Existing law establishes the California Community Colleges under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. Existing law requires the governing board of each community college district to order the inclusion within the membership of the governing board of one or more nonvoting students, who are enrolled in a community college of the district, and chosen by students enrolled in the community colleges of the district, in accordance with procedures prescribed by the governing board.

This bill would give each student member of the governing board of a community college district an advisory vote, as specified. This bill would also make conforming changes. By requiring community college districts to revise governing board procedures, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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 under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. Existing law requires the governing board of each community college district to order the inclusion within the membership of the governing board of one or more nonvoting students, who are enrolled in a community college of the district, and chosen by students enrolled in the community colleges of the district, in accordance with procedures prescribed by the governing board.

This bill would give each student member of the governing board of a community college district an advisory vote, as specified. This bill would also make conforming changes. By requiring community college districts to revise governing board procedures, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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 under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges. Existing law requires the governing board of each community college district to order the inclusion within the membership of the governing board of one or more nonvoting students, who are enrolled in a community college of the district, and chosen by students enrolled in the community colleges of the district, in accordance with procedures prescribed by the governing board.

This bill would give each student member of the governing board of a community college district an advisory vote, as specified. This bill would also make conforming changes. By requiring community college districts to revise governing board procedures, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

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.

 CONSENT  

Bill No: AB 1541

Author: Mike Fong (D)

Introduced: 2/17/23

Vote: 21

SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/7/23

AYES: Newman, Ochoa Bogh, Cortese, Glazer, McGuire, Smallwood-Cuevas, Wilk

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 66-0, 5/11/23 (Consent) - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Community colleges: governing board membership: student members

SOURCE: Student Senate for the California Community Colleges

DIGEST:

This bill requires that a student member of the governing board of a community college district have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regular members of the governing board, and deletes references to the student position(s) on community college district governing boards being non-voting.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

Community college district governing boards

1. Requires the governing board of each community college district to order the inclusion within the membership of the governing board, in addition to the number of members otherwise prescribed, of one or more non-voting students. Existing law requires these students to have the right to attend each and all meetings of the governing board, except that student members shall not have the right, or be afforded the opportunity, to attend executive sessions of the governing board. (Education Code (EC) § 72023.5)
2. Requires that the students selected to serve on the governing board be enrolled in a community college of the district and be chosen, and be recalled, by the students enrolled in the community colleges of the district in accordance with procedures prescribed by the governing board. Existing law authorizes, if the seat of a student member becomes vacant during his or her term, the governing board to authorize the officers of student body associations at each community college in the district to appoint a student to serve the remainder of the term in accordance with procedures established by the governing board. Existing law requires that a student member be required throughout the term of his or her appointment to be enrolled in a community college of the district for at least five semester units, or its equivalent, and meet and maintain the minimum standards of scholarship for community college students prescribed by the community college district. Existing law sets the term of the student members at one year beginning on June 1 of each year. (EC § 72023.5)
3. Requires that a non-voting student member be seated with the members of the governing board and be recognized as a full member of the board at the meetings, including receiving all materials presented to the board members and participating in the questioning of witnesses and the discussion of issues. Existing law prohibits a non-voting student member from being included in determining the vote required to carry any measure before the board. (EC § 72023.5)
4. Authorizes the non-voting student member or members selected to serve on the governing board of a community college district to do any of the following:
   1. Make and second motions at the discretion of the governing board.
   2. Attend closed sessions, other than closed sessions on personnel matters or collective bargaining matters, at the discretion of the governing board.
   3. Receive compensation, at the discretion of the governing board, as specified.
   4. Serve a term of one year beginning on May 15 of each year, at the discretion of the governing board. (EC § 72023.5)

California Community Colleges Board of Governors (BOG)

