BILL ANALYSIS
SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION
Gloria Romero, Chair
2009-2010 Regular Session
BILL NO: SB 1354
AUTHOR: Hancock
INTRODUCED: February 29, 2010
FISCAL COMM: Yes HEARING DATE: April 14, 2010
URGENCY: No CONSULTANT:Beth Graybill
SUBJECT : Partnership Academies
SUMMARY
This bill does all of the following:
1) Updates the criteria for student participation in
partnership academies;
2) Requires career technical education courses offered at a
partnership academy to be part of an occupational course
sequence, and
3) Entitles partnership academies in operation for at least
three years to an annual cost of living adjustment.
BACKGROUND
Existing law establishes California Partnership Academies
(CPAs) for the purpose of providing combined academic and
occupational training to high school students in grades 10-12
inclusive who present a high risk of dropping out of school.
CPAs function as a school within a school and provide
career-themed educational programs that integrate core
academic content and technical education. (Education Code
54690 et. seq.)
Existing law establishes funding formulas and requirements
for CPA grants issued by the Superintendent of Public
Instruction (SPI). Existing law requires districts and
companies or other private sectors participating in a
partnership academy to provide an amount equal to 100 percent
match of all grant funds received. Current law authorizes
the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) to issue a
maximum of 155 planning grants per year in the amount of
$15,000 and authorizes the SPI to issue implementation and
SB 1354
Page 2
maintenance grants to academies according to the following
schedule: (EC 54691)
$1,400 for each qualified pupil enrolled in an
academy during the first year of the academy's
operation, up to a maximum of $42,000.
$1,200 for each qualified pupil enrolled in an
academy during the second year of the academy's
operation, up to a maximum of $72,000.
$900 for each qualified pupil enrolled in an
academy during the third and subsequent years of
operation, up to a maximum of $81,000.
Existing law requires at least half of the students enrolled
in a partnership academy to be "at risk" as demonstrated by
having a past record of irregular attendance and/or
underachievement, having an economically disadvantaged
background, or demonstrating low motivation or disinterest in
the regular academic program. A school district that is
unable to enroll enough at-risk students may enroll
non-at-risk students who meet specified criteria, including
scoring in the 40th percentile or below in mathematics or
English language arts on the California Standards Test. (EC
54691)
ANALYSIS
This bill :
1) Modifies the criteria for determining "at risk" for
purposes of eligibility to participate in a CPA:
a) Defines irregular attendance to mean absence
from school 80 percent or more of the school year.
b) Scoring "below basic" in Algebra I or English
language arts on standardized tests administered
pursuant to the Standardized Testing and Reporting
(STAR) Program.
c) Specifies that a student maintaining a grade
point average of 2.2 or below meets at least one of
criteria for being determined to be at risk.
2) Specifies that commencing with the 2011-12 fiscal year,
each CPA in operation for three or more years shall
receive an annual percentage cost-of-living adjustment.
SB 1354
Page 3
3) Deletes provisions that specify the academic criteria
applying to non at-risk pupils participating in a CPA.
4) Deletes the requirement that students be provided a
laboratory class related to the academy's occupational
field.
5) Specifies that CTE courses offered at each grade level
at the academy are part of an occupational course
sequence that targets comprehensive skills that:
a) Provide CTE in occupations of regional and
local economic need.
b) Focus on occupations requiring comprehensive
skills leading to higher than entry-level wages, or
the possibility of significant wage increases after
a few years on the job, or both.
c) Provide a sequence of courses that build upon
each other in knowledge, skill development, and
experience and ends in a capstone course that
includes an internship component.
d) Prepare pupils for employment and
postsecondary education. Requires sequenced
courses to be linked to certificate and degree
programs in the region, where possible.
e) Prepare pupils for industry-recognized
certification, where possible.
f) Also meet the a-g University of California
requirements or seek a-g status for appropriate
exiting courses, where appropriate.
6) Requires districts, whenever practical, to provide a
second planning period for the CPA teacher.
STAFF COMMENTS
1) Need for the bill : According to the author's office,
the purpose of this bill is to promote greater
consistency in partnership academies by:
a) Requiring all partnership academies to provide
students with sequences of courses that develop
proficiency in a series of skills and prepare them
SB 1354
Page 4
for industry-recognized certifications.
b) Updating and clarifying indicators used to
identify at-risk students to give schools better
guidance in determining which students may benefit
from participating in a partnership academy.
c) Provide a cost of living adjustment (COLA) to
partnership programs in operation for three or more
years to help programs to absorb cost increases
without reducing services.
2) Program overview . California Partnership Academies
provide occupational training in areas such as
electronics, computer technology, finance, agribusiness,
graphic arts and printing, international business, and
space. There are currently a total of 480 CPAs across
the state. Key elements of a partnership academy
include partnerships with local business, teacher teams,
mentoring, and internships. Students are matched with a
mentor from the business community and typically begin
an internship after completing their junior year.
According to the CDE, program evaluations indicate
academies have a positive impact on students' school
performance.
3) Expands participation ? SB 1354 deletes provisions in
current law that limit enrollment of non-at risk
students to low-achieving students who meet specified
criteria, while also refining the criteria for
enrollment of at-risk pupils by deleting outdated
student performance measures and providing indicators
local education agencies can use to identify students
who might benefit from participating in a partnership
academy program. According to CDE, the revised
definitions will conform statute to the guidance and
technical assistance CDE staff currently provide to
school districts. To the extent that the revised
definitions will provide teachers and counselors with
clear, unambiguous guidance for identifying students
eligible to participate in an academy, SB 1354 could
result in greater consistency across partnership
academies. Although it appears that the new standards
could result in the identification of more at risk
students, CDE staff indicates the revised criteria
should not significantly expand participation in
partnership programs.
