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RESOLUTION AFFIRMING STOCKTON’S COMMITMENT TO THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A CSU CAMPUS IN STOCKTON
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RECOMMENDATION
A resolution affirming the City’s commitment to the establishment of a CSU campus in Stockton is presented for consideration per Council’s request.
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Summary
One of the State Legislative Priorities adopted by the Council in 2017 and readopted in 2018 was the promotion of legislation and funding allocations that enhance educational outcomes in Stockton, including that the City proactively engage in efforts that bring a CSU Campus to Stockton. The establishment of a CSU Stockton would help meet local needs driven by increased college readiness figures and population growth. It would also support engineering needs in the Northern California Megaregion and capacity needs across the CSU system. Finally, a CSU Stockton would also provide significant economic benefits, including the creation of thousands of jobs both during and after its construction.
Council requested consideration of a resolution affirming its commitment to a CSU Stockton to facilitate its development and complement legislative efforts toward its establishment. The attached resolution was drafted for Council’s consideration.
DISCUSSION
Background
One of the State Legislative Priorities adopted by the Council in 2017 and readopted in 2018 was the promotion of legislation and funding allocations that enhance educational outcomes in Stockton, including that the City proactively engage in efforts that bring a CSU Campus to Stockton.
The Coalition for a CSU Stockton, which formed in 2015 to organize support for the creation of a CSU Stockton, commissioned an impact study on CSU Stockton. On April 25, 2017, the University of the Pacific and Assemblymember Susan Talamantes Eggman, presented a CSU Stockton Impact Assessment report to the City Council.
That report showed that Stockton-Lodi Metropolitan Service Area (San Joaquin County) is the largest metro area in California and the second largest metropolitan area in the United States without a public college or university. The report also found that the City of Stockton is nearly three times farther from a CSU or UC than any of California’s other large cities and that San Joaquin County had one of the fastest growing populations in California.
Moreover, the report found college readiness in San Joaquin County has been steadily increasing:
• The adult population with at least a high school education rose from 62.6% in 1980 to 78.1% in 2015
• The high school graduation rate increased from 70.8% in 2009 to 82.3% in 2014.
Furthermore, San Joaquin County’s residents have shown an increasing propensity to enroll in the CSU system, but enrollment is still limited by access:
• From 2006 to 2015, county residents enrolled in a CSU increased more than 50% from around 4,800 in 2000 to 7,300 in 2015.
• Despite overall growth in in CSU enrollment, San Joaquin County enrollment in CSU-Stanislaus has declined 15% over the past decade and CSU-Stanislaus enrolls fewer than 20% of San Joaquin County’s CSU students.
It also illustrated that a CSU Stockton could help meet regional and statewide needs:
• In recent years, permanent capacity across the CSU-System has been exceeded by up to 80,000 full time equivalent students.
• Inland investments in the CSU-System were identified in a 2016 Bay Area Council Economic Institute Report as the top recommendation for enhancing economic prosperity in the Northern California Megaregion.
• Seventeen of the twenty-three CSU campuses in 2017-18 had some form of enhanced admissions criteria because of excess enrollment demand.
• The lack of engineering programs at CSU-Stanislaus and limited engineering programs at CSU-East Bay, when combined with regional workforce needs and increased Silicon Valley integration, supports a Polytechnic focus for a future CSU-Stockton.
Finally, the report found that construction of a CSU-Stockton would directly equate to approximately 2,500 jobs during construction and approximately 2,000 jobs ongoing after opening of the campus.
Present Situation
On February 16, 2018, Assemblymembers Susan Talamantes Eggman, Grayson, and Weber co-authored and introduced AB 2771 - the Higher Education Construction Bond Act of 2018. This $7 billion university bond would address billions of dollars in capital needs and long-postponed maintenance at University of California and California State campuses, as well as provide for the construction of new campuses. The bill has garnered bipartisan approval and is now in the State Senate.
A resolution affirming the City of Stockton’s commitment to a CSU Stockton would help complement these legislative efforts and place Stockton in the best position to compete for one of three possible campuses.
FINANCIAL SUMMARY
There are no immediate financial impacts associated with approving this resolution.