The California Community College CalWORKs Association (CCCCA) strongly opposes the inclusion of the community college CalWORKs programs within the flexible spending category as defined within section 8.1, Consolidate Select Categorical Programs of the draft recommendation from the Task Force on Student Success (TFSS). The recommendation to include community college CalWORKs within a flexible block grant will not make community
colleges more responsive to the needs of our students and our economy. However, it will disproportionately harm federal and state funding revenues, dramatically increase county welfare and community college student services staff workloads and will negate the current pattern of success California’s most disadvantaged populations are experiencing through the support of dedicated community college CalWORKs programs.

40% of California 100,000 welfare-to-work participants attend community college to meet federally mandated work participation hours. Inclusion of community college CalWORKs in any flexible spending category will jeopardize and dilute program services and will expedite the likelihood of California receiving a work participation rate (WPR) penalty from the federal government equal to $185,000,000.
Without continued dedicated funding for community college CalWORKs, which Recommendation 8.1 from TFSS would essentially eliminate, $8,000,000 dollars in federal TANF funding and $26,000,000 in state Maintenance of Efforts dollars would be jeopardized at Califo rnia ’s co mmu n ity co lleg e s .
Community college CalWORKs currently provides or is directly responsible for service coordination with local counties and college student services units, academic counseling and vocational planning, matriculation guidance, childcare services, job preparation and search, subsidized placement both on and off campus, instruction, document completion, data management, post-employment, and other services. Inclusion of community college CalWORKs within Recommendation 8.1 will result in a catastrophic statewide impact on staff workloads at both county offices and within community college student services units, while ensuring the most disadvantaged of students falling within the interstices of both systems due to the lack of singular support now provided by community college CalWORKs programs.
Community college CalWORKs programs serve a disproportionately higher percentage of historically underserved populations on community college campuses, all of which have children, per the following:
o 33% of CalWORKs students are Latino/Hispanic vs. 29.6% of all students
o 19.6% of CalWORKs students are African-American vs. 6.9% of all students
o 81% of CalWORKs students are female vs. 53% for all students
o 67% of CalWORKs students are 25-years of age or more vs. 46% for all students
o 84% of CalWORKs students are BOG Fee Waiver recipients vs. 27% of all students
Community college CalWORKs programs currently reflect a model for success the TFSS should seek to emulate and replicate, not dilute and terminate.
o From 2007 to 2010, Associate of Arts Degrees increased 132% (3,101 to 7,197).
o From 2007 to 2010, Associate of Science Degrees increased 161% (1,320 to 3,440).
o From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (60+ units) increased 191% (92 to 268).
o From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (30-<60 units) increased 127% (1,193 to 2,706).
o From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (18-<30 units) increased 177% (834 to 2,314).

Please attend the Southern or Northern California Town Halls on the TFSS Recommendations and let it be heard that Recommendation 8.1, as written, creates an effective bar to success for CalWORKs students and will result in a disproportionate harm to California and those seeking self-sufficiency at a time when we can least afford it.

POSITION GUIDANCE

The California Community College CalWORKs Association (CCCCA) strongly opposes the inclusion of the community college CalWORKs programs within the flexible spending category as defined within section 8.1, Consolidate Select Categorical Programs of the draft recommendation from the Task Force on Student Success (TFSS). (The bolded areas below are direct quotations from section 8.1 of TFSS, with specific responses from CCCCA which are framed around existing evidence of the success and need for a continuation of the existing model for community college CalWORKs.)

