Time for Back to the Future Sunday, May 08, 2022
UC president Clark Kerr (right) hands Master Plan to Governor Pat Brown Another straw in the wind below suggesting that California needs to revisit its old Master Plan for Higher Education to set out who does what. It was precisely that ad hoc growth of the three components - UC, CSU (then called the State Colleges), and community colleges (then called junior colleges) - in the 1950s that gave rise to the Master Plan. California on the precipice of expanding community college baccalaureate programs Emma Gallegos, EdSource | Visalia Times Delta | 5-5-22
The community college baccalaureate program is on the precipice of expanding in California. Program proponents say the more advanced bachelor’s degree offerings by colleges that typically offer associate degrees are key to training California’s workforce and expanding degrees among the underserved students of California’s community college system. “It’s the equity answer to baccalaureate attainment,” said Kern Community College District Chancellor Sonya Christian. Currently, 15 of the state’s 116 community colleges offer bachelor’s degrees in fields such as industrial automation, dental hygiene and bio-manufacturing through a pilot program launched in 2014. That program became permanent through Assembly Bill 927, a law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in October. It also allows the state’s community college system to expand by 30 new bachelor’s degree programs annually. California is one of 23 states in the nation that offers community college baccalaureate degrees, according to a 2020 report by Community College Research Initiatives at the University of Washington. Both the pilot and expanded programs require community colleges to demonstrate that the degree offered satisfies an unmet industry need and that the program is not already offered by local universities. Bakersfield College’s degree in industrial automation is one that a California Legislative Analyst’s Office report noted filled hard-to-staff positions for employers and that its expansion as a bachelor’s degree offered better preparation. Liz Rozell, the director of Kern County’s Valley Strong Energy Research Institute, said the degree in industrial automation helped to address one of the main pitfalls of workforce training. It is often narrowly focused on new technology that is ever-changing. “Our technology is outpacing our training,” Rozell said. “We’re not focused on teaching our students agility. They need UCLA Faculty Association Blog: 2nd Quarter 2022
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