Education finance: iSTEAM Pilot Program.

(1) Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary schools in this state and authorizes local educational agencies throughout the state to operate schools and provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. Existing law also establishes a system of postsecondary education in this state that includes the California Community Colleges, the California State University, the University of California, and independent institutions of higher education. This bill would establish the iSTEAM Pilot Program as a 3-year pilot program, commencing with the 2020–21 fiscal year, administered by the Anaheim Union High School District in coordination with the North Orange Community College District, the Coast Community College District, the Rancho Santiago Community College District, and the University of California, Irvine. The program, upon the enactment of an appropriation for its purposes, would invest $300,000 each fiscal year, for a total investment of $900,000 during the program, to fund up to 100 students who will serve as interns at community colleges or 4-year institutions of higher education. The bill would require these students to have completed career technical education pathways as high school pupils. The bill would require the Anaheim Union High School District to select the students who receive internships under the program in accordance with procedures and criteria it develops in consultation with the participating institutions of higher education, as specified. The bill would require the Anaheim Union High School District to submit, on or before November 30, 2022, a report relating to the effectiveness of the program to the chairpersons of the education policy committees of the Assembly and the Senate. The operation of these provisions would be contingent upon the enactment, in the Budget Act or in another statute, of an appropriation to the State Department of Education for allocation to the Anaheim Union High School District for purposes of the pilot program. To the extent that this bill would impose new duties on the Anaheim Union High School District and the affected community college districts, it would constitute a state-mandated local program. (2) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.