“While well intentioned, the cumulative effect of this budget practice has been to create 21 separate programs that local colleges must manage and coordinate as they attempt to focus on the ultimate objective of helping students achieve their educational goals.”

o The ultimate objective is to help students achieve their educational goals. All CalWORKs students, unlike their counterparts on community college campuses, have a county mandated time period within which to reach their goals while receiving specific and intensive services to meet their county and college compliance requirements. Only a fully independent program, such as existing community college CalWORKs programs, can ensure that these students continue to have access to the necessary support required to successfully achieve their educational goals in a timely fashion.
o The specific and unique services provided by community college CalWORKs include for service coordination with local counties and college student services units, academic counseling and
vocational planning, matriculation guidance, childcare services, job preparation and search, subsidized placement both on and off campus, instruction, document completion, data management, post- employment, and other services, many of which are used by California counties to meet their federal
required work participation rate (WPR).
o Without dedicated funding for a singular program, which Recommendation 8.1 would essentially eliminate, $8,000,000 dollars in federal TANF funding and $26,000,000 in state Maintenance of Effort dollars will be jeopardized at the college system level.
o Additionally, a $185,000,000 WPR penalty would likely face the state as colleges could no longer have the dedicated mechanisms needed to maintain the welfare-to-work partnerships now in existence with
local counties offices of human services/assistance that serve 40% of all California welfare-to-work participants.
o Inclusion of community college CalWORKs within Recommendation 8.1 will result in a catastrophic statewide impact on staff workloads at both county offices and community college student services units, while ensuring the most disadvantaged of students falling within the interstices of both systems due to the lack of singular support now provided by community college CalWORKs programs.

“Further, while each categorical program benefits the students being served by that particular program, every year hundreds of thousands of otherwise eligible students go without assistance due to capacity constraints. The community college system is in need of large-scale, systemic strategies to assist students in overcoming challenges on their way to attaining their educational objectives.”

o Community college CalWORKs is not a niche program, serving an exclusive population to the detriment of other populations on campus, as we have recently seen anyone can potentially be a

CalWORKs student. Unlike other college programs, the community college CalWORKs program has no capacity constraints, accepts any eligible county CalWORKs recipient who wishes to attain their educational objective and requires the requisite support needed to reach that goal, while promoting the equitable access and success outcomes of a of a disproportionately large percentage of underrepresented populations.
o Community college CalWORKs programs serve a disproportionate percentage of historically underserved populations on community college campuses, all of which have children under 18, per the following:
 33% of CalWORKs students are Latino/Hispanic vs. 29.6% of all students
 19.6% of CalWORKs students are African-American vs. 6.9% of all students
 81% of CalWORKs students are female vs. 53% for all students
 67% of CalWORKs students are 25-years of age or more vs. 46% for all students
 92% are limited English proficiency status students vs. 8% for all students
 84% of CalWORKs students are BOG Fee Waiver recipients vs. 27% of all students
 58% of CalWORKs students are Financial Aid Grant Awardees vs. 11% for all students
 9% of CalWORKs students are Financial Aid Loan Awardees vs. 2% for all students
o Further, the community college CalWORKs population has doubled in the past three years from 27,552 (2007-2008) to 40,671 (2009-2010) unduplicated, while at the same time funding for community college CalWORKs has seen a similar decrease over that same time period.
o This reflects a model of efficiency the TFSS should be seeking to emulate, not eliminate.

“One of the overarching themes of this report is to set state and local goals for student success and hold districts and colleges accountable for reaching those goals.”

o The CCCCA welcomes guidance on setting realistic goals for student success metrics that are both uniform and based on a stable multi-year funding formula.
o However, it is important to note that between 2007 and 2010, community college CalWORKs programs have produced remarkable student achievement data regarding student success.
 From 2007 to 2010, Associate of Arts Degrees increased 132% (3,101 to 7,197).
 From 2007 to 2010, Associate of Science Degrees increased 161% (1,320 to 3,440).
 From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (60+ units) increased 191% (92 to 268).
 From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (30-<60 units) increased 127% (1,193 to 2,706).
 From 2007 to 2010, Certificate (18-<30 units) increased 177% (834 to 2,314).
o With 17 unique, reported MIS data elements, strong partnerships with both on and off campus stakeholders, a track-record of goal completion and student success, community college CalWORKs should be looked at as a model for replication by the TFSS, not a program set for potential termination or dilution.
o Lastly, it should be noted that while the TFSS Recommendations seeks to increases the number of students who currently have valid student educational plans. 100% of community college CalWORKs students have a student educational plan as part of both the community college service and county compliance elements of CalWORKs.

