The Santa Rosa Junior College Board of Trustees discussed the Gateway to College Program and Gov. Brown’s proposed budget Feb. 12.
Gateway to College is a dual-enrollment scholarship program allowing students to work toward their high school diploma while earning college credits at SRJC. The program will begin this fall for students 16 to 21 years of age who were unable to earn or have fallen behind in earning their high school diploma.
Petaluma Campus Dean of Student Services Lauralyn Larsen is the Gateway to College supervising administrator. She said the program is free to qualifying students and serves as a “true second chance.”
After the meeting, SRJC President Dr. Frank Chong said the Petaluma Campus will serve as the dedicated space for the Gateway to College program and the program is getting support from local school districts.
“I had this program in Laney College when I was the president there, and then when I arrived here at the Santa Rosa Junior College I thought it would be a good prospect to apply for it. We were lucky to get it,” Chong said.
Doug Roberts, vice president of business services at the SRJC, updated the board of trustees on Gov. Brown’s budget.
“Probably one of the biggest things that is being proposed by the governor is a change in our apportionment funding,” Roberts said.
According to Gov. Brown’s budget, community colleges currently receive state funding for the number of students enrolled after 20 percent of the term is over. According to the proposal, if students withdraw from the school after that time, the state is “unnecessarily paying community colleges for students who are no longer in class.” Gov. Brown proposes funding schools by the number of students who have completed the term.
Roberts also discussed the governor’s plan to require students to fill out a Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to receive a Board of Governors (BOG) Fee Waiver Application and his plan to make money available to fund clean energy efficiency projects and the realignment of adult education from K-12 districts to community colleges.
The board of trustees approved the discontinuance of various art certificates including broad-based training, ceramics and printmaking. Mary Kay Rudolph vice president of academic affairs, said that majors and certificate programs undergo review in a six-year cycle under policy and procedures sections 3.6 and 3.6P.
According to Rudolph, the certificates did not align with transfer majors or meet student needs. “We want to concentrate on certificates and majors for the students to graduate, complete and get jobs,” she said.
