Story and Photo Visual by Ivan Villa, Staff Writer
Cypress College’s plan to build affordable student housing failed last year, and further attempts have been made difficult since the California State Budget for 2025-26 did not include new funding for student housing projects.
Community colleges around the state, including Cypress, have purchased or designated campus areas for student housing construction efforts. However, without state funding, the housing projects have paused on many campuses.
According to David Okawa, Director of Student Life and Leadership and the Food Pantry, he stated that “There was an attempt to request a grant for possible on-campus housing, but that fell through for us.”
Despite the fall through, Okawa stated that the Student Life and Leadership team can provide students with housing referrals through their partnership with Pathways of Hope, a community organization that helps provide food, shelter, and housing to people experiencing hardship in North Orange County.
According to an article by the Community College Facility Coalition (CCC) about Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposed annual budget and the CCC outlay, they stated that “the 2025-26 Fiscal Year Budget does not include any additional investments for student housing.” However, the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office has requested additional funding on top of the $1.1. billion already provided to date.
The funding to build housing fell under California Senate Bill 169 when it passed during the 2021-2022 Legislative System. Senate Bill 169 established the Higher Education Student Housing Program. This program provides grants for housing-oriented construction efforts and for commercial properties to be renovated into student homes. This initiative would provide affordable, low-cost housing options for enrolled students in public postsecondary education in the state.
Senate Bill 169 also provides funding for California State Universities (CSU) and University of California (UC) Systems. The California Higher Education Student Housing and Capacity Expansion Grant Program, established by Senate Bill 169, gives community colleges 50 percent of available funds for student housing projects, but CSU receives 30 percent and UC receives 20 percent.
However, considering that Senate Bill 169 is still undergoing the legislative system and has not been passed yet, this 50% has not been given this year.
Scott W. Thayer, President of Cypress College, stated, “The college was awarded a $150,000 grant to study student housing feasibility on campus.” This was provided through the “Round 1 Requisition Funding,” and allowed the college to do research on the need for housing on campus via a survey.
Thayer explained that Cypress submitted a grant application in January 2023 under “Round 2 Requisition Funding” to build the facility, but it was not awarded the grant to continue student housing efforts.
Round 1 required community college districts to submit their proposals for student housing to the Department of Finance in 2021. Round 2 accepted re-submitted and new applications for construction grants while round 3 focused on construction grant applications for consideration in the 2024-25 budget.
The plan to provide students at Cypress with on-campus housing is now in limbo and has delayed any advancements while SB-169 remains in legislative session and has not been passed in the California Senate for 2025-26.
