Whereas, A recent study [1] showed that California community college students are increasingly housing insecure, with 1 in 5 students, or roughly 400,000 students in the system, currently being homeless, and that 60 percent of community college students in California have experienced recent housing insecurity and 50 percent have struggled with food insecurity in the last year;
Whereas, As of 2017, approximately 46 percent of California Community Collegesstudents receive need-based financial aid, compared to about two-thirds of resident undergraduate students enrolled in the University of California and the California State University systems [1];
Whereas, Many state and federal student aid programs are structured to help full-time students and thereforedo not benefit community college students who attend college part time,and student aid in the California Community Colleges is conventionally overseen by the Student Aid Commission;
Whereas, California law established the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) as the coordinating and planning agency for statewide postsecondary education, and CPEC performed a variety of useful functions for California higher education, including data collection for all public segments and advising the governor regarding budgetary priorities to preserve access for students, prior to being defunded by the governor and ceasing operations in 2011;
Whereas, California law established the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) as the coordinating and planning agency for statewide postsecondary education, and CPEC performed a variety of useful functions for California higher education, including data collection for all public segments and advising the governor regarding budgetary priorities to preserve access for students, prior to being defunded by the governor and ceasing operations in 2011;
Whereas, The Title 5 language around distance education classes has not been updated since 2008, and significant changes have occurred during that time that warrant a reexamination and updating of the language;
Whereas, The Distance Education and Educational Technology Advisory Committee (DEETAC) has proposed changes to Title 5 §§55200-55210[1] regarding requirements for distance education classes, and those changes were sent to the field for comment; and
Whereas, AB 2621 (Medina, as of April 10, 2018)[1], would require the Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) to conduct a study on the feasibility of creating an exclusively online California community college and report its findings to the Legislature on or before July, 1 2019; and
Whereas, AB 1786 (Cervantes, as of April 10, 2018)[1], would “require a statewide articulation officer at the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, who would be designated by the chancellor under the bill’s provisions by March 31, 2019, to, using common course descriptors and pertinent recommendations of the American Council on Education, determine, by July 1, 2019, for which courses credit should be awarded for prior military experience”;
Whereas, Current California law defines, for the purpose of Cal Grant eligibility, a full-time student enrolled in any segment of higher education in California as being enrolled in “12 or more semester units or the equivalent”;
Whereas, Numerous studies have demonstrated the positive effects of expanded tutoring on student success [1] and, “the value of learning support and tutoring services to student success cannot be overestimated given the various levels of preparation our students bring to the classroom.” [2];
Whereas, The California Community College Chancellor’s Office in the Vision for Success has tasked the California Community College system with aspirational goals of increased student success and completion [3];
Whereas, The 2018-19 Governor’s Budget for the California Community Colleges (CCC) proposes a radical change to the system’s funding formula that would limit apportionment based on enrollment, provide funding in support for low-income students, and implement performance-based funding to incentivize increasing the number of certificates and degrees awarded [1];
