ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 547
(By Senators Tomblin, Mr. President, and Boley,
By Request of the Executive)
____________
[Passed March 11, 1995; in effect from passage.]
____________
AN ACT to repeal section four, article three-a, chapter
eighteen-a of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine
hundred thirty-one, as amended; to amend and reenact
section forty-eight, article three, chapter five-a of said
code; to amend and reenact section eleven, article three,
chapter twelve of said code; to amend and reenact section
four, article twenty-nine, chapter eighteen of said code;
to amend and reenact sections one-a, one-b, two, eight and
eight-a, article one, chapter eighteen-b of said code; to
further amend said article by adding thereto two new
sections, designated sections one-c and one-d; to amend
and reenact sections one, three and four, article three of said chapter; to further amend said article by adding
thereto a new section, designated section three-a; to
amend and reenact section one, article four of said
chapter; to amend and reenact sections four, five, six and
seven, article five of said chapter; to further amend said
article by adding thereto three new sections, designated
sections two-b, two-c and eight; to amend and reenact
section one, article six of said chapter; to amend and
reenact section one, article seven of said chapter; to
further amend said article by adding thereto a new
section, designated section eleven; to amend and reenact
sections two and twelve, article nine of said chapter; to
further amend said article by adding thereto a new
section, designated section six; to amend and reenact
section one, article ten of said chapter; to amend article
eleven of said chapter by adding thereto a new section,
designated section five; and to amend article fourteen of
said chapter by adding thereto a new section, designated
section five, all relating to achieving goals for higher
education; exempting higher education governing boards and
their institutions from rules relating to travel and purchase of vehicles; extending default provision at level
one for grievances and requiring dual filing for cases
relating to higher education; deleting obsolete language;
expressing goals relating to relevance and quality for
post-secondary education and expressing goals for student
access, entrepreneurial programs and good citizenship;
requiring governing boards to report strategic plans
relating to salary targets and resource allocation
exceptions; increasing flexibility and capacity for change
relating to retirement and separation incentives, pilot
flexibility initiatives and consolidation of
administrative functions; revising definitions; updating
powers and duties of governing boards generally and
authorizing employment of legal counsel; requiring
governing boards to adopt rules providing for the
collection, analysis and dissemination of higher education
report cards; adding three members to the board of
directors of the state college system; establishing
community and technical college education; creating
positions of vice chancellor for instructional technology
and vice chancellor for community and technical education; updating purchasing and bidding procedures for
institutions of higher education; extending terms for
members of the institutional board of advisors for faculty
and classified employees; retaining bumping rights for
classified employees involuntarily transferred;
eliminating the five-percent salary provision for
probationary employees; providing compensatory time off in
lieu of overtime for employees of governing boards;
creating an institute for instructional technology; and
authorizing governing boards to sell property.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section four, article three-a, chapter eighteen-a of
the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty-
one, as amended, be repealed; that section forty-eight, article
three, chapter five-a of said code be amended and reenacted;
that section eleven, article three, chapter twelve of said code
be amended and reenacted; that section four, article twenty-
nine, chapter eighteen of said code be amended and reenacted;
that sections one-a, one-b, two, eight and eight-a, article
one, chapter eighteen-b of said code be amended and reenacted;
that said article be further amended by adding thereto two new sections, designated sections one-c and one-d; that sections
one, three and four, article three of said chapter be amended
and reenacted; that said article be further amended by adding
thereto a new section, designated section three-a; that section
one, article four of said chapter be amended and reenacted;
that sections four, five, six and seven, article five of said
chapter be amended and reenacted; that said article be further
amended by adding thereto three new sections, designated
sections two-b, two-c and eight; that section one, article six
of said chapter be amended and reenacted; that section one,
article seven of said chapter be amended and reenacted; that
said article be further amended by adding thereto a new
section, designated section eleven; that sections two and
twelve, article nine of said chapter be amended and reenacted;
that said article be further amended by adding thereto a new
section, designated section six; that section one, article ten
of said chapter be amended and reenacted; that article eleven
of said chapter be amended by adding thereto a new section,
designated section five; and that article fourteen of said
chapter be amended by adding thereto a new section, designated
section five, all to read as follows:
CHAPTER 5A. DEPARTMENT OF ADMINISTRATION.
ARTICLE 3. PURCHASING DIVISION.
§5A-3-48. Travel rules; exceptions.
The secretary of administration shall promulgate rules
relating to the ownership, purchase, use, storage, maintenance
and repair of all motor vehicles and aircraft owned by the
state of West Virginia and in the possession of any department,
institution or agency thereof:
Provided, That the provisions
of sections forty-eight through fifty-three of this article
shall not apply to the division of highways of the department
of transportation, the division of public safety of the
department of military affairs and public safety, the division
of natural resources, the division of forestry, the department
of agriculture and the higher education governing boards and
their institutions:
Provided, however, That the higher
education governing boards and their institutions shall report
annually to the secretary of education and the arts and the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability in
a form and manner as required by the secretary of education and
the arts. Such report shall include at least the following:
The number of vehicles purchased and the purchase price, the number of donated vehicles, and the cost of lease agreements on
leased vehicles.
If, in the judgment of the secretary of administration,
economy or convenience indicate the expediency thereof, the
secretary may require all vehicles and the aircraft subject to
regulation by this article, or such of them as he or she may
designate, to be kept in such garages, and other places of
storage, and to be made available in such manner and under such
terms for the official use of such departments, institutions,
agencies, officers, agents and employees of the state as the
secretary may designate by any such rule as he or she may from
time to time promulgate. The secretary also has the authority
to administer the travel regulations promulgated by the
governor in accordance with section eleven, article three,
chapter twelve of this code, unless otherwise determined by the
governor.
Provisions of this section relating to the governing
boards of higher education and the institutions under their
jurisdiction shall expire on the first day of July, two
thousand one, unless the continuation thereof is authorized by
the legislative oversight commission on education accountability.
CHAPTER 12. PUBLIC MONEYS AND SECURITIES.
ARTICLE 3. APPROPRIATIONS, EXPENDITURES AND DEDUCTIONS.
§12-3-11. Travel expenses; rules to be promulgated concerning
same; dues to voluntary organizations; recruitment
expenses for West Virginia higher education governing
boards; moving expenses of employees of West Virginia
higher education governing boards.
The governor shall promulgate rules and regulations
concerning out-of-state travel by state officials and
employees, except those in the legislative and judicial
branches of the state government and except for the attorney
general, auditor, secretary of state, treasurer, board of
investments, commissioner of agriculture and their employees,
and the higher education governing boards and institutions
under their jurisdiction. The Legislature, the supreme court
of appeals and the attorney general, auditor, secretary of
state, treasurer, board of investments, commissioner of
agriculture and the higher education governing boards shall
promulgate rules and regulations concerning out-of-state travel
for their respective branches and departments of state
government. Copies of such rules and regulations shall be filed with the auditor, and the secretary of state. It shall
be unlawful for the auditor to issue a warrant in payment of
any claim for out-of-state travel expenses incurred by a state
officer or employee unless such claim meets all the
requirements of the rules and regulations so filed.
Payment for dues or membership in annual or other
voluntary organizations shall be made from the proper item or
appropriation after an itemized schedule of such organizations,
together with the amount of such dues or membership, has been
submitted to the budget director and approved by the governor.
It shall be lawful for a higher education governing board
to authorize the payment of traveling expenses incurred by any
person invited to visit the campus of any state institution of
higher education or any other facility under control of the
board to be interviewed concerning his possible employment by
the board or agent thereof.
It shall be lawful for a higher education governing board
to authorize payment of: (1) All or part of the reasonable
expense incurred by a person newly employed by the board in
moving his household furniture, effects and immediate family to
his place of employment; and (2) all or part of the reasonable expense incurred by an employee of the board in moving his
household furniture, effects and immediate family as a result
of a reassignment of the employee which is considered
desirable, advantageous to and in the best interest of the
state:
Provided, That no part of the moving expenses of any
one such employee shall be paid more frequently than once in
twelve months.
