable these successful programs to be replicated across  
          the state and encourage students to pursue higher education.

          Related budget activity. The Budget Act of 2016 (SB 826, Leno,  
          Chapter 23, Statutes of 2016) provides $15 million for the K-12  
          partnerships program and also stipulates that these funds are to  
          be allocated and spent pursuant to pending legislation.   
          According to the author, AB 1741 provides the statutory  
          authority and programmatic structure for this funding  
          allocation. 

          Early Commitment to College Program (ECCP).  This bill requires  
          a grant applicant to include partnership with school to  
          establish a program consistent with the intent of the ECCP.  SB  
          890 (Scott, Chapter 472, Statutes of 2008) established the ECCP  
          to ensure early notification and early commitment of college  
          opportunities for pupils in middle school and high school and  
          their families. The program was intended to motivate pupils to  
          stay in school, graduate from high school, take college  
          preparatory coursework, and, if they chose to do so, seek  
          postsecondary opportunities.  Although the ECCP was launched in  
          2009 by the California Department of Education (CDE)  
          participation rates among school districts has been low,  
          possibly due to a lack of financial resources to support the  
          program.

          College Promise programs.  According to the author, Promise  
          programs are innovative partnerships that connect local K-12,  
          community college and four-year university segments to provide  
          clear pathways for students to follow to achieve their degree.  
          The districts involved in the program also work together to  
          ensure that the curriculum is aligned and that a student will  
          graduate high school having completed all of the requirements to  
          enter college. Successful programs such as Long Beach College  







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          Promise also engage city entities, local non-profits and  
          businesses to establish fully-rounded partnerships to invest in  
          student success. 
          
          Long Beach Promise Program. The Long Beach Promise Program was  
          established as a collaborative partnership between the Long  
          Beach Unified School District (LBUSD), the Long Beach City  
          College (LBCC) and the California State University at Long Beach  
          (CSULB) with the general goals of increasing college  
          preparation, college access, and ultimately college success. The  
          program reports that since 2008 LBUSD students have seen a 34  
          percent gain in admission to CSULB, LBCC transfer students are  
          admitted to CSULB at a rate 18 percent higher than applicants  
          from other community colleges. CSULB reports that its graduation  
          rates for Latinos, African Americans and Asians have risen 20  
          percent, 22 percent and 23 percent respectively.  In 2011, SB  
          650 (Lowenthal, Chapter 633, Statutes of 2011) statutorily  
          authorized the partnership and granted greater flexibility in  
          the program's implementation than normally allowed for dual  
          enrollment programs. These provisions are sunset on June 30,  
          2017, and an independent evaluation of the program is required  
          by December 30, 2016. 


          FISCAL EFFECT:   Appropriation:    No          Fiscal  
          Com.:YesLocal:   No

          According to the Senate Appropriations Committee:


           The Chancellor's Office indicates that $120,000 General Fund  
            would be needed for staff to administer this program.


           This bill requires that the Chancellor's Office distribute  
            grants, upon an appropriation by the Legislature.  The Budget  
            Act of 2016 (SB 826, Leno) provides $15 million one-time  
            Proposition 98 for California College Promise Innovation  
            Grants to be allocated and spent pursuant to pending  
            legislation.  This bill provides the implementing legislation.  











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          SUPPORT:   (Verified8/12/16)


          Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom
          American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
          California Health+ Advocates
          California Primary Care Association
          Campaign for College Opportunity
          Institute for College Access and Success
          Little Hoover Commission
          Los Angeles Community College District
          Western Association for College Admission Counseling


          OPPOSITION:   (Verified8/12/16)


          None received

          ASSEMBLY FLOOR:  80-0, 6/1/16
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Arambula, Atkins, Baker,  
            Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke,  
            Calderon, Campos, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley,  
            Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth  
            Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto,  
            Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper,  
            Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim,  
            Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis,  
            Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte,  
            O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez,  
            Salas, Santiago, Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting,  
            Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Rendon

          Prepared by:Lenin DelCastillo / ED. / (916) 651-4105
          8/15/16 20:04:59


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