1. Establishes the BOG of the California Community Colleges, consisting of 18 voting members, as follows:
   1. Twelve members, each appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the membership of the Senate to six-year staggered terms. Existing law requires that two of these members be current or former elected members of local community college district governing boards.
   2. Two voting student members. Existing law authorizes each student member to exercise the same right to attend meetings of the board, and its committees, and requires each student member to have the same right to vote as the appointed members.
   3. Two voting tenured faculty members from a community college, who shall be appointed by the Governor for two-year terms. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint each faculty member from a list of names of at least three eligible persons furnished by the Academic Senate of the California Community Colleges.
   4. One voting classified employee, who shall be appointed by the Governor for a two-year term. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint the classified employee member from a list of at least three eligible persons furnished by the exclusive representatives of classified employees of the California Community Colleges.
   5. The Lieutenant Governor, who shall be a voting member. (EC § 71000)
2. Requires that a student member be enrolled in a community college with a minimum of five semester units, or its equivalent, at the time of the appointment and throughout the period of the student member’s term, or until a replacement has been named. Existing law requires that a student member be enrolled in a community college at least one semester before the student member’s appointment, and shall meet and maintain the minimum standards of scholarship prescribed for community college students. (EC § 71000)
3. Requires each student member to be appointed by the Governor from a list of names of at least three eligible persons submitted to the Governor by the student organization recognized by the BOG. (EC § 71000)
4. Sets the term of office of one student member of the BOG to begin on July 1 of an even-numbered year, and expire on June 30 two years thereafter. Existing law sets the term of office of the other student member of the BOG to begin on July 1 of an odd-numbered year, and expire on June 30 two years thereafter. (EC § 71000)

This bill requires that a student member of the governing board of a community college district have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regular members of the governing board, and deletes references to the student position(s) on community college district governing boards being non-voting.

Comments

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “As a former trustee of the Los Angeles Community College District, student representation is very important to me. Student opinion and perspectives are vital to the decisions that a community college governing board member make. AB 1541 will ensure that all student trustees are able to express how they would vote on all action items. This will help all governing board members make more educated decisions on issues that affect the lives of students and their success.”
2. Student members of local community college governing boards. As noted in the Assembly Higher Education Committee analysis, the Legislature has recently recognized the need for student voices to be adequately represented on the governing boards of the public postsecondary segments. AB 337 (Medina, Chapter 23, Statutes of 2021) authorized voting rights for the student members on the BOG. At the statewide level, student representatives are seen as full members of the Board of Governors; however, the rights and privileges afforded to student representatives at the local governing boards varies by district.

Existing law does not prohibit local governing boards from authorizing advisory votes for students and some have chosen to allow students to provide an advisory vote prior to the voting of the full board. Since the majority of privileges provided to a student member of a local governing board are entirely left to the discretion of the elected members of the governing board, there is a lack of congruency between student members involvement on local governing boards of community colleges:

• 1. Fifty eight community college districts allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.
  2. Ten community college districts do not allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.
  3. Three community college districts have their governing board decide each year whether to allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.

The existing requirement that student members receive permission from other board members to provide an advisory vote creates a two-tiered governing board with student members of some community college governing boards receiving equitable authority and others receiving none. By removing the discretion, student members across the state will have the same role and be afforded the same voting privileges as their counterparts in other community college districts across the state.

Related/Prior Legislation

AB 1216 (Salas, 2021) would have required community college districts to give student members of local governing boards an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by trustees. The bill also would have required the Chancellor’s Office to convene a stakeholder workgroup to review local governing boards’ policies and regulations and state and federal laws regarding student member involvement. AB 1216 was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.

AB 2910 (Weber, 2020) would have authorized community college governing boards to give each student member an advisory vote and per the discretion of the governing board, a full vote. AB 2910 was not heard due to constrained legislative timelines (due to the pandemic).

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes

SUPPORT: (Verified 6/26/23)

Student Senate for California Community Colleges (source)

California Community Colleges, Chancellor's Office

Campaign for College Opportunity

Community College League of California

OPPOSITION: (Verified 6/26/23)

