(a) The California Student Opportunity and Access Program is administered by the commission.

(b) (1) The commission may apportion funds on a progress payment schedule for the support of projects designed to increase the accessibility of postsecondary educational opportunities and financial aid for pupils from underserved communities who meet one or more of the following criteria:

(A) Pupils who are from low-income families.

(B) Pupils who would be the first in their families to attend a postsecondary educational institution.

(C) Pupils who are from schools or geographic regions with documented low postsecondary education eligibility or participation rates.

(D) Pupils who are homeless youth and former homeless youth, as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 66025.9, or who are at risk of becoming homeless.

(E) Pupils who are from mixed immigration status households or who themselves are immigrants.

(F) Pupils who are current or former foster youth. As used in this paragraph, “current or former foster youth” means a person whose dependency was established or continued by the court on or after the date on which the person reached 13 years of age.

(G) Pupils who identify as being LGBTQ+.

(H) Pupils who have a disability.

(I) Pupils who are part of a historically underserved minority group.

(2) The commission shall allocate up to 2 percent of funding appropriated for this program for program administration, data collection, and evaluation. Any funds allocated for these purposes are not subject to the match funding requirements of this article.

(c) These projects shall primarily do all of the following:

(1) Increase the availability of information for these pupils on the existence of postsecondary education, the total cost of attending a postsecondary educational institution, and financing options, including grants, scholarships, student loans, and work opportunities.

(2) Increase the number of pupils submitting completed financial aid applications, including the FAFSA or the CADAA, and assist pupils as needed with the financial aid verification process.

(3) Hire undergraduate or graduate students to serve as college success coaches to actively mentor pupils, encourage a college-going culture, help pupils plan for their postsecondary education, and help pupils complete a FAFSA or a CADAA for financial aid consideration. Projects should aim to hire college success coaches with similar backgrounds as pupils described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b).

(d) Projects may assist community college students in transferring to four-year postsecondary educational institutions, and students in their first year at four-year postsecondary educational institutions, to the extent that project resources are available.

(e) Projects may provide assistance to middle school pupils described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) and their parents or guardians by implementing outreach efforts designed to inform them of the future availability of and access to postsecondary education financial assistance as a means of motivating pupils to stay in school and complete college preparatory courses.

(f) Projects shall provide assistance to high school pupils described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) and their parents or guardians by providing information on college preparation and on understanding the total cost of attending a postsecondary educational institution, and by assisting with completion of financial aid applications. Projects are encouraged to leverage commission outreach efforts, such as Cash for College workshops, to assist their students with completing the FAFSA or the CADAA.

(g) Projects shall promote the value of career technical education, available career programs in public schools and postsecondary segments with sequenced courses beginning in high school and continuing into postsecondary education, and the resulting career opportunities.

(h) Each project shall establish or strengthen regional collaborative relationships and partnerships. Each project shall be proposed and operated through a consortium that involves at least one secondary school district office, at least one four-year college or university, at least one community college, and at least one of the following agencies:

(1) A nonprofit educational, counseling, or community agency.

(2) A private vocational or technical school accredited by a national, state, or regional accrediting association recognized by the United States Department of Education.

(i) (1) The commission, in awarding initial project grants, shall give priority to the following proposals:

(A) Proposals developed by more than three eligible agencies.

(B) Proposals in counties in which a four-year public postsecondary educational institution is not headquartered.

(2) Projects shall be located throughout the state in order to provide access to program services in rural, urban, and suburban areas.

(j) The governing board of each project, composed of at least one representative from each entity in the consortium, shall establish management policy, approve and provide direction to the project director, set priorities for budgetary decisions that reflect the specific needs of the project, and assume responsibility for maintaining the required level of matching funds, including solicitations from the private sector and corporate sources.

(k) Before receiving a project grant, each consortium shall conduct a planning process and submit a comprehensive project proposal to include, but not be limited to, the following information:

(1) The agencies participating in the project.

(2) The pupils to be served by the project.

(3) The ways in which the project will reduce duplication and related costs.

(4) The methods for assessing the project’s impact.

(l) Each project shall include the direct involvement of secondary school staff in the daily operations of the project, with preference in funding to those projects that effectively integrate the objectives of Cal-SOAP with those of the school district in providing services that are essential to preparing pupils for postsecondary education.

(m) (1) Each project shall maintain a comprehensive pupil data system on pupils receiving services through the program in middle and high school within the participating districts. This information shall be maintained in a manner consistent with the law relating to pupil records. For purposes of assessing financial aid completion and evaluating program effectiveness, the commission shall require each project to submit on a periodic basis to the commission or a commission grantee designee certain outreach metrics for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of the program and the project. The following outreach metrics shall be reported:

(A) Individual student level data, including specification of each target population described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) that includes the student, for the following:

(i) High school graduates not described in clause (ii) or (iii) who were eligible for admission to a public postsecondary educational institution.

(ii) Students not described in clause (iii) who applied for admission at a public postsecondary educational institution.

(iii) Students who enrolled at a public postsecondary educational institution.

(B) Disaggregated data based on target populations described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) for the following:

(i) Students that received Cal-SOAP services.

(ii) Pupils that completed the FAFSA.

(iii) Pupils that completed the CADAA.

(2) For the purposes and facilitation of the evaluation of the programs and the projects funded pursuant to this article, project grantees, local educational agencies, the department, the University of California, the California State University, the California Community Colleges, and the commission may share student data, including personally identifiable information, with one another, including, but not necessarily limited to, information on pupils in grades 11 and 12 and students who have applied to a public postsecondary educational institution, for the purposes of outreach, completion of FAFSA and CADAA applications, and verification of application to and enrollment in a public postsecondary educational institution.

(3) Information shared under this subdivision shall be handled in compliance with all applicable state and federal privacy laws, including the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. § 1232g).

(n)  At least 30 percent or the equivalent of each project grant shall be allocated for stipends to college success coaches and for any costs associated with providing training or necessary supplies and equipment to the college success coaches who meet all of the following criteria:

(1) Work with middle and high school pupils.

(2) Are currently enrolled in a college or other postsecondary educational institution as an undergraduate or graduate student.

(3) Have demonstrated financial need, as defined by the commission, for the stipend.

(o) Each project should work cooperatively with other projects in the program and with the commission to establish viable student services and sound administrative procedures, and to ensure coordination of the activities of the project with existing educational opportunity programs.

(p) Surveys and other means developed by the projects may be used for purposes of students self-identifying the target populations described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) in which they are included. The surveys or other means established by the projects may be used instead of students providing documentation verifying the target populations described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) in which they are included.

(q) The commission may adopt regulations necessary for the implementation and evaluation of this program and individual projects.

(Amended by Stats. 2021, Ch. 575, Sec. 4. (SB 737) Effective January 1, 2022.)