Moorpark College's two approved bachelor's degree programs are safe under a new state law, but the college's ability to add more could be sharply limited starting in 2028.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 2694 and Senate Bill 960 in September, creating a five-tier system that will cap how many bachelor's degrees each community college district can offer. The caps range from two programs for the lowest-performing districts to 12 for the highest, based on graduation and transfer rates. The laws take effect Jan. 1, 2028.
The California Community Colleges chancellor's office has not yet determined which tier the Ventura County Community College District (VCCCD) will fall into. Chris Ferguson, the system's executive vice chancellor of finance and strategic initiatives, told EdSource the analysis "should be completed in the coming months."
That uncertainty matters locally. VCCCD has four approved bachelor's degrees across its three campuses: biomanufacturing and cyberdefense at Moorpark College, dental hygiene at Oxnard College and automotive career education at Ventura College. Programs approved before the Jan. 1, 2028, cutoff will not count toward the new caps, according to EdSource.
But any future programs will. If VCCCD lands in Tier 3, for example, the district would be capped at six new degrees. Tier 4 would allow only four.
John Forbes, Moorpark College's vice president of academic affairs, voiced frustration with the legislative process in an interview with The Chronicle of Higher Education. "It's been a bit frustrating, and makes you go, 'How is any of this relevant to our students?'" Forbes said.
Forbes watched the first 13 graduates of Moorpark's biomanufacturing degree walk across the stage, with several entering careers at biotechnology companies and labs, the Chronicle reported. The college's cyberdefense program, initially targeted for fall 2026, is now expected to launch in 2027. As we reported Oct. 15, Moorpark College and CSU Channel Islands announced complementary cybersecurity degrees for that year.
Statewide, community colleges are nearly unanimously opposed to the tiered system, even as they support a separate provision in the law allowing them to duplicate programs offered by California State University campuses.
Gregory Smith, chancellor of the San Diego Community College District, conducted his own preliminary tier analysis. It placed nine districts in Tier 1, 25 in Tier 2, 28 in Tier 3 (including San Diego), 10 in Tier 4 and none in Tier 5. Smith called his estimate an "approximation" and acknowledged it might not match the official results.
A separate analysis by the office of state Sen. Christopher Cabaldon, the author of SB 960, produced different numbers: 12 districts in Tier 1, 22 in Tier 2, 29 in Tier 3, eight in Tier 4 and one in Tier 5. Cabaldon's analysis did not identify which specific districts would land in each tier.
Larry Galizio, president of the Community College League of California, told EdSource the conflicting estimates "illustrates the problem" with the tiered system. In a September statement opposing the legislation before Newsom signed it, the league said the tier system imposes restrictive caps and ranks districts competitively rather than evaluating programs on merit, regional demand and workforce need.
VCCCD leaders, including Moorpark College President Julius Sokenu, are scheduled to discuss bachelor's degree expansion and other topics at a State of the District event Monday, Oct. 19, at 3:30 p.m. at the Camarillo Public Library.