None received

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 66-0, 5/11/23

AYES: Addis, Aguiar-Curry, Alanis, Bains, Bennett, Berman, Boerner, Bryan, Calderon, Wendy Carrillo, Chen, Connolly, Megan Dahle, Davies, Essayli, Flora, Mike Fong, Vince Fong, Friedman, Gabriel, Gallagher, Garcia, Gipson, Grayson, Haney, Holden, Hoover, Irwin, Jackson, Jones-Sawyer, Kalra, Lackey, Low, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mathis, McKinnor, Muratsuchi, Stephanie Nguyen, Pacheco, Papan, Joe Patterson, Pellerin, Petrie-Norris, Quirk-Silva, Ramos, Reyes, Luz Rivas, Robert Rivas, Rodriguez, Blanca Rubio, Sanchez, Santiago, Schiavo, Soria, Ta, Ting, Valencia, Villapudua, Waldron, Wallis, Weber, Wicks, Wilson, Zbur, Rendon

NO VOTE RECORDED: Alvarez, Arambula, Bauer-Kahan, Bonta, Juan Carrillo, Cervantes, Dixon, Hart, Lee, McCarty, Ortega, Jim Patterson, Ward, Wood

Prepared by: Lynn Lorber / ED. / (916) 651-4105

6/28/23 14:13:47

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION

Senator Josh Newman, Chair

2023 - 2024 Regular

Bill No: Hearing Date: June 7, 2023

Subject: .

SUMMARY

This bill requires that a student member of the governing board of a community college district have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regular members of the governing board, and deletes references to the student position(s) on community college district governing boards being non-voting.

BACKGROUND

Existing law:

Community college district governing boards

1. Requires the governing board of each community college district to order the inclusion within the membership of the governing board, in addition to the number of members otherwise prescribed, of one or more non-voting students. Existing law requires these students to have the right to attend each and all meetings of the governing board, except that student members shall not have the right, or be afforded the opportunity, to attend executive sessions of the governing board. (Education Code (EC) § 72023.5)
   
2. Requires that the students selected to serve on the governing board be enrolled in a community college of the district and be chosen, and be recalled, by the students enrolled in the community colleges of the district in accordance with procedures prescribed by the governing board. Existing law authorizes, if the seat of a student member becomes vacant during his or her term, the governing board to authorize the officers of student body associations at each community college in the district to appoint a student to serve the remainder of the term in accordance with procedures established by the governing board. Existing law requires that a student member be required throughout the term of his or her appointment to be enrolled in a community college of the district for at least five semester units, or its equivalent, and meet and maintain the minimum standards of scholarship for community college students prescribed by the community college district. Existing law sets the term of the student members at one year beginning on June 1 of each year. (EC § 72023.5)
   
3. Requires that a non-voting student member be seated with the members of the governing board and be recognized as a full member of the board at the meetings, including receiving all materials presented to the board members and participating in the questioning of witnesses and the discussion of issues. Existing law prohibits a non-voting student member from being included in determining the vote required to carry any measure before the board. (EC § 72023.5)
   
4. Authorizes the non-voting student member or members selected to serve on the governing board of a community college district to do any of the following:
   
5. Make and second motions at the discretion of the governing board.
   
6. Attend closed sessions, other than closed sessions on personnel matters or collective bargaining matters, at the discretion of the governing board.
   
7. Receive compensation, at the discretion of the governing board, as specified.
   
8. Serve a term of one year beginning on May 15 of each year, at the discretion of the governing board. (EC § 72023.5)

California Community Colleges Board of Governors (BOG)

1. Establishes the BOG of the California Community Colleges, consisting of 18 voting members, as follows:
   
2. Twelve members, each appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of two-thirds of the membership of the Senate to six-year staggered terms. Existing law requires that two of these members be current or former elected members of local community college district governing boards.
   
3. Two voting student members. Existing law authorizes each student member to exercise the same right to attend meetings of the board, and its committees, and requires each student member to have the same right to vote as the appointed members.
   
4. Two voting tenured faculty members from a community college, who shall be appointed by the Governor for two-year terms. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint each faculty member from a list of names of at least three eligible persons furnished by the Academic Senate of the California Community Colleges.
   
5. One voting classified employee, who shall be appointed by the Governor for a two-year term. Existing law requires the Governor to appoint the classified employee member from a list of at least three eligible persons furnished by the exclusive representatives of classified employees of the California Community Colleges.
   
