CA higher-ed fans, Assembly higher-ed committee will now debate and vote on 26 bills. If anything passes today, a minimum of three other votes lie ahead (two floor votes and the senate's ed committee), and possibly two more approp committee votes. Dive in! ahed.assembly.ca.gov/legislativebil… To watch the fun, view here: assembly.ca.gov/media/437-video

BREAKING: @GavinNewsom vetoed #AB1456, arguably the most significant expansion of state financial aid in a generation and one that would have made about 150,000 more students, including 110,000 at community colleges, eligible for the Cal Grant. Context: calmatters.org/explainers/cal… Note the timing of this veto: It landed in reporters’ inboxes Friday evening while much of the state is glued to the first playoff battle between the archrivals L.A. Dodgers and S.F. Giants. So many advocates wanted this bill passed. It sailed through the Legislature.

I'm tuning into this event with @AsmMarcBerman and the heads of the four segments of higher-ed in CA (CCC, CSU, UC and the nonprofit privates). Berman says more than 850 people signed up for this virtual meeting. a24.asmdc.org/event/20210113… The focus is on the CA transfer process. Berman: "The transfer process is still unnecessarily complex, confusing and difficult for the vast majority of students to navigate."

So this is interesting: According to @UofCalifornia Regent board docs, several UC campuses, including @UCLA and @ucdavis, are projected to increase their campus policing budgets for this new school year. Source: regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/regmeet/july20… The campus police forces oversee a range of staff, from 270 officers, 150 higher ranking personnel, and other parking, security and dispatch staff.

I will now live-tweet @calstate's full meeting of the Board of Trustees. Up until now, you've been getting feeds from me of what committees have discussed or voted on. The full board will decide the Chancellor's proposal for an ethnic studies and social justice grad requirement. During her first Chair report, Trustee Kimbell said, "I came across a quote by Lenin, Vladimir not john lennon, but seemed particularly apt. He said, there are decades when nothing happens and weeks when decades happen." Fair.

NEW: a @calstate top official says that there are no plans in the 2020-21 year to recommend tuition increases. Given Covid's impact on family finances and anticipation economy will rebound, "the option of increasing tuition is not an appropriate strategy today," Steve Relyea said Relyea: "If the state's economy becomes more dire later this year, it may be necessary to revisit this and other options, but as of today and assuming current conditions and assumptions persist, we have no plans to recommend increasing tuition during the 2020-2021 fiscal year."

The CSU measure to establish an ethnic studies and diversity graduation requirement begins its first test today. The measure is before a committee. If it passes, it moves to the whole Board of Trustees tomorrow. Ethnic studies backers pan the CSU plan. calmatters.org/education/2020… "Much has changed since we last met on May 12 just two weeks after our last board meeting we collectively held our breath as we watched the shocking video of the brutal murder of George Floyd." -- Loren J. Blanchard, executive vice chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs.

BREAKING: @calstate's leader Tim White says that the 23-campus system will be largely virtual in Fall 2020. Some exceptions will be made for hands-on courses, but he cites analysis of forthcoming waves of covid-19 infection that makes in-person learning too dangerous. White: We should train to make virtual learning the standard in fall. To students: this is not time to pause or decline opportunity to attend a CSU. “This is the moment to persist” to earn a degree that offers economic benefits for life.

NEW: California’s student financial aid agency is proposing a massive expansion of state grants for college students. If enacted, more than 300,000 students currently ineligible would be able to receive additional aid for community colleges. 1/x (many -- I'm going deep on this) The agency, @castudentaid (CSAC), also proposes more than tripling the maximum award students could receive, from around $1,600 to $6,000. The recommendations, which will be discussed tomorrow at a public hearing, continue the state’s deep look at its financial aid programs 2/x