Bill Text: CA AB2822 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Student financial aid: community college students: emergency financial assistance.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)
Status: (Failed) 2016-11-30 - Died on inactive file. [AB2822 Detail]
Download: California-2015-AB2822-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 2822 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 16, 2016
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 3, 2016
AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 2, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 31, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 17, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Chiu
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Medina, Santiago, Weber, and
Williams)
FEBRUARY 19, 2016
An act to add Section 76072 to the Education Code, relating to
student financial aid.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2822, as amended, Chiu. Student financial aid: community
college students: emergency financial assistance.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under
the administration of the Board of Governors of the California
Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary
education in this state. Existing law authorizes the board of
governors to establish auxiliary organizations, as defined, for the
purpose of providing supportive services and specialized programs for
the general benefit of the mission of the California Community
Colleges.
This bill would authorize the use of private funds from a
community college district, community college campus, or local
community college foundation for the provision of emergency student
financial assistance, as defined, to eligible students, as defined,
to overcome unforeseen financial challenges, as specified, that would
directly impact a student's ability to persist in his or her course
of study. The bill would authorize a community college district,
community college campus, or local community college foundation to
solicit and accept private funding, as specified, for the purposes of
this bill.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) Research indicates that students' ability to pay for
nontuition costs plays a major role in determining the outcomes of
their academic careers and impacts student success. Unexpected
financial emergencies can play a major role when community college
students drop out of school.
(b) Emergency aid is an effective strategy to retain students and
ultimately improve graduation rates and overall student success.
Emergency aid provides the flexibility needed to respond to a student'
s unexpected financial emergency that may arise during the academic
year. Emergency aid is a critical tool for student retention and
persistence that is most effective as a part of a broader set of
student success efforts.
(c) It is in the interest of the state to reduce the attrition
rates of full-time students. Nationally, billions of dollars are lost
when full-time students do not return in what would be their second
year of college. California has lost more than one hundred million
dollars ($100,000,000) in state and federal funding due to first-year
attrition. Emergency aid is an efficient investment that addresses
student attrition while only providing small dollar grants when a
student is in crisis. With this type of well-timed aid, students are
more likely to complete the academic term and re-enroll for the next
term.
(d) A well-educated citizenry provides tremendous benefits to the
state as higher educational attainment is connected with higher
earnings, which produce more tax revenue and lower the cost of social
services.
SEC. 2. Section 76072 is added to the Education Code, to read:
76072. (a) The CCC Chancellor's Office shall provide guidelines
for community college districts or campuses that seek to establish
student emergency aid programs among the supportive services and
specialized programs it provides.
(b) Any Only private
funds that a community college district, community college campus, or
local community college foundation may receive may be used for the
provision of emergency student financial assistance to help eligible
students to overcome unforeseen financial challenges that would
directly impact the student's ability to persist in his or her course
of study. These challenges include, but are not necessarily limited
to, the immediate need for shelter or food. A community college
district, community college campus, or local community college
foundation shall consider the unique characteristics of its student
body in developing specific guidelines for further defining what
constitutes an unforeseen financial challenge for its students.
(c) For purposes of this section, the following terms are defined
as follows:
(1) "Eligible student" means a student who has experienced an
unforeseen financial challenge, who currently meets satisfactory
academic progress of the institution he or she attends, and who is at
risk of not persisting in his or her course of study due to the
unforeseen financial challenge.
(2) "Emergency student financial assistance" means financial
support in the form of financial assistance to support a student to
help overcome unforeseen financial challenges so that the student can
continue his or her course of study.
(d) It is the intent of the Legislature that priority be given to
student populations that are in the most need.
(e) A community college district, community college campus, or
local community college foundation may solicit and accept private
funding for the purposes of this section. These private funding
sources may include, but are not necessarily limited to, foundations,
corporate funding, crowdfunding, donation drives, or any other
sources of private investment that may be available.
