BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 1016
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB
1016 (Santiago)
As Amended July 8, 2015
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: | 77-0 | (June 2, |SENATE: |40-0 | (August 24, |
| | |2015) | | |2015) |
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Original Committee Reference: HIGHER ED.
SUMMARY: Requires the California Community Colleges (CCC)
Chancellor's Office (CCCCO) to report to the Legislature, on or
before December 1, 2016, the status of each community college's
compliance with the Student Transfer Achievement Reform (STAR)
Act's provision related to creating associate degrees for
transfer (ADTs); requires the California State University (CSU)
to submit two reports to the Legislature, as specified, on
campus acceptance of transfer model curricula (TMC) by
concentration; and, requires the CSU to publicly post available
data on associate degree for transfer students as specified.
The Senate amendments:
1)Change the month that the various reports are due, as
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specified, from March to December.
2)Change the month the reporting requirements sunset, as
specified, from March to December.
3)Make clarifying corrections.
EXISTING LAW:
1)Establishes the STAR Act and requires CCC to develop two-year
(60 semester unit) associate degrees for transfer, which deems
the student eligible for transfer into CSU. The associate
degrees for transfer are required to include a minimum of 18
units in a major or area of emphasis, as determined by CCC,
and an approved set of general education requirements
(Education Code Section 66746).
2)Requires the CSU to guarantee admission with junior status to
any community college student who meets the specified
requirements in 1) above, but provides that the student is not
guaranteed admission for specific majors or campuses.
However, the CSU is required to grant a student priority
admission to his or her local CSU campus and to a program or
major that is similar to his or her community college major or
area of emphasis, as determined by the CSU campus to which the
student is admitted. Students that utilize the associate
transfer degree process are required to receive priority over
all other community college transfer students, except for
community college students who have entered into a transfer
agreement between a community college and the CSU prior to the
fall term of the 2012-13 academic year (Education Code Section
66747).
3)Requires the Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) to review and
report, as specified, on the implementation of the STAR Act by
spring of 2012 (Education Code Section 66749).
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FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, both the CCCCO and the CSU indicate that costs would
be minor and absorbable to implement this bill.
COMMENTS: Background. As a way to address long standing issues
and concerns about the need to ensure a clearer, transparent and
more navigable transfer process between the CCC and CSU, the
Legislature and Governor enacted SB 1440 (Padilla), Chapter 428,
Statutes of 2010. This legislation required community colleges
to create two-year 60 unit associate degrees for transfer that
are fully transferable to CSU. These degrees require completion
of: 1) a minimum of 18 units in a major or area of emphasis, as
determined by each community college, and 2) an approved set of
general education requirements. Students who earn such a degree
are automatically eligible to transfer to the CSU system as an
upper-division student in a bachelor's degree program. Though
these students are not guaranteed admission to a particular CSU
campus or into a particular degree program, SB 1440 gives them
priority admission to a CSU program that is "similar" to the
student's CCC major or area of emphasis, as determined by the
CSU campus to which the student is admitted. Once admitted, SB
1440 students need only complete two additional years (an
additional 60 units) of coursework to earn a bachelor's degree.
SB 440 (Padilla), Chapter 720, Statutes of 2013, requires, prior
to the 2014-15 academic year, a CCC create an ADT in every major
that has a TMC. Once a TMC is approved by faculty, community
colleges use it to design an ADT in that particular major.
Legislative Analyst's Office (LAO) Report. "Implementation
Update: Reforming Transfer from CCC to CSU," which was released
on February 2, 2015, found, among others, that there has been
continued progress in the implementation of the STAR Act, but
some of the CCC and CSU campuses are not fully on track to
meeting the Legislature's targets for implementation. The LAO
contends that the state's transfer reform is too recent to fully
assess its effectiveness in a comprehensive way. That said,
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according to the report, the CCC, appears on track to make
additional progress in accepting ADTs as similar to its majors
and concentrations.
As a way to ensure more students are familiar with the ADT and
its direct path for CSU transfer, and to help the Legislature
monitor how the segments are implementing the STAR Act, the
report recommended one near-term report from the CCC and two
from the CSU to track the segments' progress in creating ADTs
and accepting TMC; and, require the CSU to annually provide data
on certain student outcomes (including admittance to campuses
and programs of choice, units taken, and graduation rates),
beginning Fall 2018.
Purpose of this bill. According to the author, the STAR Act
does not require the CCC to update the Legislature on ADT
development or require the CSU to report on TMC acceptance or
ADT Student outcomes. The author states, "AB 1016, by providing
more information in the coming years, will help the Legislature
track CCC/CSU progress in implementing transfer reform.
Furthermore, this bill will help transfer students more easily
achieve their educational and career goals."
Analysis Prepared by: Jeanice Warden / HIGHER ED. / (916)
319-3960 FN:
0001278