Senate Bill No. 611
(By Senators Helmick, McCabe, Bowman, Edgell,
Facemire, Fanning, Green, Prezioso, Unger,
Wells, Boley, Facemyer, Guills and Sypolt)
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[Originating in the Committee on Finance;
reported February 18, 2010]
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A BILL to amend and reenact §18B-1B-4 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended; to amend and reenact §18B-2B-6 of said code;
and to amend and reenact §18B-4-1 of said code, all relating
to locating the offices of the Higher Education Policy
Commission, the Vice Chancellor for Administration and the
West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College
Education.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §18B-1B-4 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted; that §18B-2B-6 of said code be amended
and reenacted; and that §18B-4-1 of said code be amended and
reenacted, all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1B. HIGHER EDUCATION POLICY COMMISSION.
§18B-1B-4. Powers and duties of Higher Education Policy
Commission.
(a) The primary responsibility of the commission is to
develop, establish and implement policy that will achieve the goals
and objectives found in section one-a, article one of this chapter.
The commission shall exercise its authority and carry out its
responsibilities in a manner that is consistent and not in conflict
with the powers and duties assigned by law to the West Virginia
Council for Community and Technical College Education and the
powers and duties assigned to the governing boards of Marshall
University and West Virginia University, respectively. To that
end, the commission has the following powers and duties relating to
the institutions under its jurisdiction:
(1) Develop, oversee and advance the public policy agenda
pursuant to section one, article one-a of this chapter to address
major challenges facing the state, including, but not limited to,
the goals and objectives found in section one-a, article one of
this chapter and including specifically those goals and objectives
pertaining to the compacts created pursuant to section two, article
one-a of this chapter and to develop and implement the master plan
described in section nine of this article for the purpose of
accomplishing the mandates of this section;
(2) Develop, oversee and advance the implementation jointly
with the council of a financing policy for higher education in West
Virginia. The policy shall meet the following criteria:
(A) Provide an adequate level of education and general funding for institutions pursuant to section five, article one-a of this
chapter;
(B) Serve to maintain institutional assets, including, but not
limited to, human and physical resources and deferred maintenance;
(C) Invest and provide incentives for achieving the priority
goals in the public policy agenda, including, but not limited to,
those found in section one-a, article one of this chapter; and
(D) Incorporate the plan for strategic funding to strengthen
capacity for support of community and technical college education
established by the West Virginia Council for Community and
Technical College Education pursuant to the provisions of section
six, article two-b of this chapter;
(3) In collaboration with the council, create a policy
leadership structure capable of the following actions:
(A) Developing, building public consensus around and
sustaining attention to a long-range public policy agenda. In
developing the agenda, the commission and council shall seek input
from the Legislature and the Governor and specifically from the
State Board of Education and local school districts in order to
create the necessary linkages to assure smooth, effective and
seamless movement of students through the public education and
post-secondary education systems and to ensure that the needs of
public school courses and programs can be fulfilled by the
graduates produced and the programs offered;
(B) Ensuring that the governing boards carry out their duty
effectively to govern the individual institutions of higher
education; and
(C) Holding the higher education institutions and the higher
education systems as a whole accountable for accomplishing their
missions and implementing the provisions of the compacts;
(4) Develop and adopt each institutional compact;
(5) Review and adopt the annual updates of the institutional
compacts;
(6) Serve as the accountability point to:
(A) The Governor for implementation of the public policy
agenda; and
(B) The Legislature by maintaining a close working
relationship with the legislative leadership and the Legislative
Oversight Commission on Education Accountability;
(7) Jointly with the council, promulgate legislative rules
pursuant to article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to
fulfill the purposes of section five, article one-a of this
chapter;
(8) Establish and implement a peer group for each institution
as described in section three, article one-a of this chapter;
(9) Establish and implement the benchmarks and performance
indicators necessary to measure institutional achievement towards
state policy priorities and institutional missions pursuant to section two, article one-a of this chapter;
(10) Annually report to the Legislature and to the Legislative
Oversight Commission on Education Accountability during the January
interim meetings on a date and at a time and location to be
determined by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Delegates. The report shall address at least the
following:
(A) The performance of its system of higher education during
the previous fiscal year, including, but not limited to, progress
in meeting goals stated in the compacts and progress of the
institutions and the higher education system as a whole in meeting
the goals and objectives set forth in section one-a, article one of
this chapter;
(B) An analysis of enrollment data collected pursuant to
section one, article ten of this chapter and recommendations for
any changes necessary to assure access to high-quality, high-demand
education programs for West Virginia residents;
(C) The priorities established for capital investment needs
pursuant to subdivision (11) of this subsection and the
justification for such priority;
(D) Recommendations of the commission for statutory changes
needed to further the goals and objectives set forth in section
one-a, article one of this chapter;
(11) Establish a formal process for identifying needs for capital investments and for determining priorities for these
investments for consideration by the Governor and the Legislature
as part of the appropriation request process. It is the
responsibility of the commission to assure a fair distribution of
funds for capital projects between the commission and the council.
