- Chris Jonsmyr
- Communications Director
- (619) 498-8580
- Chris.Jonsmyr@asm.ca.gov
Sacramento, CA — Assemblymember David Alvarez (D–San Diego) announced today that AB 664, legislation to expand access to workforce-aligned bachelor’s degrees in South San Diego, has passed the Assembly Higher Education Committee, marking a significant step toward greater educational equity and regional economic growth.
AB 664 responds to a well-documented shortage of local, public bachelor’s-degree access in South San Diego, a region served by the Southwestern Community College District (SWCCD) and home to more than 585,000 residents, including the City of Chula Vista. Despite having a population exceeding 200,000, Chula Vista remains the largest city in California without a public university offering bachelor’s degrees, leaving Southwestern College as the region’s only public postsecondary institution.
“South County is one of the largest regions in California with limited access to public bachelor’s degrees,” said Assemblymember David Alvarez. “Hundreds of thousands of residents—many of them working adults, place-bound students, and transit-dependent families—are being left without a pathway to the credentials our regional economy increasingly requires.”
Although UC San Diego (UCSD), San Diego State University (SDSU), and CSU San Marcos serve the broader region, UCSD and SDSU are impacted campuses and cannot meet growing bachelor’s-level demand from South County residents. Distance, transportation limitations, enrollment impaction, and cost further constrain access, disproportionately affecting low-income, first-generation, and working students.
Labor-market analyses from the San Diego Regional Policy & Innovation Center and the University Now Initiative identify ongoing shortages in applied, bachelor’s-level workforce fields that remain unmet at sufficient scale. These gaps restrict economic mobility and slow regional growth.
AB 664 addresses these challenges by authorizing Southwestern College to offer up to four workforce-aligned bachelor’s degree programs: Allied Health Education and Leadership, Forensic Studies, Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), and Interaction Design, in close coordination with UC San Diego, San Diego State University, and CSU San Marcos. The bill applies a regional, capacity-aware approach that recognizes real-world access barriers while preserving the intent of the California Master Plan for Higher Education.
The bill requires structured intersegmental collaboration, including transfer pathways, 2+2 agreements, and shared student-support strategies, ensuring coordination rather than duplication across public higher-education systems.
“AB 664 is about making sure our students can earn bachelor’s degrees that lead to real jobs without having to leave their families or communities behind,” said Dr. Mark Sanchez, Superintendent/President of Southwestern College. “By working in close partnership with UC San Diego, San Diego State, and CSU San Marcos, we’re expanding access where workforce demand is clear, and no local public option exists.”
Southwestern College serves a binational, multilingual region with high concentrations of first-generation, low-income, immigrant, and working students. From academic years 2019–20 through 2023–24, fewer than 2% of Southwestern College transfer students enrolled outside San Diego County, demonstrating that local CSU and UC campuses are effectively the only viable transfer options. When those campuses are impacted, students are often left without a pathway to complete a bachelor’s degree.
In addition to addressing immediate access and workforce gaps, AB 664 supports South County’s long-standing vision to establish a public university presence in Chula Vista. The bill complements ongoing planning through the South County Higher Education Planning Task Force, established by AB 662, by providing a near-term academic mechanism to build upper-division capacity, faculty expertise, employer partnerships, and enrollment data.
“This bill is about expanding opportunity close to home, strengthening our regional and binational workforce, and ensuring South County residents are not left behind,” concluded Assemblymember Alvarez. “AB 664 reflects a practical, collaborative strategy to meet real needs, while respecting the distinct roles of California’s public higher-education systems.”
AB 664 will next be heard in the Assembly Appropriations Committee on January 22, 2026.