Provisions of this section relating to the governing
boards of higher education and the institutions under their
control shall expire on the first day of July, two thousand
one, unless the continuation thereof is authorized by the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability.
CHAPTER 18. EDUCATION.
ARTICLE 29. GRIEVANCE PROCEDURE.
§18-29-4. Procedural levels and procedure at each level.
(a) Level one.
(1) Before a grievance is filed and within fifteen days
following the occurrence of the event upon which the grievance
is based, or within fifteen days of the date on which the event
became known to the grievant or within fifteen days of the most
recent occurrence of a continuing practice giving rise to a grievance, the grievant or the designated representative shall
schedule a conference with the immediate supervisor to discuss
the nature of the grievance and the action, redress or other
remedy sought.
The conference with the immediate supervisor concerning
the grievance shall be conducted within ten days of the request
therefor, and any discussion shall be by the grievant in the
grievant's own behalf or by both the grievant and the
designated representative.
(2) The immediate supervisor shall respond to the
grievance within ten days of the conference.
(3) Within ten days of receipt of the response from the
immediate supervisor following the informal conference, a
written grievance may be filed with said supervisor, or in the
case where the grievance involves an event under the
jurisdiction of a state institution of higher education, the
grievance shall be filed with said supervisor and the office of
personnel, by the grievant or the designated representative on
a form furnished by the employer or agent.
(4) The immediate supervisor shall state the decision to
such filed grievance within ten days after the grievance is filed.
(b) Level two.
Within five days of receiving the decision of the
immediate supervisor, the grievant may appeal the decision to
the chief administrator, and such administrator or his or her
designee shall conduct a hearing in accordance with section six
of this article within five days of receiving the appeal and
shall issue a written decision within five days of such
hearing. Such decision may affirm, modify or reverse the
decision appealed from. Level four hearing examiners or the
chief administrator shall have the authority to subpoena
witnesses and documents for level two and level three hearings
in accordance with the provision of section one, article five,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, and may issue a subpoena
upon the written request of any party to the grievance.
(c) Level three.
Within five days of receiving the decision of the chief
administrator, the grievant may appeal the decision to the
governing board of the institution or may proceed directly to
level four. An appeal to the governing board shall set forth
the reasons why the grievant is seeking a level three review of the decision of the chief administrator. Within five days of
receiving the appeal, such governing board may conduct a
hearing in accordance with section six of this article, may
review the record submitted by the chief administrator and
render a decision based on such record or may waive the right
granted herein and shall notify the grievant of such waiver.
Any decision by the governing board, including a decision to
waive participation in the grievance, shall be in writing and
shall set forth the reasons for such decision, including the
decision to waive participation in the grievance. If a hearing
is held under the provisions of this subsection, the governing
board shall issue a decision affirming, modifying or reversing
the decision of the chief administrator within five days of
such hearing.
(d) Level four.
(1) If the grievant is not satisfied with the action taken
by the chief administrator or, if appealed to level three, the
action taken by the governing board, within five days of the
written decision the grievant may request, in writing, on a
form furnished by the employer, that the grievance be submitted
to a hearing examiner as provided for in section five of this article, such hearing to be conducted in accordance with
section six of this article within ten days following the
request therefor:
Provided, That such hearing may be held
within thirty days following the request or within such time as
is mutually agreed upon by the parties, if the hearing examiner
gives reasonable cause, in writing, as to the necessity for
such delay.
(2) Within thirty days following the hearing, the hearing
examiner shall render a decision in writing to all parties
setting forth findings and conclusions on the issues submitted.
Subject to the provisions of section seven of this article, the
decision of the hearing examiner shall be final upon the
parties and shall be enforceable in circuit court.
All information and data generated by the board and in its
custody relative to level four decisions and copies of such
decisions shall be provided at reasonable cost to any
individual requesting it.
CHAPTER 18B. HIGHER EDUCATION.
ARTICLE 1. GOVERNANCE.
§18B-1-1a. Goals for post-secondary education.
(a)
Findings and directives. -- The Legislature finds that higher education is a vital force in the future of West
Virginia. For the state to realize its considerable potential
in the twenty-first century, West Virginia should invest in its
people through a strong and dynamic higher education system.
The Legislature further finds that the people of West
Virginia have demonstrated their support for this finding
through their involvement and comments at meetings held
throughout the state pursuant to Senate Concurrent Resolution
No. 30 adopted at the regular session of the West Virginia
Legislature, one thousand nine hundred ninety-two. The
Legislature, also, endorses the report submitted by the higher
education advocacy team pursuant to said resolution and directs
the affected educational agencies to implement unified
strategies for accomplishing the needed improvements.
(b)
Goals and objectives. -- In the pursuance of the above
findings, the following goals and objectives are hereby adopted
with respect to the investments which are necessary for higher
education in West Virginia to contribute fully to the growth,
development and quality of life of the state and its citizens:
(1) Students should be better prepared in high school to
meet college standards jointly agreed upon by higher education and the public schools as required under subsection (c),
section five of this article. Those standards should be
conveyed to students prior to entering tenth grade;
(2) More students should obtain education that is both
high quality and relevant, beyond the high school level for our
individual and collective economic development:
(A) The awareness of post-secondary educational
opportunities among the state's citizens should be expanded and
their motivation to take advantage of available opportunities
should be enhanced;
(B) Assistance in overcoming the financial barriers to
post-secondary education should be provided;
(C) A student-friendly environment should be created
within post-secondary education to encourage and expand
participation for the increasingly diverse student population;
(D) All West Virginians, whether traditional or
nontraditional students, displaced workers or those currently
employed should have access to post-secondary educational
opportunities through their community and technical colleges,
colleges and universities which is relevant, affordable, allows
them to gain transferrable credits and associate or higher level degrees, provides quality technical education and skill
training, and is responsive to business, industry, labor and
community needs;
(E) The development of entrepreneurial skills through such
programs as the rural entrepreneurialship through action
learning (REAL) should be encouraged, including skills
assessment, needs analysis and business plan development; and
(F) More opportunities should be available for advanced
high school students to obtain college credit prior to high
school graduation;
(3) Students should be prepared to practice good
citizenship to compete in a global economy in which the good
jobs will require an advanced education and level of skill
which far surpasses former requirements:
(A) Academic preparation should be improved to ensure that
students enrolling in programs of post-secondary education are
adequately prepared to be successful in their selected fields
of study and career plans;
(B) College graduates should meet or exceed national and
international standards for skill levels in reading, oral and
written communications, mathematics, critical thinking, science and technology, research and human relations;
(C) College graduates should meet or exceed national and
international standards for performance in their fields through
national accreditation of programs and through outcomes
assessment of graduates;
(D) The faculties in higher education should include
elements of citizenship development across the curriculum in
core areas, including practical applications such as community
service, civic involvement and participation in charitable
organizations or in the many opportunities for the responsible
exercise of citizenship that higher education institutions
provide;
(4) Resources should be focused on programs and courses
which offer the greatest opportunities for students and the
greatest opportunity for job creation and retention in the
state:
(A) An entrepreneurial spirit and flexibility should be
created within higher education to respond to the needs of the
current work force and other nontraditional students for
college-level skills upgrading and retraining;
(B) A focus should be created on programs supportive of West Virginia employment opportunities and the emerging high
technology industries;
(C) Closer linkages should be established among higher
education and business, labor, government, community and
economic development organizations;
(5) Resources should be used to their maximum potential
and faculty and technology should be combined in a way that
makes West Virginia higher education more productive than
similar institutions in other states:
(A) Institutional missions should be clarified and
resources should be shifted to programs which meet the current
and future work force needs of the state;
(B) Program duplication necessary for geographic access
should be determined and unnecessary duplication should be
eliminated;
(C) Systematic ongoing mechanisms should be established
for each state institution of higher education to set goals,
measure the extent to which those goals are met and use results
of quantitative evaluation processes to improve institutional
effectiveness;
(D) Institutional productivity and administrative efficiency standards should be established to ensure that state
institutions of higher education are more productive and
efficient than similar institutions in other states; and
(6) The compensation of faculty, staff and administrators
should be established at competitive levels to attract and keep
quality personnel at state institutions of higher education:
(A) Faculty and staff classification and compensation at
state institutions of higher education should be competitive
with relevant market levels;
(B) Available revenues should be distributed in an
equitable fashion which enables each state institution of
higher education to fulfill its mission and reward its
employees appropriately; and
(C) It is the goal for post-secondary education to move
faculty salaries to one hundred percent of peer averages. As
part of this long-term strategy the state should make every
effort to provide funds to assist the institutions in moving to
that goal.
