An act to amend Section 48800 of, and to add Section 48801.5 to, the Education Code, relating to public schools.

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


SECTION 1.
Section 48800 of the Education Code is amended to read:
48800.
(a) The governing board of a school district may determine which pupils would benefit from advanced scholastic or vocational work. The intent of this section is to provide educational enrichment opportunities for a limited number of eligible pupils, rather than to reduce current course requirements of elementary and secondary schools, and also to help ensure a smoother transition from high school to college for pupils by providing them with greater exposure to the collegiate atmosphere. The governing board of a school district may authorize those pupils, upon recommendation of the principal of the pupil’s school of attendance, and with parental consent, to attend a community college during any session or term as special part-time or full-time students and to undertake one or more courses of instruction offered at the community college level.
(b) If the governing board of a school district denies a request for a special part-time or full-time enrollment at a community college for any session or term for a pupil who is identified as highly gifted, the governing board of the school district shall issue its written recommendation and the reasons for the denial within 60 days. The written recommendation and denial shall be issued at the next regularly scheduled board meeting that falls at least 30 days after the request has been submitted.
(c) (1) The governing board of a school district may authorize a pupil, upon recommendation of the principal of the pupil’s school of attendance, and with parental consent, to attend a community college during any session or term as a special part-time or full-time student and to undertake one or more STEM courses offered at the community college if that pupil has exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent course at the high school of attendance, or at an adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other program offered by that school district.
A principal shall consult with a pupil’s teachers in the appropriate subjects before making a recommendation under this subdivision.
(2) As used in this section, a “STEM course” is a course in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
(d) A pupil shall receive credit for each community college course that he or she completes at the level determined appropriate by the governing boards of the school district and community college district.
(e) (1) The principal of a school may recommend a pupil for community college summer session only if that pupil meets both of the following criteria:
(A) Demonstrates adequate preparation in the discipline to be studied.
(B) Exhausts all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent course, if any, at his or her school of attendance.
(2) For any particular grade level, a principal shall not recommend for community college summer session attendance more than 5 percent of the total number of pupils who completed that grade immediately before the time of recommendation.
(3) Notwithstanding Article 3 (commencing with Section 33050) of Chapter 1 of Part 20 of Division 2 of Title 2, compliance with this subdivision shall not be waived.
SEC. 2.
Section 48801.5 is added to the Education Code, to read:
48801.5.
(a) (1) (A) The governing board of a community college district may enter into a formal partnership with a school district or school districts located within its immediate service area in order to provide secondary school pupils who have exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent STEM course at the high school of attendance, adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other program offered by the school district, with the opportunity to benefit from a STEM course. A secondary school pupil, 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 that school district, and with parental consent if the pupil is under 18 years of age, may attend a community college during any session or term as a special part-time or full-time student.
(B) As used in this section, a “STEM course” is a course in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics.
(2) A participating community college district shall adopt a partnership agreement with each school district partner. The partnership agreement shall be approved by the governing board of the community college district and the governing board of the school district. As a condition
of
of,
and before
adopting
adopting,
a partnership agreement, a community college district and a school
district, at a
district shall do both of the following:
(A) Present the adoption of the partnership agreement as an information item at
regularly scheduled open public
hearing
hearings
of their respective governing
boards, shall
boards.
(B) At regularly scheduled open public hearings of their respective governing boards held subsequent to the hearings referenced in subparagraph (A),
take testimony from the public and approve or disapprove the proposed partnership agreement.
(3) (A) The partnership agreement shall outline the terms of the partnership and may include, but not necessarily be limited to, the scope, nature, and schedule of the STEM courses offered, the academic readiness of pupils that is necessary for them to benefit from the STEM courses offered, and the ability of pupils to benefit from those STEM courses.
The partnership agreement shall certify that its implementation shall not violate any applicable collective bargaining agreement with respect to either the community college district or the school district.
The partnership agreement may establish protocols for information sharing and joint facilities use.
(B) A copy of the partnership agreement shall be filed with the department and with the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges before the start of a program authorized by this section.
(4) It is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting this section, 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.
(5) A pupil shall receive credit for community college courses that he or she completes at the level determined to be appropriate by the governing boards of the school district and the community college district pursuant to the partnership agreement as described in paragraph (2).
(b) (1) A community college district shall not receive a state allowance or apportionment for an instructional activity for which a school district has been, or shall be, paid an allowance or apportionment.
(2) 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 Section 48802 or 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 governing boards of the school district and the community college district pursuant to the partnership agreement as described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a).
(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 he or she attends.
(d) Notwithstanding subdivision (e) of Section 76001, for purposes of this section, the governing board of a community college district may assign an enrollment priority to pupils admitted as special part-time or full-time students under this section. In assigning an enrollment priority, the community college district shall ensure that pupils admitted under this provision do not displace regularly admitted community college students.
(e) Community college districts and school districts that enter into a partnership pursuant to this section shall be exempt from concurrent enrollment provisions pursuant to subdivisions (a) and (b) of, and paragraphs (1) and (2) of subdivision (e) of, Section 48800.
(f) (1) For each partnership entered into pursuant to this section, the affected community college district and school district shall report annually to the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges all of the following information:
(A) The total number of secondary school pupils enrolled in each program, classified by the school district.
(B) The total number of successful course completions of secondary school pupils enrolled in each program, classified by the school district.
(C) The total number of successful course completions of students in courses equivalent to those courses tracked under subparagraph (B) in the general community college curriculum.
(2) Notwithstanding Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, the annual report required by this subdivision shall be transmitted by the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges to all of the following:
(A) The Legislature, in accordance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.
(B) The Director of Finance.
(C) The Superintendent.
(D) The governing board of each participating community college district.
(E) The governing board of each participating school district.