To that end the commission shall take the following steps:
(A) Receive the list of priorities developed by the council
for capital investment for the institutions under the council's
jurisdiction pursuant to subsection (b), section six, article two-b
of this chapter;
(B) Place the ranked list of projects on the agenda for action
within sixty days of the date on which the list was received;
(C) Select a minimum of three projects from the list submitted
by the council to be included on the ranked list established by the
commission. At least one of the three projects selected must come
from the top two priorities established by the council;
(12) Maintain guidelines for institutions to follow concerning
extensive capital project management except the governing boards of
Marshall University and West Virginia University are not subject to
the provisions of this subdivision as it relates to the state
institutions of higher education known as Marshall University and
West Virginia University. The guidelines shall provide a process
for developing capital projects, including, but not limited to, the
notification by an institution to the commission of any proposed capital project which has the potential to exceed $1 million in
cost. Such a project may not be pursued by an institution without
the approval of the commission. An institution may not participate
directly or indirectly with any public or private entity in any
capital project which has the potential to exceed $1 million in
cost;
(13) Acquire legal services as are considered necessary,
including representation of the commission, its institutions,
employees and officers before any court or administrative body,
notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary.
The counsel may be employed either on a salaried basis or on a
reasonable fee basis. In addition, the commission may, but is not
required to, call upon the Attorney General for legal assistance
and representation as provided by law;
(14) Employ a Chancellor for Higher Education pursuant to
section five of this article;
(15) Employ other staff as necessary and appropriate to carry
out the duties and responsibilities of the commission and the
council, in accordance with the provisions of article four of this
chapter;
(16) Provide suitable offices in Charleston for the
chancellor, vice chancellors and other staff
: Provided, That the
offices may be located outside of Charleston at a technology and
research center;
(17) Advise and consent in the appointment of the presidents
of the institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction
pursuant to section six of this article. The role of the
commission in approving an institutional president is to assure
through personal interview that the person selected understands and
is committed to achieving the goals and objectives as set forth in
the institutional compact and in section one-a, article one of this
chapter;
(18) Approve the total compensation package from all sources
for presidents of institutions under its jurisdiction, as proposed
by the governing boards. The governing boards must obtain approval
from the commission of the total compensation package both when
institutional presidents are employed initially and afterward when
any change is made in the amount of the total compensation package;
(19) Establish and implement the policy of the state to assure
that parents and students have sufficient information at the
earliest possible age on which to base academic decisions about
what is required for students to be successful in college, other
post-secondary education and careers related, as far as possible,
to results from current assessment tools in use in West Virginia;
(20) Approve and implement a uniform standard jointly with the
council to determine which students shall be placed in remedial or
developmental courses. The standard shall be aligned with college
admission tests and assessment tools used in West Virginia and shall be applied uniformly by the governing boards throughout the
public higher education system. The chancellors shall develop a
clear, concise explanation of the standard which they shall
communicate to the State Board of Education and the State
Superintendent of Schools;
(21) Review and approve or disapprove capital projects as
described in subdivision (11) of this subsection;
(22) Jointly with the council, develop and implement an
oversight plan to manage systemwide technology such as the
following:
(A) Expanding distance learning and technology networks to
enhance teaching and learning, promote access to quality
educational offerings with minimum duplication of effort; and
(B) Increasing the delivery of instruction to nontraditional
students, to provide services to business and industry and increase
the management capabilities of the higher education system.
(C) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or this code to
the contrary, the council, commission and state institutions of
higher education are not subject to the jurisdiction of the Chief
Technology Officer for any purpose;
(23) Establish and implement policies and procedures to ensure
that students may transfer and apply toward the requirements for a
bachelor's degree the maximum number of credits earned at any
regionally accredited in-state or out-of-state community and technical college with as few requirements to repeat courses or to
incur additional costs as is consistent with sound academic policy;
(24) Establish and implement policies and procedures to ensure
that students may transfer and apply toward the requirements for a
degree the maximum number of credits earned at any regionally
accredited in-state or out-of-state higher education institution
with as few requirements to repeat courses or to incur additional
costs as is consistent with sound academic policy;
(25) Establish and implement policies and procedures to ensure
that students may transfer and apply toward the requirements for a
master's degree the maximum number of credits earned at any
regionally accredited in-state or out-of-state higher education
institution with as few requirements to repeat courses or to incur
additional costs as is consistent with sound academic policy;
(26) Establish and implement policies and programs, in
cooperation with the council and the institutions of higher
education, through which students who have gained knowledge and
skills through employment, participation in education and training
at vocational schools or other education institutions, or internet-
based education programs, may demonstrate by competency-based
