Existing law establishes the State Board of Education and requires the state board to study educational conditions and needs of the state and to make plans for the improvement of the administration and efficiency of the public schools of the state. Existing law establishes the State Department of Education under the administration of the Superintendent of Public Instruction and assigns to the department numerous responsibilities relating to the governance of the public elementary and secondary schools in the state. This bill would establish the Closing the Achievement Gap Commission as an advisory body to the state board. The bill would require the membership of the commission to consist of 17 voting members and one nonvoting member with an advisory vote, as provided. The bill would require 11 members of the commission to be appointed by the Governor and one member each to be appointed by the President pro Tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of the Assembly, pursuant to a specified application process and would require those members to reflect geographic, demographic, and local educational agency-type diversity. The bill would limit members appointed to the commission to one 4-year term, as provided. The bill would require the commission to annually elect a chair and vice chair and meet at least 2 times annually in the first year after its creation, and as needed thereafter, at the call of the chair or the state board. The bill would require the commission to, among other things, continually assess the extent to which there are gaps in state support for local educational agencies in their efforts to close achievement gaps. The bill would require the commission, on or before December 1, 2028, and every 2 years thereafter, to submit a report to the Governor, the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature, the state board, and the department with recommendations and proposed actions that the state can take to help and support local educational agencies in closing the achievement gap. The bill would require the state board to consider those reports as an agenda item at a regularly scheduled public meeting or as provided and would require the department to post those reports on the department's internet website. This bill would become operative only if AB 2225 of the 2025–26 Regular Session is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2027, and adds Section 52090 to the Education Code.
Existing law establishes the California Serves Program under the administration of the State Department of Education, in collaboration with CaliforniaVolunteers, for purposes of promoting access to effective service learning for pupils in grade 12 who are enrolled at participating local educational agencies. Existing law requires the department, in partnership with CaliforniaVolunteers, to review available evidence on ways to incorporate effective service learning for pupils in grades 9 to 12, inclusive, and provide recommendations to the Legislature on, and post on the department's and CaliforniaVolunteers' internet websites information related to, evidence-based strategies to expand access to high-quality service learning programs, as provided. Existing law, commencing with the 2022–23 fiscal year, appropriates $5,000,000 from the General Fund, each fiscal year, to the department to award grants of up to $500,000 annually to local educational agencies in which at least 55% of enrolled pupils are unduplicated pupils, as defined, to be used for, among other things, the purchase of instructional materials and participation and personnel costs, as provided. This bill would expand the California Serves Program to promote access to effective service learning for pupils in grades 6 to 12, inclusive, who are enrolled at participating local educational agencies. By expanding the purposes of ongoing appropriations, the bill would make an appropriation. The bill would require the department, in partnership with CaliforniaVolunteers, on or before January 1, 2028, to (1) review available evidence on ways to incorporate effective service learning for pupils in grades 6 to 12, inclusive, and (2) provide recommendations to the Legislature on, and post on the department's and CaliforniaVolunteers' internet website information related to, evidence-based strategies to expand access to high-quality service learning programs for grades 6 to 12, inclusive, as provided.
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 establishes various programs for the recruitment of teachers. Existing law establishes the Bilingual Teacher Professional Development Program, administered by the State Department of Education in consultation with the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, for teachers seeking to provide instruction in bilingual and multilingual settings. This bill, which would be operative upon appropriation by the Legislature, would establish the Pathways to Bilingual Teaching Program and would require the commission to develop and implement a program to award, on a competitive basis, grants of up to $600,000 to local educational agencies to form consortia with 4-year institutions of higher education, or 4-year institutions of higher education and community colleges, to establish or expand pathways to bilingual teaching to enable bilingual pupils to earn a multiple subject, single subject, PK-3 early childhood education specialist, or education specialist teaching credential, with a bilingual authorization, as provided. The bill would require the commission to annually report to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature on any grants funded until funds are fully expended, as specified.
Existing law sets forth the missions and functions of California's public and independent segments of higher education, and details the ways in which their respective institutions are to be differentiated. Existing law specifies that the California State University shall offer undergraduate and graduate instruction through the master's degree in the liberal arts and sciences and professional education. This bill, upon appropriation by the Legislature, would require the Chancellor of the California State University to establish a pilot program to offer an associate degree in general studies or, if applicable, an associate degree with an area of emphasis that is consistent with the former student's completed coursework, that is jointly conferred by a California State University campus and a community college or independent institution of higher education that awards associate degrees to former California State University students who are no longer enrolled at a California State University campus but have successfully completed coursework equivalent to the requirements for an associate degree and not previously earned an associate degree. The bill would require the associate degree to be awarded at no cost to the former student. The bill would require California State University, Long Beach, to participate in the pilot program and would authorize the chancellor to include up to 4 additional California State University campuses in the pilot program. The bill would require the chancellor, on or before January 1, 2032, to submit a report to the Legislature evaluating the effectiveness of the pilot program, as provided. The bill would make these provisions inoperative on June 30, 2032, and would repeal them as of January 1, 2033.
