Two decades ago, there was a big fuss made over graduation rates, especially among youth of color. Latino/a and black youth had lower graduation rates, which created an achievement gap. Although there’s been a tremendous effort to close the graduation gap (SBUSD proudly graduates 89.7 percent of all students), there is still a widening gap in accessing college preparatory courses known as the A-G.
The A-G courses are an integral part of a student’s high school coursework and a requirement to four-year public institutions (UC/CSU) applicants. Students who do not take these courses are not eligible to apply to a four-year public university. At Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD), students who graduate are not required to complete A-G requirements. The latest district data shows that while 59.3 percent of all students completed the A-G requirements, only 40.3 percent of socially disadvantaged students and 3.8 percent of English learners completed these courses; in comparison, 74 percent of white students completed A-Gs by the time they graduated.
So why aren’t students taking these courses? Some are barred, while others are told they are not ready for these courses. This systemic exclusion prevents low-income youth from accessing courses necessary for a college application. If students are to succeed in high school, and later years in life, an optimal opportunity would be taking these courses.