The Assembly backed a bill that would help meet the growing demand by giving college students access to the same level of courses year-round. It passed Assemblywoman Carole Migden's proposal 71-1, moving it to the Senate. The measure would require the California State University system to implement the program and ask the UC system to phase in year-round operations. Tuition for summer classes would be comparable to that of classes the rest of the year. All CSU and UC campuses offer some summer school classes, but they are self-supporting.
Tuition is expensive, classes are limited and few students attend.
Not all children go to college, points out Assemblyman Rod Wright, D-Los Angeles. He wants to beef up high school vocational education, a proposal approved 69-0 by the Assembly. California's vocational education system was once one of the world's best, but has declined due to spending cuts in the past few decades, Wright said. His bill would create a task force to recommend ways to improve the courses. The measure would let such districts use state bond funds to tear down one-story buildings and replace them with multistory ones.