Existing law establishes a system of public elementary and secondary education in this state. Under this system, local educational agencies throughout the state provide instruction to pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive, and existing law establishes courses of study for those pupils. This bill would encourage school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to integrate outdoor learning into standards-aligned instruction across all grades and subject areas, as provided. Existing law establishes the State Department of Education under the administration of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and assigns the department numerous duties relating to the governance and funding of local educational agencies. This bill would require the department, on or before July 1, 2028, to curate and maintain on its internet website resources for educators on outdoor learning. The bill would also encourage the department, in carrying out these provisions, to consult with county offices of education, classroom educators, tribal partners, mental and physical health professionals and researchers, environmental literacy experts, and community organizations with experience in outdoor learning. The bill would authorize the department to provide resources to address the particular needs of each local educational agency. The bill would authorize the department to accept voluntary contributions to be deposited into the Outdoor Learning and Environmental Literacy Account, which the bill would create in the State Treasury, to fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, the costs of these provisions.
Existing law requires the governing board of a school district to give diligent care to the health and physical development of pupils and authorizes the governing board of a school district to employ properly certified persons for this purpose. Existing law requires a school of a school district or county office of education and a charter school to notify pupils and parents or guardians of pupils no less than twice during the school year on how to initiate access to available pupil mental health services on campus or in the community, or both, as provided. This bill would require, on or before July 1, 2027, the State Department of Education to enter into a contract with one or more local educational agencies with capacity and established expertise, as provided, to serve as lead entities in providing support for the implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices for pupils in kindergarten and grades 1 to 12, inclusive. The bill would require, on or before January 1, 2028, the lead entities, selected pursuant to a competitive process, to make available guidance, resources, and technical assistance to local educational agencies to expand the statewide implementation of integrated, universal social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and restorative practices, as provided. The bill would make the implementation of these provisions contingent upon an appropriation, as provided.
Existing law requires the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to establish standards for the issuance and renewal of credentials, certificates, and permits. Existing law requires the commission to adopt standards for the accreditation of postsecondary teacher preparation programs. Existing law prescribes "clinical practice" as one of the commission-adopted standards and requires that teaching credential candidates perform 600 hours of clinical practice throughout the candidate's teacher preparation program, including, as a component of those hours, student teaching. Existing law establishes the Student Teacher Stipend Program to support prospective educators, as defined, during their completion of 500 or more hours of student teaching, as provided, and appropriates, for the 2025–26 fiscal year, $300,000,000 from the General Fund to the commission for allocation to support the Student Teacher Stipend Program. This bill would, contingent upon an appropriation of one-time funding by the Legislature, establish the Experienced Mentor Teacher Stipend Program, under the administration of the Commission on Teacher Credentialing, to expand the Student Teacher Stipend Program to award stipends of $3,000 each to compensate experienced mentor teachers, as defined, who mentor student teacher candidates who are in teacher preparation programs, as provided. In administering the Experienced Mentor Teacher Stipend Program, the bill would require the commission to expand the online process for local educational agencies, as defined, to submit an experienced mentor teacher's information, as provided. The bill would require local educational agencies awarded funding under the Experienced Mentor Teacher Stipend Program to also partner with a commission-approved teacher preparation program to create an experienced mentor teacher recruitment and selection process accompanied by planned professional learning and support activities, as provided. The bill would require the commission to annually report to the education and policy committees of both houses of the Legislature certain information regarding the Experienced Mentor Teacher Stipend Program, as provided.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, 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 the state. Existing law requires the office of the Chancellor of the California State University, and requests the office of the President of the University of California, on or before July 1, 2022, to conduct a needs assessment to determine the projected student housing needs, by campus, for the 2022–23 fiscal year to the 2026–27 fiscal year, inclusive, and create a student housing plan, with a focus on affordable student housing, that outlines how they will meet the projected student housing needs, by campus, as provided. Existing law also requires the chancellor's office, and requests the president's office, to, every 3 years after July 1, 2022, review and update the student housing plan, and include the specific actions to be taken in the next 5 fiscal years. This bill would require the office of the Chancellor of the California State University, on or before July 1, 2027, to convene a working group to develop recommendations, identify opportunities, and support the sharing of best practices related to student housing, including intersegmental student housing, as provided. The bill would require the working group to include representatives designated by the office of the Chancellor of the California State University, the office of the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, and the statewide student organizations for the California State University and the California Community Colleges. The bill would request the office of the President of the University of California to participate in the working group and designate representatives and, upon such participation, would require the statewide student organization for the University of California to designate representatives to serve on the working group. This bill would require the working group to consult with representatives from campuses that have pursued intersegmental student housing projects and representatives from campus and system-level offices responsible for, among other things, housing operations and facilities development. The bill would require the working group to submit a report to the Legislature and the Governor on or before July 1, 2028, that includes, among other things, recommendations related to assessing and determining unmet student housing need and recommended best practices and implementation supports for campuses interested in pursuing intersegmental student housing development. This bill would repeal its provisions on January 1, 2029.
