Community College Test Order Extended

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge on Monday extended until Jan. 25 a previous order blocking mass proficiency tests for non-high school graduates seeking to enroll in community colleges in California and the rest of the nation.

U.S. District Judge D. Lowell Jensen left intact a temporary restraining order he issued Jan. 2, barring enforcement of a controversial new federal regulation. The extension was ordered to allow attorneys more time to file written arguments in the case.

The new rule, devised by the U.S. Department of Education under a law passed by Congress last October, would require students without diplomas or equivalency certificates to pass an exam before enrolling in colleges receiving federal aid.