Amended in Assembly April 23, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 2555

Introduced by Assembly Member Bocanegra

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(Coauthors: Assembly Members Ian Calderon and Jones-Sawyer)

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February 21, 2014

An act to add begin delete and repeal end delete Section 33134 begin delete of end delete begin insert to end insert the Education Code, relating to cradle-to-career initiatives.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 2555, as amended, Bocanegra. Cradle-to-career initiatives: begin delete report. end delete begin insert plan. end insert

Existing law establishes the Superintendent of Public Instruction and requires the Superintendent to develop, and submit to the State Board of Education for approval, information to strengthen and promote the opportunities for quality involvement by parents and guardians in schoolsite councils.

This bill would require the Superintendent, in begin delete conjunction end delete begin insert collaboration end insert with specified entities, to develop a begin delete report exploring the feasibility of establishing and expanding cradle-to-career initiatives that are collective-impact strategies containing specified tenets. end delete begin insert 5-year plan for expanding cradle-to-career initiatives throughout the state. The bill would require the 5-year plan to include certain things, including a description of the components of effective cradle-to-career initiatives, and recommendations, as specified. end insert The bill would require the Superintendent begin delete to provide the Legislature with an interim status report by July 1, 2016, and end delete to submit begin insert the plan end insert to the Legislature begin delete a final report end delete by December 1, 2016. begin delete The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2021. end delete begin insert The bill would make specified findings and declarations. end insert

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

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

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begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

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

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(a) All children throughout California, regardless of their
families’ socioeconomic, English learner, or special education
status, or the neighborhoods in which they reside, deserve access
to a high-quality education, health services, and social services
that will prepare them to succeed in college and in their careers,
and that will allow them to become productive citizens contributing
to the wealth of our cities, state, and nation.

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(b) Many children living in California’s most distressed
communities lack access to opportunities that will ensure adequate
academic, social, and physical and mental health preparation to
achieve success and help end family and neighborhood poverty.

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(c) Innovative and comprehensive approaches to break the cycle
of poverty are necessary for creating opportunities for children
to succeed and ultimately help turn around poor neighborhoods.

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(d) Long-term investments in underserved children’s academic,
social, and health development and the strengthening of a system
of family and community support shared by various stakeholders
are also needed to sustain the future of our communities.

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(e) The Harlem Children’s Zone in New York City has
demonstrated the lasting benefit of developing a network of support
services to revitalize an entire community by focusing on the
educational, social, and physical and mental health of children.

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(f) The federal Promise Neighborhoods Initiative, inspired by
the Harlem Children’s Zone, seeks to develop a cradle-to-career
pipeline of support services in specific neighborhoods that will
transform communities.

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(g) Of 78 California communities that applied for a federal
Promise Neighborhoods Initiative grant, eight communities were
selected to receive planning or implementation grants.

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(h) Many of the communities that were not selected to receive
a federal Promise Neighborhoods Initiative grant continue to work
on developing community plans because cross-community planning
provides lasting benefits in aligning and maximizing community
resources.

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(i) Many full-service community schools are currently operating
in California, and hundreds of California schools have
implemented components of community schools, such as 226
school-based health centers, robust afterschool programs, and
other community partnerships that support children and families.

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(j) Integrated support services programs represent a proven
pupil-centric approach focused on promoting academic success
by coordinating support services. These programs serve 1,500,000
pupils nationwide and a recent Child Trends report found that in
the Los Angeles Unified School District, these programs showed
99 percent retention of potential dropouts, propelled 96 percent
of eligible high school seniors to graduation, and successfully
helped 97 percent of pupils continue to the next grade.

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(k) Establishing a network of services to serve families breaks
down many unnecessary barriers in the effective delivery of
programs and services.

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(l) The alignment of local, state, and federal resources can
maximize existing funds and better serve specific communities.

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begin delete SECTION 1. end delete
begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

Section 33134 is added to the Education Code, to read:

33134.  

(a) The Superintendent, in begin delete conjunction end delete begin insert collaboration end insert
with the State Department of Social Services, the Employment
Development Department, the California Health and Human
Services Agency, the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing
Agency, the Department of Transportation, the California Children
and Families Commission, the Chancellor of the California
Community Colleges, the Chancellor of the California State
University, the President of the University of California, begin insert the
California Workforce Investment Board, end insert the Department of Parks
and Recreation, teacher organizations, chambers of commerce,
industry representatives, research centers, parent organizations,
school administrators, begin delete representatives of regional occupational
centers and programs, end delete community-based organizations, labor
organizations, and other interested parties deemed appropriate by
the Superintendent, shall develop a begin delete report that explores the
feasibility of establishing and expanding cradle-to-career initiatives
that are collective-impact strategies with all of the following tenets: end delete
begin insert five-year plan for expanding cradle-to-career initiatives throughout
the state. end insert

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(1) Aligning local, state, federal, and private resources to
maximize existing dollars and better serve children and their
families.