§18B-1-1b. Implementation of findings, directives, goals and
objectives.
The governing boards shall develop a plan for implementation of the legislative findings, directives, goals
and objectives set forth in section one-a of this article,
including benchmarks to ensure accountability in achieving said
findings, directives, goals and objectives, in consultation
with the secretary of education and the arts, the president of
the state board of education, the president of the West
Virginia association of private colleges, the president of the
joint commission for vocational-technical-occupational
education and the president of the West Virginia economic
development council. A written report of the plan required by
this section, including the plans required of the state
institutions of higher education pursuant to section one-c of
this article and any resource allocation exceptions granted
thereunder, shall be submitted to the governor and the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability by
the first day of December, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
five, and thereafter. Progress toward achieving said goals and
objectives shall be reported in the higher education report
card required pursuant to section eight-a of this article. The
secretary shall conduct an ongoing review of the plans
submitted by the governing boards and the strategic plans submitted by the institutions and shall annually report to the
Legislature his or her opinion as to the progress of the
governing boards and institutions in accomplishing the goals
and objectives set forth in the plan. The secretary shall also
report to the Legislature any plans which do not, in the
opinion of the secretary, set appropriate goals and objectives
and any institutions which are not in compliance with their
plan.
§18B-1-1c. Strategically focusing resources to maximize
opportunity; institution plans; resource allocation
exceptions.
(a) To achieve the goals for post-secondary education as
set forth in section one-a of this article, each of the
following state institutions of higher education shall prepare
a strategic plan of change to refocus its mission and
leadership, and restructure its existing resources and
programs: Bluefield state college; Concord college; Glenville
state college; Fairmont state college; Marshall university;
West Virginia northern community college; Potomac state college
of West Virginia university; Shepherd college; southern West
Virginia community college; West Liberty state college; the West Virginia graduate college; West Virginia institute of
technology; West Virginia university at Parkersburg; West
Virginia school of osteopathic medicine; West Virginia state
college; West Virginia university; and all branch campuses of
these institutions of higher education. Such plans shall
specifically state how the institution will, over a five-year
period, refocus its mission and leadership and restructure its
existing resources and programs to achieve the goals for post-
secondary education including, but not limited to, the
following: (1) Increase average faculty salaries at the
institution, not including health sciences, to a level at least
equal to ninety-five percent of the average faculty salaries at
peer institutions in the southern regional education board
region:
Provided, That West Virginia university, excluding
West Virginia university at Parkersburg and Potomac state
college of West Virginia university shall state specifically
how it will increase average faculty salaries at that
institution, not including health sciences, to a level at least
equal to ninety percent of the average faculty salaries at peer
institutions in the southern regional education board region;
(2) achieve full funding of the uniform employee classification system and salary policy for classified employees adopted by
the respective governing boards pursuant to section four,
article nine of this chapter; (3) eliminate duplicative
programs and services, acting alone or in conjunction with
another institution, and eliminate under-utilized or
unnecessary programs; (4) may combine administrative functions
among other institutions; and (5) use admission and exit
standards for students, incentives and staff development for
assuring quality teaching and learning and the critical
assessment of programs to meet the goals. The plan shall also
state the manner in which any pay increases will be funded, the
sources of any funds used for pay increases, and the savings
and costs associated with achieving any other goals specified
in the plan and how the funds are to be redirected. The
faculty senate, classified staff council and the student
government association shall be consulted prior to the
submission of the plan and their recommendations included in
the presidents report to the board. Beginning the first day of
July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six, the budgets of
state institutions of higher education shall reflect movement
to the salary targets for faculty and classified staff as set forth in this section and any other goals specified in their
strategic plan for change.
(b) The president or administrative head of each state
institution of higher education shall submit the plan for the
institution to its respective governing board on or before the
first day of November, one thousand nine hundred ninety-five:
Provided, That community and technical college education shall
not be required to be segregated in such plan until the first
day of November, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six. The
governing boards shall approve or disapprove such plans within
sixty days of receipt and notify the institution president or
administrative head of its decision:
Provided, however, That
if the plan submitted by the institution includes retirement
and separation incentives pursuant to section one-d of this
article, such portion of the plan shall be submitted by the
governing board to the legislative joint standing committee on
pensions and retirement, and the time required for review by
such committee shall not be included in the sixty days. If
disapproved, the governing board shall return the plan to the
institution president or administrative head stating its
reasons for disapproval. The institution president or administrative head may modify and resubmit a plan which was
disapproved at any time and the governing board shall approve
or disapprove such resubmitted plan within sixty days and
notify the institution president or administrative head as
herein provided for the original plan. If such plans have not
been approved on or before the first day of March following the
November submission date, the board is authorized to develop a
plan for such institutions. The president or administrative
head of every state institution of higher education with an
approved plan shall update such plan on an annual basis to
reflect performance during the preceding year and make any
necessary modifications. Such updated plans shall be submitted
on the first day of November in each of the subsequent years
that the plan is in effect and the governing board shall follow
the same procedures for approval or disapproval as herein
provided for the original plan. Upon the approval of a plan or
plan update which includes the elimination of a program, the
institution president or administrative head shall immediately
notify affected students, faculty and staff.
(c) Any state institution of higher education with an
approved plan may apply to its governing board for an exception under the resource allocation model and policies to retain
funding for student enrollments that decline due to planned
program reductions or elimination under the strategic plan.
The number of student enrollments subject to the exception
shall be based on the average full-time equivalent enrollments
over the five preceding years in such program. The allocation
exception shall become effective in the next ensuing allocation
cycle following approval by the governing board and
notification of affected faculty, students and staff of the
program reduction or elimination, and shall remain effective
for the number of years normally required for students to
complete the full program from beginning enrollment to
graduation, subject to annual review by the governing board of
the actual decline in program enrollments. Notwithstanding any
other provision of this section, any program suspended or
discontinued by action of the governing board on or after the
first day of September, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four,
and prior to the effective date of this section, which program
is being eliminated pursuant to said action, is eligible for an
exception under the resource allocation model and policies
pursuant to this section for the fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-six.
(d) Any state institution of higher education with an
approved plan may apply to its governing board for an exception
under the resource allocation model and policies to retain
funding for student enrollments that decline due to the planned
reductions for the purpose of enhancing the quality of a
particular program. The number of student enrollments subject
to the exception shall be based on the average full-time
equivalent enrollments over the preceding five years in such
program. Money allocated to the institution as a result of
this exception shall be used to enhance the quality of that
particular program. The allocation exception shall become
effective in the next ensuing allocation cycle following
approval by the governing board and notification of affected
faculty, students and staff of the program reduction and shall
remain in effect subject to biennial review by the governing
board of the actual decline in program enrollments and
enhancements in quality of the program.
(e) The application for an exception in subsections (c)
and (d) of this section shall be submitted by the institution
president or administrative head and state how the funds will be redirected to achieve the purposes of the institution's
approved plan including, but not limited to, salary increases
to attract and retain quality faculty and staff, expand and
improve the quality of existing programs, make additional
investments in technology and increased access, and, in the
exemption provided in subsection (c) of this section, begin new
programs. The governing board shall approve or disapprove the
application within sixty days of receipt and if disapproved,
shall return the application to the institution president or
administrative head stating the reasons for disapproval. The
institution president or administrative head may modify and
resubmit an application which was disapproved at any time and
the governing board shall approve or disapprove such
resubmitted application within sixty days and notify the
institution president or administrative head as herein provided
for the original plan.
