Written by Amanda Angulo
Remedial classes are forcing community college students to pay more for school and stay enrolled longer.
In 2017, Assembly Bill 705, signed by Democratic former Gov. Jerry Brown, created more remedial classes, forcing students to take multiple tiers of the same subject in order to graduate with an Associate’s degree. The bill was intended to phase out remedial courses at community colleges, but that’s not how it has played out.
Instead, it has allowed colleges to use their own discretion whether to facilitate these remedial courses or not.
A graduate from City College of San Francisco and San Francisco State, Veronica Gonzalez, shared her experience with remedial courses and how it affected her life during her time in college.
In 2008, as she first enrolled in community college, she had to start three tiers below the level that students needed to be at in order to transfer into a University of California or California State University.
After 4 long years, she was able to graduate with an Associate’s degree. As a mother raising two children and taking care of her ill mother, “there were a lot of things that [she] missed out on” due to all the additional courses she had to complete.
She then transferred to a California State University and graduated with her Bachelor’s degree after two additional years.
Democrats have a supermajority of control over the state legislature and therefore, over the education system here in California. They constantly talk about making college more affordable and practical, but then implement policies like this. Therefore, Democrats need to take responsibility for making students take costly, unnecessary courses and do something to fix it.
Photo via San Diego Community College District
