Article 1. Student Matriculation of California Education Code >> Division 7. >> Title 3. >> Part 48. >> Chapter 2. >> Article 1.
This article shall be known and may be cited as the
Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012.
It is the intent of the Legislature to do all of the
following:
(a) Ensure equal education opportunity for all Californians.
(b) Provide students with the resources and support to establish
informed educational choices aligned with their academic and career
goals.
(c) Ensure that students receive the educational services
necessary to optimize their opportunities for success in completing
their educational goals and courses of study.
(d) Recognize that student success is the responsibility of the
institution and student, supported by well-coordinated and
evidence-based student and instructional services to foster academic
success.
(e) Target state resources on the provision of critical student
services, such as counseling and student advising, and identify a
broad array of service delivery mechanisms that can effectively reach
a greater number of students.
(f) Recognize the importance for community college districts of
establishing local and regional partnerships with school districts,
workforce agencies, and other system partners to leverage resources
to assist students in exploring career options, preparing for
college, and developing and achieving educational goals and plans.
(a) The purpose of the Seymour-Campbell Student Success
Act of 2012 is to increase California community college student
access and success by providing effective core matriculation
services, including orientation, assessment and placement,
counseling, and other education planning services, and academic
interventions. The focus of the Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act
of 2012 is on the entering students' transition into college in order
to provide a foundation for student achievement and successful
completion of students' educational goals, with a priority toward
serving students who enroll to earn degrees, career technical
certificates, transfer preparation, or career advancement. The
Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012 targets state resources
on core matriculation services that research has shown to be critical
in increasing the ability of students to reach their academic and
career goals. By focusing funding in these core areas and leveraging
the use of technology to more efficiently and effectively serve a
greater number of students, the goal of the Seymour-Campbell Student
Success Act of 2012 is to provide students with a solid foundation
and opportunity for success in the California Community Colleges.
(b) Any college or district receiving funding under this article
shall agree to carry out its provisions as specified, but shall be
bound to that agreement only for the period during which funding is
received pursuant to this article. The obligations of the college or
district under the agreement shall include, but not be limited to,
the expenditure of funds received pursuant to this article for only
those services approved by the board of governors and the
contribution toward the purposes of this article of matching funds as
the board of governors may require pursuant to Section 78216.
(a) (1) For purposes of this article, "matriculation" means
a process that brings a college and a student into an agreement for
the purpose of achieving the student's educational goals and
completing the student's course of study. The agreement involves the
responsibilities of both parties to attain those objectives through
the college's established programs, policies, and requirements
including those established by the board of governors pursuant to
Section 78215.
(2) The institution's responsibility under the agreement includes
the provision of student services to provide a strong foundation and
support for their academic success and ability to achieve their
educational goals. The program of services funded through the
Seymour-Campbell Student Success Act of 2012, which shall be known
and may be cited as the Student Success and Support Program, shall
include, but are not necessarily limited to, all of the following:
(A) Orientation services designed to provide to students, on a
timely basis, information concerning campus procedures, academic
expectations, financial assistance, and any other matters the college
or district finds appropriate.
(B) Assessment before course registration, as defined in Section
78213.
(C) Counseling and other education planning services, which shall
include, but not necessarily be limited to, all of the following:
(i) Counseling and advising.
(ii) Assistance to students in the exploration of educational and
career interests and aptitudes and identification of educational
objectives, including, but not limited to, preparation for transfer,
associate degrees, and career technical education certificates and
licenses.
(iii) The provision of information, guided by sound counseling
principles and practices, using a broad array of delivery mechanisms,
including technology-based strategies to serve a continuum of
student needs and abilities, that will enable students to make
informed choices.
(iv) Development of an education plan leading to a course of study
and guidance on course selection that is informed by, and related
to, a student's academic and career goals.
(D) Referral to specialized support services as needed and
available, including, but not necessarily limited to, federal, state,
and local financial assistance; health services; career services;
veteran support services; foster youth services; extended opportunity
programs and services provided pursuant to Article 8 (commencing
with Section 69640) of Chapter 2 of Part 42 of Division 5; campus
child care services provided pursuant to Article 4 (commencing with
Section 8225) of Chapter 2 of Part 6 of Division 1 of Title 1;
programs that teach basic skills education and English as a second
language; and disabled student services provided pursuant to Chapter
14 (commencing with Section 67300) of Part 40 of Division 5.