(f) An exception to the resource allocation model and
policies granted under this section and any differential
approved for an institution by its governing board to reflect
the high costs of a program within the institution's mission
shall be removed from the institutions base budget and, to the extent included therein, from the indicated level of state
support for the purposes of subsection (d), section two,
article five of this chapter, and any governing board rule to
the contrary is hereby specifically modified.
(g) It is the expressed intent of the Legislature, subject
to the availability of funds and appropriations therefor, to
increase state appropriated funds for state institutions of
higher education in each of the five fiscal years, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-seven, through and including, fiscal year
two thousand one, at a rate of at least three and twenty-five
one-hundredths percent per year to assist the institutions in
achieving their strategic plan of change, subject to
demonstrated effort by the institutions as determined by the
Legislature to refocus and restructure their missions,
leadership, resources and programs to meet said plans in
accordance with this section. In any fiscal year in which the
state appropriated funds are less than such expressed intent,
the governing boards may adjust the targets set forth in the
strategic plans for change by a like proportion. Beginning
with legislative appropriations under this subsection for the
fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-seven--ninety-eight, the Legislature shall appropriate such funds, if any, to
a separate account known as the "Higher Education Efficiency
Fund" in the state budget. Appropriations to the fund shall be
allocated to the institutions that are in compliance with their
strategic plan for change as certified by the secretary of
education and the arts pursuant to section one, article ten of
this chapter. Such allocations shall be made in accordance with
the resource allocation model and policies. Any portion of the
fund which is not so allocated shall be appropriated to the
higher education grant program, pursuant to article five,
chapter eighteen-c of this code, or if such program is fully
funded, for expenditure among all institutions for scholarships
and student grant programs.
§18B-1-1d. Increasing flexibility and capacity for change.
(a)
Retirement and separation incentives. --
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code to the
contrary, each state institution of higher education may
include in their strategic plans, pursuant to section one-c of
this article, policies that offer various incentives for
voluntary, early or phased retirement of employees, or
voluntary separation from employment, when necessary to implement programmatic changes effectively pursuant to the
findings, directives, goals and objectives of this article:
Provided, That such incentives for voluntary, early or phased
retirement of employees, or voluntary separation from
employment must be submitted by the governing board to the
legislative joint committee on pensions and retirement and
approved before such policies are adopted as part of the
institution's strategic plan. The policies may include the
following provisions:
(1) Payment of a lump sum to an employee to resign or
retire;
(2) Continuation of full salary to an employee for a
predetermined period of time prior to the employee's
resignation or retirement and a reduction in the employee's
hours of employment during the predetermined period of time;
(3) Continuation of insurance coverage pursuant to the
provisions of article sixteen, chapter five of this code for a
predetermined period;
(4) Continuation of full employer contributions to an
employee's retirement plan during a phased retirement period;
and
(5) That an employee retiring pursuant to an early or
phased retirement plan may begin collecting an annuity from the
employee's retirement plan prior to the statutorily designated
retirement date without terminating their service with the
institution.
No incentive provided for in this section shall be granted
except in furtherance of programmatic changes undertaken
pursuant to the findings, directives, goals and objectives set
forth in this article.
No incentive proposed by an institution pursuant to this
section shall become a part of the institution's approved
strategic plan or be implemented without approval of the
legislative joint committee on pensions and retirement.
Any costs associated with any incentive adopted or
implemented in accordance with this section shall be borne
entirely by the institutions and no incentive shall be granted
that imposes costs on the retirement systems of the state or
the public employees insurance agency unless those costs are
paid entirely by the institutions.
The Legislature further finds and declares that there is
a compelling state interest in restricting the availability and application of these incentives to individual employees
determined by the institutions to be in furtherance of the aims
of this section and nothing herein shall be interpreted as
granting a right or entitlement of any such incentive to any
individual or group of individuals. Any employee granted
incentives shall be ineligible for reemployment by the
institutions during or after the negotiated period of their
incentive concludes including contract employment in excess of
five thousand dollars per fiscal year.
(b)
Pilot flexibility initiative. -- The board of
directors is directed to submit a plan for a pilot flexibility
initiative to the legislative oversight commission on education
accountability on or before the first day of October, one
thousand nine hundred ninety-five. The plan shall include at
least the following: (1) A system whereby the state
institutions of higher education in the state college system
may apply to the board of directors for a waiver of board
policies and rules; (2) A detailed application for institutions
seeking to participate in the pilot flexibility initiative
which shall set forth at a minimum: (i) A statement of the
specific goals and objectives that the institution proposes to accomplish if the application is approved; (ii) the specific
board policies and rules which the institution seeks to have
waived for all or a portion of the waiver period; and (iii)
proposed rules and policies under which the institution would
operate during the period of waiver; (3) The process by which
the board of directors will review the application; (4) The
person or body who shall have the final authority to approve
the application of not more than two institutions; (5) The time
period for which the waiver will be granted; (6) The specific
board policies and rules which the institution may request to
have waived; (7) The process by which the rules and policies of
the institutions participating in the pilot flexibility
initiative may modify its rules and policies; and (8) The
person or body to whom the institutions shall be reporting
during the period of waiver.
(c) It is the intent of this Legislature to review the
pilot flexibility plan and after such review to establish a
pilot flexibility initiative in the legislative session of one
thousand nine hundred ninety-six.
§18B-1-2. Definitions.
The following words when used in this chapter and chapter eighteen-c of this code shall have the meaning hereinafter
ascribed to them unless the context clearly indicates a
different meaning:
(a) "Governing board" or "board" means the university of
West Virginia board of trustees or the board of directors of
the state college system, whichever is applicable within the
context of the institution or institutions referred to in this
chapter or in other provisions of law;
(b) "Governing boards" or "boards" means both the board of
trustees and the board of directors;
(c) "Freestanding community colleges" means southern West
Virginia community and technical college and West Virginia
northern community and technical college, which shall not be
operated as branches or off-campus locations of any other state
institution of higher education;
(d) "Community college" or "community colleges" means
community and technical college or colleges as those terms are
defined in this section;
(e) "Community and technical college", in the singular or
plural, means the freestanding community and technical
colleges, community and technical education programs at branch campuses of West Virginia university, and divisions of state
institutions of higher education which have a defined community
and technical college district and offer community and
technical college education in accordance with the provisions
of section three-a, article three of this chapter;
(f) "Community and technical college education" means the
programs, faculty, administration and funding associated with
the mission of community and technical colleges as provided in
section three-a, article three of this chapter, and also shall
include post-secondary vocational education programs in the
state as those terms are defined in this section. Community
and technical college education shall be delivered through a
system which includes eleven community and technical college
districts assigned to state institutions of higher education
under the jurisdiction of the board of directors and the board
of trustees, respectively;
(g) "Directors" or "board of directors" means the board of
directors of the state college system created pursuant to
article three of this chapter or the members thereof;
(h) "Higher educational institution" means any institution
as defined by Sections 401(f), (g) and (h) of the federal Higher Education Facilities Act of 1963, as amended;
(i) "Post-secondary vocational education programs" means
any college-level course or program beyond the high school
level provided through an institution of higher education which
results in or may result in the awarding of a two-year
associate degree, under the jurisdiction of the board of
directors;
(j) "Rule" or "rules" means a regulation, standard,
policy or interpretation of general application and future
effect;
(k) "Senior administrator" means the person hired by the
governing boards in accordance with section one, article four
of this chapter, with such powers and duties as may be provided
for in section two of said article;
(l) "State college" means Bluefield state college,
Concord college, Fairmont state college, Glenville state
college, Shepherd college, West Liberty state college, West
Virginia institute of technology or West Virginia state
college;
(m) "State college system" means the state colleges and
community and technical colleges, and also shall include post-secondary vocational education programs in the state as those
terms are defined in this section;
(n) "State college system community and technical
colleges" means the freestanding community and technical
colleges and community and technical colleges operated on the
campuses of state colleges under the jurisdiction of the board
of directors of the state college system and all of their
associated branches, centers and off-campus locations;
(o) "State institution of higher education" means any
university, college or community and technical college in the
state university system or the state college system as those
terms are defined in this section;
(p) "Trustees" and "board of trustees" means the
university of West Virginia board of trustees created pursuant
to article two of this chapter or the members thereof;
(q) "University", "university of West Virginia" and
"state university system" means the multi-campus, integrated
university of the state, consisting of West Virginia
university, including West Virginia university at Parkersburg,
Potomac state college of West Virginia university and the West
Virginia university school of medicine; Marshall university, including the Marshall university school of medicine and the
Marshall university community and technical college; the West
Virginia graduate college; and the West Virginia school of
osteopathic medicine;
(r) "University system community and technical colleges"
means Marshall university community and technical college,
community and technical education programs at West Virginia
university at Parkersburg and community and technical education
programs at Potomac state college of West Virginia university
under the jurisdiction of the university of West Virginia board
of trustees and all their associated branches, centers and off-
campus locations.