(2) Focusing coordinated efforts in one geographic location to
target a specific scope of children and their families.

(3) Sharing a focus on pupil success and mobilizing senior
community leaders around a policy, program, and
quality-improvement agenda.

(4) Providing for partnerships among schools, government, and
community-based organizations.

(5) Providing for collaborative leadership structures that play
an essential function in the alignment of planning, resource
development, and implementation at both the school and
community levels.

(6) Coordinating improvements across multiple sectors, such
as housing, education, employment, transportation, and health.

(7) Selecting and targeting research-informed milestones, such
as kindergarten readiness, third grade reading levels, and high
school graduation rates, and focusing on the collective effort of
partners in attaining these goals.

(8) Providing for a results-driven focus on improving the
educational and life outcomes of children, both to ensure brighter
futures for young people and to create healthier, safer
neighborhoods with greater access to employment opportunities.

(9) Using the principles of equity and academic excellence to
drive the initiative to meet the needs of all pupils, including those
pupils identified as vulnerable to social disconnection and dropping
out of school.

(10) Reflecting local employment opportunities, needs, and
objectives with input from, and coordination with, residents,
community leaders, and local institutions.

(b) In developing the cradle-to-career initiatives, the
Superintendent shall consider approaches that include, but are not
limited to, community schools, promise neighborhoods, and healthy
communities efforts in the state.

(c) The report shall include all of the following components:

(1) Methods for developing and sharing models of
cradle-to-career initiatives.

(2) Strategies for effective implementation of the
cradle-to-career initiatives.

(3) Recommendations for supporting regional coalitions in
planning and developing the cradle-to-career initiatives.

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(b) The five-year plan shall include all of the following:

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(1) A description of the components of effective cradle-to-career
initiatives.

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(2) Identification of successful models of cradle-to-career
initiatives, including measurements of their impacts.

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(3) Strategies for effective implementation of cradle-to-career
initiatives, including how the initiatives can be coordinated with
local control and accountability plans.

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(4) Methods for developing and sustaining cradle-to-career
initiatives, including, but not limited to, all of the following:

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(A) Leveraging existing funding and services.

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(B) Providing incentives for collaboration.

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(C) Identifying new funding opportunities.

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(D) Providing technical support.

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(E) Developing greater connectivity between state entities.

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(F) Evaluating success.

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(5) Recommendations for supporting regional coalitions in
planning and developing cradle-to-career initiatives.

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(6) Recommendations for ensuring that the state’s most
distressed neighborhoods and communities are prioritized in the
expansion of cradle-to-career initiatives.

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(7) A five-year timeline for implementing the recommendations.

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(c) (1) For purposes of this section, cradle-to-career initiatives
include, but are not limited to, collaborative school and community
programs and services that align local, state, federal, and private
resources and that focus on the following objectives:

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(A) Ensuring that children are healthy.

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(B) Increasing the learning opportunities and academic
achievement of all pupils.

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(C) Strengthening family structures.

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(D) Establishing safe neighborhoods.

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(E) Expanding college and career opportunities.

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(2) Cradle-to-career initiatives in the state also include, but are
not limited to, full-service community centers, promise
neighborhoods, wraparound programs, school-based health
centers, and healthy community efforts.

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(d) (1) The Superintendent shall, upon appropriation by the
begin delete Legislature, end delete begin insert Legislature for purposes of this section, end insert use state begin delete and
federal end delete funds begin insert , or federal funds, or both, end insert to implement this section.

(2)  begin delete To the extent that funding pursuant to paragraph (1) is
insufficient, the end delete begin insert The end insert Superintendent may apply for and accept
grants, and receive donations and other financial support from
public or private sources begin insert for purposes of this section end insert .

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(e) On or before July 1, 2016, the Superintendent shall, pursuant
to Section 9795 of the Government Code, report to the Legislature
on the status of completing the report.

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(f)

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begin insert (e) end insert  On or before December 1, 2016, the Superintendent shall,
pursuant to Section 9795 of the Government Code, submit begin delete a final
report end delete begin insert the plan end insert developed pursuant to subdivision (a) begin delete with
recommendations end delete to the Legislature.

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(g) Pursuant to Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, this
section shall become inoperative on December 1, 2020, and, as of
January 1, 2021, is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
becomes operative on or before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends
the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.

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