March 13, 2024

The Honorable Chair, Mike Fong
California State Assembly Higher Education Committee
Legislative Office Building, 1020 N Street, Room 173
Sacramento, CA 95814

RE: AB 2349 (Wilson) – SUPPORT

Dear Assemblymember Fong,

The Council of UC Faculty Associations (CUCFA), is an umbrella organization for the Faculty Associations (FAs) at each UC campus dedicated to protecting the interests of UC faculty. We write to you in strong support of AB 2349, which would establish the Cal-Bridge Program, an intersegmental partnership between the California Community Colleges (CCC), the California State University (CSU), and the University of California (UC) to create a pathway for diverse undergraduate students in STEM disciplines to pursue PhDs and become leaders in the state’s STEM industries.

CUCFA supports AB 2349 for several reasons. The program’s unique approach of knitting together all the segments of the California Higher Education system has propelled more than 70% of its undergraduate scholars into PhD programs, many of whom enrich our own graduate programs throughout the UC system – a success rate that is unprecedented in programs of this nature. Its focus on supporting those students both financially and academically throughout their graduate studies here at UC promises to prepare them well for faculty and STEM leadership positions here in California, leveraging the program’s efforts by providing role models for future students that will compel them to persevere in pursuit of their academic goals. It’s long been a goal of UC faculty to attain a demographic makeup more reflective of our State’s population. We are excited to support the Cal-Bridge Program as a promising avenue for achieving that goal, and one that is notable for how it has grown from the “grass roots” of the faculty of our three Higher Education systems. This bill would help stabilize this unique program across these three frequently siloed segments of our Higher Education system.

For these reasons, the Council of UC Faculty Associations joins its faculty partners in the other segments of the California Higher Education system in strongly supporting AB 2349. We are excited about its prospects for making significant progress in addressing the underrepresentation of our State’s diverse students in STEM PhD programs and, subsequently, in the California professoriate and STEM industry leadership.

Sincerely,

Constance Penley, CUCFA President and Professor of Film and Media Studies UC Santa Barbara