6. The Lieutenant Governor, who shall be a voting member. (EC § 71000)
   
7. Requires that a student member be enrolled in a community college with a minimum of five semester units, or its equivalent, at the time of the appointment and throughout the period of the student member’s term, or until a replacement has been named. Existing law requires that a student member be enrolled in a community college at least one semester before the student member’s appointment, and shall meet and maintain the minimum standards of scholarship prescribed for community college students. (EC § 71000)
   
8. Requires each student member to be appointed by the Governor from a list of names of at least three eligible persons submitted to the Governor by the student organization recognized by the BOG. (EC § 71000)
   
9. Sets the term of office of one student member of the BOG to begin on July 1 of an even-numbered year, and expire on June 30 two years thereafter. Existing law sets the term of office of the other student member of the BOG to begin on July 1 of an odd-numbered year, and expire on June 30 two years thereafter. (EC § 71000)

ANALYSIS

This bill requires that a student member of the governing board of a community college district have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regular members of the governing board, and deletes references to the student position(s) on community college district governing boards being non-voting.

STAFF COMMENTS

1. Need for the bill. According to the author, “As a former trustee of the Los Angeles Community College District, student representation is very important to me. Student opinion and perspectives are vital to the decisions that a community college governing board member make. AB 1541 will ensure that all student trustees are able to express how they would vote on all action items. This will help all governing board members make more educated decisions on issues that affect the lives of students and their success.”
   
2. Student members of local community college governing boards. As noted in the Assembly Higher Education Committee analysis, the Legislature has recently recognized the need for student voices to be adequately represented on the governing boards of the public postsecondary segments. AB 337 (Medina) Chapter 23, Statutes of 2021, authorized voting rights for the student members on the BOG. At the statewide level, student representatives are seen as full members of the Board of Governors; however, the rights and privileges afforded to student representatives at the local governing boards varies by district.
   
   Existing law does not prohibit local governing boards from authorizing advisory votes for students and some have chosen to allow students to provide an advisory vote prior to the voting of the full board. Since the majority of privileges provided to a student member of a local governing board are entirely left to the discretion of the elected members of the governing board, there is a lack of congruency between student members involvement on local governing boards of community colleges:
   
3. Fifty eight community college districts allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.
   
4. Ten community college districts do not allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.
   
5. Three community college districts have their governing board decide each year whether to allow their student member(s) to cast an advisory vote.
   

The existing requirement that student members receive permission from other board members to provide an advisory vote creates a two-tiered governing board with student members of some community college governing boards receiving equitable authority and others receiving none. By removing the discretion, student members across the state will have the same role and be afforded the same voting privileges as their counterparts in other community college districts across the state.

1. Fiscal impact. According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, this bill could impose minor and absorbable costs to community college districts.
   
2. Prior legislation
   
   AB 1216 (Salas, 2021) would have required community college districts to give student members of local governing boards an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by trustees. The bill also would have required the Chancellor’s Office to convene a stakeholder workgroup to review local governing boards’ policies and regulations and state and federal laws regarding student member involvement. AB 1216 was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
   
   AB 2910 (Weber, 2020) would have authorized community college governing boards to give each student member an advisory vote and per the discretion of the governing board, a full vote. AB 2910 was not heard due to constrained legislative timelines (due to the pandemic).

SUPPORT

Student Senate for California Community Colleges (Sponsor)
California Community Colleges, Chancellor's Office
Campaign for College Opportunity
Community College League of California

OPPOSITION

None received

-- END --

Date of Hearing: May 3, 2023

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Chris Holden, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1541

Author:(Mike Fong) – As Introduced Ver:February 17, 2023

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: Yes

SUMMARY:

This bill gives each student member of the governing board of a California Community College (CCC) district an advisory vote. Specifically, the bill requires a student member to have the opportunity to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regular members of the governing board.

FISCAL EFFECT:

Minor and absorbable costs to the state’s 73 CCC districts.

By requiring CCC districtss to revise governing board procedures, the bill could impose a reimbursable state mandated cost.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. According to the author:

As a former trustee of the Los Angeles Community College District, student representation is very important to me. Student opinion and perspectives are vital to the decisions that a community college governing board member makes during their time on the board. AB 1541 will ensure that all student trustees are able to express how they would vote on all action items. This will help all governing board members make more educated decisions on issues that affect the lives of students and their success.

