College Beat

While some California college professors remain concerned about students using generative AI such as ChatGPT to cheat in class, a growing number are choosing to encourage its limited use in classroom assignments. From analyzing films to writing research proposals, the assignments seek to convey the benefits of AI as a research tool while acknowledging its limitations and propensity for error.

What should I do if college isn’t for me? We tackle that question in this installment of our ‘Ask CJN’ column, in which student journalists answer readers’ questions about California higher education. One option for those eschewing college: apprenticeships, which often offer a living wage and a guaranteed job upon completion.

With a conservative Supreme Court expected to rule this summer in favor of ending or restricting affirmative action in college admissions, California’s private universities are worried about the potential impact on campus diversity. College administrators are revamping admissions and doing more high school outreach, while student activists are campaigning against a potential ban.

The UC Student Association is calling for California to spend millions more on disability services at the university, as disabled students report long wait times to access the academic accommodations they say they need to succeed. On some campuses, students say they have waited months for accommodations — such as recorded lectures and extra time for assignments — to be approved by university disability specialists, who are responsible for as many as 600 students at a time.

In the latest of our ‘Ask CJN’ series, Cal State Northridge student Isabella Warren asks what colleges are doing to support students on academic probation. That probation status is supposed to be a wake-up call for students, but campuses vary in their approach. Some, we found, are experimenting with new ways to reduce the stigma and retain students.

Tens of thousands of undocumented students in California are potentially eligible for financial aid from the state and public universities. But only 14% of undocumented students actually receive it, according to a recent report by the California Student Aid Commission. Students, counselors and the commission itself are calling for improvements in the application process and greater support for undocumented students trying to navigate it.

Undergraduate student assistants at California State University are mounting a union organizing campaign, calling for more work hours, paid sick time and higher wages.

In the latest installment of our ‘Ask CJN’ series, student reporters with our College Journalism Network answer a reader’s question about menstrual equity. California’s public colleges are required to provide free menstrual products to students as of this school year. But across campuses, the availability of free pads and tampons still varies.

California high school students will be required to pass an ethnic studies class to graduate, starting with the class of 2030. That means the state needs lots of new ethnic studies teachers. But do educators need a special credential to teach ethnic studies? Some ethnic studies advocates say allowing any social science teacher to instruct the subject will lead to watered down and ineffective courses, while school districts argue that flexibility is important if they’re going to fill the roles.

The California Community College Chancellor's Office has $115 million to spend to reduce the burden of textbook costs across its 115-campus system. One approach already being developed by a few community colleges would have campuses publish their own textbooks and course materials.