(E) Evaluation of each student's progress and referral to
appropriate interventions for students who are enrolled in basic
skills courses, who have not declared an educational goal as
required, or who are on academic probation, as defined by standards
adopted by the Board of Governors of the California Community
Colleges and community college districts.
(3) The student's responsibilities under the agreement include,
but are not necessarily limited to, the identification of an academic
and career goal upon application, the declaration of a specific
course of study after a specified time period or unit accumulation,
as defined by the board of governors, diligence in class attendance
and completion of assigned coursework, and the completion of courses
and maintenance of academic progress toward an educational goal and
course of study identified in the student's education plan. To ensure
that students are not unfairly impacted by the requirements of this
chapter, the board of governors shall establish a reasonable
implementation period that is phased in as resources are available to
provide nonexempt students with the core services pursuant to this
section.
(b) Funding for the Student Success and Support Program shall be
targeted to fully implement orientation, assessment, counseling and
advising, and other education planning services needed to assist a
student in making an informed decision about his or her educational
goal and course of study and in the development of an education plan.
(a) No district or college may use any assessment instrument
for the purposes of this article without the authorization of the
board of governors. The board of governors may adopt a list of
authorized assessment instruments pursuant to the policies and
procedures developed pursuant to this section and the intent of this
article. The board of governors may waive this requirement as to any
assessment instrument pending evaluation.
(b) The board of governors shall review all assessment instruments
to ensure that they meet all of the following requirements:
(1) Assessment instruments shall be sensitive to cultural and
language differences between students, and shall be adapted as
necessary to accommodate students with disabilities.
(2) Assessment instruments shall be used as an advisory tool to
assist students in the selection of appropriate courses.
(3) Assessment instruments shall not be used to exclude students
from admission to community colleges.
(c) The board of governors shall establish an advisory committee
to review and make recommendations concerning all assessment
instruments used by districts and colleges pursuant to this article.
(d) For purposes of this section, "assessment" means the process
of gathering information about a student regarding the student's
study skills, English language proficiency, computational skills,
aptitudes, goals, learning skills, career aspirations, academic
performance, and need for special services. Assessment methods may
include, but not necessarily be limited to, interviews, standardized
tests, attitude surveys, vocational or career aptitude and interest
inventories, high school or postsecondary transcripts, specialized
certificates or licenses, educational histories, and other measures
of performance.
(a) All participating districts shall, with the assistance
of the chancellor, establish and maintain institutional research to
evaluate the effectiveness of the Student Success and Support Program
described by this article and of any other programs or services
designed to facilitate students' completion of their educational
goals and courses of study.
(b) The metrics for this research shall include, but not be
limited to:
(1) Prior educational experience, including transcripts when
appropriate, as determined by the chancellor.
(2) Educational goals and courses of study.
(3) Criteria for exemption from orientation, assessment, or
required counseling or advisement, if applicable.
(4) Need for financial assistance.
(5) Disaggregated data by ethnicity, gender, disability, age, and
socioeconomic status, to the extent this information is available.
(6) Academic performance, such as the completion of specified unit
thresholds, success in basic skills courses, grade point average,
course completion outcomes, transfer readiness, and degree and
certificate completion.
(7) Any additional information that the chancellor finds
appropriate.
(c) The evaluation provided for by this section shall include an
assessment of the effectiveness of the programs and services in
attaining at least the following objectives:
(1) Helping students to define their academic and career goals and
declare a course of study.
(2) Assisting institutions in the assessment of students'
educational needs and valid course placement.
(3) Helping support students' successful course completion and
goal attainment.
(4) Matching institutional resources with students' educational
needs.
(a) The Board of Governors of the California Community
Colleges, in consultation with students, faculty, student service
administrators, and other key stakeholders, shall establish policies
and processes for all of the following:
(1) Requiring all nonexempt students to complete orientation and
assessment and to develop education plans.
(2) Exempting students from participation in orientation,
assessment, or required education planning services under this
article.
(3) Requiring community college districts to adopt a student
appeal process.
(b) To ensure that students are not unfairly impacted by the
requirements of this chapter, these policies and processes shall be
phased in over a reasonable period of time as determined by the board
of governors in consideration of the resources available to provide
the core services identified in Section 78212.
(c) It is the intent of the Legislature that these policies and
processes be developed and implemented only as resources are provided
and utilized by community college campuses to provide the student
support services, individual counseling and advising, and
technology-based strategies necessary to ensure that students can
successfully meet the requirements of this section.