Under the revised criteria, students could be designated as
"at risk" by meeting at least three criteria, including
SB 1354
Page 5
scoring below basic in Algebra I or English language
arts on the California Standards Test. Given that some
students may not complete Algebra I by the end of ninth
grade, it may be more appropriate to use the term
mathematics rather than Algebra I to allow teachers and
counselors to consider a student's math scores.
As written, the bill defines (on page 3, line 4) irregular
attendance as absence from school 80 percent or more of
the school year. The author has indicated the intent
was for the definition to read absence from school 20
percent or more of the school year. Staff recommends a
technical amendment to correct this error.
Recommended amendments:
a) On page 3, line 12, delete the term Algebra I
and replace it with mathematics.
b) On page 3, line 4, delete "80" and replace
with "20"
4) Consistent with recent CTE reforms . In May 2005, the
Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) released a report
titled "Improving High Schools: A Strategic Approach."
The findings suggested that high schools need to
structure vocational education as a sequence of courses
rather than individual courses in order to increase the
impact on reducing high school dropouts and improving
student achievement. Following this report, the
Legislature has enacted several reforms in CTE programs
focused on implementing the LAO's recommendations,
including:
a) AB 2448 (Hancock, Chapter 572, Statutes of
2006) : Requires regional occupational centers and
programs (ROCP) governing boards to assure that at
least 90% of all state-funded courses offered by
the center or program are part of occupational
courses sequences that target high-skill
occupations that are in demand in the region.
b) AB 519 (Committee on Budget, Chapter 757,
Statutes of 2007) : Established a three-year grant
program to provide funding for the creation of
partnership academies that provide a sequence of
courses focused on clean technology and energy. AB
519 appropriated $12.5 million for the
establishment of "green" partnership academies.
c) SB 70 (Scott, Chapter 532, Statutes of 2005) :
SB 1354
Page 6
Establishes a grant program to help high school
students develop vocational skills needed by
employers while also preparing students for
continuing and more advanced vocational coursework
at a community college or university. Partnership
academies receiving SB 70 grants must agree to
provide sequenced courses in the academy.
5) Efficient use of education time . By requiring programs
to assure that students are provided with technical
courses that are part of an occupational course
sequence, this bill could help students make more
efficient use of their time by taking courses that
successively build on previously acquired skills and
experience and will help assure that any ROCP courses a
student may take (including capstone courses), are
linked to the course of study in the program and will
help assure that students who complete a partnership
academy are qualified to enter the labor market and
ready to pursue additional education after high school.
To the extent that partnership academies and ROCPs are
providing vocational sequences at the secondary level in
occupations of regional and local economic need, SB 1354
may also help local education agencies more effectively
use their career technical education resources and may
help improve articulation with and access to local
community college programs.
6) Fiscal impact . The state has temporarily expanded the
number of partnership academies through the SB 70 and AB
519 grant programs. The 2007 Budget Act provided a
total of $52 million for SB 70 programs. SB 1133
(Torlakson, Chapter 751, 2006) appropriated an
additional $38 million annually from 2008-09 through
2013-14 for SB 70 programs. Of the 480 partnership
academies, 276 are funded from Proposition-98 funds, 146
were established with SB 70 grant funds, and the
remaining 58 were established under the AB 519 grant
program. Although partnership academies receive
increases in the first three years of operation to cover
start-up costs, once they have been operating for three
years or more, CPAs receive no further increases in
funding unless they increase the number of enrolled
students.
Budget reductions have had a disproportionate effect on CPAs.
SB 1354
Page 7
State funded partnership academies were reduced 15.4
percent in 2008-09 and an additional 4 percent in
2009-10. CPAs funded by SB 70 (including academies
first funded in 2007-08 and 2008-09) and AB 519 were not
affected by the budget reductions. Although it could be
argued that budget cuts and increased costs have eroded
the buying power of the current implementation and
maintenance grants, entitling these programs to annual
COLAs could create moderate but ongoing cost pressure
for the state. Given that budget constraints are
expected to continue for the foreseeable future, is this
the right time to implement this policy? Should the
COLAs be limited to the ongoing state-funded partnership
programs?
7) Related and prior legislation . In addition to the
legislation noted above, other bills concerning career
technical education include:
a) SB 1298 (Hancock), also before this Committee
today, modifies categorical flexibility
requirements for regional occupational centers and
programs that are operated by a joint powers
agency.
b) SB 70 (Scott, Chapter 352, 2005) established a
grant program to improve linkages and career
pathways between high schools and community
colleges that offer CTE programs. This bill
required the California Community Colleges Board of
Governors to assist economic and workforce regional
development centers and consortia, including middle
schools and high schools and ROCPs to improve
linkages and career technical education pathways
between high schools and community colleges for the
benefit of pupils and students in both education
systems.
c) AB 2885 (Hancock, Chapter 685, 2008)
established, commencing with the 2009-10 school
year, partnership academies focused on green
technology and goods movement and requires the
Superintendent of Public Instruction to prioritize
partnership academy grants for programs that focus
on green technology and goods movement. AB 2885
was passed by this Committee on a 6-0 vote.
d) SB 830 (Kehoe) would have provided for the
SB 1354
Page 8
expansion of the number of partnership academies
and revised funding formulas and requirements for
school districts operating academies, including the
participation of ninth graders. SB 830 was passed
by this Committee on an 8-1 vote and was held in
the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
SUPPORT
California Association of Leaders of Career Preparation
California Association of Regional Occupational Centers and
Programs
OPPOSITION
None received.