UCLA Study Urges Expansion of California’s Community College Baccalaureate Degree Programs
Researchers say CA Master Plan is obsolete, structural changes to increase degree production
Calling California Community College Baccalaureate (CCB) degree programs, “potentially the best vehicle to transform who accesses and succeeds in California’s higher education and labor market,” on April 6, 2023, the UCLA Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles released new research detailing the progress and potential of the CCC baccalaureate degree programs and arguing for their strategic expansion across the state.
The new research report, “The Potential of California’s Community College Baccalaureate for Closing Racial Equity Gaps,” examines the status of existing CCB pilot programs to analyze enrollment patterns in CCB programs and describe program outcomes, including student persistence, graduation, and employment success after graduation. Those outcomes are largely positive. The report’s authors contend now is a pivotal moment to improve the effectiveness, efficiency, and quality of CCBs in California and, in so doing, increase the number of students that complete a baccalaureate degree in the state. They urge policy makers, practitioners, and other education leaders to expand CCB programs, and offer specific recommendations for doing so.
“In the 60 years since the establishment of the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the system has become increasingly stratified, with largely white, Asian, and more affluent students attending UC and CSU campuses, with two-year colleges mostly attended by lower income students of color, far too few of whom have the opportunity to go on to attain four-year degrees,” said Patricia Gándara, co-director of the UCLA Civil Rights Project/Proyecto Derechos Civiles. “The expansion of the community college baccalaureate programs offers a powerful tool for increasing the number of underrepresented students who attain bachelor degrees, and importantly, furthering educational racial equity and economic and social advancement.”
“California’s initial community college baccalaureate programs show promise and could be the right tool for establishing an accessible, affordable, place-bound public pathway towards baccalaureate attainment and social and economic mobility,” said Marcela G. Cuéllar, an associate professor in the School of Education at the University of California Davis, and a co-author of the report. “Education leaders and policy makers need to act to meet the needs of our students and state.”