1. Background. At the statewide level, the CCC is governed by the Board of Governors of the CCC. The board of governors appoints the Chancellor of the CCC, sets systemwide policy, and provides guidance to the state’s CCC districts and CCCs. The board of governors consists of 18 voting members, including two student members. AB 337 (Medina) Chapter 23, Statutes of 2021, authorized full voting rights for the student members on the board of governors.

At the local level, each CCC district is governed by a local governing board that has the authority to establish, maintain, and operate CCCs within its district. Current law also requires the governing board of each CCC district to include in their membership one or more nonvoting student members. A student member must attend a CCC within the governing board’s district and is selected to serve on the governing board by the CCC district’s student population. Currently, student members are nonvoting. This bill would provide them with an advisory vote.

Analysis Prepared by: Natasha Collins / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 18, 2023

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HIGHER EDUCATION

Mike Fong, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 1541 (

Author:Mike Fong) – As Introduced Ver:February 17, 2023

SUBJECT: Community colleges: governing board membership: student members

SUMMARY: Authorizes student member(s) of the governing board of each community college district to cast an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by the regularly elected members of the governing board. Specifically, this bill:

1. Authorizes student member(s) of the governing board of each community college district to cast an advisory vote prior to any votes cast by the regular elected members of the governing board.
2. Requires the governing board of each community college district to adopt rules and regulations on the privileges provided to the student members by the governing board by May 15 of each year.
3. Makes clarifying and technical changes to existing law.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes the California Community Colleges (CCC) under the administration of the Board of Governors of the CCC, as one of the segments of public postsecondary education in this state. The CCC shall be comprised of community college districts (Education Code (EDC) Section 70900).
2. Establishes that CCC districts are under the control of a board of trustees, known as the governing board, who has the authority to establish, maintain, operate, and govern one or more community colleges, within its district as specified (EDC Section 70902).
3. Requires the governing board of each community district to include in their membership one or more nonvoting students. Each student member has the right to attend and participate in meetings of the governing board, except for executive sessions, and must attend a CCC within the governing board’s district. Students selected to serve on the governing board are chosen and subject to recall by the CCC district’s student population. If a student member seat becomes vacant, the governing board may authorize the officers of the student body association at each college in the district to appoint a student to serve the remainder of the term according to procedures established by the governing board. Each nonvoting student member will be provided the same mileage allowance as other sitting board members of the governing board. Each governing board may determine and adopt conforming regulations each year as to whether any student member of the board may make or second motions, attend closed sessions as specified, serve a term of one year, and receive compensation up to the amount received by other members of the board. (EDC Section 72023.5).

FISCAL EFFECT: Unknown

COMMENTS: Need for the measure. As expressed by the author, “as a former trustee of the Los Angeles Community College District, student representation is very important to me. Student opinion and perspectives are vital to the decisions that a community college governing board member makes during their time on the board. AB 1541 will ensure that all student trustees are able to express how they would vote on all action items. This will help all governing board members make more educated decisions on issues that affect the lives of students and their success.”

Structure of California Community Colleges (CCC). The CCC is comprised of 116 community colleges and is the largest system of higher education in the United States serving 1.8 million students in 2022. The CCC was established as part of the state’s tripartite structure to provide postsecondary education for the people of California. In the 1960 Master Plan for Higher Education (Master Plan), the vision for the CCC was established as an open access institution, accepting 100% of applicants and providing vocational, associate degrees, and general education for the purpose of transferring to a four-year university. The governing structure of the CCC was also established within the Master Plan and was mirrored after the governing structure for the K-12 system. The CCC is governed by both a statewide Board of Governors and a locally elected board of trustees who govern geographical areas known as a districts. CCC districts are comprised of at least one community college, but can have more than one community college within their boundary. The Board of Governors consists of 18 voting members including community members, tenured faculty, classified staff, and two student representatives. With the exception of the Lieutenant Governor, each member of the Board of Governors is appointed by the Governor. The Board of Governors sets policy and provides guidance to the 73 districts and the 116 colleges within the system.