§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.
(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 on or before due date,
but in any event, 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 in consultation with the
secretary of the department of administration shall develop a
plan and report such plan to the legislative oversight commission on education accountability by the first day of
December, one thousand nine hundred ninety-five. Such plan
shall establish a 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, and
the department of finance and administration. Such plan shall
be developed with a contemplated target implementation date of
the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six.
(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to
the contrary, the governing boards and the secretary of
education and the arts shall have the authority to transfer
funds from any account specifically appropriated for their use
to any corresponding line item in a general revenue account at
any agency or institution under their jurisdiction as long as
such transferred funds are used for the purposes appropriated.
The governing boards also shall have the authority to transfer
funds from appropriated special revenue accounts for capital
improvements under their jurisdiction to special revenue accounts at agencies or institutions under their jurisdiction
as long as such transferred funds are used for the purposes
appropriated.
(g) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to
the contrary, the governing boards or senior administrator may
acquire such legal services as are deemed necessary, including
representation of the governing boards, their institutions,
employees and officers before any court or administrative body.
Such counsel may be employed either on a salaried basis or on
a reasonable fee basis. In addition, the governing boards or
senior administrator may, but are not required to, call upon
the attorney general for legal assistance and representation as
provided by law.
§18B-1-8a. Higher education accountability; institutional and
statewide report cards.
(a) The governing boards are directed to make information
available to parents, students, faculty, staff, state
policymakers and the general public on the quality and
performance of public higher education. This information shall
be consistent and comparable between and among the state
institutions of higher education and, if applicable, comparable with information from peer institutions in the region and
nation.
(b) On or before the first day of November, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-five, the governing boards are directed to
adopt a rule pursuant to the provisions of article three-a,
chapter twenty-nine-a of this code, providing for the
collection, analysis and dissemination of data and information
on the performance of the state institutions of higher
education, including health sciences education, in relation to
the findings, directives, goals and objectives set forth in
sections one-a and one-b of this article and in comparison to
their peers in the region and nation. In developing the rule,
the governing boards shall consult with the governor, the
legislative oversight commission on education accountability
and the state department of education regarding the relevant
areas of data and information deemed necessary for inclusion in
a higher education report card. Upon approval of the rule by
the legislative oversight commission on education
accountability, and the effective date of the rule, the
provisions of subsection (c) of this section shall be null and
void:
Provided, That the statewide report card due on the first day of December, one thousand nine hundred ninety-five,
pursuant to said section, shall be compiled and disseminated
pursuant to said subsection. Such legislative rules shall
provide the legislative oversight commission on education
accountability with full and accurate information while
minimizing the institutional burden of recordkeeping and
reporting. Such legislative rules shall include uniform
definitions for the various indicators of student and
institutional performance and guidelines for the collection and
reporting of data and the preparation, printing and
distribution of report cards under this section. The report
card forms shall provide for brief, concise reporting in
nontechnical language of required information. Any technical
or explanatory material which an institution or governing board
wishes to include shall be contained in a separate appendix
available to the general public upon request.
(c) The president or chief executive officer of each
public college, university or community college shall prepare
and submit annually all requested data to the appropriate
governing board at such time as the governing board may
establish. The governing boards shall prepare institutional report cards for institutions under their jurisdiction and
systemwide report cards which shall include the information
required in the following subdivisions:
(1) For all undergraduate students and for all
institutions having undergraduate programs, the institution
shall report the following as available and applicable:
Average scores of incoming freshmen and transfer students on
the American college test (ACT) or scholastic aptitude test
(SAT); percentage of incoming freshmen enrolled in
developmental classes; student performance as measured by grade
point average and/or appropriate testing measures; the
graduation or completion rate as may be defined by federal law
or regulation for the student body as a whole and separately
for students at the institution who received
athletically-related student aid categorized by sex and
athletic program; the rate at which individuals who complete or
graduate from the program of an institution pass applicable
licensure or certification examinations required for employment
in a particular vocation, trade or professional field; student
mobility (transfers in, transfers out and withdrawals); number
and percentage of student body receiving tuition fee waivers; and number, percentage and dollar value of tuition fee waivers
categorized by whether such waiver is for athletic
participation or is an academic waiver and by whether the
recipient is a resident or nonresident of this state.
(2) For professional schools, defined for the purposes of
this section as academic programs leading to professions in
which licensing is normally required and for which an
undergraduate degree is a general prerequisite, the institution
shall report the following as available and applicable:
Average scores of beginning students and transfer students on
standardized entrance examinations; number and percentage of
student body receiving tuition fee waivers; number, percentage
and dollar value of tuition fee waivers categorized by whether
the recipient is a resident or nonresident of this state; the
number of degrees granted; the graduation or completion rate as
may be defined by federal law or regulation for the student
body as a whole; the rate at which individuals who complete or
graduate from the program of an institution pass applicable
licensure or certification examinations required for employment
in the particular professional field; the total number of
students in each program, including the percentage of those students who are state residents, the percentage of students
who are nonresidents of the state, the percentage of students
who are women and the percentage of students who are minorities
as the term is defined by federal law; and the ratio of
expenditures per pupil directly attributable to students
enrolled in the professional school as compared to expenditures
per pupil calculated as to students enrolled in the institution
as a whole.
(3) For graduate schools, defined for the purposes of this
section as academic programs leading to advanced degrees
(masters or doctorates of philosophy in fields for which
bachelor's degree programs are available) and for which an
undergraduate degree is a general prerequisite, the institution
shall report the following as available and applicable:
Average scores of beginning students and transfer students on
standardized entrance examinations; number and percentage of
student body receiving tuition fee waivers; number, percentage
and dollar value of tuition fee waivers categorized by whether
the recipient is a resident or nonresident of this state; the
number of degrees granted; the graduation or completion rate as
may be defined by federal law or regulation for the student body as a whole; the rate at which individuals who complete or
graduate from the program of an institution pass applicable
licensure or certification examinations required for
employment; and the total number of students in each program,
including the percentage of those students who are state
residents, the percentage of students who are nonresidents of
the state, the percentage of students who are women and the
percentage of students who are minorities as the term is
defined by federal law.
