University of California planning to expand outreach at 65 California community colleges

EdSource

Michael Burke

January 20, 2023

The University of California is planning to expand outreach at more than half of the state’s community colleges in an effort to increase the number of students who successfully transfer from those colleges.

The 65 community colleges identified by UC serve a high proportion of low-income students and already have partnerships with UC, and UC plans to deepen those partnerships, according to a report provided Thursday to the academic affairs committee of UC’s board of regents.

The additional outreach could include UC expanding academic advising at those colleges or creating new faculty-to-faculty collaborations between UC campuses and individual colleges, said Yvette Gullatt, UC’s vice president for graduate and undergraduate affairs.

“This can increase transfer access and attainment,” Gullatt added.

UC leaders also signaled, however, that they are resisting calls to implement a systemwide admission guarantee similar to the Associate Degree for Transfer program that offers community college students a guaranteed spot at the 23-campus California State University system.

UC’s intention to expand outreach at community colleges across the state comes after a joint task force between UC and the community college system recommended last year that UC increase the percentage of community college transfers who apply, are admitted to and enroll at UC. UC also has a systemwide goal to enroll one California community college transfer student for every two California resident freshmen.

The need to do more to recruit community college students is especially key now because of a massive drop in enrollment at community colleges. Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the colleges have lost about 18% of their enrollment. Subsequently, applications to UC from community college transfers declined by 11% for fall 2022.

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