Assemblymember Dr. Darshana Patel Sends Bills to Expand Educational Opportunity to Governor’s Desk

SACRAMENTO - Two bills authored by Assemblymember Dr. Darshana Patel to remove barriers for English learners and students with disabilities were approved by the Legislature and sent to the Governor for consideration.

Assembly Bill 2555 would modernize California's nearly 50-year-old process for reclassifying English learners as fluent English proficient, while Assembly Bill 2468 would expand access to inclusive general education settings for students with disabilities by establishing the Supporting Inclusive Practices project in state law.

"When a student has demonstrated English proficiency, they should not have to wait months-or even years- for the system to recognize it. And a student with a disability should not have to depend on their ZIP code to access an inclusive classroom," said Assemblymember Patel. "AB 2555 and AB 2468 tackle different challenges, but they are grounded in the same principle: our education system should remove barriers to opportunity, not create them."

AB 2555 would create a more coherent, consistent, and efficient process for reclassifying English learners as fluent English proficient. California's current reclassification framework has remained largely unchanged for decades and can vary significantly across schools and districts.

Research has found that the current system is characterized by inconsistency, redundancy, subjectivity, and complexity. On average, students who demonstrate proficiency on California's English language assessment wait 226 days to be reclassified, with many continuing to score proficient year after year before their status changes. Newly released state data also show that some local educational agencies reclassified zero students during the reporting year.

AB 2555 would streamline and modernize the reclassification process while better engaging parents as partners in supporting their children's language development.

AB 2468 would establish the Supporting Inclusive Practices project (SIP) in California law, strengthening a statewide initiative that helps schools expand access to inclusive general education settings for students with disabilities.

Decades of research have demonstrated benefits of inclusive education for students with disabilities as well as their peers. Yet California continues to lag behind most other states at the rate at which students with disabilities are included in general education settings.

For the past decade, SIP has provided technical assistance and professional development to school districts and educators working to expand inclusive practices. Participating school districts have increased inclusion at a rate 13 times the state average.

Together with $30 million in the state budget funding secured by Assemblymember Dr. Patel to expand the project, AB 2468 would allow SIP to broaden technical assistance and professional development, establish demonstration sites, and integrate inclusive practices into other school improvement initiatives.

AB 2555 and AB 2468 now await action by the Governor.

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Dr. Darshana Patel represents Assembly District 76, which includes the cities of Escondido, San Marcos, and northern parts of the City of San Diego, as well as the unincorporated areas of Del Dios, Elfin Forest, Fairbanks Ranch, Harmony Grove, Lake San Marcos, and Rancho Santa Fe. Assemblymember Patel is the Chair of the Assembly Education Committee and serves on the following committees: EDGHI (Economic Development, Growth, and Household Impact), Health, Higher Education, Budget, and the Budget Subcommittee #3 on Education Finance.