Hundreds of laws went into effect for 2012, some geared toward minorities and religious groups and others to protect students from being bullied.
Assembly Bill 668 and AB 620 are meant to guard the civil rights of certain minority groups.
AB 668 allows alternate times for religious students to take exams in accordance with their religious obligations, and AB 620 was passed to help prevent bullying students based on their sexual orientation.
According to a report from the California Postsecondary Education Commission (CPEC) from June 2009, 33 percent of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender students have serious depression concerns.
In addition, 73 percent of LGBT students feel they are respected on campus — compared with 93 percent of heterosexual students.
Equality California, the sponsor of AB 620, released a statement about the findings of the study, stating that “CPEC has recommended that all postsecondary institutions establish policies to reinforce existing laws that forbid discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.”
CSU spokesman Erik Fallis said it is representative of the state’s diversity.
“We do represent a very diverse state and because of that, our system is incredibly diverse — the most diverse in the nation,” Fallis said.
Many hope that these new laws will help improve the environment on the CSU campuses.
“The CSU is clearly governed by the state of California, and we certainly do our best to implement every law that’s adopted as faithfully as possible and as well as possible,” Fallis said.
In addition to the laws protecting minority students, several other laws have taken effect as well.
AB 670 provides an appeals process for students who are denied admission to a CSU.
AB 795 gives authority to CSUs and community colleges to enforce state and local laws regarding smoking and tobacco use.
A violation of the new smoking law could result in a $100 fine.
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