Pupil instruction: high school graduation requirements: career technical education.

Assembly Member Gipson’s measure would indefinitely allow career technical education to count toward the high school diploma requirement, removing the current expiration tied to UC/CSU policy changes or a July 1, 2027 deadline. The change maintains CTE as one of the eligible options alongside visual and performing arts and world language, as districts decide how to meet the graduation standard through coursework completed in grades 9–12.

Under the bill, a district that elects to let a career technical education course satisfy the graduation requirement must publicly announce the intent at a regularly scheduled meeting and explain three aspects: the district’s intent to offer CTE to fulfill that requirement; the impact on eligibility for admission to the California State University and the University of California and whether the CTE courses offered are approved to satisfy those eligibility requirements; and the distinctions, if any, between the district’s graduation requirements and CSU/UC eligibility. The bill also specifies that a CTE course must be part of a district-operated program aligned to state-adopted CTE standards and may be offered through regional centers or joint agreements; it does not obligate districts that do not currently offer CTE to create programs.

The measure also codifies ongoing requirements elsewhere in the program of study, including two physical education courses and a set of ethnic studies and personal finance provisions. Beginning in 2025–26, districts would be required to offer at least one semester of ethnic studies; for pupils graduating in 2029–30 and beyond, ethnic studies would become a graduation option in a specified timeline. Beginning with 2027–28, districts would be required to offer a separate, stand-alone one-semester personal finance course in all high schools, with further flexibility for later years to allow exemptions or adjustments as the bill specifies, including ensuring the course content covers defined topics. The proposal also envisions a process for reporting to the Legislature and contemplates possible state funding if costs are deemed mandates. Finally, the measure contains operative conditions tied to appropriations, meaning enactment of the changes would depend on funding decisions by the Legislature.