“A second major theme is to align funding with these goals. Under this consolidation model, districts would have the ability to target their dollars in a coordinated and unified manner to promote student

success. Further, by consolidating categorical California Community Colleges Task Force on Student Success programs, local districts reduce the number of different program requirements to which they must adhere, thus being able to spend less time focusing on program compliance and more time focusing on overall institutional effectiveness.”

o Community college CalWORKs programs are amongst the most efficient, transparent units on campus due to the unique budget, program and data reporting/sharing requirements inherent to their unique genesis.
o Community college CalWORKs programs already target their current limited funding towards creating cultures of success through which the most economically disadvantaged students can find support, coordination and collaboration towards their unique educational goals with tangible results.
o The reason for this is few community college attendees share the numerous layers of federal, state,
local and college requirements inherent in a CalWORKs student’s status. Without a singular point of
contact and coordination, colleges should expect decreases in overall institutional effectiveness as CalWORKs students fan out across student services and instruction trying to find the right combination of support and coordination to meet their multi-layered college/county requirements.
o Let it be noted, there is no concrete evidence that decreasing program compliance measures will lead to increases in institutional effectiveness and/or the targeting of dollars to existing populations who are currently served by community college CalWORKs.
o Further, there is a long history in both the educational and private sectors that highlight the deterioration of access and outcomes for under-served populations when they are tied to funding by outcomes or to the deregulation of program requirements.

“In exchange for this added flexibility, districts will be subject to additional performance review based on specified student and institutional metrics. This proposal does not mandate that districts shift their categorical resources and districts may choose to maintain categorical programs consistent with past practice.”

o There is no guarantee that college districts that opt out of their existing categorical programs will continue to effectively serve populations that have shown progress and success (first generation to college, single parent, income disadvantaged, etc.) while in community college CalWORKs program per recent data and trends.
o Rather, in the current and continuing fiscal climate there is an increased likelihood that community college districts will shift “flexible” dollars towards increasing those populations most likely to already be successful in order to avoid additional public scrutiny regarding student outcomes.
o That this would come at a cost to the most disadvantaged students is neither good policy nor an effective use of the current dollars allocated to community college CalWORKs programs and the exponential benefit they provide California.
o This is why an increasing number of disparate California stakeholder organizations within the community college system and across the state believe that community college CalWORKs should not
be included in Recommendation 8.1, Consolidate Select Categorical Programs.

“However, districts wishing to restructure categorical programs in a more coordinated and unified manner will now have greater authority to do so. This additional flexibility will allow districts to craft student success strategies that best fit their students and institutions.”

o The net effect of including community college CalWORKs within Recommendation 8.1 is akin to the process of re-routing the first in many single streams that a potential student must successfully cross to reach their dual goals of educational success and self-sufficiency, while at the same time dismantling
or removing the bridge they are using to reach those goals.
o However, we all understand that nothing stands alone and all things are connected, so as other streams are re-routed into the larger river of “additional flexibility” with “diminished regulation” to craft success strategies that “best fit” some students, we will find our community college bereft of any of the ideals of the master plan on higher education, but with an increasingly homogenous college going student body.
o Instead of including community college CalWORKs within Recommendation 8.1, the TFSS would be better served by acknowledging the success community college CalWORKs has achieved and avoiding the negative outcomes its elimination will have on our state, communities, colleges and students.
o Lastly, we should never forget that as we continue to narrow opportunity by eliminating or diluting programs such as community college CalWORKs, we are placing our students on the far side of a river which they no longer have the means by which to cross.

