Bill Signed by Governor to Ease Path from Community Colleges to UC and CSU

I attended a talk yesterday by Chancellor Block at which he indicated that about 40% of UCLA undergrads are transfers from community colleges. Coincidentally, the governor signed some related legislation. One bill mandates some steps by CSU. Respecting its constitutional autonomy, a second bill urges similar action by UC. The text of the governor's press release is below:

09/29/2010 GAAS:618:10 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Gov. Schwarzenegger Signs Bills to Guarantee CSU Admission to Community College Graduates

To increase access to the California State University (CSU) system, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today signed SB 1440 by Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) and AB 2302 by Assemblymember Paul Fong (D-Cupertino). “These two pieces of legislation are a historic victory for California’s students, and I’m proud to sign both of them into law,” said Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. “Guaranteeing admission into a CSU for any community college student who completes the newly established transfer degree under SB 1440 is a monumental step forward for California’s higher education system. This legislation also strengthens our economy by giving more students the necessary skills to enter the workforce, grow companies and create jobs in California. I commend both Senator Alex Padilla and Assemblymember Paul Fong for authoring legislation that provides such a fantastic opportunity to our community college students.”

SB 1440 by Senator Padilla streamlines the transfer process for students looking to transfer from a California Community College (CCC) to a CSU. Specifically, this bill requires CCC districts to establish associate degrees for transfer, guarantees an associate degree for transfer students are admitted to CSU with junior status and establishes course unit limits on most majors in order to reduce unnecessary, excess coursework.

AB 2302 complements and builds upon the work of SB 1440 to improve the efficiency of the transfer process and helps facilitate the successful implementation of transparent transfer pathways at the University of California (UC). The bill calls for the UC to examine the development of a transfer pathway for students which would result in a transfer associate degree and system admission, and it provides a framework for student notification of the new transfer pathway created in SB 1440.

Note: SB 1440 is at http://leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_1440&sess=CUR&house=B&author=padilla

AB 2302 is at http://leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_2302&sess=CUR&house=B&author=fong

UPDATE: A news item about this legislation appears in http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2010/10/20/california

And a report on the failure of many community college students to transfer or finish their degrees is at http://www.collegecampaign.org/assets/docs/stds/Divided_We_Fail_Final.pdf