Bill Text: CA AB637 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Community colleges: cross-enrollment in online education.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2017-10-13 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 743, Statutes of 2017. [AB637 Detail]

Download: California-2017-AB637-Amended.html

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Amended  IN  Assembly  June 12, 2017

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 637

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Introduced by Assembly Member Medina

February 14, 2017

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An act to amend Section 78220 of add Section 68101 to, and to add Chapter 9.7 (commencing with Section 66770) to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of, the Education Code, relating to community colleges.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 637, as amended, Medina. Community colleges: student equity plans. cross-enrollment in online education.

Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, and the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, as one 2 of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law, known as the Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012, establishes and provides for the funding of the Student Success and Support Program. Existing law requires, as a condition for receiving Student Success and Support Program funding, that the governing board of each community college district maintain a student equity plan, as specified.

Existing law requires the student equity plan to include, for each community college in the community college district, campus-based research as to the extent of student equity by gender and for each of several specified categories of students. Existing law also requires the student equity plan to include whether significant underrepresentation of any of these categories of students is found to exist in terms of access to, and completion of, basic skills, career technical education and workforce training, and transfer courses.

Existing law authorizes a student who meets specified requirements, and is enrolled at a campus of the California State University, to enroll, without formal admission, and without payment of additional tuition or fees, except as provided, in a course provided entirely online, as defined, by another campus of the California State University.

This bill would require the campus-based research to use a standard definition and measure of “equity” provided by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges. The bill would also require the issue of “significant underrepresentation” to be addressed based on a standard definition of that term provided by the chancellor. enact similar provisions relating to cross-enrollment of community college students in online courses offered by campuses, defined as teaching campuses, other than their home campuses, as defined. The bill would require that the program established by this bill be available at a community college that is part of the Online Education Initiative Consortium, as defined. The bill would specify the qualifications to be met by participating students.

The bill would require the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges to provide an online methodology to allow eligible students to be informed of opportunities to access online courses, to enroll in those online courses, and to provide consent to electronically transfer all relevant enrollment data to the teaching college. The bill would also authorize a community college district whose students are participating in this program to accept the determination of a student’s residency classification under certain conditions.

Digest Key

Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

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Bill Text

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

 Chapter 9.7 (commencing with Section 66770) is added to Part 40 of Division 5 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:

CHAPTER  9.7. Cross-Enrollment in Online Education between Campuses of the California Community Colleges

66770.

 For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply:

(a) “Chancellor’s office” means the Chancellor’s Office of the California Community Colleges.

(b) “Home college” means the campus of the California Community Colleges at which a student is matriculated.

(c) “Online course exchange” means the technological mechanism used by the Online Education Initiative Consortium to offer online-only courses that have highest demand, fill quickly, and are prerequisites for many different courses.

(d) “Online Education Initiative Consortium” means the efforts to expand the delivery of courses through technology pursuant to Schedule 26 and Provision 42 of Item 6870-101-0001 of Section 2.00 of the Budget Act of 2013 (Chapter 20 of the Statutes of 2013).

(e) “Teaching college” means the campus of the California Community Colleges to which a student seeks access.

66770.5.

 (a) A California resident who meets the requirements of subdivision (a) of Section 66771 and who is enrolled at a home college may enroll, without formal admission, and without payment of additional fees or tuition, in a course provided entirely online by a teaching college, except as provided in subdivision (c) of Section 66771.

(b) A nonresident student or an international student who satisfies the conditions set forth in subdivision (a) may enroll in an online course provided by a teaching college, but shall be required to pay nonresident tuition for this course at the teaching college in accordance with Section 76140.

66771.

 (a) A student is qualified to participate in the program established by this chapter if he or she is enrolled at a home college that is part of the Online Education Initiative Consortium and meets all of the following requirements:

(1) The student has attained a grade point average of at least 2.0 on a 4-point scale for completed coursework.

(2) The student has paid the appropriate fees and tuition required by the home college for enrollment in the academic term in which the student proposes to cross-enroll.

(3) The student has no outstanding fees or tuition to be paid at the home college.

(b) A teaching college shall inform each student who enrolls in an online course pursuant to this chapter of all of the following:

(1) The technical requirements that must be satisfied by a student in order to successfully participate in, and complete, the online course.

(2) Any prerequisite course, or other academic preparation, deemed necessary for enrollment in the online course.

(3) Any materials, skills, knowledge, or other elements that are necessary to ensure that a student has an opportunity to succeed in the online course.

(c) The teaching college shall charge participating students the appropriate course enrollment fees for residents as applicable and to the extent required by law.

66772.