assessment that they have the necessary knowledge and skills to be
granted academic credit or advanced placement standing toward the
requirements of an associate degree or a bachelor's degree at a
state institution of higher education;
(27) Seek out and attend regional, national and international
meetings and forums on education and workforce development-related
topics, as in the commission's discretion is critical for the
performance of their duties as members, for the purpose of keeping
abreast of education trends and policies to aid it in developing
the policies for this state to meet the established education goals
and objectives pursuant to section one-a, article one of this
chapter;
(28) Develop, establish and implement a rule for higher
education governing boards and institutions to follow when
considering capital projects. The guidelines shall assure that the
governing boards and institutions do not approve or promote capital
projects involving private sector businesses which would have the
effect of reducing property taxes on existing properties or
avoiding, in whole or in part, the full amount of taxes which would
be due on newly developed or future properties;
(29) Consider and submit to the appropriate agencies of the
executive and legislative branches of state government a budget
that reflects recommended appropriations from the commission and
the institutions under its jurisdiction. The commission shall
submit as part of its budget proposal the separate recommended
appropriations it received from the council, both for the council
and the institutions under the council's jurisdiction. The
commission annually shall submit the proposed institutional allocations based on each institution's progress toward meeting the
goals of its institutional compact;
(30) The commission has the authority to assess institutions
under its jurisdiction, including the state institutions of higher
education known as Marshall University and West Virginia
University, for the payment of expenses of the commission or for
the funding of statewide higher education services, obligations or
initiatives related to the goals set forth for the provision of
public higher education in the state;
(31) Promulgate rules allocating reimbursement of
appropriations, if made available by the Legislature, to
institutions of higher education for qualifying noncapital
expenditures incurred in the provision of services to students with
physical, learning or severe sensory disabilities;
(32) Make appointments to boards and commissions where this
code requires appointments from the State College System Board of
Directors or the University of West Virginia System Board of
Trustees which were abolished effective June 30, 2000, except in
those cases where the required appointment has a specific and
direct connection to the provision of community and technical
college education, the appointment shall be made by the council.
Notwithstanding any provisions of this code to the contrary, the
commission or the council may appoint one of its own members or any
other citizen of the state as its designee. The commission and council shall appoint the total number of persons in the aggregate
required to be appointed by these previous governing boards;
(33) Pursuant to the provisions of article three-a, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code and section six, article one of this
chapter, promulgate rules as necessary or expedient to fulfill the
purposes of this chapter. The commission and the council shall
promulgate a uniform joint legislative rule for the purpose of
standardizing, as much as possible, the administration of personnel
matters among the institutions of higher education;
(34) Determine when a joint rule among the governing boards of
the institutions under its jurisdiction is necessary or required by
law and, in those instances, in consultation with the governing
boards of all the institutions under its jurisdiction, promulgate
the joint rule;
(35) In consultation with the governing boards of Marshall
University and West Virginia University, implement a policy jointly
with the council whereby course credit earned at a community and
technical college transfers for program credit at any other state
institution of higher education and is not limited to fulfilling a
general education requirement;
(36) Promulgate a joint rule with the council establishing
tuition and fee policy for all institutions of higher education,
other than state institutions of higher education known as Marshall
University and West Virginia University which are subject to the provisions of section one, article ten of this chapter. The rule
shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
(A) Comparisons with peer institutions;
(B) Differences among institutional missions;
(C) Strategies for promoting student access;
(D) Consideration of charges to out-of-state students; and
(E) Such other policies as the commission and council consider
appropriate;
(37) Implement general disease awareness initiatives to
educate parents and students, particularly dormitory residents,
about meningococcal meningitis; the potentially life-threatening
dangers of contracting the infection; behaviors and activities that
can increase risks; measures that can be taken to prevent contact
or infection; and potential benefits of vaccination. The
commission shall encourage institutions that provide medical care
to students to provide access to the vaccine for those who wish to
receive it; and
(38) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the
contrary, sell, lease, convey or otherwise dispose of all or part
of any real property which it may own, either by contract or at
public auction, and to retain the proceeds of any such sale or
lease:
Provided, That:
(A) The commission may not sell, lease, convey or otherwise
dispose of any real property without first:
(i) Providing notice to the public in the county in which the
real property is located by a Class II legal advertisement pursuant
to section two, article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code;
(ii) Holding a public hearing on the issue in the county in
which the real property is located; and
(iii) Providing notice to the Joint Committee on Government
and Finance; and
(B) Any proceeds from the sale, lease, conveyance or other
disposal of real property that is used jointly by institutions or
for statewide programs under the jurisdiction of the commission or
the council shall be transferred to the General Revenue Fund of the
state.