• CCCCA sent a letter in June 2011 to the TFSS opposing block grant funding.

http://calworksassociation.org/news-information

• CCCCA President & President-Elect have been in communication with several community partners over the past several months to remind them that our CalWORKs students and their children should not be overlooked as the state moves toward economic recovery:
 (CWDA) California Welfare Directors Association’s Senior Policy Analyst
 (WCLP) Western Center on Law & Poverty’s Legislative Advocates
 (FACCC) Faculty Association of California Community Colleges’ Executive Director
 (CCL) Community College League’s Director of Fiscal Policy and Executive Director
 (CDSS) California Department of Social Services – Welfare to Work Division
 EOP&S Association President
 DSPS Association

• As a result of this relationship building:
 CWDA is writing a response in support of Community College CalWORKs programs and against categorical block funding of our program.
 WCLP has acknowledged the Community College CalWORKs contribution to Workforce Participation Rates across the state and will continue to advocate on behalf of our students.
 CDSS has expressed concern and will be working with CCCCA to thwart this proposal.

• CCCCA President attended the TFSS meeting on September 14, 2011 with the intention of having the CCCCA Board meeting added to the TFSS Fall calendar. http://californiacommunitycolleges.cccco.edu/PolicyInAction/
StudentSuccessTaskForce/TimelineMeetingSchedules.aspx

• The Statewide Student Senate President (also TFSS Member) is scheduled to attend the Region 3&4 meeting on October 14th.

• Linda Michalowski will present at the October 24th CCCCA Board meeting held at Cerritos College. 9-4 pm* Please RSVP to nrodriguez@Cerritos.edu, all are invited to attend.

• CCCCA has disseminated information and encouraged Regional participation in the two Town Hall events later this month:
 Southern California Town Hall – October 27, 2011 @ 10AM-12PM
LA Chamber of Commerce
Room: Bank of America A, B, & C
350 South Bixel St.
Los Angeles, CA 90017
 Northern California Town Hall – November 16, 2011 @ 10AM-12PM Oakland Elihu M. Harris Building
Room: Auditorium
1515 Clay St.
Oakland, CA 94612

• CCCCA has recently published another edition of Portraits of Success which will be available shortly as an advocacy and educational tool locally and at the State level. Thank you to Kathy Valcarcel at Mt. San Jacinto College for coordinating this valuable effort.

• CCCCA has begun planning the 3rd Annual Training Institute which will focus on advocacy training and student success to help our programs move from defense to offense.

A final note, I realize we are all fatigued from the continuous barrage against our students and our programs. This is the time to stand with our sister categorical and CalWORKs programs across the state. We are a strong Association and can be victorious for our students and their children.

Please feel free to contact me with your ideas, and concerns. I am extremely proud of what you do every day for our students, and vow to stand with you.

Susan L. Sweeney
President California Community College CalWORKs Association
408-88-4813

Dear Dr. MacDougall:

This letter is to inform you that the California Community Colleges CalWORKs Association (www.calworksassociation.org), OPPOSES any proposal to block grant categorical funding. Our position is similar to other student services organizations in that such a proposal would further dilute services offered to those students who are most educationally disadvantaged thus ultimately harming students.

Block grant funding does not ensure protection of services to our most vulnerable students. Standards of reporting and measurements of student success would negatively impact many of our CalWORKs students whose academic life is less flexible than most because they are already managing poverty, parenting, and limited job skills.

Since 2009-2010, CalWORKs funding at community colleges has been reduced nearly 40%, at the same time as the population continues to increase without any imposed restrictions on the numbers of students the program is able to serve.

Flexibility in funding would lead to additional reductions to programs that service the most disadvantaged families and redirecting funds to services for those deemed “college ready”. For CalWORKs students, the result has a negative generational impact as these student’s children continue to see their parents struggle to reach self sufficiency.
It is the mission of the California Community Colleges CalWORKs Association to provide advocacy and leadership to advance CalWORKs students’ success and self-sufficiency through educational excellence and workforce training.
Our students and their children count on your support as we continue to support student success.
Sincerely,

Susan L. Sweeney
President California Community College CalWORKs Association