Consultation with the Chancellor's Office

Whereas, California Penal Code §2053.1 directs the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to “make college programs available at every state prison for the benefit of inmates” and states that these “college programs shall only be provided by the California Community Colleges, the California State University, the University of California, or other regionally accredited, nonprofit colleges or universities,” and consequently, the CDCR “ shall prioritize colleges and universities that… [d]o not charge incarcerated students or their families for tuition, course materials, or other e

Whereas, The Academic Senate for California Community Colleges is committed to ensuring that all Californians have access to high-quality education, regardless of their age, background, or life circumstances;

Whereas, Some lifelong learners face a number of barriers to enrolling in classes, including complex application processes, lack of time and resources, and difficulty navigating the system; and

Whereas, To increase transfer completion, the California legislature has prioritized data-informed reforms, such as AB 1705 (Irwin, 2022) [1], with the goal of achieving equitable outcomes;

Whereas, The California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office has interpreted AB 1705 (Irwin, 2022) [1] to require that students “begin in… math coursework that satisfies a requirement of their program,” and the guidance issued in memo ESS 23-19 [2} states that colleges must place students pursuing the Associate Degree for Transfer in Business Administration 2.0 into a business calculus class or other calculus class; and

Whereas, The Procedures and Standing Orders of the Board of Governors (December, 2022)  [1] requires that “any published materials produced under an agreement or sub-agreement using public funds must be subject to a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY),” allowing such materials to be used, modified, and monetized by any entity provided the source is properly attributed;

Whereas, The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), county justice centers, and California community colleges are bound by complicated constraints, including laws, contractual agreements, policies, and funding formulas, and policies, procedures, and processes that meet the needs of incarcerated students, faculty, and collegiate support staff serving the incarcerated students and support the needs of the corrections staff under the memorandum of understanding between the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office  and CDCR need to be established to preserve th

Whereas, AB 1705 (Irwin, 2022) [1] goes beyond ensuring that students who have successfully completed prerequisite coursework not be required to repeat that work and requires that all students be allowed to bypass transfer-level prerequisite courses for calculus beginning July 1, 2024 for business calculus and July 1, 2025 for STEM calculus unless colleges are able to validate these pre-requisites using a metric that has not yet been determined as of April, 2023;

Whereas, The California Community Colleges Ethnic Studies Graduation Requirement, codified in California Code of Regulations Title 5 section §55063 Minimum Requirements for the Associate Degree, [1] was adopted upon action of the California Community Colleges Board of Governors (BOG) in 2021, and BOG President Pamela Haynes commented that ethnic studies serves as a means to help “break down barriers to equity” by placing “diversity, equity, and inclusion…and anti-racism at the heart of our work,” [2] and doing so

Whereas, SB 850 (Block, 2014) initiated the California Community College Baccalaureate Degree Pilot Program, and AB 927 (Medina, 2021)  made pilot programs permanent and expanded opportunities for colleges to implement baccalaureate degree programs;

Whereas, California Education Code §66010.4 [1] notes that “The California Community Colleges shall, as a primary mission, offer academic and vocational instruction at the lower division level for both younger and older students” and “A primary mission of the California Community Colleges is to advance California’s economic growth and global competitiveness through education, training, and services that contribute to continuous workforce improvement;”