(b) In addition to the powers and duties listed in subsection
(a) of this section, the commission has the following general
powers and duties related to its role in developing, articulating
and overseeing the implementation of the public policy agenda:
(1) Planning and policy leadership, including a distinct and
visible role in setting the state's policy agenda and in serving as
an agent of change;
(2) Policy analysis and research focused on issues affecting
the system as a whole or a geographical region thereof;
(3) Development and implementation of institutional mission
definitions, including use of incentive funds to influence
institutional behavior in ways that are consistent with public priorities;
(4) Academic program review and approval for institutions
under its jurisdiction, including the use of institutional missions
as a template to judge the appropriateness of both new and existing
programs and the authority to implement needed changes. The
commission's authority to review and approve academic programs for
either the state institution of higher education known as Marshall
University or West Virginia University is limited to programs that
are proposed to be offered at a new location not presently served
by that institution;
(5) Distribution of funds appropriated to the commission,
including incentive and performance-based funding;
(6) Administration of state and federal student aid programs
under the supervision of the vice chancellor for administration,
including promulgation of any rules necessary to administer those
programs;
(7) Serving as the agent to receive and disburse public funds
when a governmental entity requires designation of a statewide
higher education agency for this purpose;
(8) Development, establishment and implementation of
information, assessment and accountability systems, including
maintenance of statewide data systems that facilitate long-term
planning and accurate measurement of strategic outcomes and
performance indicators;
(9) Jointly with the council, developing, establishing and
implementing policies for licensing and oversight for both public
and private degree-granting and nondegree-granting institutions
that provide post-secondary education courses or programs in the
state pursuant to the findings and policy recommendations required
by section eleven of this article;
(10) Development, implementation and oversight of statewide
and regionwide projects and initiatives related to providing post-
secondary education at the baccalaureate level and above such as
those using funds from federal categorical programs or those using
incentive and performance-based funding from any source; and
(11) Quality assurance that intersects with all other duties
of the commission particularly in the areas of research, data
collection and analysis, planning, policy analysis, program review
and approval, budgeting and information and accountability systems.
(c) In addition to the powers and duties provided in
subsections (a) and (b) of this section and any other powers and
duties as may be assigned to it by law, the commission has such
other powers and duties as may be necessary or expedient to
accomplish the purposes of this article.
(d) The commission is authorized to withdraw specific powers
of any governing board of an institution under its jurisdiction for
a period not to exceed two years, if the commission makes a
determination that:
(1) The governing board has failed for two consecutive years
to develop an institutional compact as required in article one of
this chapter;
(2) The commission has received information, substantiated by
independent audit, of significant mismanagement or failure to carry
out the powers and duties of the board of governors according to
state law; or
(3) Other circumstances which, in the view of the commission,
severely limit the capacity of the board of governors to carry out
its duties and responsibilities.
The period of withdrawal of specific powers may not exceed two
years during which time the commission is authorized to take steps
necessary to reestablish the conditions for restoration of sound,
stable and responsible institutional governance.
ARTICLE 2B. WEST VIRGINIA COUNCIL FOR COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL
COLLEGE EDUCATION.
§18B-2B-6. Powers and duties of the council.
(a) The council is the sole agency responsible for
administration of vocational-technical-occupational education and
community and technical college education in the state. The
council has jurisdiction and authority over the community and
technical colleges and the statewide network of independently
accredited community and technical colleges as a whole, including
community and technical college education programs as defined in section two, article one of this chapter.
(b) The council shall propose rules pursuant to section six,
article one of this chapter and article three-a, chapter twenty-
nine-a of this code to implement the provisions of this section and
applicable provisions of article one-d of this chapter:
(1) To implement the provisions of article one-d of this
chapter relevant to community and technical colleges, the council
may propose rules jointly with the commission or separately and may
choose to address all components of the accountability system in a
single rule or may propose additional rules to cover specific
components;
(2) The rules pertaining to financing policy and benchmarks
and indicators required by this section shall be filed with the
Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability by
October 1, 2008. Nothing in this subsection requires other rules
of the council to be promulgated again under the procedure set
forth in article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code unless
such rules are rescinded, revised, altered or amended; and
(3) The Legislature finds that an emergency exists and,
therefore, the council shall propose an emergency rule or rules to
implement the provisions of this section relating to the financing
policy and benchmarks and indicators in accordance with section
six, article one of this chapter and article three-a, chapter
twenty-nine-a of this code by October 1, 2008. The emergency rule or rules may not be implemented without prior approval of the
Legislative Oversight Commission on Education Accountability.
(c) The council has the following powers and duties relating
to the authority established in subsection (a) of this section:
(1) Develop, oversee and advance the public policy agenda for
community and technical college education for the purpose of
accomplishing the mandates of this section, including, but not
limited to, the following:
(A) Achieving the goals and objectives established in articles
one and one-d of this chapter;
(B) Addressing the goals and objectives contained in the
institutional compacts created pursuant to section seven, article
one-d of this chapter; and
(C) Developing and implementing the master plan described in
section five, article one-d of this chapter;
(2) Propose a legislative rule pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section and article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code to develop and implement a financing policy for community and
technical college education in West Virginia. The rule shall meet
the following criteria:
(A) Provide an adequate level of education and general funding
for institutions pursuant to section five, article one-a of this
chapter;
(B) Serve to maintain institutional assets, including, but not limited to, human and physical resources and deferred maintenance;
(C) Establish a plan for strategic funding to strengthen
capacity for support of community and technical college education;
and
(D) Establish a plan that measures progress and provides
performance-based funding to institutions which make significant
progress in the following specific areas:
(i) Achieving the objectives and priorities established in
article one-d of this chapter;
(ii) Serving targeted populations, especially working age
adults twenty-five years of age and over;
(iii) Providing access to high cost, high demand technical
programs in every region of the state;
(iv) Increasing the percentage of functionally literate adults
in every region of the state; and
(v) Providing high quality community and technical college
education services to residents of every region of the state.
