SACRAMENTO, Calif. – On June 30, 2020, Governor Newsom signed the 2020 - 21 Budget Act. While this is not the budget students had hoped for, we are thankful of the Legislature and the Governor’s efforts to support community colleges. Most notably, we are pleased that the final budget provides $120 million to support students’ basic needs, specifically mental health, housing, food insecurities, and includes investments to create online tools to support our students. These funds will be crucial to reducing the devastating impact to our students caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We know that, in times of economic crisis, enrollment at community colleges always rises as funding falls. This effect is becoming even more pronounced as my peers choose community colleges over UCs and CSUs because of the online format. What results is an overburdened system serving the least served while being historically underfunded. The 2020-2021 budget is hopefully the first of many more investments accompanying the realization that the California Community Colleges system, when adequately funded, is an engine of economic recovery during times of recession,” Vice President of Legislative Affairs Andrew Nickens.
The California Community Colleges is the largest system of higher education in the nation, composed of 73 districts and 115 colleges serving 2.1 million students per year. The Student Senate for California Community College works to promote and safeguard access for current and future students to California public higher education in accordance with the Master Plan for Higher Education through system participatory governance, legislative and policy advocacy, and regional support and development and is the official voice of California community college students statewide.
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