The California State University is proposing to increase the number of math and science classes that high school students need to take before enrolling in university courses.
However, the proposal is creating controversy with critics saying it may have a disproportionately negative effect on students from poorer communities.
Cal State Vice Chancellor, James Minor, said the proposal is designed to increase the number of students who earn a college degree within four years.
"It's very clear that students who arrive from all backgrounds with additional math and quantitative reasoning perform better," Minor said. "When in college, they have higher four-year and six-year graduation rates."
He also said one of the major obstacles is that a third of each year's incoming freshman have trouble passing college-level math.
Opponents fear that low-income students will have less access to Cal State, and that the requirement will burden California public schools to staff and create another year of math and science.
Dr. Elisha Smith Arrillaga serves as the executive director of The Education Trust–West, and is pushing for more research.
"I just really hope that this process--when and if it is done--is done with deep coordination with schools across the state that will be most impacted," Arrillaga said. "And right now we don't even know who those schools are, and those conversations have yet to start."
Cal State Board of Trustees is set to vote on the plan in November. If approved, it won't take effect until 2026.