(4) In addition to any and all information required by
subdivision (2) of this subsection, each health sciences school
shall assist the vice chancellor for health sciences in
providing information for the institutional and statewide
report cards, which shall include reports on the following:
(A) Information on graduates, including, but not limited
to, placement of interns and residents, retention rates in the
state, retention rates in unreserved areas as determined by the
division of health, the percentage practicing in primary care
in this state to be defined as family medicine, internal
medicine, pediatrics and obstetrics/gynecology, and other
information pertinent to health sciences education as it relates to health care delivery in this state such as
recruitment programs to attract health care providers to West
Virginia; reasons obtained from graduate surveys as to why
health care graduates are leaving West Virginia; programs
developed to direct graduates into primary care practices and
specialty shortage areas in this state; and ways in which the
health sciences schools intend to assist in meeting the
projected health care needs of this state, including specialty
and subspecialty health care professional needs and where such
needs are expected to arise, as those needs are defined by the
division of health or such other state agency as the division
of health may deem appropriate;
(B) Contractual and financial arrangements between the
health sciences schools and such nonprofit and for-profit
entities receiving moneys from the health sciences schools that
the board of trustees determines have a significant impact on
the provision of health sciences education in this state, such
report to state the entity, the amount of funds paid to such
entity and what the payment is for;
(C) The roles and missions of the health sciences schools
and evaluation of each school's performance in accordance with outcome measures developed to evaluate the attainment of the
roles, missions and programs developed for each school;
(D) The annual audit of the expenditures of each health
sciences school and any audit received by the board from such
nonprofit and for-profit entities determined by the board of
trustees to have a significant affiliation to any health
sciences school;
(E) Findings regarding management and operation of the
health sciences schools, such findings to be based on the
annual audits and to include proposals for and barriers to
improving efficiency and generating cost savings in health
sciences education;
(F) The quality of health sciences education, including,
but not limited to, a review of any accrediting agency's report
on health sciences education at any state-funded health
sciences school;
(G) The clinical health care services and programs offered
or delivered by the health sciences schools, including, but not
limited to, programs which use existing state facilities for
the purposes of clinical rotations;
(H) Matters relating to the funding and budgeting of health sciences education in this state, including, but not
limited to, ways in which such budget effectuates the roles and
missions of the health sciences schools;
(I) The financing of health sciences education subsequent
to an annual, comprehensive review thereof, which report shall
include anticipated capital costs, projected operating expenses
and future growth and recommendations on the allocation of any
state or other tax dedicated to the funding of health sciences
education; and
(J) Such other administrative, budgetary, financial,
educational and other concerns as the board of trustees may
deem necessary or helpful in providing information about the
health sciences schools pursuant to this subsection.
(5) For all public institutions of higher education in the
state, the following indicators of institutional performance in
comparison with the aggregate of all other institutions in the
state, region and nation as applicable and to the extent
comparison data are available: Student-faculty ratio by
school; student-administrator ratio; faculty turnover by
school; educational and general expenditure per full-time
equivalent (FTE) student; expenditure by fund in graphic display; the academic rank and years of experience of the
faculty and administrators at the institution; percentage
minorities comprise of faculty and major administrative staff;
percentage women comprise of faculty and major administrative
staff; percentage of classes taught by adjunct or part-time
faculty; statistics concerning the occurrence on campus during
the most recent school year and during the preceding school
years for which data are available of criminal offenses
reported to campus security authorities or local police; and
statistics concerning the number of arrests for crimes
occurring on campus during the most recent school year and
during the preceding school years for which data are available.
The statewide report card shall include the data for each
institution for each separately listed applicable indicator and
the aggregate of the data for all institutions under the
jurisdiction of the board of trustees of the university of West
Virginia and for all institutions under the jurisdiction of the
board of directors of the state college system for each
indicator.
The statewide report cards shall be prepared using actual
institutional, state, regional and national data as applicable and available indicating the present performance of the
individual institutions and the state systems of higher
education and shall also include goals and trends for the
institutions and the higher education systems. Each governing
board as part of its assessment of the individual institutions
under its jurisdiction shall include the number and gross
dollar amount of grants received for academic research for each
institution and a succinct review of research projects
including a brief description of each project and the numbers
of faculty, graduate and undergraduate students involved in
each project. In assessing progress toward meeting goals and
in developing trend information, the governing boards shall
review report card data in relation to previously adopted board
goals, five-year plans, regional and national higher education
trends and the resource allocation model.
(d) The higher education central office staff under the
direction of the senior administrator shall provide technical
assistance to each institution and governing board in data
collection and reporting and shall be responsible for
assembling the statewide report card from information submitted
by each governing board.
Each governing board shall prepare report card information
in accordance with the guidelines set forth in this section and
rules promulgated hereunder. The statewide report card shall
be presented at a regular board meeting of the appropriate
governing board subject to applicable notice requirements.
The statewide report cards shall be completed and
disseminated with copies to the legislative oversight
commission on education accountability prior to the first day
of December, one thousand nine hundred ninety-two, and each
year thereafter. Statewide report cards shall be based upon
information for the current school year or for the most recent
school year for which such information is available, in which
case such year shall be clearly footnoted.
The governing boards shall make copies of both the
institutional and statewide report cards available to any
individual requesting them.
ARTICLE 3. BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF THE STATE COLLEGE SYSTEM.
§18B-3-1. Composition of board; terms and qualifications of
members; vacancies; eligibility for reappointment; oath of
office; removal from office.
(a) The board of directors of the state college system shall consist of twenty persons, of whom one shall be the
chancellor of the university of West Virginia board of
trustees, ex officio, who shall not be entitled to vote; one
shall be the state superintendent of schools, ex officio, who
shall not be entitled to vote; one shall be the chair of the
joint commission for vocational-technical-occupational
education, ex officio, who shall not be entitled to vote; one
shall be the chairman of the advisory council of students, ex
officio, who shall be entitled to vote; one shall be the
chairman of the advisory council of faculty, ex officio, who
shall be entitled to vote; and one shall be the chairman of the
advisory council of classified employees, ex officio, who shall
be entitled to vote. The other fourteen directors shall be
citizens of the state, appointed by the governor, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate.
Each of the directors appointed to the board by the
governor shall represent the public interest and shall be
especially qualified in the field of higher education by virtue
of the person's knowledge, learning, experience or interest in
the field. The relative enrollments of baccalaureate and
community and technical students in the state college system shall be considered by the governor when making such
appointments and the governor shall use his or her best efforts
to achieve a balance among the members who reflect the various
interests, goals and concerns reflected by the relative
enrollments.
Except for the ex officio directors, no person shall be
eligible for appointment to membership on the board of
directors who is an officer, employee or member of an advisory
board of any state college or university, an officer or member
of any political party executive committee, the holder of any
other public office or public employment under the government
of this state or any of its political subdivisions, or an
appointee or employee of the board of trustees or board of
directors:
Provided, That if there are no ethical restrictions
under state or federal law, a federal employee may serve as a
member of the board of directors. Of the fourteen directors
appointed by the governor from the public at large, not more
than seven thereof shall belong to the same political party and
at least two directors of the board shall be appointed from
each congressional district: P
rovided, however, That after the
effective date of this section, the governor shall make appointments so that, as soon as practicable, at least four
directors of the board shall be appointed from each
congressional district.
Except as provided in this section, no other person may be
appointed to the board.
(b) The governor shall appoint twelve directors as soon
after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-nine, as is practicable, and the original terms of all
directors shall commence on that date. The terms of the
directors appointed by the governor shall be for overlapping
terms of six years, except, of the original appointments, four
shall be appointed to terms of two years, four shall be
appointed to terms of four years and four shall be appointed to
terms of six years:
Provided, That the governor shall appoint
two additional directors on or before the first day of July,
one thousand nine hundred ninety-five, and their original terms
shall commence on the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-five and be for five years. Each subsequent
appointment which is not for the purpose of filling a vacancy
in an unexpired term shall be appointed to a term of six years.
The governor shall appoint a director to fill any vacancy among the twelve directors appointed by the governor, by and
with the advice and consent of the Senate, which director
appointed to fill such vacancy shall serve for the unexpired
term of the vacating director. The governor shall fill the
vacancy within sixty days of the occurrence of the vacancy.
All directors appointed by the governor shall be eligible
for reappointment:
Provided, That a person who has served as
a director or trustee during all or any part of two consecutive
terms shall be ineligible to serve as a director for a period
of three years immediately following the second of the two
consecutive terms.
The chairman of the advisory council of students, ex
officio; the chairman of the advisory council of faculty, ex
officio; and the chairman of the advisory council of classified
employees, ex officio, shall serve the terms for which they
were elected by their respective advisory councils. These
members shall be eligible to succeed themselves.