(3) Create a policy leadership structure relating to community
and technical college education capable of the following actions:
(A) Developing, building public consensus around and
sustaining attention to a long-range public policy agenda. In
developing the agenda, the council shall seek input from the
Legislature and the Governor and specifically from the State Board
of Education and local school districts in order to create the necessary linkages to assure smooth, effective and seamless
movement of students through the public education and post-
secondary education systems and to ensure that the needs of public
school courses and programs can be fulfilled by the graduates
produced and the programs offered;
(B) Ensuring that the governing boards of the institutions
under the council's jurisdiction carry out their duty effectively
to govern the individual institutions of higher education; and
(C) Holding each community and technical college and the
statewide network of independently accredited community and
technical colleges as a whole accountable for accomplishing their
missions and achieving the goals and objectives established in
articles one, one-d, and three-c of this chapter;
(4) Develop for inclusion in the statewide public agenda, a
plan for raising education attainment, increasing adult literacy,
promoting workforce and economic development and ensuring access to
advanced education for the citizens of West Virginia;
(5) Provide statewide leadership, coordination, support, and
technical assistance to the community and technical colleges and to
provide a focal point for visible and effective advocacy for their
work and for the public policy agendas approved by the commission
and council;
(6) Review and adopt annually all institutional compacts for
the community and technical colleges pursuant to the provisions of section seven, article one-d of this chapter;
(7) Fulfill the mandates of the accountability system
established in article one-d of this chapter and report on progress
in meeting established goals, objectives, and priorities to the
elected leadership of the state;
(8) Propose a legislative rule pursuant to subsection (b) of
this section and article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code to establish benchmarks and indicators in accordance with the
provisions of this subsection;
(9) Establish and implement the benchmarks and performance
indicators necessary to measure institutional progress:
(A) In meeting state goals, objectives, and priorities
established in articles one and one-d of this chapter;
(B) In carrying out institutional missions; and
(C) In meeting the essential conditions established in article
three-c of this chapter;
(10) Collect and analyze data relating to the performance of
community and technical colleges in every region of West Virginia
and report periodically or as directed to the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability on the progress in meeting
the goals and objectives established in articles one and one-d of
this chapter.
Additionally, the council shall report annually during the
January interim meetings on a date and at a time and location to be determined by the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
House of Delegates.
The annual report shall address at least the following:
(A) The performance of the community and technical college
network during the previous fiscal year, including, but not limited
to, progress in meeting goals stated in the compacts and progress
of the institutions and the network as a whole in meeting the goals
and objectives established in articles one and one-d of this
chapter;
(B) The priorities established for capital investment needs
pursuant to subdivision (11) of this subsection and the
justification for such priority; and
(C) Recommendations of the council for statutory changes
necessary or expedient to achieve established state goals and
objectives.
(11) Establish a formal process for identifying needs for
capital investments and for determining priorities for these
investments for consideration by the Governor and the Legislature
as part of the appropriation request process. Notwithstanding the
language in subdivision eleven, subsection a, section four, article
one-b of this chapter, the commission is not a part of the process
for identifying needs for capital investments for the statewide
network of independently accredited community and technical
colleges;
(12) Draw upon the expertise available within the Governor's
Workforce Investment Office and the West Virginia Development
Office as a resource in the area of workforce development and
training;
(13) Acquire legal services that are considered necessary,
including representation of the council, its institutions,
employees and officers before any court or administrative body,
notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary.
