BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 412
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 3, 2016
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Lorena Gonzalez, Chair
SB 412
(Glazer) - As Amended August 1, 2016
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|Policy |Rules |Vote:|11 - 0 |
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| |Higher Education | |13 - 0 |
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Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: NoReimbursable: No
SUMMARY:
This bill, until January 1, 2024, establishes a California
Promise program at the California State University (CSU) to
guarantee eligible students a baccalaureate degree within four
years of enrolling at CSU or within two years after transferring
to the CSU from a California Community College (CCC).
Specifically, this bill:
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1)Requires, commencing in 2017-18, that at least 10 CSU campuses
establish a program to enter into a pledge with a qualifying
student, who is not a transfer student, to support the student
in obtaining a baccalaureate degree within four academic
years.
2)Requires, commencing in 2017-18, that at least 15 CSU campuses
establish a program to enter into pledge with a qualifying
transfer student to support the student in obtaining a
baccalaureate degree within two academic years.
3)Requires, commencing in 2018-19, that at least 20 campuses,
will have established the program per (2).
4)States legislative intent that the Promise program at each
campus scale up gradually in order to accommodate as many
students as is feasible.
5)Requires the support provided by a CSU campus to a student who
participates in the campus' California Promise program to
include, at least:
a) Priority registration in coursework, as specified.
b) Academic advisement that includes monitoring the
student's academic progress.
6)Requires the CSU trustees to submit the following reports to
the Legislature:
a) By March 15, 2017, potential financial incentives to
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benefit students participating in the pledge programs.
b) By July 1, 2019, regarding outcomes for the first cohort
of students to participate in the two-year pledge program.
c) By July 1, 2021, regarding outcomes for the two-year and
four-year pledge programs.
FISCAL EFFECT:
CSU indicates that four campuses (Fresno, Fullerton, Cal Poly
Pomona, and San Bernardino) have four-year pledge programs
similar to what is proposed in this bill for incoming freshman.
Administrative costs to replicate this model at six additional
campuses would be in the range of $450,000 to $600,000 annually.
[General Fund]
CSU also indicates that one of four campuses in the system that
has over 1,000 Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) students (see
Comment #3, Prior Legislation) already has a two-year pledge
program serving these students. Costs for the two-year pledge
program at these four campuses will total $300,000 to $400,000
and for 16 additional campuses, with smaller numbers of ADT
students, will be between $300,000 and $800,000, for total costs
of $600,000 to $1.2 million for the two-year pledge programs.
[General Fund]
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Costs for the legislative reports will be about $100,000.
[General Fund]
COMMENTS:
1)Purpose. According to the author, "despite the proven track
record as a leader in higher education, the CSU's four-year
graduation rate continues to lag behind the rest of the
nation. According to the CSU, the most recent
nationally-comparable data shows their overall four-year
graduation rate was 16.2 percent for the Fall 2008 cohort of
first-time, full-time freshmen, well below the national rate
of 24.9 percent among similar public institutions. The most
recent American Freshman Survey from the Higher Education
Research Institute at UCLA, which found that 84 percent of
freshmen entering public colleges expect to graduate in four
years, demonstrates the clear gap between expectation and
reality. Finishing in four years saves students and their
families tens of thousands of dollars."
The author believes the California Promise programs
established by this bill "will increase the CSU's four-year
graduation rate, lower cost and debt obligations of students
and their families, and will ensure the number of CSU degrees
is expanded to meet the needs of California employers."
2)Recent Budget Action. The 2016 Budget Act appropriates $35
million in one-time funds to CSU, contingent on the system
setting targets for four-year and two-year graduation rates.
CSU is required to develop an action plan for the system and
for each campus by September 30, 2016. The budget provides
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CSU with the flexibility to develop tailored plans for each
campus.
3)Prior Legislation. SB 1440 (Padilla), Chapter 428, Statues of
2010, created the Student Transfer Achievement Reform Act, and
required the CCC to create two-year 60-unit ADTs that are
fully transferable to CSU. Though these students are not
guaranteed admission to a particular CSU campus or into a
particular degree program, SB 1440 gives them priority
admission to a CSU program that is "similar" to the student's
CCC major or area of emphasis, as determined by the CSU campus
to which the student is admitted. Once admitted, SB 1440
students need only complete two additional years (an
additional 60 units) of coursework to earn a bachelor's
degree.
AB 2786 (Chavez) of 2016 and AB 2092 (Chávez) of 2014, which
mandated every CSU campus, and requested University of
California campuses, to establish four-year degree guarantees
with eligible students, were both held on this committee's
Suspense file.
Analysis Prepared by:Chuck Nicol / APPR. / (916)
319-2081