An act to add and repeal Part 54.7 (commencing with Section 88900) of Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, relating to community colleges.

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


SECTION 1.
Part 54.7 (commencing with Section 88900) is added to Division 7 of Title 3 of the Education Code, to read:
PART 54.7. California College Promise Innovation Grant Program
88900.
This part shall be known, and may be cited, as the California College Promise Innovation Grant Program.
88901.
(a) The California College Promise Innovation Grant Program is hereby established, to be administered by the chancellor’s office. The chancellor’s office shall distribute grants, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the governing boards of community college districts pursuant to applications that satisfy the requirements of this part.
(b) For purposes of this part, “chancellor’s office” means the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges.
88902.
The goals of the California College Promise Innovation Grant Program awards are to support community college districts in establishing or expanding regional California College Promise programs in partnership with school districts and public postsecondary universities in California to accomplish all of the following:
(a) Increase the number and percentage of high school students within the region who are prepared for and attend college directly from high school.
(b) Increase the percentage of high school graduates within the region who are placed in college-level math and English at a public postsecondary university in California.
(c) Increase the percentage of students from the region who earn associate degrees or career technical education certificates.
(d) Increase the percentage of students from the region who successfully transfer from a community college to a public postsecondary university in California.
(e) Increase the percentage of students from the region who graduate with a bachelor’s degree.
(f) Reduce and eliminate achievement gaps for students from groups that are underrepresented in postsecondary education, such as underrepresented minority students, low-income students, students who are current or former foster youth, students with disabilities, and students who are veterans.
(g) Leverage existing sources of local and state funding to better align efforts to improve student success.
88903.
(a) In order to receive a grant, the governing board of a community college district shall demonstrate in its application for funding that the community college will partner with one or more school districts and one or more California State University or University of California campuses, if appropriate, to establish or expand a California College Promise program that includes all of the following practices and principles:
(1) Partnering with one or more school districts to establish an Early Commitment to College Program that is consistent with the intent of Article 6.3 (commencing with Section 54710) of Chapter 9 of Part 29 of Division 4 of Title 2 to provide K–12 students and families assistance that includes, but is not limited to, learning about college opportunities, visiting campuses, taking and completing college preparatory courses, and applying for college and financial aid.
(2) Partnering with one or more school districts to support and improve high school student preparation for college and reduce postsecondary remediation through practices that may include, but are not limited to, small learning communities, concurrent enrollment, and other evidence-based practices.
(3) Utilizing evidence-based placement and student assessment indicators at the community college district that include multiple measures of student performance, including grades in high school courses, overall grade point averages, results from common assessments, and input from counselors.
(4) Providing students who are enrolled at the community college district with access to courses, including, but not limited to, priority registration, and allowing them to register for a full academic year of courses at once, in order to keep them on track to graduate, transfer to a public postsecondary university, or earn a career technical education certificate in California.
(5) Providing outreach to students who are enrolled at a community college within the community college district regarding the Associate Degrees for Transfer and the California Community College Transfer Entitlement Cal Grant program.
(b) (1) The chancellor’s office in its application criteria shall encourage the governing board of a community college district applying to receive a California College Promise Innovation Grant Program award to identify local public and private sources of funding to develop sustainable California College Promise programs within the community college district.
(2) The chancellor’s office in its application criteria shall encourage the governing board of a community college district applying to receive a California College Promise Innovation Grant Program award to leverage new or existing sources of local and state funding to better align efforts to improve student success.
(c) The chancellor’s office shall post on its Internet Web site, for ease of access, all applications that receive funding under the grant program, and shall encourage each community college district that does not receive a grant to identify local public and private sources of funding to develop sustainable California College Promise programs within the district.
(d) (1) The chancellor’s office shall be responsible for developing application criteria, administrative guidelines, and other requirements for purposes of administering the grant program.
(2) An application that demonstrates one or both of the following shall receive first priority:
(A) Identifies local public and private sources of funding to develop sustainable California College Promise programs within the community college district.
(B) Leverages new or existing sources of local and state funding to better align efforts to improve student success.
(3) An application that demonstrates one or more of the following shall receive secondary priority:
(A) Develops partnerships pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) with school districts located predominantly within the community college district’s residential boundaries.
(B) Provides services to a greater proportion of students.
(C) Develops at least one partnership with a California State University campus with the goal of guaranteeing admission and seamless transfer to the California State University campus for the district’s students who have successfully completed transfer requirements.
88904.
(a) The Legislature encourages school districts, the University of California, the California State University, the Student Aid Commission, independent colleges and universities, local and regional government agencies, and nonprofit, business, or other community organizations to provide support services as needed in coordination with community college districts for purposes of this part.
(b) The Legislature further encourages the chancellor’s office to coordinate implementation of this part with other funded college readiness and pathways programs.
88905.
The governing board of a community college district that receives a grant is encouraged to enter into a memorandum of understanding with a partnering school district or public postsecondary university to coordinate the programs and activities proposed in the district’s application in order to meet the goals of this part.
88906.
This part shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2021, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2021, deletes or extends that date.

Summary: Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. The board appoints a chief executive officer known as the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges. Under existing law, community college districts are authorized, among other things, to maintain and operate campuses, employ faculty and other employees, and provide instruction to students.
This bill would establish the California College Promise Innovation Grant Program, under the administration of the Office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, which would require the chancellor’s office to distribute grants, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to the governing boards of community college districts, who meet certain requirements, to support the establishment of regional programs with the goals of increasing college preparation, college access, and college success. These provisions would be repealed on January 1, 2021.