Amended in Assembly April 1, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2092

Introduced by Assembly Member Chávez

(Coauthor: Assembly Member Olsen)

February 20, 2014

An act to begin delete amend Section 66725 of end delete begin insert add Section 66011.3 to end insert the Education Code, relating to begin delete student transfer. end delete begin insert public postsecondary education. end insert

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2092, as amended, Chávez. Postsecondary education: Donahoe Higher Education Act: begin delete common course numbering system. end delete begin insert 4-year baccalaureate degree. end insert

Existing law, known as the Donahoe Higher Education Act, sets forth, among other things, the missions and functions of California’s public and independent segments of higher education, and their respective institutions of higher education. begin delete The act states that it is the intent of the Legislature to facilitate articulation and seamless integration of California’s postsecondary institutions by facilitating the adoption and integration of a common course numbering system among the public and private postsecondary institutions, and makes various legislative findings and declarations in that regard. end delete begin insert The public segments of higher education include the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California. end insert

This bill would begin delete make nonsubstantive changes in those provisions relating to the stated intent of the act. end delete begin insert require the Trustees of the California State University, and request the Regents of the University of California, to offer eligible students of their respective segments an agreement guaranteeing that a student who meets certain conditions may complete a baccalaureate degree within 4 academic years, with the exception of certain programs that may require up to 5 academic years to complete. The bill would specify that a student who scores in an unspecified percentile, or above, on a standardized college readiness assessment would be presumed to be eligible to enter into an agreement under the bill. The bill would require the agreement to outline a general pathway for the coursework that the student must complete in order to continue to be qualified for the guarantee and receive his or her baccalaureate within the agreed-upon time. 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 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 66011.3 is added to the end insert begin insert Education Code end insert begin insert ,
to read: end insert

begin insert

begin insert 66011.3. end insert   

(a) The Trustees of the California State University
shall, and the Regents of the University of California are requested
to, offer eligible students of their respective segments an agreement
guaranteeing that a student who meets certain conditions may
complete a baccalaureate degree within four academic years. An
institution may provide for a longer period for programs such as
engineering or teacher training that may require more than four
academic years to complete, but under no circumstances may the
time to baccalaureate degree agreed to under this section be
extended beyond five academic years.

(b) An agreement entered into under this section shall comply
with all of the following:

(1) A student who scores in the ____ percentile or above on any
standardized college readiness assessment test, such as the
Scholastic Aptitude Test, ACT, or any other widely administered
college readiness examination, shall be presumed to be eligible
to enter into the agreement. A student who scores below the top
____ percentile, but above the ____ percentile may take another
test of the institution’s choice, and the institution shall establish
a cut-off score for eligibility for the program pursuant to that test.

(2) The agreement shall be executed by a student and an
authorized representative of the institution before the end of the
student’s first semester or quarter of enrollment at the institution.

(3) The agreement shall outline a general pathway for the
coursework that the student must complete in order to continue to
be qualified for the guarantee and receive his or her baccalaureate
within the agreed-upon time.

(4) The student shall not be required to declare a major field
until the spring semester or quarter of the student’s sophomore
year.

(5) The student shall be required to be a full-time student and
maintain academic standards equivalent to those required pursuant
to Article 1 (commencing with Section 69430) of Chapter 1.7 of
Part 42 for receipt of Cal Grant awards.

(6) A student may also be required to attend orientation sessions
and student success workshops in order to remain eligible for the
guarantee.

(7) A student who executes an agreement under this section
shall be granted priority for enrollment for each course that is
part of the general pathway outlined as part of the agreement
pursuant to paragraph (3).

(8) A student who meets all of the requirements of the agreement
and, through no fault of his or her own, is unable to complete his
or her baccalaureate degree within the guaranteed period shall
pay no tuition to take the additional coursework required to
complete that degree.

end insert

begin delete

SECTION 1.  

Section 66725 of the Education Code is amended
to read:

66725.  

(a) It is the intent of the Legislature to facilitate the
articulation and seamless integration of California’s postsecondary
institutions by facilitating the adoption and integration of a
common course numbering system among the public and private
postsecondary institutions. The purpose of building and
implementing a common course numbering system is to provide
for the effective and efficient progression of students within and
among the higher education segments and to minimize duplication
of coursework.

(b) The Legislature finds and declares both of the following:

(1) Effective transfer programs provide a clear path for obtaining
the preparation necessary for upper-division major coursework
and graduation at a four-year college or university. The segments
have made significant progress in developing articulation
agreements that specify required coursework and other academic
preparation that is necessary for transfer students to succeed at a
four-year institution. These articulation agreements are essential
to provide the basis for a common course numbering system that
facilitates transfer student success.

(2) In implementing this article, the public postsecondary
educational institutions and other parties involved should assess
programs and build upon those proving to be the most effective
in communicating articulation, such as the California Articulation
Number (CAN) system, the Intersegmental Major Preparation
Articulated Curriculum (IMPAC) project, the Intersegmental
General Education Transfer Curriculum (IGETC), and the
Articulation System Stimulating Interinstitutional Student Transfer
(ASSIST).

end delete