H . B. 4109 \


(By Mr. Speaker, Mr. Chambers, Delegates Spencer,
Mezzatesta and Ashcraft)

[Introduced January 24, 1994; referred to the
Committee on Education then Finance.]



A BILL to amend and reenact section seven, article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended; and to amend and reenact section eight, article one, chapter eighteen-b of said code, all relating to designating sign language as an accepted course of study for credit as a foreign language in secondary and higher education.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

That section seven, article two, chapter eighteen of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, be amended and reenacted; and that section eight, article one, chapter eighteen-b of said code be amended and reenacted, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 18. EDUCATION.

ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.

§ 18-2-7. Courses of study; language of instruction.

The state board of education shall prescribe minimum standards in the courses of study to be offered in elementary schools, high schools, vocational schools and in all other kinds, grades and classes of schools or departments thereof, which may now or hereafter be maintained in the state, in whole or in part, from any state fund or funds: Provided, That the courses of study in the public schools in the state shall be prepared by the faculties, teachers or other constituted authority thereof, and shall, before going into effect, be submitted to the state board of education for its approval. The basic language of instruction in all schools, public, private and parochial, shall be the English language only. The state board shall not adopt any policies or rules which set out time requirements within the instructional day for instruction in kindergarten through fourth grade.

The state board of education shall provide that sign language may be accepted as a credited course of study as a foreign language in elementary schools, high schools, vocational schools and in all other kinds, grades and classes of schools or departments thereof.
CHAPTER 18B. HIGHER EDUCATION.

ARTICLE 1. GOVERNANCE.

§ 18B-1-8. Powers and duties of governing boards generally.

(a) Each governing board shall separately have the power and duty to:

