Public postsecondary education: cross-enrollment: online education at the California State University.

Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, and the University of California, under the administration of the Regents of the University of California, as the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law authorizes any student enrolled in any campus of any of these 3 respective segments who meets prescribed requirements to enroll without formal admission or payment of additional fees, except as provided, in a maximum of one course per academic term at a campus of either of the other segments on a space-available basis at the discretion of the appropriate campus authorities on both campuses. This bill would express legislative intent that, by the beginning of the 2015–16 academic year, students enrolled at a California State University (CSU) campus be provided an opportunity to enroll in online courses available at other CSU campuses. The bill would authorize any student enrolled at a CSU campus who meets specified requirements to enroll, without formal admission, and without payment of additional tuition or fees, except as provided, in a course provided entirely online, as defined, by another CSU campus on a space-available basis. The bill would require each CSU campus to inform students who may enroll in an online course pursuant to this authority of certain information related to the online course. The bill would require the trustees, on or before January 1, 2015, to establish an easily accessible online database of online courses available at all CSU campuses to provide CSU students with a streamlined process within the CSU system to allow them to find and enroll in courses that will earn them credit toward graduation, general education, and major requirements. This bill would require the trustees to establish a series of uniform definitions for online education for CSU on or before January 1, 2015, as specified. The bill would require the trustees to report performance data about online education to the Legislature on or before January 1, 2017, and every 2 years until 2021, and would, on or before January 1, 2017, require the trustees to report the performance data to the Legislative Analyst. The bill would, on or before October 1, 2017, require the Legislative Analyst to submit to the Legislature a status update regarding CSU's implementation of the provisions of this bill and an assessment of the extent to which CSU's online programs are operating in a manner consistent with legislative intent and statutory requirements. This bill would require the trustees to report to the Legislature, on or before January 1, 2015, on the feasibility of developing an accelerated bachelor's degree completion program consisting of online courses aimed at students who started college but never obtained a degree. This bill would require the California State University to use specified moneys appropriated in the Budget Act of 2013 for one-time startup costs related to the provisions of this bill.