This June, the College For All (C4A) coalition traveled up to Sacramento for our annual Advocacy Day trip. This year was especially important as the College For All Coalition is a co-sponsor of AB 1780 (Ting) Prohibiting Legacy Admission. Additionally, we had two new partner coalitions join us, the Northern California College Promise Coalition (NCCPC) and Community Engagement for College Success Network (CECSN) effectively expanding our network and ability to uplift diverse student and community stories
Understanding 2024 was a challenging budget year for the state, the coalition agreed on a theme that would focus on one of our values: EQUITY. This year’s theme was, “It’s Time for Equity” honoring C4A’s long history of advocating for educational equity and co-sponsorship of AB 1780 (Ting), which by prohibiting the practice of legacy admissions at private higher education institutions would allow more equitable access in higher education for all students regardless of their parents’ and family’s background.
This year’s C4A’s Advocacy Day trip had over 50 attendees from 15 different organizations which participated in 60 meetings with legislators or their staffers. Our bill priorities included: AB 2458 (Berman) which seeks to create more support and aid for student parents, AB 2057 (Berman) which seeks to improve the college transfers process and together, SB 1244 (Newman) and AB 359 (Holden) emphasize pathways to higher education classes while in high school to encourage more enrollment at community colleges and universities upon graduation, and our very own AB 1780 (Ting) which prohibits legacy admissions.
For many of our attendees, this was their first time visiting Sacramento and meeting with legislators. High school and college students from across Los Angeles county and the Bay Area came together to encourage “Yes” votes from legislators or their staff on the various bill priorities. The attendees were also able to experience first hand how powerful their presence and stories are in policymaking..
We are thankful for all the support and partnerships that helped our 2024 Advocacy Day be a success and we look forward to continuing to advocate for education equity and access to pathways into higher education for all students in California.
To follow AB1780’s bill journey and to keep up with our advocacy work, follow us and check out our advocacy page.
