2 California legislators urge UC, CSU systems to reconsider standardized testing policies

In what has become a debate garnering national attention over whether standardized testing should continue to be administered in schools, California legislators are weighing in on the issue, urging the state's public universities to reconsider their policies on SAT and ACT scores.

Two Republican senators, Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh and Roger Niello, issued a letter to both the University of California and California State University systems, urging them to reinstate standardized testing requirements for college admissions.

"Reinstating the requirement for SAT and ACT mathematics for not only STEM majors, but for all admissions requirements, is an affirmative step toward elevating the academic culture of our universities and building a stronger generation of future learners," the letter says.

The action comes in response to more than 3,000 UC professors and faculty who signed off on a separate letter for ACT and SAT requirements to be reinstated.

"The problem is we are terribly disturbing the children in the state of California and compromising their opportunities," Niello told CBS News Sacramento.  

Back in 2020, the UC Board of Regents voted unanimously to remove the requirement for students applying during the pandemic, going against the Academic Senate's recommendation not to.

"We talk about graduation rates, right? Both higher education but also in high school — and we can say we've got great graduation rates because we get kids to graduate from high school at the right age of 18... and they're totally unprepared," Niello said.

In 2021, the UC system stopped its consideration of standardized testing altogether. That policy was to be continued through 2025.

The CSU system dropped its standardized testing requirement in 2022.

But UC faculty said in an open letter that some students were performing at remedial math and writing levels, arguing that utilizing ACT and SAT scores was necessary to eliminate students who were not meeting that academic threshold.

Niello said the state not only needs to re-evaluate California's university system, but the state needs to direct its attention back to its K-12 public school system.

"We resist testing in the K-12 system. The teachers' union has resisted that for years and it fails students because we don't," he said. "No, there isn't any accountability. We don't know whether they're succeeding or failing until it's too late, and that's the fundamental problem."

Those against the requirement argue that it disadvantages students from poor socioeconomic backgrounds because they are not given the same access to tutoring and test prep as more affluent kids are.

Earlier this week, Gov. Gavin Newsom reiterated he is open to a change, but wants it to be an informed decision.

"I think it's an important discussion and debate, but I want to see the data," Newsom said.

The UC Academic Senate plans to submit its recommendations on whether the state should reinstate test requirements by next June.

CBS News Sacramento reached out to the University of California for a statement, but it deferred us to a statement from the Academic Senate, which says it "is committed to a rigorous, evidence-based process that reflects the university's commitment to shared governance."

The board, which maintains the authority to implement this change, would then take a final vote.