State Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson recently introduced a bill that would permit community colleges to extend their jurisdiction beyond campus borders for sexual assault and other serious student conduct violations.
Senate Bill 186 would allow community college districts to use their disciplinary process to expel or suspend students for off-campus behavior determined to be “egregious,” such as sexual assault, physical abuse, threats of violence, arson-related offences, sexual harassment, stalking, and hazing. According to a press release from Jackson’s office, UC and CSU campuses already have extended jurisdictions in place.
“I have heard from community college leaders that this is a tool they would like to have in place so they can keep their students and communities safe. This is particularly important in a place such as Isla Vista, where we have UC students and community college students living next to each other, but being held to different standards,” Jackson said. “This will level the playing field for all students—regardless of where they are enrolled—so that they know that whether they are in the classroom or a few miles from it, they must behave appropriately.”
Both Allan Hancock College President Kevin Walthers and the campus’s police chief were unavailable for comment before the Sun went to press.
The bill would limit the ability of community college districts to expel or suspend students for “egregious” acts only.
In 2014, Jackson was the joint author of Senate Bill 967, known as the “yes means yes” bill. Passage of the bill made California the first state in the nation to define affirmative consent and require higher education institutes to educate students about consent and sexual assault.
This article appears in Feb 12-19, 2015.