The Board of Governors appoints the Chancellor of the CCC who serves as the Chief Executive Officer of the Board of Governors and oversees the system’s executive office. The role of the Chancellor’s Office of the CCC is to provide technical and fiscal assistance to the districts in fulfilling the mission of providing postsecondary education to the people of California.

With the exception of Calbright, whose local governing board is also the Board of Governors, the other 115 colleges are governed by locally elected governing boards. Each local governing board has either five or seven voting members, known as trustees, who are elected in a state-run election either by 1) a smaller region within the district defined as a trustee area; or 2) the populous of the community college within the border of the district. In addition to the trustees, each governing board is required in accordance with state law to have at least one nonvoting student member who is elected by the student population of the district. The role of the local governing board is to establish, maintain, operate, and govern each community college within its district boundary. The number of colleges represented in a single district varies throughout the state; some districts represent a single district whereas the largest, Los Angeles Community College District, represents nine colleges.

Student members of local governing boards. Students’ voices have not always been equally represented on the governing boards of the public higher education segments. Within the last several years, the Legislature has recognized the need for student voices to be adequately represented on the governing boards of the public postsecondary segments. AB 337 (Medina) Chapter 23, Statutes of 2021, authorized voting rights for the student members on the Board of Governors. At the statewide level, student representatives are seen as full members of the Board of Governors; however, the rights and privileges afforded to student representatives at the local governing boards deviates by district.

As depicted in the Education Code, each local governing board must have at least one nonvoting student board member (student member). The student member is “elected” by the student body population within the district. Since the Education Code is not prescriptive as to how the student is elected, some governing boards allow for each college to elect a student representatives and other governing boards require their student representative to be elected from the total population of the district. To qualify, a student representative must be enrolled in at least five semester units or its equivalent and must maintain good academic standing as determined by the community college district, they attend. A student member serves for one term beginning on June 2 of each year or per the local governing board’s discretion on May 15 of each year. Each student member has the right to attend all board meetings, sit with trustees, receive all materials presented to other board members, and participate in the discussion of an issue before the board. A student member is entitled to the same mileage allowance provided to other board members. A student member is not permitted to attend executive sessions of the board nor are they permitted the right to vote on any measure before the board.

Any additional authority or compensation is provided to the student member by the discretion of the local governing board and determined by either a vote of the governing board or by regulations and procedures adopted by the governing board. Currently, the trustees can determine if a student member may make and second motions, attend specific closed sessions, and/or receive compensation.

Committee Staff notes that nothing within Education Code Section 72023.5 prohibits local governing boards from authorizing advisory votes for students and some have chosen to allow students to provide an advisory vote prior to the voting of the full board. Since the majority of privileges provided to a student member of a local governing board are entirely left to the discretion of the elected members of the governing board, there is a lack of congruency between student members involvement on local governing boards of the CCC.

Every two years, the Community College League of California conducts a survey of local governing boards to determine the governing structure of the community college districts. Among the questions asked include questions regarding the privileges afforded to the student member. Below are the results from the 2019 survey:

AB 1541 (M. Fong) seeks to rectify the current disparity, as highlighted by the survey, in the level of participation of student members on local CCC governing boards by providing all student representatives on the governing board with an advisory vote. AB 1541 (M. Fong) builds upon previous actions of the Legislature to enhance the authority of student representation on governing boards and seeks to provide parity in participation across the state for student members of local CCC governing boards.

Local authority and governance. As previously mentioned, the governing structure of the CCC, unlike its higher education counterparts, is more akin to the K-12 governance structure, which prioritizes local control and governance over statewide control. The reason for this lies in the origins of the CCC, whose colleges were originally part of the K-12 school districts. According to the Little Hoover Commission February 2012 report, Serving Students, Serving California: Updating the CCC to Meet Evolving Demands, prior to 1960, community colleges were part of the state’s public school system and fell under the jurisdiction of the State Board of Education. After the implementation of the Master Plan for Higher Education, the Governor, and the Legislature established the Board of Governors to oversee the CCC system and formally created the community college district system to govern the colleges. Unlike the California State University and the University of California which answer to a single central board, the community colleges would continue to be governed and controlled by locally elected boards that are endowed with the authority to make policy and fiscal decisions over the community college within the geographical boundaries of their district.

