Bill Text: CA AB160 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Concurrent enrollment in secondary school and community
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-08-25 - In committee: Held under submission. [AB160 Detail]
Download: California-2011-AB160-Amended.html
Bill Title: Concurrent enrollment in secondary school and community
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-08-25 - In committee: Held under submission. [AB160 Detail]
Download: California-2011-AB160-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 160 AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY FEBRUARY 28, 2011 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Portantino JANUARY 19, 2011 An act to amend Sections 48800, 48800.5, 48802, and 76001 of the Education Code, relating to public schools. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 160, as amended, Portantino. Concurrent enrollment in secondary school and community college.Existing(1) Existing law authorizes the governing board of a school district to allow pupils whom the district has determined would benefit from advanced scholastic or vocational work to attend community college as special part-time students, subject to parental permission. Existing law makes the authority of a school principal to recommend a pupil for community college summer session contingent upon a determination that the pupil meets various criteria and prohibits the principal from recommending more than 5% of the total number of pupils from any particular grade level who completed that grade immediately prior to the time of recommendation for summer session attendance, except as specified. This bill instead would authorize the governing board of a school district to enter into a partnership with a community college district to allow secondary school pupils to attend a community college during any session or term as a special part-time or full-time student and undertake one or more courses of instruction offered at the community college, subject to specified conditions. The bill would delete the existing law provisions regarding summer session. The bill would require the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, on or beforeJanuaryMarch 1, 2012, and each year thereafter, to report to the Department of Finance and the Legislature the number of pupils who enroll in community college pursuant to these provisions, the courses these pupils enroll in, and the number of these pupils who receive a passing grade. The bill would prohibit a community college district from receiving an allowance or apportionment for an instructional activity for which a school district has been, or will be, paid. (2) Existing law requires the governing board of a community college district to assign a low enrollment priority to the pupils recommended under this provision in order to ensure that these pupils, admitted as special students, do not displace regularly admitted students. This bill would delete this requirement, and instead prohibit the governing board of a community college district from assigning an enrollment priority to these students to ensure that they do not displace continuing students. The bill also would make conforming changes. 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) Campuses of the California Community Colleges are located throughout California and provide an educational resource for all communities. (b) Existing law allows certain high school pupils to take classes at community colleges. These pupils are known as special-admits and the programs in which they participate are known as concurrent enrollment programs. The main target of these programs is advanced education and the work completed in them is primarily defined as college-level work. (c) Existing law imposes strict limits on concurrent enrollment programs. Only 5 percent of the pupils in any high school class may enroll in a community college during summer sessions. In addition, the types of classes pupils may take pursuant to these programs are generally limited to advanced education classes. (d) A serious abuse of concurrent enrollment programs by a few school districts and community college districts several years ago resulted in statutory reform and restrictions on this type of enrollment. (e) The current restrictions inhibit the ability of school districts and their pupils to make maximum use of community college facilities and opportunities. The time has come to encourage and expand these valuable programs, but with appropriate statutory prohibitions to guard against a repeat of the abuses of the past. (f) Allowing high school pupils to take community college courses could provide benefits to pupils and to the state in numerous ways, including more opportunities for advanced scholastic work, career-technical partnerships and coursework, basic skills remediation, preparation for the high school exit examination, English as a second language, and dropout prevention. (g) Exposure to college classes and the college environment while in high school improves college participation rates. (h) Concurrent enrollment saves money for both the state and the pupils and provides for more effective use of facilities. SEC. 2. Section 48800 of the Education Code is amended to read: 48800. (a) (1) The governing board of a school district may enter into a partnership with a community college district to provide secondary school pupils who have exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent course at the high school of attendance, adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other programs offered by the local governing board with the opportunity to benefit from advancedscholastic or vocational work.scholastic, career-technical, or other coursework at a campus of the California Community Colleges. The intent of this section is to provide a smoother transition from high school