(1) Determine, control, supervise and manage the financial, business and educational policies and affairs of the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction;
(2) Prepare a master plan for the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction, setting forth the goals, missions, degree offerings, resource requirements, physical plant needs, state personnel needs, enrollment levels and other planning determinates and projections necessary in such a plan to assure that the needs of the state for a quality system of higher education are addressed: Provided, That the master plan for post-secondary vocational education is subject to approval by the joint commission for vocational-technical-occupational education. The plan shall also address the roles and missions of private post-secondary education providers in the state. Each board shall involve the executive and legislative branches of state government and the general public in the development of all segments of the plan for post-secondary education in the state. The plan shall be established for periods of not less than five nor more than ten years and shall be periodically revised as necessary, including the addition or deletion of degree programs as, in the discretion of the boards, may be necessary. Whenever a state institution of higher education desires to establish a new degree program, such program proposal shall not be implemented until the same is filed with both governing boards. Upon objection thereto within sixty days by either governing board, such program proposal shall be filed with the secretary of education and the arts, who shall approve or disapprove such proposal within one year of the filing of said program proposal;
(3) Prescribe and allocate among the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction, in accordance with its master plan, specific functions and responsibilities to meet the higher education needs of the state and to avoid unnecessary duplication;
(4) Consult with the executive branch and the Legislature in the establishment of funding parameters, priorities and goals;
(5) Establish guidelines for and direct the preparation of budget requests for each of the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction, such requests to relate directly to missions, goals and projections in its state master plan;
(6) Consider, revise and submit to the appropriate agencies of the executive and legislative branches of state government separate budget requests on behalf of the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction or a single budget for the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction: Provided, That when a single budget is submitted, that budget shall be accompanied by a tentative schedule of proposed allocations of funds to the separate state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction;
(7) Prepare and submit to the speaker of the House of Delegates and the president of the Senate, no later than the first day of each regular session of the Legislature, and to any member of the Legislature upon request, an analysis of the budget request submitted under subdivision (6) of this subsection. The analysis shall summarize all amounts and sources of funds outside of the general revenue fund anticipated to be received by each state institution of higher education under its jurisdiction and the effect of such funds on the budget request;
(8) Prepare and submit to the legislative auditor, no later than the first day of July of each year, the approved operating budgets of each state institution of higher education under its jurisdiction for the fiscal year beginning on that date and, no later than the first day of August, a summary of federal and other external funds received at each such institution during the previous fiscal year;
(9) Establish a system of information and data management that can be effectively utilized in the development and management of higher education policy, mission and goals;
(10) Review, at least every five years, all academic programs offered at the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction. The review shall address the viability, adequacy and necessity of the programs in relation to its master plan and the educational and work force needs of the state. As a part of such review, each governing board shall require each of its institutions to conduct periodic studies of its graduates and their employers to determine placement patterns and the effectiveness of the educational experience. Where appropriate, these studies should make use of the studies required of many academic disciplines by their accrediting bodies. The governing boards shall also ensure that the sequence and availability of academic programs and courses is such that students have the maximum opportunity to complete programs in the time frame normally associated with program completion, that the needs of nontraditional college age students are appropriately addressed, and that core course work completed at any state institution of higher education is transferable to another state institution of higher education for credit with the grade earned. Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to the contrary, after the effective date of this section the appropriate governing board shall have the exclusive authority to approve the teacher education programs offered in the institutions under their control. In order to permit graduates of teacher education programs to receive a degree from a nationally accredited program and in order to prevent expensive duplication of program accreditation, the boards may select and utilize one nationally recognized teacher education program accreditation standard as the appropriate standard for program evaluation;
(11) Utilize faculty, students and classified staff in institutional level planning and decision making when those groups are affected;
(12) Administer a uniform system of personnel classification and compensation for all employees other than faculty and policy level administrators;
(13) Establish a uniform system for the hearing of employee grievances and appeals therefrom, so that aggrieved parties may be assured of timely and objective review;
(14) Solicit and utilize or expend voluntary support, including financial contributions and support services, for the state institutions of higher education;
(15) Appoint a president or other administrative head for each institution of higher education from candidates submitted by the search and screening committees of the institutional boards of advisors pursuant to section one, article six of this chapter;
(16) Conduct written performance evaluations of each institution's president in every fourth year of employment as president, recognizing unique characteristics of the institution and utilizing institutional personnel, institutional boards of advisors, staff of the appropriate governing board and persons knowledgeable in higher education matters who are not otherwise employed by a governing board;
(17) Submit to the joint committee on government and finance, no later than the first day of December of each year, an annual report of the performance of the system of higher education under its jurisdiction during the previous fiscal year as compared to stated goals in its master plan and budget appropriations for that fiscal year; and
(18) The governing boards shall have the power and authority to Enter into contracts or consortium agreements with the public schools, private schools or private industry to provide technical, vocational, college preparatory, remedial and customized training courses at locations either on campuses of public institutions of higher education or at off-campus locations in such institutions' regional educational service areas. To accomplish this goal, the boards are permitted to share resources among the various groups in the community. The governing boards shall promulgate uniform legislative rules providing for entering into said contracts and consortium agreements and for determining and granting credit for work experience for courses offered by the consortium; and
(19) Provide that sign language may be accepted as a credited course of study as a foreign language.
(b) The power, herein given to each governing board to prescribe and allocate among the state institutions of higher education under its jurisdiction specific functions and responsibilities to meet the higher educational needs of the state and avoid unnecessary duplication, shall not be restricted by any provision of law assigning specified functions and responsibilities to designated state institutions of higher education, and such power shall supersede any such provision of law: Provided, That each governing board may delegate, with prescribed standards and limitations, such part of its power and control over the business affairs of a particular state institution of higher education to the president or other administrative head of such state institution of higher education in any case where it deems such delegation necessary and prudent in order to enable such institution to function in a proper and expeditious manner: Provided, however, That such delegation shall not be interpreted to include classification of employees, lawful appeals made by students in accordance with the appropriate governing board's policy, lawful appeals made by faculty or staff or final review of new or established academic or other programs. Any such delegation of power and control may be rescinded by the appropriate governing board at any time, in whole or in part.
(c) The governing boards shall promulgate uniform legislative rules by the first day of September, one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, setting forth standards for acceptance of advanced placement credit for their respective institutions. Individual departments at institutions of higher education may, upon approval of the institutional faculty senate, require higher scores on the advanced placement test than scores designated by the appropriate governing board when the credit is to be used toward meeting a requirement of the core curriculum for a major in that department.
(d) Each governing board and/or an individual appointed by the president of each institution shall consult, cooperate and work with the state treasurer and the state auditor to develop an efficient and cost-effective system for the financial management and expenditure of special revenue and appropriated state funds for higher education that ensures that properly submitted requests for payment be paid within fifteen days of receipt in the state auditor's office. The system shall be established and implemented as soon as practical and the governing boards shall report to the legislative oversight commission on education accountability prior to the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, regarding the efficacy of the system.
(e) The governing boards shall implement by the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, a uniform and consistent method of conducting personnel transactions including, but not limited to, hiring, dismissal, promotions and transfers at all institutions under their jurisdiction. Each such personnel transaction shall be accompanied by the appropriate standardized system or forms which will be submitted to the respective governing boards, secretary of education and the arts, department of finance and administration and the legislative oversight commission on education accountability.



NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to designate sign language as a credited course of study as a foreign language in secondary education and higher education levels.

Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.