Dive Brief:
- Community colleges in California can offer four-year degrees starting next year, under legislation passed by state lawmakers Thursday.
- Advocates say the state needed the legislation to make bachelor degrees more available in technical fields that are in great demand, especially when those degrees aren’t readily available at public four-year schools.
- Only one program per college will be eligible, and up to 15 community colleges will offer the degrees initially, the San Jose Mercury News reported.
Dive Insight:
If Gov. Jerry Brown signs the bill, California would become the 22nd state allowing community colleges to offer four-year degrees. A state senator sponsoring the bill said it was needed to help close a workforce education gap, with California needing 1 million more adults with four-year degrees by 2025. The community colleges that would offer bachelor degrees have not been named.