Summary: (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 or full-time students, subject to recommendation by the school principal and parental permission.
This bill would authorize the governing board of a school district to authorize a pupil, upon recommendation of the principal of the pupil’s school of attendance, and with parental consent, to attend a community college during any session or term as a special part-time or full-time student and to undertake one or more STEM courses, as defined to mean courses in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics, offered at the community college if that pupil has exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent course at the high school of attendance, or at an adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other program offered by that school district.
The bill also would authorize the governing board of a community college district to enter into a formal partnership with a school district or school districts located within its immediate service area to allow secondary school pupils to attend a community college if those pupils have exhausted all opportunities to enroll in an equivalent STEM course at the high school of attendance, adult education program, continuation school, regional occupational center or program, or any other program offered by that school district.
The bill would require the partnership agreement to outline the terms of the partnership, as specified. The bill would require a community college district and a school district, as a condition of
,
and before adopting
,
a partnership agreement, to
present the adoption of the partnership agreement as an information item at regularly scheduled open meetings of their respective governing boards, and to
take testimony from the public and approve or disapprove the proposed partnership agreement at
a
subsequent
regularly scheduled open public
hearing
hearings
of their respective governing boards. The bill would require, for each partnership entered into under the bill, the affected community college district and school district to file an annual report, containing specified data, with the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, which would transmit this annual report to the Legislature, the Director of Finance, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the governing boards of the participating school districts and community college districts, as specified.
(2) Existing law requires the governing board of a community college district to assign a low enrollment priority to a pupil attending community college pursuant to a recommendation from his or her principal or school district or a petition from his or her parents, in order to ensure that these pupils, admitted as special part-time or full-time students, do not displace regularly admitted students.
This bill would authorize the governing board of a community college district to assign an enrollment priority to pupils attending community college pursuant to a partnership agreement established under the bill. The bill would require community college districts, in assigning an enrollment priority under this provision, to ensure that these pupils do not displace regularly admitted community college students.
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.
(3) This bill would also make various nonsubstantive changes, and delete obsolete provisions.