BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1985
Page 1
CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
1985 (Williams)
As Amended August 1, 2016
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |73-2 |(May 23, 2016) |SENATE: |38-0 |(August 16, |
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Original Committee Reference: HIGHER ED.
SUMMARY: Requires the California Community Colleges (CCC)
Chancellor, in collaboration with the Academic Senate, to
develop a uniform policy regarding credit awarded for Advance
Placement (AP) examinations.
The Senate amendments:
1)Remove the requirement that the uniform policy ensure that
students who pass an AP exam with a minimum score of three
receive credit, and instead require the adoption and
implementation of a uniform policy, commencing with the
entering class in the Fall 2016 academic term, regarding AP
examination credit at CCC.
2)Require that the CCC Chancellor, in collaboration with the
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Academic Senate, periodically review and adjust the policy to
align it with policies of other public postsecondary
educational institutions. If the policy is not implemented
for the entering class in the fall 2017 academic term, the CCC
are required to adopt and implement, commencing with the
2017-18 academic year, the AP policy adopted by the California
State University (CSU).
3)Require each CCC campus to post on it Internet Web site the
most recent policy adopted pursuant to this requirement.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the Board of Governors (BOG) and the Chancellor of
the CCC to provide leadership and direction to the CCC while
maintaining and continuing, to the maximum degree permissible,
local authority and control in the administration of the
districts (CCD). The BOG and Chancellor are responsible for a
variety of functions, including establishing minimum
standards, providing various reports, and various annual
budgeting functions. In performing functions, BOG is required
to carry out a process of consultation with institutional
representatives, college organizations and interested
individuals and parties. (Education Code Section 70901).
2)Pursuant to BOG regulations, the governing board of a CCD may
adopt policies to grant credit for satisfactory completion of
AP exams. The faculty in the appropriate discipline must
approve AP examinations, scores deemed to constitute
satisfactory performance, courses offered by the college for
which credit will be granted, and requirements that may be met
by such examinations in accordance with policies and
procedures approved by the curriculum committee. The
student's academic record must be clearly annotated to reflect
that credit was earned through an AP exam. (5 California Code
of Regulations Section 55052).
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FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee:
1)Mandate: One-time costs ranging in the low tens of thousands
to low hundreds of thousands for campuses to either create or
adapt their AP policies to a uniform policy adopted by the CCC
Chancellor's Office. These costs would likely be determined
to be a reimbursable state mandate by the Commission on State
Mandates. See staff comments. (Proposition 98 of 1988)
2)CCC Chancellor's Office: Costs of up to about $20,000 General
Fund to hold two full day meetings with the CCC Academic
Senate to develop the uniform policy. If additional or less
time is needed to develop the policy, the costs would change
accordingly.
COMMENTS: Purpose of this bill. AP courses are designed to
provide rigorous academic coursework opportunities for high
school students. Upon successful completion of AP courses,
students are provided the opportunity to take an AP exam,
conducted by the College Board, for which scores range from 1-5.
According to College Board, scores of 3-5 correlate to college
course grades of C to A. According to the author, AP credit
policies vary across the 113 community colleges. According to a
College Board report entitled AP Credit Policies at California
Community Colleges, 10 colleges do not grant credit or have
unknown credit policies for all available AP exams, 24 colleges
require a score of 4 to award credit, and 6 colleges require a
score on some AP exams of 5. According to the author, the lack
of a systemwide credit policy for the CCC creates an unnecessary
barrier for students in receiving and transferring credits. In
2014, 16,178 AP test takers reported 47,180 AP exam scores to
CCC.
CSU policy on AP exam credit. CSU Executive Order No. 1036,
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issued on July 14, 2008, provides that CSU campuses shall award
baccalaureate credit toward degree and/or admissions eligibility
to students who pass standardized external examinations (such as
AP, International Baccalaureate, and College Level Entrance
Program examinations). The Chancellor, in consultation with the
General Education Advisory Committee is required to maintain a
list of external examinations and passing scores, minimum
credits toward admissions eligibility, minimum credits toward
the baccalaureate degree, and, placement in GE Breadth area for
transfer students seeking general education certification.
According to the most recently available list, all AP exams
require a minimum passing score of three.
UC policy on AP exam credit. According to the University of
California (UC), systemwide UC grants credit for AP exams on
which a student scores a three or higher. Elective units
awarded may be applied to UC graduation requirements for
specific subjects and/or for general education/breadth
requirements, as determined by each campus. For transfer
students, AP exams can also be used to meet the minimum transfer
admission subject requirements in English, math and 4 other
courses chosen from the humanities, behavioral/social sciences,
and biological/physical sciences.
Analysis Prepared by:
Laura Metune / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960 FN:
0004174