The counsel may be employed either on a salaried basis or on a
reasonable fee basis. In addition, the council may, but is not
required to, call upon the Attorney General for legal assistance
and representation as provided by law;
(14) Employ a chancellor for community and technical college
education pursuant to section three of this article;
(15) Employ other staff as necessary and appropriate to carry
out the duties and responsibilities of the council consistent with
the provisions of section two, article four of this chapter;
(16) Employ other staff as necessary and appropriate to carry
out the duties and responsibilities of the council who are employed
solely by the council;
(17) Provide suitable offices in Charleston for the chancellor
and other staff
: Provided, That the offices may be located outside
of Charleston at a technology and research center;
(18) Approve the total compensation package from all sources for presidents of community and technical colleges, as proposed by
the governing boards. The governing boards must obtain approval
from the council of the total compensation package both when
presidents are employed initially and subsequently when any change
is made in the amount of the total compensation package;
(19) Establish and implement policies and procedures to ensure
that students may transfer and apply toward the requirements for a
degree the maximum number of credits earned at any regionally
accredited in-state or out-of-state higher education institution
with as few requirements to repeat courses or to incur additional
costs as is consistent with sound academic policy;
(20) Establish and implement policies and programs, jointly
with the community and technical colleges, through which students
who have gained knowledge and skills through employment,
participation in education and training at vocational schools or
other education institutions, or internet-based education programs,
may demonstrate by competency-based assessment that they have the
necessary knowledge and skills to be granted academic credit or
advanced placement standing toward the requirements of an associate
degree or a bachelor's degree at a state institution of higher
education;
(21) Seek out and attend regional and national meetings and
forums on education and workforce development-related topics, as
council members consider critical for the performance of their duties. The council shall keep abreast of national and regional
community and technical college education trends and policies to
aid members in developing the policies for this state that meet the
education goals and objectives established in articles one and one-
d of this chapter;
(22) Assess community and technical colleges for the payment
of expenses of the council or for the funding of statewide
services, obligations or initiatives related specifically to the
provision of community and technical college education;
(23) Promulgate rules allocating reimbursement of
appropriations, if made available by the Legislature, to community
and technical colleges for qualifying noncapital expenditures
incurred in the provision of services to students with physical,
learning or severe sensory disabilities;
(24) Assume the prior authority of the commission in examining
and approving tuition and fee increase proposals submitted by
community and technical college governing boards as provided in
section one, article ten of this chapter;
(25) Develop and submit to the commission, a single budget for
community and technical college education that reflects recommended
appropriations for community and technical colleges and that meets
the following conditions:
(A) Incorporates the provisions of the financing rule mandated
by this section to measure and provide performance funding to institutions which achieve or make significant progress toward
achieving established state objectives and priorities;
(B) Considers the progress of each institution toward meeting
the essential conditions set forth in section three, article three-
c of this chapter, including independent accreditation; and
(C) Considers the progress of each institution toward meeting
the goals objectives, and priorities established in article one-d
of this chapter and its approved institutional compact.
(26) Administer and distribute the independently accredited
community and technical college development account;
(27) Establish a plan of strategic funding to strengthen
capacity for support and assure delivery of high quality community
and technical college education in all regions of the state;
(28) Foster coordination among all state-level, regional and
local entities providing post-secondary vocational education or
workforce development and coordinate all public institutions and
entities that have a community and technical college mission;
(29) Assume the principal responsibility for oversight of
those community and technical colleges seeking independent
accreditation and for holding governing boards accountable for
meeting the essential conditions pursuant to article three-c of
this chapter;
(30) Advise and consent in the appointment of the presidents
of the community and technical colleges pursuant to section six, article one-b of this chapter. The role of the council in
approving a president is to assure through personal interview that
the person selected understands and is committed to achieving the
goals and objectives established in the institutional compact and
in articles one, one-d, and three-c of this chapter;
(31) Provide a single, statewide link for current and
prospective employers whose needs extend beyond one locality;
(32) Provide a mechanism capable of serving two or more
institutions to facilitate joint problem-solving in areas
including, but not limited to the following:
(A) Defining faculty roles and personnel policies;
(B) Delivering high-cost technical education programs across
the state;
(C) Providing one-stop service for workforce training to be
delivered by multiple institutions; and
(D) Providing opportunities for resource-sharing and
collaborative ventures;
(33) Provide support and technical assistance to develop,
coordinate, and deliver effective and efficient community and
technical college education programs and services in all regions of
the state;
(34) Assist the community and technical colleges in
establishing and promoting links with business, industry and labor
in the geographic areas for which each community and technical college is responsible;
(35) Develop alliances among the community and technical
colleges for resource sharing, joint development of courses and
courseware, and sharing of expertise and staff development;
(36) Serve aggressively as an advocate for development of a
seamless curriculum;
(37) Cooperate with all providers of education services in the
state to remove barriers relating to a seamless system of public
and higher education and to transfer and articulation between and
among community and technical colleges, state colleges and
universities and public education, preschool through grade twelve;
(38) Encourage the most efficient use of available resources;
(39) Coordinate with the commission in informing public school
students, their parents and teachers of the academic preparation
that students need in order to be prepared adequately to succeed in
their selected fields of study and career plans, including
presentation of academic career fairs;
(40) Jointly with the commission, approve and implement a
uniform standard, as developed by the chancellors, to determine
which students shall be placed in remedial or developmental
courses. The standard shall be aligned with college admission
tests and assessment tools used in West Virginia and shall be
applied uniformly by the governing boards throughout the public
higher education system. The chancellors shall develop a clear, concise explanation of the standard which the governing boards
shall communicate to the State Board of Education and the State
Superintendent of Schools;
(41) Develop and implement strategies and curriculum for
providing developmental education which shall be applied by any
state institution of higher education providing developmental
education;
(42) Develop a statewide system of community and technical
college programs and services in every region of West Virginia for
competency-based certification of knowledge and skills, including
a statewide competency-based associate degree program;
(43) Review and approve all institutional master plans for the
community and technical colleges pursuant to section four, article
two-a of this chapter;
(44) Propose rules for promulgation pursuant to subsection (b)
of this section and article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this
code that are necessary or expedient for the effective and
efficient performance of community and technical colleges in the
state;
(45) In its sole discretion, transfer any rule under its
jurisdiction, other than a legislative rule, to the jurisdiction of
the governing boards who may rescind, revise, alter or amend any
rule transferred pursuant to rules adopted by the council and
provide technical assistance to the institutions under its jurisdiction to aid them in promulgating rules;
(46) Develop for inclusion in the higher education report
card, as defined in section eight, article one-d of this chapter,
a separate section on community and technical colleges. This
section shall include, but is not limited to, evaluation of the
institutions based upon the benchmarks and indicators developed in
subdivision (9) of this subsection;
(47) Facilitate continuation of the Advantage Valley Community
College Network under the leadership and direction of Marshall
Community and Technical College;
(48) Initiate and facilitate creation of other regional
networks of affiliated community and technical colleges that the
council finds to be appropriate and in the best interests of the
citizens to be served;
(49) Develop with the State Board of Education plans for
secondary and post-secondary vocational-technical-occupational and
adult basic education, including, but not limited to the following:
(A) Policies to strengthen vocational-technical-occupational
and adult basic education; and
(B) Programs and methods to assist in the improvement,
modernization and expanded delivery of vocational-technical-
occupational and adult basic education programs;
(50) Distribute federal vocational education funding provided
under the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998, PL 105-332, with an emphasis on distributing financial
assistance among secondary and post-secondary vocational-
technical-occupational and adult basic education programs to help
meet the public policy agenda.