Existing law requires the governing board of a school district, a county board of education, and the governing body of a charter school to, no later than July 1, 2026, develop and adopt, and update every 5 years, a policy to limit or prohibit the use by its pupils of smartphones while the pupils are at a schoolsite or while the pupils are under the supervision and control of an employee or employees of that local educational agency. Under existing law, a pupil shall not be prohibited from possessing or using a smartphone under specified circumstances, including, among others, when the possession or use of a smartphone is required in a pupil's individualized education program. This bill, commencing July 1, 2028, would require the above-described policy to continue to apply only to pupils in any of grades 9 to 12, inclusive. The bill would require the governing board of a school district, a county board of education, and the governing body of a charter school that serves pupils in transitional kindergarten, kindergarten, or grades 1 to 8, inclusive, to, no later than July 1, 2028, develop and adopt a policy that prohibits the use of smartphones by those pupils while the pupils are at a schoolsite or while the pupils are under the supervision and control of an employee or employees of that local educational agency, as provided. The bill, commencing July 1, 2028, would prohibit instruction provided to pupils in transitional kindergarten, kindergarten, and any of grades 1 to 8, inclusive, from requiring the use of a smartphone by a pupil. The bill, commencing January 1, 2027, would require (1) a pupil in any grade to also be allowed to possess or use a smartphone when the possession or use of a smartphone is required in a pupil's plan developed pursuant to the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and (2) a policy adopted or updated pursuant to these provisions be included in a pupil handbook, if one is provided. By imposing additional duties on local educational agencies, the bill would constitute a state-mandated local program. This bill would require the State Department of Education, on or before January 1, 2029, to submit to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the Legislature, and post on their internet website, a report that contains (1) a description of the pupil smartphone policies of at least 30 selected local educational agencies that have provided consent to participate and that are representative of the demographic and geographic diversity of the state, including a copy of each policy, as provided, (2) the results of a survey of those local educational agencies, which the bill would require the department to conduct, and (3) recommended best practices for future local educational agency pupil smartphone use policies. The bill would authorize the department to collaborate with specified organizations with relevant expertise in preparing the report. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2033. 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.
Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges, administered by the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in the state. Existing law requires the board to appoint a chief executive officer, known as the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges. Existing law establishes community college districts throughout the state, under the administration of community college district governing boards, and authorizes these districts to provide instruction at the community college campuses they operate. Existing law establishes the Part-Time Community College Faculty Health Insurance Program, which authorizes the governing board of a community college district to provide a program of health insurance for part-time faculty, multidistrict part-time faculty, and their dependents. Existing law requires the chancellor, by June 15 of each year, to apportion to each community college that establishes a program an amount that equals up to12 of the total cost of the individual premiums required to be paid for the health insurance coverage of participating part-time faculty, multidistrict part-time faculty, and their dependents, and to apportion any remaining funds to each community college district that establishes a program and meets certain criteria, up to the total cost of the individual premiums required to be paid for the health insurance coverage of the participants, as provided. If funds appropriated for purposes of the program remain after those apportionments, existing law requires that the balance revert to the General Fund annually, as specified. This bill would instead require that the balance be deposited into the Part-Time Community College Faculty Health Insurance Program Fund, which the bill would create. The bill would continuously appropriate the moneys in the fund to the chancellor for purposes of the above-described apportionments, as specified. This bill would state the intent of the Legislature that, by January 1, 2030, each community college district commence negotiations with the exclusive representatives for part-time community college faculty to offer health insurance benefits to part-time and multidistrict part-time community college faculty and their eligible dependents.
