Amended in Assembly March 17, 2016

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2521

Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley

February 19, 2016

An act begin insert to add Article 4 (commencing with Section 78050) to Chapter 1 of Part 48 of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, end insert relating to community colleges.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2521, as amended, Cooley. begin delete Community colleges: support for students with special needs: funding. end delete begin insert Los Rios Community College Pilot Program to Support Special Needs Students. end insert

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law requires the board of governors to adopt rules and regulations for the administration and funding of educational programs and support services provided to disabled students by community college districts.

This bill would begin delete express the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation to fund personal, educational, and academic supports for students with special needs attending community colleges. end delete begin insert authorize the Los Rios Community College District to establish the Los Rios Community College Pilot Program to Support Special Needs Students to provide various forms of academic and personal support to students with special needs, including autism spectrum disorders. The pilot program would require specified individuals who provide support to these students to submit progress reports to the district and would require the district to compile this information and post it on its Internet Web site. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee:  begin delete no end delete begin insert yes end insert . State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION end insert begin insert 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert The Legislature finds and declares both of the
following: end insert

begin insert

(a) Providing comprehensive support services to special needs
students empowers them to advocate for themselves, master the
skills needed to live independently, and make daily life decisions.
In doing so, these students also develop rewarding and appropriate
relationships with peers and adults.

end insert begin insert

(b) With coaching from an independent living skills instructor,
special needs students can learn to use public transportation,
manage their money, pay bills, shop for groceries, prepare meals,
clean their apartments, and do their laundry. These individualized
supports complement these students’ higher education goals and
prepares them to transition confidently to independent living,
employment, and adulthood.

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC end insert begin insert . end insert begin insert 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Article 4 (commencing with Section 78050) is added
to Chapter 1 of Part 48 of Division 7 of Title 3 of the end insert begin insert Education
Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

begin insert

 

Article begin insert 4. end insert   Los Rios Community College Pilot Program to
Support Special Needs Students

 

begin insert 78050. end insert   

This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Los Rios Community College Pilot Program to Support Special
Needs Students.

begin insert 78051. end insert   

The Los Rios Community College Pilot Program to
Support Special Needs Students may be established by the Los
Rios Community College District to provide access to learning
supports for students with special needs, such as autism spectrum
disorders, including Asperger Syndrome, social and emotional
maturation issues, and other related disabilities. As part of the
pilot program, the district may contract with public or private
programs that provide a network of comprehensive services,
including the support of resident advisors, tutors, mentors,
psychologists, academic liaisons, site directors, and others to help
special needs students become more self-sufficient, independent,
confident, and successful in their academic endeavors.

begin insert 78052. end insert   

The pilot program shall provide special needs students
with all of the following:

(a) Comprehensive academic support that includes helping them
apply to community college and register and enroll in community
college classes.

(b) An independent living skills instructor and encouragement
and support in seeking apartments near campus with one or more
roommates.

(c) An individually assigned mentor, ideally a graduate student
in psychology, to provide additional academic and personal
support.

(d) (1) Additional support provided by a dedicated team that
includes the program’s director, a psychologist, additional tutors
and mentors, and a resident assistant, as appropriate.

(2) Individuals who provide support pursuant to subdivisions
(b) to (d), inclusive, shall submit progress reports for their special
needs students participating in the pilot program to the Los Rios
Community College District. The district shall compile the
information in these reports and post it on the district’s Internet
Web site for parents and teachers to access.

(3) The information posted pursuant to paragraph (2) shall be
posted in a manner that provides appropriate protections for the
privacy of students involved consistent with the federal Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act (20 U.S.C. Sec. 1232g).

begin insert 78053. end insert   

The pilot program shall allow special needs students
who have not completed high school to simultaneously earn a high
school diploma, or its equivalent, and college credits at community
colleges within the district.

begin insert 78054. end insert   

Funding for the pilot program may be derived from
any source, including, but not limited to, state and nonstate funding
sources.

end insert

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

It is the intent of the Legislature to enact
legislation to fund personal, educational, and academic supports
for students with special needs attending community colleges.

end delete