Budget cuts from Gov. Jerry Brown’s administration in 2012 are now taking effect in the form of policy changes at De Anza College.  The most important of these changes deals with course repeatability and course families.

The changes regarding course repeatability limit the number of times a student can enroll in the same course to three. A student can repeat a course three times at most if he or she did not pass or withdrew with a “W” grade in each previous enrollment, according to De Anza’s website.

“The limitations on repeatability will not significantly affect students who are pursuing a clear, timely path to graduation and/or transfer, or the obtaining of a certificate,” Marisa Spatafore, director of marketing and communications at
De Anza, wrote in an email. “The new policies will affect those who chiefly focus on taking courses in areas (‘families’) such as creative arts or physical education, but without a goal of completion.

A second policy change states that a student may have no more than six enrollments in any active participatory courses that are related in content.

The active participatory courses included in this restriction are courses in physical education, creative arts, and performing arts.  Another key component of this change in policy is that now all active participatory courses
are non-repeatable.

“The state makes the assumption that once you take Level 1 [of a skill course] that you are capable of doing Level 2.” Dean of the
Physical Education Department Coleen Lee-Wheat said, “With certain skill-based courses it is physically impossible to pick something up in 12 weeks and be at the next level.”

This may push some students into higher course levels before they
are ready.

Lee-Wheat said the change wouldn’t affect instructors. “I don’t think that the instructors will be as impacted as you would think if you’re just looking black and white, because we are all used to (teaching students with different proficiencies) in skills classes.”

Lee-Wheat also said she was confident that students should be able to take these changes in stride: “This administration believes in you guys and tries to offer every opportunity possible. This [school] is an amazing place.”