(a) The college shall be developed and guided by principles and procedures established by the chancellor’s office, as referenced in Section 75001.

(b) (1) The college shall seek accreditation and meet requirements for students to become eligible for federal and state financial aid.

(A) The college shall provide the Department of Finance and the Legislature with all of the following:

(i) An accreditation plan that, at a minimum, identifies an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education from which the college will seek accreditation, and outlines the process by which the college will achieve accreditation candidacy or preaccreditation by April 1, 2022, and full accreditation by April 1, 2025. This plan shall be provided on or before April 1, 2021.

(ii) Evidence of having achieved accreditation candidacy or preaccreditation from an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education on or before April 1, 2022.

(iii) Evidence of having obtained full accreditation from an accrediting agency recognized by the United States Department of Education on or before April 1, 2025.

(2) While the college is seeking accreditation, the Workforce Development Board and the Employment Development Department shall determine whether the programs offered by the online college have job market value to California industries by utilizing existing programmatic review processes.

(3) The college shall explore a process for allowing students to retroactively obtain credit units upon demonstrated mastery of competencies for programs completed while the college was seeking accreditation. It is the intent of the Legislature that the college reimburse students for any fees charged if the college fails to meet accreditation standards.

(4) The college shall inform potential and enrolled students regarding the implications of taking courses prior to accreditation and how the college will help students rectify this issue in the future.

(c) In meeting the requirements of paragraph (4) of subdivision (b) of Section 75003, the California Online Community College shall comply with collective bargaining pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (f) of Section 70901. It is the intent of the Legislature that faculty recruitment efforts for the college will focus on California residents who meet the minimum qualifications to be employed at a California community college, or individuals with experience within the California Community Colleges system.

(d) The college shall be subject to the same competitive bidding and state contracting requirements that apply to California community college districts.

(e) Curricular issues, such as establishment of enrollment caps for courses, shall be subject to the same approval processes that apply to California community college districts. The curriculum developed by the California Online Community College and its faculty shall have the same protections granted to all curriculum developed by other California Community Colleges.

(f) It is the intent of the Legislature that any general-purpose apportionment apportioned to the college be subject to the regulatory frameworks of shared governance pursuant to paragraph (7) of subdivision (b) of Section 70902 and the Full-Time Faculty Obligation Number established in Section 51025 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations.

(Added by Stats. 2018, Ch. 33, Sec. 18. (AB 1809) Effective June 27, 2018.)