Assemblymember Block Chairs Hearing to Review Options
For Increased Student Graduation and Achievement
Sacramento - Assemblymember Marty Block (AD-78), Chair of the Assembly Committee on Higher Education, held a joint oversight hearing with members of the Senate Education and Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Education on Wednesday, February 1st to review new recommendations on how to improve student success in California’s community colleges.
“Our goal with this oversight hearing was to shed some light on the recommendations of the Student Success Task Force,” said Assemblymember Block. “Right now, only one out of every four students who intend to transfer actually makes it to a four-year university. Even more alarming for those students who need remediation upon entering the community colleges, only 42% reach the goal of an associate’s degree, certificate, or transfer status.”
The challenges facing community college students have been a focal point of the Assembly Higher Education Committee’s work; in 2010 Assemblymember Block helped shape legislation that led to the creation of the California Community College Student Success Task Force. This task force, comprised of stakeholders from numerous sectors of the community college community, studied best practices and effective models within higher education throughout the nation to improve education achievement in California’s 112 community college campuses.
Assemblymember Block, a retired Professor and Assistant Dean at San Diego State University, also spent eight years as President of the San Diego Community College District Board of Trustees. He noted that, “many of the task force recommendations around issues like counseling, assessment, and orientation are essential in ensuring that our students have what they need in order to be successful.”
The Assemblymember did, however, urge caution for recommendations that would disproportionately impact low-income students by taking away their fee waiver once they reach over 110 units. “Simply put, I believe that eliminating the Board of Governor’s fee waiver for students over a certain limit load is a death penalty for low-income students and their educational hopes.”
Block added that any potential legislation resulting from the task force report would be reviewed by the Assembly Higher Education Committee.
CONTACT: Kevin Powers or Courtney Miller, (916) 319-2078
