On May 29, the California State Senate unanimously approved SB 640, legislation introduced by Senator Christopher Cabaldon (D-Yolo). This bill aims to automatically extend offers of admission to the California State University system for all high school seniors within the state who meet the criteria.
Students meeting the criteria for California State University will no longer have to apply. Instead, they will get a celebratory letter mailed to them by CSU, notifying them of their acceptance into a selection of campuses that still have room for more students.
Experts in education assert that getting an acceptance letter serves as a strong psychological incentive for students to contemplate attending a four-year college, even if they previously believed it wasn’t within reach. As the mayor of West Sacramento, Cabaldon introduced the concept of automatic admission through the city’s Home Run program—the nation’s initial municipal effort aimed at guaranteeing students entry into community colleges along with waived tuition fees.
“SB 640 aims to make the transition from 12th grade to the subsequent stage just as straightforward and smooth as moving from 10th grade to 11th grade,” Cabaldon stated in a press release.
This law expands across the entire state a CSU trial initiative that offered admissions to 10 campuses for all eligible high school seniors in Riverside County this year; these campuses mostly have lower-than-needed enrollment rates. Among the approximately 17,000 students who were extended admission offers for Fall 2025, about 13,200 finished the necessary documentation—an rise of around 3,000 from the prior academic year.
By promoting increased student enrollment at CSUs, Cabaldon aims not just to offer greater opportunities for Californians but also to address declining attendance numbers that have impacted numerous campuses. The two institutions experiencing the most significant drops in enrollment are within Cabaldon’s constituency: the CSU Maritime Academy in Vallejo—which is currently merging operations with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo—and Sonoma State, which plans substantial reductions for the upcoming academic year.
SB 640 has been jointly authored by Senate Education Committee Chair Sasha Renée Pérez and the complete congressional group from Sonoma County. This includes Senate President Pro Tempore Mike McGuire, Assembly Majority Leader Celia Aguiar-Curry, Assemblymember Damon Connolly, and Assemblymember Chris Rogers.
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