California Community Colleges

A new law allows community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees, an option for students unable to attend a four-year institution. But California State University officials are objecting to many of those proposed programs.

Weighing technology and safety in a closely-watched decision, the California Public Utilities Commission agreed Thursday to allow more Waymo and Cruise self-driving cars to roam San Francisco’s streets.  After six-and-a-half hours of public comment, the commission voted 3-1 to permit the two companies to expand their driverless car operations, enabling them to charge passengers for […]

Kern County has a major opportunity to add executive leaders to its community colleges and university who reflect the region's majority Latino population.

After a historic drop in enrollment during the COVID-19 pandemic, California community colleges are ramping up marketing efforts, spending more than $40 million in state and federal dollars to lure students back. Is it working?

From CalMatters data reporter Jeremia Kimelman: As California’s 2024 election gets more crowded by the day, some ballot measure campaigns are already building their war chests for the costly fight to come, raising more than $60 million since January. Last year, nearly $700 million was spent, mostly by companies, to sway voters on seven November […]

California adopted a master plan for its higher education system more than six decades ago, but its vision has never materialized. It's time to square the plan with 21st-century realities.

Transfer to a four-year institution is a benchmark for success among community colleges, but the numbers are low and disparities across the system persist, especially between colleges in rural areas and those in wealthy suburbs.

During the 2022 campaign, CalMatters state Capitol reporter Sameea Kamal wrote about how the state Republican Party — struggling to win statewide office in deep-blue California — decided to focus on local school boards with its “Parent Revolt” program.  The GOP’s goal: To capitalize on parents’ anger over COVID-19 shutdowns and concerns about “critical race […]

Many California colleges and universities define “first-generation college student” differently, creating a confusing situation for students to navigate.

California has spent more than $600 million over the past decade to house and rehabilitate parolees in the state’s single-largest reentry program for former prisoners. After all that money, state officials can’t say whether those services were effective in preventing future crime. That’s because the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has not tracked whether […]