BILL ANALYSIS Ó
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 906|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
|(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | |
|327-4478 | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 906
Author: Beall (D), et al.
Introduced:1/25/16
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 8-0, 3/9/16
AYES: Liu, Block, Hancock, Leyva, Mendoza, Monning, Pan, Vidak
NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT: Public postsecondary education: priority enrollment
systems
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill conforms the definition of "foster youth or
former foster youth," for the purposes of priority registration
at the University of California (UC), the California State
University (CSU), and the California Community Colleges (CCC),
to existing state higher education program definitions, deletes
the sunset on the extension of priority registration to foster
youth or former foster youth, and deletes the sunset on the
extension of priority registration to Extended Opportunity
Programs and Services (EOPS) students and Disabled Student
Programs and Services (DSPS) students at the California
Community Colleges.
ANALYSIS:
SB 906
Page 2
Existing law:
1)Requires, if the institution administers a priority enrollment
system for registration, that the CSU and each CCC district,
and requests that the UC, grant priority enrollment, to any
current or former foster youth, and repeals these provisions
on January 1, 2017. (EC § 66025.9)
2)Establishes the Community College EOPS to extend opportunities
for community college education to all who may profit
regardless of economic, social and educational status, and to
encourage local community colleges to identify students
affected by economic, language, and social disadvantages and
encourage their enrollment and achievement of their
educational objectives and goals. The Board of Governors is
required to adopt regulations with the objective that the EOPS
programs include qualified counseling staff, facilitation of
transfer, and enrollment in courses necessary to develop
successful study skills, as specified. Current law also
authorizes local community college governing boards to provide
services that may include loans or grants for living costs,
student fees, and transportation costs and also scholarships,
work-experience and job placement programs. (EC § 69640 - §
69656)
3)Requires each CCC district that administers a priority
enrollment system for registration to grant priority
registration for enrollment to students in the EOPS program
and to disabled students, as specified, and repeals these
provisions on January 1, 2017. (EC § 66025.91)
This bill:
1)Redefines "foster youth or former foster youth," for purposes
of priority registration at California's public higher
education segments, to conform to definitions consistent with
the California Chaffee Foster Youth Grant program and the
community colleges Cooperating Agencies Foster Youth
Educational Support Program. More specifically, these
students are defined as those who meet both the following
criteria:
SB 906
Page 3
a) Dependency was established or continued by the court on
or after the youth's 16th birthday.
b) Are no older than 25 years of age at the commencement of
the academic year.
2)Deletes the sunset on the requirement (and in the case of the
UC, the request) that the CSU and each CCC district grant
priority registration for enrollment to a foster youth or
former foster youth, thereby permanently extending this
priority for these students.
3)Deletes the sunset on the extension of priority registration
to Extended Opportunity Programs and Services students and
disabled students at the California Community Colleges,
thereby permanently extending registration priority to these
students.
Comments
1)Need for the bill. This bill, sponsored by the Board of
Governors of the California Community Colleges would
statutorily require the extension of priority enrollment
consistent with existing regulations adopted by the BOG.
According to the author, foster youth, students with
disabilities, and low-income students all experience academic
success rates disproportionately lower than the general
population. The author cites various reports issued between
2009 and 2001 that indicate; 1) while half of all people from
high-income families have a bachelor's degree by age 25, only
10 percent of people from low-income families do; 2) only 29
percent of students with disabilities left having graduated or
completed their postsecondary education program; 3) only 8
percent of foster youth had a postsecondary degree from either
a 2-year or a 4-year school.
2)Existing community college enrollment priority categories.
Current law extends registration priority to foster youth and
to EOPS students and Disabled Student Programs and Services
(DSPS) students at the community colleges until January 1,
2017. In addition, current law grants priority enrollment
registration to any member or former member of the Armed
SB 906
Page 4
Forces, as specified.
Enrollment policies related to the implementation of the
system's Student Success Initiative (SSI) have also been
implemented. The Legislature has provided significant funding
for the Student Services Support Program (SSSP) established by
SB 1425 (Lowenthal, Chapter 624, Statutes of 2013) to provide
targeted services such as orientation, assessment, and
counseling and advising to assist students with the
development of education plans. The Board of Governors have
implemented a number of related regulatory and administrative
changes, including the provision of higher enrollment priority
to students who have participated in these targeted services.
Districts are also now required to notify students that
accumulating 100 degree applicable units or being on academic
or progress probation for two consecutive terms will result in
the loss of enrollment priority.
AB 595 (Gomez, Chapter 704 Statutes of 2013), among other
things, established the Legislature's intent that any student
who receives priority registration for enrollment (which would
include veterans, EOPS students, foster youth, and DSPS
students) shall comply with the requirements of the Student
Success Initiative. These provisions were adopted in order to
ensure that the enrollment priorities supported, and did not
undermine, statutory and regulatory efforts to ensure the
development of statewide strategies and to incentivize student
behaviors that result in student success.
According to the sponsor, it is the expectation that students
granted priority enrollment by the provisions of this bill
will comply with EC §66602.95 which clarifies that any student
who receives priority registration shall participate in SSSP
programs and services including orientation, assessment,
counseling, and the development of an education plan, among
other things.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: Yes
SUPPORT: (Verified4/13/16)
SB 906
Page 5
Alameda County Office of Education
American Academy of Pediatrics
Berkeley Hope Scholars, University of California at Berkeley
Board of Governors, California Community Colleges
California Alliance of Child and Family Services
California Community Colleges Extended Opportunity Programs and
Services (EOPS) Association
California State University Chico Student Learning Center
Cerritos Community College District
Chaffey Community College District
Children Now
Cypress College Extended Opportunity Programs and Services and
Guardian Scholars Program
East Bay Children's Law Offices
Faculty Association of California Community Colleges
Family Care Network, Inc.
Foster Care Counts
Foster Youth Success Program, College of the Siskiyous
Fred Finch Youth Center
Guardian Scholars Program, California State University Monterey
Bay
Inspiring Scholars of Butte-Glenn Community College
John Burton Foundation
Kamali'I Foster Family Agency
Larkin Street Youth Services
Orange Coast College Guardian Scholars Program
PATH Scholars, California State University Chico
Peacock Acres, Inc.
Renaissance Scholars Program, California State University Fresno
Seneca Family of Agencies
Smith Renaissance Society at the University of California Santa
Cruz
VOICES Youth Centers of California
Walden Family Services
Western Center on Law and Poverty
Youth and Family Services YMCA
90+ Letters from individuals
OPPOSITION: (Verified4/11/16)
None received
SB 906
Page 6
Prepared by:Kathleen Chavira / ED. / (916) 651-4105
4/13/16 15:19:21
**** END ****