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Ballot Initiative Offers Online Route into UC

Byuclafaculty

With a formal title and a favorable fiscal analysis in hand, backers of an initiative to broaden access to online college preparatory classes will begin gathering signatures today to qualify for the November ballot.
The proposed initiative would give students the right to go elsewhere for a course required for admission to a UC or CSU campus if their school doesn’t offer it. While they could drive to a nearby district, they also could take the course online. It would establish a California Diploma, which would be awarded when a student completed the 15 required courses, known as A-G…

(The sponsoring) group has oral commitments for $500,000 of the $2 million needed to collect 504,000 verified voter signatures, (a spokesperson) said. Donors will start identifying themselves in coming weeks; many of the backers are expected to be from Silicon Valley…
Full story at http://toped.svefoundation.org/2012/01/04/next-step-for-online-ed-initiative/
The official summary of the initiative reads:
Online K-12 Education. College Preparatory Courses. Initiative Statute.

Summary Date: 01/03/12 | Circulation Deadline: 06/01/12 | Signatures Required: 504,760

Proponent: Phillip D. Kohn (714) 641-3415

Authorizes school districts, county offices of education, and charter schools to claim average daily attendance funding for student participation in approved online courses. Authorizes school districts to contract with public and private providers to deliver online courses taught by credentialed teachers. Allows students to take online courses offered by any school district, regardless of student’s residence. Provides students access to courses required for admission to state universities, and establishes the California Diploma, which demonstrates completion of courses required for University of California and California State University admission. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: In the long term, local school district savings potentially in the hundreds of millions of dollars annually if schools experience efficiencies and widespread participation in the use of online courses. These savings would be offset in small part by administrative costs to implement the measure, including local costs for developing online curriculum, contracting with online providers, and ensuring students access to online courses as well as state costs for changing the existing school payment system and issuing California Diplomas to qualifying students.

Initiative at http://ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments/initiatives/pdfs/i1005_11-0062_(student_rights).pdf

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