(a) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this section to foster the creation, implementation, and phase-in of a comprehensive community college accountability system that describes the performance of community colleges in meeting the postsecondary educational needs of students. This educational and fiscal accountability system shall provide performance data on students, programs, and institutions.

It is further the intent of the Legislature that this accountability system assist all participants in the community college system, including students, faculty, staff, administrators, local governing boards, the chancellor, the state board of governors, the public, and other interested constituencies, in identifying the educational and fiscal strengths and weaknesses of colleges in order to improve educational quality in community colleges.

(b) The board of governors shall develop and implement a comprehensive community college educational and fiscal accountability system. In developing and implementing this system, the board of governors shall solicit consultation from institutional and organizational representatives of the California Community Colleges, including statewide faculty and staff organizations. At a minimum, the system shall do all of the following:

(1) Be consistent with the Legislature’s intent as expressed in this act, Chapter 136 of the Statutes of 1987, and Chapter 1465 of the Statutes of 1986.

(2) Draw from, and build upon, the system proposed in the report entitled “AB 3409 Community College Accountability Report,” prepared pursuant to Chapter 1465 of the Statutes of 1986.

(3) Be designed to promote student success in community colleges.

(4) Define and measure, quantitatively and qualitatively, accountability information, including all of the following:

(A) Student access to community colleges.

(B) The extent to which the community college student body reflects proportionately the adult population of the state.

(C) Student transfer rates and programs.

(D) Academic standards and student achievement.

(E) Student goal satisfaction and success in courses and programs.

(F) Completion rates of courses and programs.

(G) Occupational preparation relative to state and local work force needs and for entry-level employment, occupational advancement, and career changes of students.

(H) Adequacy of basic skills and English as a second language courses and instruction in preparing students to succeed in collegiate level work.

(I) Adequacy of, and student satisfaction with, student services.

(J) The extent to which the community college work force reflects proportionately the adult population of the state.

(K) Fiscal conditions of community college districts.

(5) Be designed to streamline the use of multiple performance measures from appropriate sources of data, including, but not limited to, matriculation evaluations, categorical program evaluations, the community college management information system, and other existing data collection and evaluation systems.

(6) Provide feedback to individual colleges in order to improve access to community colleges, student performance, and educational programs where needed.

(7) Produce a published report of community college accountability.

(c) The Legislature finds and declares that successful implementation of a comprehensive educational and fiscal accountability system is, in part, dependent upon an adequate data collection and reporting system. The accountability system developed and implemented pursuant to this section shall be phased in, to the extent necessary, with the funding and local implementation of the community college management information system.

(Amended by Stats. 1995, Ch. 758, Sec. 80. Effective January 1, 1996.)