In distributing funds the council shall use the following
guidelines:
(A) The State Board of Education shall continue to be the
fiscal agent for federal vocational education funding;
(B) The percentage split between the State Board of Education
and the council shall be determined by rule promulgated by the
council under the provisions of article three-a, chapter twenty-
nine-a of this code. The council shall first obtain the approval
of the State Board of Education before proposing a rule;
(51) Collaborate, cooperate and interact with all secondary
and post-secondary vocational-technical-occupational and adult
basic education programs in the state, including the programs
assisted under the federal Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical
Education Act of 1998, PL 105-332, and the Workforce Investment Act
of 1998, to promote the development of seamless curriculum and the
elimination of duplicative programs;
(52) Coordinate the delivery of vocational-technical-
occupational and adult basic education in a manner designed to make
the most effective use of available public funds to increase
accessibility for students;
(53) Analyze and report to the State Board of Education on the
distribution of spending for vocational-technical-occupational and
adult basic education in the state and on the availability of
vocational-technical-occupational and adult basic education
activities and services within the state;
(54) Promote the delivery of vocational-technical-occupational
education, adult basic education and community and technical
college education programs in the state which emphasize the
involvement of business, industry and labor organizations;
(55) Promote public participation in the provision of
vocational-technical-occupational education, adult basic education
and community and technical education at the local level,
emphasizing programs which involve the participation of local
employers and labor organizations;
(56) Promote equal access to quality vocational-technical-
occupational education, adult basic education and community and
technical college education programs to handicapped and
disadvantaged individuals, adults in need of training and
retraining, single parents, homemakers, participants in programs
designed to eliminate sexual bias and stereotyping and criminal
offenders serving in correctional institutions;
(57) Meet annually between the months of October and December
with the Advisory Committee of Community and Technical College
Presidents created pursuant to section eight of this article to discuss those matters relating to community and technical college
education in which advisory committee members or the council may
have an interest;
(58) Accept and expend any gift, grant, contribution, bequest,
endowment or other money for the purposes of this article;
(59) Assume the powers set out in section nine of this
article. The rules previously promulgated by the State College
System Board of Directors pursuant to that section and transferred
to the commission are hereby transferred to the council and shall
continue in effect until rescinded, revised, altered or amended by
the council;
(60) Pursuant to the provisions of subsection (b) of this
section and article three-a, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code,
promulgate a uniform joint legislative rule with the commission for
the purpose of standardizing, as much as possible, the
administration of personnel matters among the institutions of
higher education;
(61) Determine when a joint rule among the governing boards of
the community and technical colleges is necessary or required by
law and, in those instances and in consultation with the governing
boards, promulgate the joint rule;
(62) Promulgate a joint rule with the commission establishing
tuition and fee policy for all institutions of higher education.
The rule shall include, but is not limited to, the following:
(A) Comparisons with peer institutions;
(B) Differences among institutional missions;
(C) Strategies for promoting student access;
(D) Consideration of charges to out-of-state students; and
(E) Any other policies the commission and council consider
appropriate;
(63) In cooperation with the West Virginia Division of
Highways, study a method for increasing the signage signifying
community and technical college locations along the state
interstate highways, and report to the Legislative Oversight
Commission on Education Accountability regarding any
recommendations and required costs; and
(64) Implement a policy jointly with the commission whereby
any course credit earned at a community and technical college
transfers for program credit at any other state institution of
higher education and is not limited to fulfilling a general
education requirement.
