Remove financial barriers for low-income community college students in California-Baja

OPINION – California is well-known for its bold and innovative policies that create equitable economic opportunities for all. As a leader, a trailblazer and a trendsetter, California has inspired other states to also take decisive actions in uplifting their most vulnerable populations from generational poverty and towards prosperity. As Gov. Gavin Newsom often says, “The future happens in California first.”

But California is falling behind other border states that are leveraging their unique location to form bi-national partnerships with Mexico and produce a skilled cross-border workforce. By allowing Mexico residents to attend their postsecondary education institutions without having to pay out-of-state tuition fees, these border states are bolstering the economic health of their region and preparing students for the jobs of tomorrow.

In Texas, the Mexican Citizens with Financial Need-Border Nations Waiver permits a small number of individuals with financial need and who are citizens of Mexico to enroll in any public university in Texas while paying the in-state tuition rate.

Arizona, through agreements with the Mexico states of Baja California, Chihuahua, Sinaloa and Sonora, provides first-year students who are residents of these states the Gatos MX Tuition Discount, a 50 percent reduction in out-of-state tuition fees.

And in New Mexico, the Descubre Program for Mexican Students offers new students with Mexican citizenship attending New Mexico State University the Descubre Tuition Rate, saving students nearly $10,000 annually.

California does not have a similar tuition policy for Mexico students. Assembly Bill 91, authored by Democratic Assemblymember David Alvarez of San Diego, would create it. The need for this policy comes at a time when we must get more students to their education destinations faster, more efficiently and more equitably.

California is falling behind other border states that are leveraging their unique location to form bi-national partnerships with Mexico and produce a skilled cross-border workforce.

California is facing an education deficit of more than 1 million bachelor’s degree holders by 2030 and a gap of 1.5 million skilled workers by 2025. This is precisely why Gov. Newsom is calling on California’s higher education segments to close this degree and skills gap by ensuring 70% of working-age Californians possess a degree or credential by 2030. Now is the time to expand the canopy of community college learners through partnerships that will reach low-income adults and accelerate socio-economic mobility.

A key partnership Is the California-Baja region, an integrated economic zone composed of San Diego and Imperial County, and the Baja California cities of Tijuana, Tecate and Mexicali. These political boundaries, however, have little meaning to the people residing in the area. Many in the region live on one side of the border, work in the other and regularly cross the border during daily routines.

A 2022 University of San Diego report, The CaliBaja Regional Economy, identifies the California-Baja region as the largest integrated economic zone along the U.S.-Mexico border. With a regional economy gross domestic product of $250 billion and an estimated $70 billion in cross-border trade flows, the California-Baja region is an economic powerhouse with vibrant industries and a thriving workforce. More than 50,000 people cross the border from Baja to San Diego County, and more than 4,500 people cross into Baja every day.

As the largest workforce provider in the nation, California’s community colleges are the engines that will allow the California-Baja region to keep its conveyor belt of talent humming along. Under Vision 2030, an ambitious, equity-focused strategy for expanding college opportunities within our communities, the California Community Colleges will bridge the gap between education and the workforce. We will shape a learning ecosystem that nurtures and is responsive to the demands of our local economies. We will find prospective students and take college to them without creating needless complexities.

AB 91 advances the goals of Vision 2030 by removing financial barriers for low-income community college students who reside within the California-Baja region. These students are required to pay more than $9,000 in out-of-state tuition fees annually, which deter them from enrolling and results in a loss of talent that could benefit the unique and growing industry needs of the California-Baja region. AB 91 would eliminate these tuition fees for Mexico students, allowing them to complete their college dreams, enter the workforce and contribute to California-Baja’s strong economy.

The future is already here, and the time is now for California to reassert itself as a leader in equity, diversity and inclusion. Please join us in urging Gov. Newsom to sign AB 91.

Dr. Sonya Christian is the Chancellor of the California Community Colleges, the largest postsecondary system of higher education in the United States.

Dr. Mark Sanchez is the President/Superintendent of Southwestern College, serving over 25,000 students in the California-Mexico border region.