The budget crises will have far reaching impacts on education in California. This CenterView focuses on the critical issues of equity and teaching quality now beginning to emerge for Californians as they struggle to offer students instruction necessary to meet the state's rigorous academic standards. It is absolutely essential for educators and…

This testimony discusses the future of higher education funding in California, focusing on the need to move from a system of "free" state higher education to one in which individuals receive the degree of financial aid that they need. It argues that tuition at state universities should be raised to help provide more financial aid to…

California's budget crisis jeopardizes the progress made in strengthening the teaching workforce. The threat of impending teacher layoffs will weaken the teacher preparation pipeline and affect the state's ability to attract and retain thousands of teachers it can't afford to lose. If California is to remain committed to strengthening student…

This discussion of the transfer function of California's community colleges focuses on the problems of obtaining reliable information, research findings on factors affecting transfer success, and ways of accurately assessing transfer rates. After affirming the importance of the transfer function of community colleges, the paper examines flaws and…

The challenge of equal educational opportunity in California and lessons from student affirmative action efforts are considered in a California Postsecondary Education Commission task force report, which also offers recommendations to promote high school and college preparation and educational opportunities for low income and minority students.…

Focusing on the role of the California State University (CSU) in renewing and strengthening the transfer function, this report includes information on the history and importance of transfer, low transfer rates and other problems, CSU and cooperative efforts to improve transfer, and joint plans of the CSU and the state's community colleges to…

Designed to help those who plan and allocate resources for California's community colleges in evaluating future trends and identifying responsible policy directions, this report seeks to: (1) describe present and future trends and their variations within California; (2) determine the applications of those trends for community colleges; (3)…

Any plan to institute student fees for California community colleges should address public concerns about budgetary matters, course repetitions, avocational courses, and courses that are not clearly lower division, while at the same time protecting districts from unanticipated enrollment losses and preserving the right of access to education by…

This affirmative action and staff diversity plan was developed to specify strategies and assign responsibility for increasing the number of qualified minorities, women, disabled, and members of other underrepresented groups who staff California's community colleges. Introductory comments explain the rationale behind the plan, indicating that…

The California Roundtable (CRT) played a critical role in the shaping and passage of California's Senate Bill 813 (SB 813), the State's major education reform legislation enacted in July 1983. This working paper analyzes the content of the legislation, assesses its likely impact on student performance, and recommends steps the CRT (a consortium of…

Making the case that breastfeeding provides essential and long-lasting benefits for children and should be one of California's first investments in the healthy development of every child, this report assists state and county commissions of Proposition 10 (Families and Children First Act) in the development of effective strategies and integrated…

In January 1984, the California State Legislature adopted Assembly Bill (AB) 1XX, which included provisions for a mandatory student fee and an appropriation for financial aid to offset that fee. This report by the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) describes the provisions of AB 1XX and the community college financial aid plan,…

This report presents a series of policy recommendations from the members of the California Technology Project Distance Learning Task Force to the California State Department of Education and the State Legislature on future directions for distance learning for kindergarten through twelfth grade schools. These recommendations are intended to assist…

The long range plan outlined in this report is intended to influence the design of services in school and classroom environments in order to promote consistency of use of educational technology across diverse regions and school settings in California. The introduction discusses some of the major needs facing education today, and mandates, general…

Prepared for the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, this report provides an overview of the 50% Law (Education Code Section 84362), which requires the state's community college districts to spend 50% of the current expense of education each fiscal year (FY) on the payment of salaries for classroom instructors. The first of…