Higher Education

State law requires community colleges to spend at least half their general fund on instructors. But administrators say they want more flexibility to pay for the growing need for student services.

Some advocates believe the state should expand the Cal Grant program next year, even if that means pulling money from a financial aid program that benefits middle class students.

Signed by the governor in September 2022, AB 2881 aims to identify and address the needs of student parents in California by offering them priority registration. Coordinators and advocates are optimistic the law will formalize data collection, allowing them to better serve this student population that represents 1 in 5 students nationally.

With the growing use of AI, campus officials are trying to set clear guidelines for college application essays.

Student workers at the 23-campus system say their pay is low, their hours are restricted and they get no sick pay. They are hoping to join the employees union to fix that.

To qualify for financial aid, students must maintain a certain grade-point-average, but many don’t. A bill Gov. Newsom signed into law would make it easier for students to keep their aid and stay in college.

After a historic decline in community college enrollment during the pandemic, students are returning to school again, according to the state’s most recent data. But students between the ages of 20 and 30 are lagging behind.

The tuition increases were forecast earlier this year, when a Cal State task force concluded the system needs at least $1.5 billion annually in new revenue to afford student services and bolster its academic offerings.

Eight community colleges in California are testing out a new education model, one that defines success by the skills a student learns, not the time they spend in a classroom. But changing the traditional education system isn’t easy.

In Wisconsin, two community colleges have gotten rid of traditional grades and lectures to offer self-paced education. As California tests its own version in the coming years, what can the state expect?