 The chancellor’s office shall establish a convenient online methodology so that a student who meets the requirements of subdivision (a) of Section 66771 may accomplish all of the following:

(a) Be informed of the opportunity to access courses provided entirely online by another teaching college.

(b) Simultaneously enroll in courses at his or her home college and courses provided entirely online by another teaching college.

(c) Provide consent to electronically transfer all relevant enrollment data to the teaching college.

66773.

 A course provided entirely online pursuant to this chapter shall be accepted for credit at the student’s home college on the same basis as it would be for a student matriculated at the teaching college.

66773.5.

 The enrollment of a student at a teaching college pursuant to this chapter may be counted in the calculation of headcount or full-time equivalent student enrollment at the teaching college. The home college and the teaching college at which the student is cross-enrolled may count, in the calculation of headcount or full-time equivalent student enrollment, only those course units for which the student is enrolled at each respective campus.

SEC. 2.

 Section 68101 is added to the Education Code, to read:

68101.

 A community college district may accept the determination of another community college district as to a student’s residency classification, if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

(a) The student is cross-enrolling pursuant to Chapter 9.7 (commencing with Section 66770) of Part 40.

(b) The student is cross-enrolling in a course available through the online course exchange of the Online Education Initiative Consortium, as defined in Section 66770.

(c) The home college certifies the determination of the community college district as to the student’s residency classification.

(d) The student is enrolling in a course available at the teaching college through the online course exchange of the Online Education Initiative Consortium.

(e) The home college and the teaching college have both signed on to participate in the online course exchange of the Online Education Initiative Consortium.

SECTION 1.Section 78220 of the Education Code is amended to read:

78220.

(a)As a condition for receiving Student Success and Support Program funding, and in order to ensure equal educational opportunities and to promote student success for all students, regardless of race, gender, age, disability, or economic circumstances, the governing board of each community college district shall maintain a student equity plan that includes all of the following for each community college in the community college district:

(1)Campus-based research, which uses a standard definition and measure of “equity” provided by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, as to the extent of student equity by gender and for each of the following categories of students:

(A)Current or former foster youth.

(B)Students with disabilities.

(C)Low-income students.

(D)Veterans.

(E)Students in the following ethnic and racial categories, as they are defined by the United States Census Bureau for the 2010 Census for reporting purposes:

(i)American Indian or Alaska Native.

(ii)Asian.

(iii)Black or African American.

(iv)Hispanic or Latino.

(v)Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander.

(vi)White.

(vii)Some other race.

(viii)More than one race.

(2)Goals for access to, and completion of, basic skills, career technical education and workforce training, and transfer courses for the overall student population and for each population group of high-need or disadvantaged students, and a determination of what activities are most likely to effectively meet those goals.

(3)Whether significant underrepresentation is found to exist pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) based on a standard definition of “significant underrepresentation” provided by the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, measures for addressing the disparities in those areas, implementation activities designed to attain the goals specified in paragraph (2), including, but not necessarily limited to, the adoption of evidence-based models of remediation, implementation of placement tests and policies that more accurately predict student success and identify students’ remedial needs, and a means of coordinating with, at a minimum, the following student equity-related categorical programs or campus-based programs:

(A)Students with disabilities.

(B)Extended Opportunity Programs and Services and Special Services.

(C)Fund for Student Success.

(D)Student Success and Support Program.

(E)Programs for foster youth.

(F)Programs for veterans.

(G)Special Services for CalWORKs Recipients.

(H)Student Financial Aid Administration.

(I)Student Success for Basic Skills Students.

(4)Sources of funds for the activities in the plan.

(5)A schedule and process for evaluation.

(6)An executive summary that includes, at a minimum, the student groups for whom goals have been set, the goals, the initiatives that the community college or community college district will undertake to achieve these goals, the resources that have been budgeted for that purpose, and the community college district official to contact for further information. Commencing with 2016–17 academic year, the executive summary shall also include a detailed accounting of how funding was expended and an assessment of the progress made in achieving the identified goals.

(b)Student equity plans shall be developed with the active involvement of all groups on campus as required by law, including, but not limited to, the academic senate, academic faculty and staff, student services, and students, and with the involvement of appropriate people from the community.

(c)The plan shall be adopted by the governing board of the community college district and submitted to the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges on or before January 1, 2015, who shall publish all executive summaries, sending copies to the appropriate policy and budget committees of the Legislature, the Department of Finance, every community college and community college district, each consultation group identified in subdivision (b) that so requests, and additional individuals and organizations as deemed appropriate.

(d)The plan shall be updated every three academic years and plan updates shall be submitted to the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges for publication and distribution as provided for in subdivision (c).