Five New Student-Centered Policies Deliver a Win for California

Greetings!  As Governor Newsom took final action on bills this past week, we are proud to share that five student-centered policies championed by the Campaign were signed by the Governor. These bills expand support and protections to vulnerable student populations, including undocumented students, as they work to achieve their college dreams. We congratulate Governor Newsom and legislative leaders on a successful year of policy accomplishments and thank them for supporting legislation to increase college opportunity and student success. The Campaign’s 2019 Legislative Agenda advanced many recommendations outlined in our Blueprint for Higher Education – a roadmap for meeting future worked demands and closing persistent racial equity gaps. One of the policies the Campaign has long championed was reflected in Assembly Bill 130, which would have established the Higher Education Performance, Accountability, and Coordination Commission to provide state-level leadership responsible for postsecondary planning, oversight and coordination. While we recognize the Governor’s commitment to strengthening higher education in California, we are disappointed by his decision to veto AB 130. We firmly believe an independent, higher education coordinating body is essential for California to produce the educated workforce our economy demands while closing persistent racial equity gaps. However, we remain encouraged by the Governor’s stated commitment to establishing statewide goals to increase access, affordability, and student success. We also look forward to successful implementation of the statewide longitudinal data system ushered into law through the 2019-20 state budget and to anchoring future conversations on establishing attainment goals and increasing cross-system coordination. We thank you for your continued partnership in our efforts to make college dreams a reality for millions of California students. We could not do this critical work without you! Sincerely,

Jessie Ryan Executive Vice President

Supporting Undocumented Students

The following policies were championed by the California Undocumented Higher Education Coalition, which the Campaign for College Opportunity facilitates. Read the Campaign's new report, In Their Voices, which highlights the challenges undocumented students face in reaching their college dreams and illustrates the opportunity gaps these policies serve to address.

AB 1645: Dreamer Resource Liaisons Assemblymember Rubio The coalition led the way in advocating for AB 1645, which requires the California Community Colleges and California State University, and requests the University of California, to establish a Dreamer Resource Liaison on each campus, ensuring that our undocumented student populations have proper access to the resources and support needed to accomplish their college goals.

AB 540: California Dreamer Incentive Grant Assemblymember Limón AB 540 provides clarifying language to the Cal Grant B Service Incentive Grant established in the 2019-20 state budget, which offers grants to students who complete a specified number of volunteer or community service hours and meet academic requirements. Since undocumented students do not qualify for federal aid, this policy decreases students' financial burdens while providing critical professional development opportunities. SB 354: California DREAM Loan for Graduate School Programs Senator Durazo SB 354 expands access to the California DREAM Loan to undocumented students pursuing a post-graduate degree or teaching credential, who otherwise do not qualify for federal or state aid. This policy removes financial barriers for undocumented post-graduate students determined to reach their full educational potential.

Priority Higher Education Bills

AB 1344: Out of State For-Profit College Regulations Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan  AB 1344 protects vulnerable students enrolled in out of state for-profit online colleges by requiring out of state private institutions to provide additional information on adverse actions taken against the institution and allows the Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education to place violating institutions on probation. Our State of Higher Education for Black Californians report called on state leaders to provide adequate oversight of for-profit colleges by strengthening state data systems so that students and the public have clear information about college outcomes in order to make informed choices. SB 554: Adult School Learners Access to Dual Enrollment Senator Roth SB 554 allows over 148,000 adult school students pursuing their high school diploma or the equivalent to dual-enroll at California Community Colleges in order to jump start their college education goals and better prepare them for a future career.

VETOED SB 484: Automatic Associate Degree for Transfer Awards Senator Portantino SB 484 would have established an Associate Degree for Transfer (ADT) audit system to automatically award qualified students. This year, the California Community College system hit a milestone in its implementation of the Associate Degree for Transfer program, awarding 200,000 ADTs. However, ten years after the Campaign led the charge for the historic ADT program, our colleges continue to struggle to properly notify students of their degree completion and to coordinate between our community colleges and the four-year institutions students strive to attend. Ensuring students are awarded an ADT they have earned is vital to strengthening the pathway and its benefits to students. We look forward to advocating for this legislation in future years. For questions about the Campaign’s 2019 Legislative Agenda or policy priorities, please contact Sara Arce, Vice President of Policy and Advocacy .

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