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Six new bachelor’s degrees programs have been approved at campuses within the California Community Colleges system, according to a news release from the system’s chancellor’s office. The system now offers, or will soon offer, 39 bachelor’s degree programs in total.
The new additions include paramedicine at College of the Siskiyous, respiratory care at Antelope Valley College, paralegal studies at Santa Ana College, respiratory care therapy at Victor Valley College and dental hygiene at Cypress College and Oxnard College.
Aisha Lowe, executive vice chancellor for the equitable student learning, experience and impact office, said in the release that these kinds of community college baccalaureate programs “are broadening the reach of higher education and skill development to a greater number of students by offering affordable and quality opportunities close to home.”
The release emphasized that all of the system’s bachelor’s degree programs “are exclusive to the system and do not duplicate degrees offered at California State University or University of California campuses,” a concern that has waylaid some of these programs in the past.
California community colleges began offering four-year degrees as part of a pilot program launched in 2014 and made permanent under legislation signed by Governor Gavin Newsom in 2021. The law allows community colleges to offer up to 30 new bachelor’s degree programs per year, provided representatives of the state’s university systems review program proposals to ensure they don't duplicate existing university programs.