(c) Before exercising any authority or performing any
duties as a director, each director shall qualify as such by
taking and subscribing to the oath of office prescribed by
section five, article IV of the constitution of West Virginia, and the certificate thereof shall be filed with the secretary
of state.
(d) No director appointed by the governor shall be removed
from office by the governor except for official misconduct,
incompetence, neglect of duty or gross immorality, and then
only in the manner prescribed by law for the removal by the
governor of the state elective officers.
§18B-3-3. Additional duties of board of directors.
(a) The board of directors of the state college system
shall govern the state college system.
(b) The board of directors shall determine programs to be
offered by state institutions of higher education under its
jurisdiction, shall clarify the missions of the institutions
under its jurisdiction and, in so doing, ensure that Fairmont
state and West Virginia institute of technology are given
primary responsibility for technical preparation teacher
training programs.
(c) The board of directors shall govern state college
system community and technical colleges in accordance with the
provisions of section three-a of this article.
(d) The board of directors shall adopt a faculty salary program with an overall goal of attaining salaries equal to the
average faculty salaries within similar groups of disciplines
and program levels at comparable peer institutions within
member states of the southern regional education board.
§18B-3-3a. Community and technical college education;
establishment; state level governance; formation of
districts; college level administration and governance;
programs; district consortia; implementation process; and
implementation team.
(a)
General. -- The purpose of this section is to
establish community and technical college education that is
well articulated with the public schools and four year
colleges; that makes maximum use of shared facilities, faculty,
staff, equipment and other resources; that encourages
traditional and nontraditional students and adult learners to
pursue a life-time of learning; that serves as an instrument of
economic development; and that has the independence and
flexibility to respond quickly to changing needs. The
respective governing boards shall provide for community and
technical college education at state institutions of higher
education under their jurisdiction to have the administrative, programmatic and budgetary control necessary to allow maximum
flexibility and responsiveness to district and community needs
consistent with the goal of sharing facilities, faculty, staff,
equipment and other resources within and among the districts,
the other systems of public and higher education and other
education and training programs.
(b)
State level governance. -- The board of directors and
the board of trustees shall jointly employ a vice chancellor
for community and technical college education. The vice
chancellor for community and technical college education shall
report directly to and provide assistance to the board of
directors and the board of trustees on matters related to
community and technical college education and shall serve at
their will and pleasure. The vice chancellor for community and
technical college education shall advise, assist and consult
regularly with the administrative heads, institutional boards
of advisors, and district consortia committees of each state
institution of higher education involved in community and
technical college education.
In appointing members to the institutional boards of
advisors within the state college system pursuant to section one, article six of this chapter, the board of directors shall
consider the relative distribution of baccalaureate and
community and technical college enrollments of the respective
institutions and shall make up to three of such appointments
from the membership of district consortia committee on the
basis of such proportional enrollments. All appointments shall
be reflective of the economic, industrial, educational,
community and employment characteristics of the institution's
region and be geographically dispersed to the extent practical.
(c)
Formation of community and technical college
districts. -- The eleven community and technical college
districts shall be comprised of contiguous areas of the state
which have similar economic, industrial, educational, community
and employment characteristics to facilitate specialization in
mission and programming. For the purposes of initial
implementation and organization, the districts shall be
comprised as follows:
(1) Ohio, Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Tyler and Wetzel
counties;
(2) Wood, Jackson, Pleasants, Ritchie, Roane, Tyler and
Wirt counties;
(3) Kanawha, Putnam and Clay counties;
(4) Cabell, Mason, Putnam and Wayne counties;
(5) Fayette, Clay, Kanawha, Raleigh and Nicholas counties;
(6) Logan, Boone, Lincoln, McDowell, Mingo, Raleigh and
Wyoming counties;
(7) Mercer, Greenbrier, McDowell, Monroe, Pocahontas,
Raleigh and Summers counties;
(8) Gilmer, Barbour, Braxton, Calhoun, Clay, Lewis,
Nicholas, Upshur and Webster counties;
(9) Marion, Doddridge, Harrison, Monongalia, Preston,
Randolph, Taylor, Barbour and Tucker counties;
(10) Jefferson, Berkeley, Grant, Hardy and Morgan
counties;
(11) Mineral, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy and Pendleton
counties.
It is the intent of the Legislature that counties which
are listed in more than one district shall be served by the
associated community and technical colleges as a cooperative
service area, or shall be divided as the board of directors
determines. The boundaries of the eleven districts may be
modified from time to time by the board of directors upon request of the affected community and technical colleges to
better serve the needs within the districts. Such
modifications are not required to follow county boundaries.
Subject to any restrictions imposed by the board of
directors, the district boundaries shall not be employed to
restrict other state institutions of higher education from
offering programs of strength to meet underserved needs,
consistent with the objective of not duplicating efforts as
determined by the governing boards:
Provided, That nothing
herein shall be construed to prevent state institutions of
higher education from offering courses at off-campus centers or
locations now operating or established in the future which are
not duplicative. Distance learning technology, resource
networking and other cooperative and collaborative efforts
shall be used to the maximum extent prudent and practical to
avoid unnecessary duplication of program development and
delivery.
The main campus of the community and technical college
shall be identified under the name of the community and
technical college for the district and the district shall be
known as the "community and technical college district". In addition, the name of all branches, centers and programs shall
reflect the name of the district.
(d)
Allocation of resources and budgets. -- All funds for
community and technical college education shall be appropriated
by the Legislature in an institutional control account under
the jurisdiction of the board of directors. The board of
directors shall establish by rule a formula for the allocation
of such funds to the individual university system and state
college system community and technical colleges, which rule
shall include uniform guidelines for the allocation and
reporting of student enrollments, costs, reimbursements and
revenues for community and technical colleges located on the
campus of another state institution of higher education.
(e)
College level administration and governance. -- The
administrative head of a state college system community and
technical college shall be the president, in the case of the
freestanding community and technical colleges, and the provost
of the community and technical college in the case of all other
state college system community and technical colleges. Such
provost shall be employed by the president of the state
institution of higher education upon which the main campus of the community and technical college is located and the provost
shall serve at the will and pleasure of the president. The
administrative head shall be responsible for coordination and
other administrative arrangements with the host institution and
other duties assigned pursuant to this section. Nothing in
this section shall prohibit a current employee in community and
technical education from being employed as a provost. The
administrative and business offices and functions of community
and technical colleges, except freestanding, shall be
consolidated with those of the host institution to the extent
practical. To enhance program flexibility and mobility, to
enhance program coordination and delivery in the public schools
and to take advantage of the expertise and experience of
persons in business and industry, community and technical
colleges shall make extensive use of combined courses with
four-year colleges and universities, employ by contract or
other arrangements college and university faculty to teach
community and technical college courses, employ qualified
public school teachers as adjunct professors and employ
qualified business, industry and labor persons as adjunct
professors in technical areas.
(f)
Community and technical college programs. -- The
mission of each community and technical college shall include
the following programs which may be offered on or off campus,
at the work site, in the public schools and at other locations
at times that are convenient for the intended population:
(1) Career and technical education certificate, associate
of applied science and selected associate of science degree
programs for students seeking immediate employment, individual
entrepreneurship skills; occupational development, skill
enhancement and career mobility;
(2) Transfer education associate of arts and associate of
science degree programs for students whose educational goal is
to transfer into a baccalaureate degree program;
(3) Developmental/remedial education courses, tutorials,
skills development labs and other services for students who
need to improve their skills in mathematics, English, reading,
study skills, computers and other basic skill areas;
(4) Work force training and retraining contract education
with business and industry to train or retrain employees;
(5) Continuing development assistance and education credit
and noncredit courses for professional and self-development, certification and licensure and literacy training; and
(6) Community service workshops, lectures, seminars,
clinics, concerts, theatrical performances and other noncredit
activities to meet the cultural, civic and personal interests
and needs of the community.
All administrative, programmatic and budgetary control
over community and technical education within the district
shall be vested in the administrative head and the
institutional board of advisors of state college system
community and technical colleges, subject to rules adopted by
the board of directors. The administrative head and
institutional board of advisors shall be responsible for the
regular review, revision, elimination and establishment of
programs within the district to assure that the needs of the
district for community and technical college programs are met.
