College Beat

A coalition is calling for the University of California to give disabled students more support and a say in pandemic-era learning plans.

Bots are filling up community college classes in a likely attempt by scammers to fraudulently access COVID-19 relief grants and other financial aid. At least 10 districts or individual colleges told CalMatters they've been affected, and the community college system has announced new security measures to combat the scam.

During the Covid emergency, the federal government has expanded food stamp eligibility for college students, who have typically had trouble accessing the aid even though many suffer from food insecurity. California colleges are stepping up their efforts to get students enrolled.

Tribal colleges provide culturally relevant education for Native students. But in California, they face an uphill battle because of lack of funding and a lengthy accreditation process.

While both the University of California and California State University are requiring students to be vaccinated for the fall term, community college districts are opting for a mix of mandates, incentives and encouragement.

If a bill pending in the California Legislature passes, all three of the state's higher education governing boards will have two voting student members. Advocates say the student representatives provide an important firsthand perspective on issues like campus safety and basic needs.

A bill pending in the Legislature would require California’s public universities, community colleges and secondary schools to provide free menstrual products on campus. Students pushing for the bill say they are trying to break through taboos surrounding a matter of basic hygiene, and that many low-income students suffer from “period poverty,” in which they are unable to afford the pads and tampons they need.

California’s landmark law allowing college athletes to sign paid endorsement deals started a national movement. With the NCAA no longer banning athlete compensation, advocates are pushing to speed up the law’s implementation and expand it to cover community college players.

From car caravans to stadium ceremonies with socially distanced seating, this year’s California college graduations were unlike any before, as campuses attempted to balance safety with celebration amid a still-simmering pandemic. In some cases, commencement plans were the result of hard-fought debates between students and administrators about how much in-person contact to allow. But as […]

Across the University of California, teaching assistants and tutors are unionized, but graduate student researchers are not. That could soon change, after organizers filed more than 10,000 signed union authorization cards with the California Public Employment Relations Board last month.