ARTICLE 2C. WEST VIRGINIA COMMUNITY AND TECHNICAL COLLEGE.

§18B-2C-1. Legislative findings; intent.

(a) Legislative findings. --

(1) The Legislature hereby finds that for nearly two decades legislation has been enacted having as a principal goal creation of a strong, effective system of community and technical education capable of meeting the needs of the citizens of the state. In furtherance of that goal, the Legislature has passed the following major pieces of legislation:

(A) Enrolled Senate Bill 420, passed during the regular session of one thousand nine hundred eighty-nine, reorganized the governance structure of public higher education and created the Joint Commission for Vocational-technical-occupational Education to bridge the gap between secondary and post-secondary vocational, technical, and occupational education;

(B) Enrolled Senate Bill 377, passed during the regular session of one thousand nine hundred ninety-three, adopted goals and objectives for public post-secondary education, addressed the needs of nontraditional students, directed the institutions to include an assessment of work force development needs in their master plans and established the resource allocation model and policies to aid governing boards and institutions in meeting the established goals and objectives;

(C) Enrolled Senate Bill 547, passed during the regular session of one thousand nine hundred ninety-five, established goals and funding for faculty and staff salaries, required the governing boards to establish community and technical education with the administrative, programmatic and budgetary control necessary to respond to local needs and provided that community and technical college budgets be appropriated to a separate control account;

(D) Enrolled Senate Bill 653, passed during the regular session of two thousand, established the commission to develop a public policy agenda for higher education in conjunction with state leaders, set forth the essential conditions that must be met by each community and technical college in the state, and mandated that most component community and technical colleges move to independent accreditation.

(E) Enrolled Senate Bill 703, passed during the regular session of two thousand one, authorized the creation of a statewide community and technical college to provide leadership and technical support to the community and technical colleges to aid them in achieving independent accreditation, enhance their ability to serve the interests of the people of West Virginia, and focus attention on achieving established state goals.

(F) Enrolled House Bill 2224, passed during the regular session of two thousand three, created New River Community and Technical College of Bluefield State College as a multicampus institution from existing community and technical college components, branches and off-campus delivery sites in order to give greater cohesiveness, emphasis and priority to meeting the essential conditions pursuant to section three, article three-c of this chapter and to provide greater access to high-quality programs in the institution's expanded service district.

(G) Enrolled Senate Bill 448, passed during the regular session of two thousand four, established the West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education as a separate coordinating agency with authority over state community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers, and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission.

(2) The Market Street Report, the McClenney Report, and the Implementation Board Report, cited in article two-b of this chapter, each reflects recent research and indicates that, while these legislative actions cited above have helped the state to make progress in certain areas of higher education, they have not offered a complete solution to the problems of community and technical colleges.

(b) Intent. -- Therefore, the intent of the Legislature in enacting these pieces of legislation is as follows:

(1) To provide logical steps in the process of developing strong institutions capable of delivering community and technical education to meet the needs of the state. Each act may be viewed as a building block added to the foundation laid by earlier legislation;

(2) To create a mechanism whereby the council, if necessary, can assure through its own direct action that the goals established in articles one, one-d, and three-c of this chapter are met; and

(3) To authorize the council to create the West Virginia Community and Technical College to serve the interests of the people of West Virginia by advancing the public policy agenda developed pursuant to article two-b of this chapter. If the council makes a determination under the provisions of this section that it is necessary or expedient to create the statewide community and technical college, the following goals are the specific focus of the college and its governing board:

(A) To encourage development of a statewide mission that raises education attainment, increases adult literacy, promotes work force and economic development, and ensures access to post-secondary education for every region of the state;

(B) To provide oversight or governance of the community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers, and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission;

(C) To provide leadership, support and coordination; and

(D) To protect and expand the local autonomy and flexibility necessary for community and technical colleges to succeed.

§18B-2C-2. Definitions.

The following words when used in this article and article two-b of this chapter have the meaning hereinafter ascribed to them unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

(a) "Adult basic education" means adult basic skills education designed to improve the basic literacy needs of adults, including information processing skills, communication skills and computational skills, leading to a high school equivalency diploma, under the jurisdiction of the state Board of Education.

(b) "Governing board" means the West Virginia council for community and technical college education when acting as the governing board for the West Virginia community and technical college created pursuant to the provisions of this article.

(c) "Post-secondary vocational-technical-occupational education" means any course or program beyond the high school level that results in, or may result in, the awarding of a two-year associate degree, certificate or other credential from an institution under the jurisdiction of a governing board or other public or private education provider.

(d) "Secondary vocational-technical-occupational education" means any course or program at the high school level that results in, or may result in, a high school diploma or its equivalent, under the jurisdiction of the state Board of Education.

(e) "Vice chancellor" means the vice chancellor for community and technical college education and work force development pursuant to section five, article one-b of this chapter.

(f) "West Virginia council for community and technical college education" or "council" means the council established pursuant to section three, article two-b of this chapter.

(g) "West Virginia community and technical college" or "college" means the statewide, accredited entity created pursuant to the provisions of this article.

§18B-2C-3. Authority and duty of council to determine progress of community and technical colleges; conditions; authority to create West Virginia Community and Technical College.

(a) The council annually shall review and analyze all the state community and technical colleges, and any branches, centers, regional centers or other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission, to determine their progress toward meeting the goals, objectives, priorities, and essential conditions established in articles one, one-d and three-c of this chapter.