(d) In addition to the powers and duties listed in subsections
(a), (b) and (c) of this section, the council has the following
general powers and duties related to its role in developing,
articulating and overseeing the implementation of the public policy
agenda for community and technical colleges:
(1) Planning and policy leadership including a distinct and
visible role in setting the state's policy agenda for the delivery of community and technical college education and in serving as an
agent of change;
(2) Policy analysis and research focused on issues affecting
the community and technical college network as a whole or a
geographical region thereof;
(3) Development and implementation of each community and
technical college mission definition including use of incentive and
performance funds to influence institutional behavior in ways that
are consistent with achieving established state goals, objectives,
and priorities;
(4) Academic program review and approval for the institutions
under its jurisdiction, including the use of institutional missions
as a template to judge the appropriateness of both new and existing
programs and the authority to implement needed changes;
(5) Development of budget and allocation of resources for
institutions delivering community and technical college education,
including reviewing and approving institutional operating and
capital budgets and distributing incentive and performance-based
funding;
(6) Acting as the agent to receive and disburse public funds
related to community and technical college education when a
governmental entity requires designation of a statewide higher
education agency for this purpose;
(7) Development, establishment and implementation of information, assessment and internal accountability systems,
including maintenance of statewide data systems that facilitate
long-term planning and accurate measurement of strategic outcomes
and performance indicators for community and technical colleges;
(8) Jointly with the commission, development, establishment
and implementation of policies for licensing and oversight of both
public and private degree-granting and nondegree-granting
institutions that provide post-secondary education courses or
programs;
(9) Development, implementation and oversight of statewide and
regionwide projects and initiatives related specifically to
providing community and technical college education such as those
using funds from federal categorical programs or those using
incentive and performance-based funding from any source; and
(10) Quality assurance that intersects with all other duties
of the council particularly in the areas of planning, policy
analysis, program review and approval, budgeting and information
and accountability systems.
(e) The council may withdraw specific powers of a governing
board under its jurisdiction for a period not to exceed two years
if the council makes a determination that any of the following
conditions exist:
(1) The governing board has failed for two consecutive years
to develop an institutional compact as required in section seven, article one-d of this chapter;
(2) The council has received information, substantiated by
independent audit, of significant mismanagement or failure to carry
out the powers and duties of the board of governors according to
state law; or
(3) Other circumstances which, in the view of the council,
severely limit the capacity of the board of governors to carry out
its duties and responsibilities.
The period of withdrawal of specific powers may not exceed two
years during which time the council is authorized to take steps
necessary to reestablish the conditions for restoration of sound,
stable and responsible institutional governance.
(f) In addition to the powers and duties provided for in
subsections (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this section and any others
assigned to it by law, the council has those powers and duties
necessary or expedient to accomplish the purposes of this article;
and
(g) When the council and commission, each, is required to
consent, cooperate, collaborate or provide input into the actions
of the other the following conditions apply:
(1) The body acting first shall convey its decision in the
matter to the other body with a request for concurrence in the
action;
(2) The commission or the council, as the receiving body, shall place the proposal on its agenda and shall take final action
within sixty days of the date when the request for concurrence is
received; and
(3) If the receiving body fails to take final action within
sixty days, the original proposal stands and is binding on both the
commission and the council.
ARTICLE 4. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.
§18B-4-1. Employment of chancellors; designation of staff;
offices.
(a) The council and commission each shall employ a chancellor
to assist in the performance of their respective duties and
responsibilities subject to the following conditions:
(1) Each chancellor serves at the will and pleasure of the
hiring body.
(2) Neither chancellor may hold or retain any other
administrative position within the system of higher education while
employed as chancellor.
(3) Each chancellor is responsible for carrying out the
directives of the body by whom employed and shall work with that
body in developing policy options.
(4) The commission is responsible to the council and the
Chancellor for Community and Technical College Education for
providing services in areas essential to exercising the powers and
duties assigned to the council by law. The commission may not charge the council any fee for the provision of these essential
services. The service areas include, but are not limited to, legal
services, research, technology, computing, finance and facilities,
academic affairs, telecommunications, human resources, student
services and any other general areas the council considers to be
essential to the exercise of its legal authority. The services are
provided under the general supervision of the Vice Chancellor for
Administration.
(5) For the purpose of developing or evaluating policy
options, the chancellors may request the assistance of the
presidents and staff of the institutions under their respective
jurisdictions.
(b) In addition to the staff positions designated in
subdivision (4), subsection (a) of this section, the Vice
Chancellor for Administration, employed pursuant to section two of
this article, serves the offices of the chancellors to discharge
jointly the duties and responsibilities of the council and
commission.
(c) The Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences shall coordinate
the West Virginia University School of Medicine, the Marshall
University School of Medicine and the West Virginia School of
Osteopathic Medicine.
(d) Suitable offices for the vice chancellor of administration
and other staff shall be provided in Charleston
: Provided, That the offices may be located outside of Charleston at a technology
and research center.
_________
(NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to remove the requirement
that the offices of the Higher Education Policy Commission, the
Vice Chancellor for Administration and the West Virginia Council
for Community and Technical College Education be located in
Charleston, West Virginia.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.)