AB 2206: Teacher credentialing: community college baccalaureate degrees.

Existing law requires the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to establish standards for the issuance and renewal of credentials, certificates, and permits. Existing law prescribes specific minimum requirements a candidate must satisfy to be issued a teaching credential, certificate, or permit, including, among other requirements, possession of a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution of higher education, except as provided. Existing law authorizes the commission to approve a regionally accredited institution of higher education to recommend to the commission the issuance of credentials to persons who have successfully completed a teacher education program of the institution if the program meets the standards approved by the commission. Existing law defines a regionally accredited institution of higher education for these purposes to include, among other institutions, a community or junior college that confers baccalaureate degrees and is regionally accredited by specified accrediting entities, as provided. This bill would delete a community or junior college that confers baccalaureate degrees and is regionally accredited by specified accrediting entities from the definition of "regionally accredited." The bill would instead require a baccalaureate degree from an accredited community or junior college to include specific coursework in basic reading, writing, and mathematics skills in the English language, as provided, in order for that baccalaureate degree to satisfy the baccalaureate degree requirement for a teaching credential, certificate, or permit. The bill would prohibit a California community college and a California community college district from offering an integrated program of professional preparation that would enable a candidate for a teaching credential to engage in professional preparation concurrently with subject matter preparation, while completing a baccalaureate degree. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Sections 44252, 44259, and 44325 of the Education Code proposed by SB 1443 to be operative only if this bill and SB 1443 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.