to college for pupils by providing them with greater exposure to the collegiate atmosphere, and to maximize the educational opportunities available to California' s secondary school pupils by encouraging programs and partnerships between school districts and community college districts, including, but not limited to, advanced scholastic, college-level, and career-technical coursework, summer school opportunities, high school exit examination preparation, English as a second language, basic skills remediation, and dropout intervention. (2) A secondary school pupil,may attend a community college during any session or term as a special part-time or full-time student and undertake one or more courses of instruction offered at the community college upon notification of the principal of the pupil's school of attendance that the pupil has exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent course at the high school of attendance, adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other program offered by the local governing board, and with parental consent if the pupil is under 18 years of age. (b) A pupil shall receive credit for community college courses that he or she completes at the level determined appropriate by the governing boards of the school district and community college district. (c) On or beforeJanuaryMarch 1, 2012, and on or before January 1 of each year thereafter, the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges shall report to the Department of Finance the number of pupils who enrolled in a community college pursuant to subdivision (a), the courses that these pupils enrolled in, and the number of these pupils who received a passing grade. The information in this report may be submitted with the report required by subdivision (c) of Section 76002. SEC. 3. Section 48800.5 of the Education Code is amended to read: 48800.5. (a) A parent or guardian of a pupil, regardless of the pupil's age or class level, may petition the governing board of the school district in which the pupil is enrolled to authorize the attendance of the pupil at a community college as a special full-time student on the ground that the pupil would benefit from the instruction that would thereby be available. If the governing board denies the petition, the pupil's parent or guardian may file an appeal with the county board of education, which shall render a final decision on the petition in writing within 30 days. (b) A pupil who attends a community college as a special full-time student pursuant to this section is exempt from compulsory school attendance under Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 46100) of Part 26. (c) A parent or guardian of a pupil who is not enrolled in a public school may directly petition the president of any community college to authorize the attendance of the pupil at the community college as a special part-time or full-time student on the ground that the pupil would benefit from the instruction that would thereby be available. (d) Any pupil authorized to attend a community college as a special full-time student shall, nevertheless, be required to undertake courses of instruction of a scope and duration sufficient to satisfy the requirements of law. (e) For purposes of allowances and apportionments from the State School Fund, a community college shall be credited with additional units of average daily attendance attributable to the attendance of special full-time students at the community college. SEC. 4. Section 48802 of the Education Code is amended to read: 48802. (a) For purposes of allowances and apportionments from Section B of the State School Fund, a community college shall be credited with additional units of average daily attendance attributable to the attendance of pupils at the community college as special part-time students pursuant to this article and as set forth in Section 76002. (b) A school district whose pupils attend a community college as special part-time students pursuant to this article shall, for purposes of allowances and apportionments from Section A of the State School Fund, continue to receive credit for attendance by those pupils computed in the manner prescribed by law, and a pupil's attendance at school for the minimum schoolday shall be deemed a day of attendance for purposes of making the computation. (c) A community college district shall not receive an allowance or an apportionment for an instructional activity for which a school district has been, or shall be, paid an allowance or an apportionment. SEC. 5. Section 76001 of the Education Code is amended to read: 76001. (a) The governing board of a community college district may admit to any community college under its jurisdiction as a special part-time or full-time student in any session or term any student who is eligible to attend community college pursuant to Section 48800 or 48800.5. (b) The attendance of a pupil at a community college as a special part-time or full-time student pursuant to this section is authorized attendance, for which the community college shall be credited or reimbursed pursuant to Sections 48802 and 76002, provided that no school district has received reimbursement for the same instructional activity. Credit for courses completed shall be at the level determined to be appropriate by the school district and community college district governing boards. (c) For purposes of this section, a special part-time student may enroll in up to, and including, 11 units per semester, or the equivalent thereof, at the community college. (d) The governing board of a community college district shallassign a low enrollment priority tonot assign an enrollment priority to pupils admitted as special part-time or full-time studentsdescribed in subdivision (a), as described in subdivision (a), in order to ensure that these students do not displaceregularly admittedcontinuing students.