(a) The Legislature recognizes that community college
districts are currently funding various components of student
matriculation through existing orientation, counseling and advising,
education planning, assessment, and other student services, but that
adequate student matriculation and implementation of the Student
Success and Support Program strategies cannot be realized without
supplemental funding support.
(b) The board of governors shall develop a formula for allocating
the funding for the Student Success and Support Program to implement
the services identified in Section 78212 at community colleges. The
formula shall include the requirement that the districts or colleges
contribute matching funds in an amount to be established by the board
of governors in each case, and shall reflect, but not be necessarily
limited to, other considerations as follows:
(1) The number of students to receive services at each college.
(2) The number of students who received orientation, assessment,
counseling and advising, and other education planning services.
(3) The requirement that funds for the Student Success and Support
Program services be expended only for services approved by the board
of governors.
(4) The requirement that any district or college receiving funding
pursuant to this section agree to implement this article, implement
the board of governors' system of common assessment, if using an
assessment instrument for placement, and implement the board of
governors' accountability scorecard, pursuant to Section 84754.5,
when established during the period in which it receives that funding.
(5) Insofar as a community college district is able to fully
implement in-person or technology strategies for orientation,
assessment, and education planning services, the board of governors
may identify other noninstructional support services that can be
funded through this article.
(c) The board of governors shall require participating colleges to
develop a Student Success and Support Program plan that reflects all
of the following:
(1) A description of the Student Success and Support Program
services identified in Section 78212 to be provided.
(2) A description of the college's process to identify students at
risk for academic or progress probation and the college's plan for
interventions or services to students.
(3) The college budget for the state-funded Student Success and
Support Program services pursuant to Sections 78212 and 78214.
(4) The development and training of staff and faculty to implement
the Student Success and Support Program services.
(5) In multicampus districts, the coordination of the college
Student Success and Support Program plan with other college plans
within the district.
(6) Technology services and institutional research and evaluation
necessary for implementation of this article.
(7) Coordination with college student equity plans to ensure that
the college has identified strategies to monitor and address equity
issues and mitigate any disproportionate impacts on student access
and achievement.
(8) The extent to which the community college is able to develop
partnerships with feeder high school districts, workforce agencies,
and other community partners to assist entering students in career
and educational exploration and planning and leverage resources to
support a successful transition to college and career.
(d) The board of governors may allocate up to 5 percent of the
total funds appropriated for the Student Success and Support Program
for state administrative operations to carry out the intent of this
article, subject to the review of the annual budget process.
In the 2012-13 fiscal year and each fiscal year thereafter,
this article shall be operative only if funds are specifically
appropriated for the purposes of this article.
(a) The Board of Governors of the California Community
Colleges shall establish a common assessment system to be used as one
of multiple measures, consistent with existing regulations, for the
purposes of community college placement and advisement. The system
shall include all of the following objectives:
(1) Selection of an existing commercially available and centrally
delivered system of student assessment that provides a single common
assessment instrument for use by community colleges in the curriculum
areas of English, mathematics, and English as a second language.
(2) Creation of a secure, centrally housed assessment test data
warehouse that shall collect all of the following:
(A) All available assessment scores generated by assessed students
at all community colleges.
(B) All available K-12 assessment data for students at all
community colleges. The use of this data shall be limited to placing
and advising community college students to enhance their success with
and completion of their postsecondary education objectives.
(C) Other data or student transcript information that is used for
the purpose of student placement.
(3) Creation of an Internet Web portal that can be accessed by
community college personnel and students and that provides all of the
following:
(A) An assessment profile, generated for each student upon
request, that includes all assessment information available in the
data warehouse created pursuant to paragraph (2). This profile shall
be accessible for counseling, matriculation, and course placement
purposes.
(B) A pretest application that emulates the structure of the
student assessment created pursuant to paragraph (1) that students
can practice on and familiarize themselves with before taking future
assessments.
(C) An advisement tool that provides students with information
about the importance of taking the common assessment to be placed in
college-level courses in English, mathematics, or English as a second
language and the historical success rates of students who place in
various levels of remedial coursework.
(b) In developing the common assessment, the Office of the
Chancellor of the California Community Colleges shall work in
collaboration with the State Department of Education and the
California State University when developing a common
college-readiness standard that will be reflected in the creation of
assessment instruments.
(c) The Office of the Chancellor of the California Community
Colleges shall submit a report to the Legislature and the Governor on
the progress of the implementation of the common assessment system
by December 31, 2012.
(d) The provisions of this section shall be operative upon the
receipt of state, federal, or philanthropic funds sufficient to cover
the costs of the common assessment system.