Legislation Targeting University Status for Soka Sent to Governor

A bill that would make it difficult for Soka University to call itself a university was sent to Gov. Pete Wilson after its passage by the state Senate on Friday.

The measure had been introduced by Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica), a critic of Soka’s plans to expand from a 100-student English-language program for Japanese students to a 4,400-student liberal arts campus in the Santa Monica Mountains near Calabasas. Some critics, including Hayden, have said the scenic area is not suitable for a large university.

Hayden said he is optimistic that Wilson will sign the legislation but had received no assurances to that effect.

The bill, Hayden said, would prohibit a business from calling itself a university or college unless it satisfies the state Council for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education’s definition of an institution of higher education.

Hayden said Friday that the bill is aimed at removing what he called “ambiguity in the consumer’s mind and the public’s mind that Soka is an educational institution.”

He added that the legislation is “a way to resolve a dispute. Soka has said it’s going to seek accreditation, and I’m going to hold them to that. This bill would accelerate that process.”

At Soka University, spokesman Jeff Ourvan said the school is not affected by the legislation and would still be able to call itself a university if Wilson signs the bill. He said Soka is expanding what he called advanced, career-oriented language classes and is seeking state certification of those programs.

“Once approved, the university will not be restricted by the provisions of the Hayden bill,” Ourvan said. “If Tom Hayden was aiming at Soka University, he missed his target.”