WHEREAS, California community colleges enroll approximately 2,100,000 students statewide[1], while documented counselor to student ratios range from 1:800 to approximately 1:1,800 [2], depending on district staffing levels and fiscal constraints, resulting in limited appointment access for educational planning, transfer preparation, and long-term student guidance;
WHEREAS, Studies conducted by the Community College Research Center identify persistence from term to term and successful transfer outcomes when students receive recurring academic counseling support, particularly during the first three academic terms[3];
WHEREAS, California Education Code 84362 (“The 50 Percent Law”) [4] restricts district expenditures by requiring that no less than 50 percent of a district’s general fund be allocated to “salaries of classroom instructors,” yet this definition does not include academic counselors, despite counselors holding faculty status under California Code of Regulations, Title 5 53410 (“Counseling and Advising Requirements”) and serving a mandated educational function defined in California Code of Regulations, Title 5 51018 (“Counseling Programs”) [5]; and
WHEREAS, This exclusion results in constrained hiring of full-time academic counselors because districts face a disadvantage when allocating funds toward non-instructional faculty whose salaries cannot be counted toward the 50 percent threshold, thereby limiting counselor availability and contributing to
extended appointment wait times ranging from 10 days to over 6 weeks at multiple colleges; Now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the Student Senate for California Community Colleges support the expansion of counselor-led group academic counseling as an evidence-based practice, based on U.S. Department of Education research showing that structured group counseling is as effective as one-on-one
counseling in supporting academic plan completion while increasing student access amid limited counseling capacity [6];
RESOLVED, That the Student Senate for California Community Colleges request that the California Legislature and the Board of Governors examine the feasibility of a statewide counselor to student ratio target of 1:370, referencing national benchmarks established by the The Academic Senate of Community Colleges and published research correlating lower ratios with higher completion outcomes [7];
RESOLVED, That the Student Senate for California Community Colleges advocate for increased budgets through categorical programs such as Guided Pathways, Student Equity and Achievement, and Strong Workforce to enable colleges to fund permanent, full-time academic counselor positions that provide educational planning, transfer advisement, degree audits, and case management based counseling interventions; and
RESOLVED, That the Student Senate for California Community Colleges request that each district publish its counselor staffing ratios, student appointment availability intervals, and counselor caseload distribution on a publicly accessible platform, including annual updates aligned with the Institutional Effectiveness Partnership Initiative reporting cycle [8].
Citations:
[1]https://www.cccco.edu/About-Us/Key-Facts [2]https://www.asccc.org/sites/default/files/IV.%20I.%20%281%29%20Transfer… pdate%20v2.pdf?utm_source
[3]https://ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/easyblog/cc-program-choice-study.html [4]California Education Code §84362 (The 50 Percent Law)
California Code of Regulations, Title 5 §51018 – Counseling and Advising Requirements
https://ies.ed.gov/rel-west/2025/01/impact-study-0
https://www.asccc.org/sites/default/files/publications/ConsultationCoun… [8]https://www.cccco.edu/About-Us/Chancellors-Office/Divisions/Institution… titutional-Effectiveness-Partnership-Initiative