(b) The analysis required in subsection (a) of this section shall be based, in whole or in part, upon the findings made pursuant to the rule establishing benchmarks and indicators promulgated by the council pursuant to section six, article two-b of this chapter.

(c) Based upon their analysis in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, the council shall make a determination whether any one or more of the following conditions exists:

(1) A community and technical college required to do so has not achieved or is not making sufficient, satisfactory progress toward achieving the essential conditions, including independent accreditation;

(2) One or more of the public community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission requires financial assistance or other support to meet the goals and essential conditions set forth in this chapter;

(3) It is in the best interests of the people of the state or a region within the state to have a single, accredited institution which can provide an umbrella of statewide accreditation;

(4) One or more of the state community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers or other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission requests from the council the type of assistance which can best be delivered through implementation of the provisions of section four of this article. Institutional requests that may be considered by the council include, but are not limited to, assistance in seeking and/or attaining independent accreditation, in meeting the goals, priorities and essential conditions established in articles one, one-d and three-c of this chapter, or in establishing and implementing regional networks;

(5) One or more state community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers or other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission has not achieved, or is not making sufficient, satisfactory progress toward achieving, the goals, objectives and essential conditions established in articles one, one-d and three-c of this chapter; and

(6) The council determines that it is in the best interests of the people of the state or a region of the state to create a statewide, independently accredited community and technical college.

(d) The council may not make a determination subject to the provisions of this section that a condition does not exist based upon a finding that the higher education entity lacks sufficient funds to make sufficient, satisfactory progress.

§18B-2C-4. Authority of council in creating West Virginia community and technical college.

(a) Subject to the provisions of subsection (c), section three of this article, if the council makes a determination that one or more of the conditions exists, then the council is authorized to create the West Virginia community and technical college.

(b) As soon as practicable after the council determines that the college should be created, the council shall notify the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Delegates and the Legislative Oversight commission on education accountability of the proposed actions. The council shall conduct a study regarding the procedures, findings and determinations considered necessary prior to any creation of the college and shall report its findings to the Legislative Oversight commission on education accountability. The council may not create the college prior to the report being received by the Legislative Oversight commission on education accountability.

(c) On or before December 1, of the year in which the college is created, the council shall certify to the Legislative Oversight commission on education accountability proposed legislation to accomplish the purposes of this article for those matters requiring statutory change.

§18B-2C-5. Transfer of powers, duties, property, obligations, etc., of prior governing boards to the governing board of West Virginia community and technical college.

If the commission determines that any of the conditions provided for in section three of this article have been met, then as to those entities to whom the conditions apply, the commission may:

(1) Designate the governing boards that shall become institutional boards of advisors and transfer governing authority of that board to the governing board of the college;

(2) Transfer as appropriate, consistent with state law, all powers, duties, property, obligations, contracts, rules, orders, resolutions or any other matters which should be transferred or vested in the governing board;

(3) Assign powers and duties to the governing board and the college as may be necessary or expedient to accomplish the purposes of this article;

(4) Create the office of president of the college; and

(5) Take such other action as necessary or expedient to accomplish the purposes of this chapter.

§18B-2C-6. Powers and duties of governing board for the West Virginia community and technical college.

(a) The council created pursuant to article two-b of this chapter is the governing board for the West Virginia community and technical college.

(b) The powers and duties of the governing board are as follows:

(1) To assist the public community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission in any way practicable to meet the goals and objectives set forth in section one-a, article one of this chapter;

(2) To assist in meeting any other goals or objectives adopted by the commission as part of its public policy agenda;

(3) To accept and expend any gift, grant, contribution, bequest, endowment or other money for the purposes of this article;

(4) To exercise all the powers and duties ascribed to governing boards in section four, article two-a of this chapter; and

(5) To meet annually between the months of October and December with the advisory committee of community and technical college presidents and provosts created pursuant to section eight, article two-b of this chapter to discuss those matters relating to community and technical college education in which advisory committee members or the council may have an interest.

(c) The governing board has the following powers and duties as to all institutions:

(1) To coordinate public community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers, and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission including, but not limited to, those that are free-standing or administratively-linked to a sponsoring institution.

(2) To negotiate arrangements with individual entities who may elect to become units of the college for academic and accreditation purposes while retaining certain administrative links to a sponsoring institution;

(3) To develop the college as a statewide, accredited institution through which multiple, affiliated entities and sites may achieve accreditation;

(4) To provide directly to community and technical colleges, branches, centers, regional centers and other delivery sites with a community and technical college mission, certain support services including, but not limited to, student information systems, registration, financial and accounting systems and employee recordkeeping; and

(5) To exercise all the powers and duties assigned to the council pursuant to the provisions of article two-b of this chapter or by the commission.

(d) Subject to the supervision of the commission, the governing board has the following powers and duties as to any entity meeting the conditions of transfer pursuant to section four of this article:

(1) To govern and have direct academic and administrative responsibility for any public community and technical college, branch, center, regional center, or other delivery site with a community and technical college mission.

(2) To require the entities to seek independent accreditation through the college.

(3) To allocate state budgetary resources to the entity; and

(4) With the advice and consent of the commission, to appoint the administrative heads of institutions governed by the governing board.

§18B-2C-7. Powers and duties of vice chancellor as president of the West Virginia community and technical college.

The vice chancellor serves as the acting president of the college until such time as a president is selected as prescribed by law. As acting president, the vice chancellor has all the powers and duties assigned by law, by the commission or by the governing board. In addition, the vice chancellor shall continue to exercise all other powers and duties assigned by law or by the commission.