AB 1541 (M. Fong) by design removes some of the local control and governance currently provided to governing boards. Instead the measure ushers in Legislative oversight and regulation in terms of the voting privileges provided to students who sit on the CCC governing boards. In recent years, the Legislature has adopted the understanding that students who reside on boards deserve equitable representation and the same privileges as other appointed board members. The desire is for boards to see students as equal partners and as contributors whose input has equal weight as other members of the board. By requiring student members to receive permission from other board members to provide an advisory vote on a measure before the board creates a two-tiered governing board with some student members receiving equitable authority from governing board members and others receiving none. By removing the discretion, student members across the state will have the same role and be afforded the same voting privileges as their counterparts in other CCC districts across the state.

A plethora of social, economic, and geographical changes have occurred since the 1960s when the CCC governance structure was created, and the role of student advocacy and involvement in local governance has expanded with students taking an active role in their community colleges. Furthermore, AB 1541 (M. Fong) is a measured approach for the inclusion of the student’s voice through an advisory vote when compared to previous versions of the measure which called for students to have full-voting authority. While this does remove the agency of the local governing board to make decisions on the involvement of their student member in the governance of the CCC district, AB 1541 (M. Fong) aligns with the Legislature’s goal of congruency in governance and the inclusion of student voices in local decisions made by the governing boards.

Arguments in support. As explained by the Student Senate for California Community Colleges, “…while many boards do allow their students to have some form of a voice on the board during votes, it is far from universal. Outside of the student trustee position, anyone can run to be a member of a board of trustees regardless of whether they are familiar with community colleges and the issues students face. Student trustees sit on the board to provide that necessary context to trustee members who may not otherwise be familiar with the current community college experience. Nevertheless, by not having even an advisory vote, student trustees face a significant power imbalance. AB 1541 would ensure students have a vote, and thus a voice, on every trustee board.”

Previous legislation.

1. AB 1216 (Salas), held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee, would have required California Community College (CCC) districts to give student members of local CCC boards of trustees an advisory vote immediately before votes are cast by trustees. The bill also would have required, by June 1, 2022, the CCC Chancellor’s Office to convene a stakeholder workgroup to review CCC boards of trustees’ policies and regulations and state and federal laws regarding student member involvement.
2. AB 2910 (Weber) of 2020, would have authorized each governing board of the CCC district to give each student member an advisory vote and per the discretion of the governing board, a full vote. Entitles each student member of the governing board to make and second motions and to receive the same compensation as a regular board member. Held in the Assembly Higher Education Committee due to the COVID-19,
3. AB 884 (Lara), Chapter 619, Statutes of 2011, permits any student, including those without lawful immigration status and a person who is exempt from nonresident tuition, attending a CCC and a California State University to participate in student government, receive compensation associated with service including but not grants, scholarships, and fee waivers. Requests the University of California to comply with the provision. Eliminates the requirement that a nonvoting student member of a governing board of a CCC district be a California resident.
4. AB 1030 (Cooley), Chapter 188, Statues of 2013, provides that if a seat of a student member of a CCC district’s governing board becomes vacant during the student’s term, the governing board may authorize the officers of the student body associations at each CCC in the district to appoint a student to serve the remainder of the term in accordance with procedures established by the governing board.
5. AB 447 (Williams), as amended on March 21, 2003, would have permitted a nonvoting student member of a CCC district’s governing board to attend closed session, as specified, to make and second motions, and to cast an advisory vote that is recorded in the board meeting’s minutes. This bill was gutted and amended in the Senate Education Committee.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

California Community Colleges, Chancellor's Office

California Teachers Association

Faculty Association of California Community Colleges

San Jose-evergreen Community College District

Student Senate for California Community Colleges

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by: Ellen Cesaretti-Monroy / HIGHER ED. / (916) 319-3960