It is the intent of the Legislature that the program review and
approval process for community and technical education be
separate and distinct from baccalaureate education. The
administrative head and institutional board of advisors shall
seek assistance from and utilize a district consortia committee
in fulfilling this responsibility.
(g)
District consortia committee. -- The administrative
head of each university system and state college system
community and technical college shall form a district consortia
committee which shall include representatives distributed
geographically to the extent practical of the major community
college branches, vocational technical centers, comprehensive
high schools, four-year colleges and universities, community
service or cultural organizations, economic development
organizations, business, industry, labor, elected public
officials and employment and training programs and offices
within the district. The consortia committee shall be chaired
by the administrative head or his or her designee and shall
advise and assist the administrative head with the following:
(1) Completing a comprehensive assessment of the district
to determine what education and training programs are necessary
to meet the short and long term work force development needs of
the district;
(2) Coordinating efforts with regional labor market
information systems that identify the ongoing needs of business
and industry, both current and projected, and provide
information to assist in an informed program of planning and decision making;
(3) Planning and development of a unified effort to meet
the documented work force development needs of the district
through individual and cooperative programs, shared facilities,
faculty, staff, equipment and other resources and the
development and use of distance learning and other educational
technologies;
(4) Increasing the integration of secondary and post-
secondary curriculum and programs that are targeted to meet
regional labor market needs, including the planning and
implementation of a comprehensive school-to-work transition
system that helps students focus on career objectives, builds
upon current programs such as high schools that work, tech prep
associate degree programs, registered apprenticeships and rural
entrepreneurship through action learning and addresses the
needs of at-risk students and school dropouts;
(5) Planning and implementation of integrated professional
development activities for secondary and post-secondary
faculty, staff and administrators and other consortia partners
throughout the district;
(6) Ensuring that program graduates have attained the competencies required for successful employment through the
involvement of business, industry and labor in establishing
student credentialling;
(7) Performance assessment of student knowledge and skills
which may be gained from multiple sources so that students gain
credit toward program completion and advance more rapidly
without repeating coursework in which they already possess
competency;
(8) Establishing one-stop-shop career centers with
integrated employment and training and labor market information
systems that enable job seekers to assess their skills,
identify and secure needed education training and secure
employment and employers to locate available workers;
(9) Increasing the integration of adult literacy, adult
basic education, federal job opportunities and basic skills,
and community and technical college programs and services to
expedite the transition of adults from welfare to gainful
employment; and
(10) Establish a single point of contact for employers and
potential employers to access education and training programs
throughout the district.
(h)
Implementation process. -- The implementation of
community and technical college education as set forth in this
article shall be accomplished over a three-year period. Major
program elements shall be accomplished within the following
time frames:
(1) One thousand nine hundred ninety-five--ninety-six.
(i) Form necessary governance structures and make
necessary appointments;
(ii) Form consortia committees and complete a survey of
the educational and training needs of the community college
district;
(iii) Establish the information necessary to separately
budget the community and technical college education for fiscal
year one thousand nine hundred ninety-six--ninety-seven,
including the rules required pursuant to subsection (d) of this
section;
(iv) Establish an ongoing method of providing funding for
appropriate staff from the public schools and the community and
technical colleges for personnel and other costs related to
shared facility projects, including recommendations for any
necessary legislative enactments;
(v) Make recommendations to the governor and Legislature
as may be necessary.
(2) One thousand nine hundred ninety-six--ninety-seven.
(i) Begin separate budgeting;
(ii) Begin full operations of the community and technical
colleges as provided in this article.
(3) One thousand nine hundred ninety-seven--ninety-eight.
(i) Review and evaluation.
(i)
Implementation team. -- There is hereby established an
implementation team to monitor and oversee implementation of
the community and technical college education in accordance
with the provisions of this article. The implementation team
shall report to the governor and the legislative oversight
commission on education accountability no later than the first
day of December, in the years one thousand nine hundred ninety-
five, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six and one thousand
nine hundred ninety-seven on the status of such implementation
and any further needs for legislative enactment. The
implementation oversight team shall be composed of the
secretary of education and the arts, one representative of
public education, one representative of community and technical colleges, one representative of four-year colleges, one
representative of the private sector, one representative of
employment and training programs, one representative of
vocational-technical-occupational education, four members of
the Senate and four members of the House of Delegates, all
appointed by the governor. The secretary of education and the
arts shall be responsible for staffing the implementation
oversight team utilizing existing personnel, equipment and
offices of the affected agencies.
§18B-3-4. Community and technical colleges; tuition and fees;
memoranda of agreements; and joint administrative boards.
(a) Effective the first day of July, one thousand nine
hundred eighty-nine, the following institutions are hereby
established or continued as freestanding community and
technical colleges: Southern West Virginia community and
technical college and West Virginia northern community and
technical college. Such freestanding community and technical
colleges shall not be operated as branches or off-campus
locations of any other state institution of higher education.
(b) The directors, in accordance with article two-b,
chapter eighteen of this code, shall cooperate with the state board of education, the state council of vocational-technical
education and the joint commission for
vocational-technical-occupational education to develop a
comprehensive system of academic, vocational, technical and
career development programs to serve the educational needs of
adults for college preparatory, two-year associate degree,
continuing education, work force training and retraining and
other such programs within the state. The board of directors
shall delegate such authority as they deem prudent to the
community and technical college presidents, provosts or other
administrative heads, to work with district consortia
committees to assess the work force needs of business and
industry within their service areas, regularly review and
revise curricula to ensure that the work force needs are met,
develop new programs and phase out or modify existing programs
as appropriate to meet such needs, provide professional
development opportunities for faculty and staff, establish
cooperative programs and student internships with business and
industry, streamline procedures for designing and implementing
customized training programs and to accomplish such other
complements of a quality comprehensive community and technical college. In developing such a system, the various educational
agencies shall establish cooperative relationships to utilize
existing community and technical colleges and programs, public
school vocational centers and other existing facilities to
serve the identified needs within the community and technical
college district.
(c) A separate division of community and technical
colleges shall be established under the board of directors.
Unless approved by the board, programs at community and
technical colleges shall be two years or less in duration.
(d) The board of directors may fix tuition and establish
and set such other fees to be charged students at state college
system community and technical colleges as it deems
appropriate, and shall pay such tuition and fees collected into
a revolving fund for the partial or full support, including the
making of capital improvements, of any state college system
community and technical college. Funds collected at any such
community and technical college may be used only for the
benefit of that community and technical college. The board of
directors may also establish special fees for such purposes as,
including, but not limited to, health services, student activities, student recreation, athletics or any other
extracurricular purposes. Such special fees shall be paid into
special funds in the state treasury and used only for the
purposes for which collected.
(e) The board of directors may allocate funds from the
appropriations for the state college system for the operation
of individual university system and state college system
community and technical colleges in accordance with rules
adopted by the board pursuant to the provisions of subsection
(d), section three-a of this article, and for the capital
improvement of any state college system community and technical
college. The board of directors may accept federal grants and
funds from county boards of education, other local governmental
bodies, corporations or persons. The directors may enter into
memoranda of agreements with such governmental bodies,
corporations or persons for the use or acceptance of local
facilities and/or the acceptance of grants or contributions
toward the cost of the acquisition or construction of such
facilities. Such local governmental bodies may convey capital
improvements, or lease the same without monetary consideration,
to the board of directors for the use by the community and technical college and the board of directors may accept such
facilities, or the use or lease thereof, and grants or
contributions for such purposes from such governmental bodies,
the federal government or any corporation or person.
(f) To facilitate the administration, operation and
financing of programs in shared facilities of the state college
system or the university of West Virginia system and a county
board or boards of education, the affected governing board and
county board or boards of education may appoint a joint
administrative board consisting of such membership and
possessing such delegated authorities as the respective boards
deem necessary and prudent for the operation of such shared
facilities. Such joint administrative board may consist of
five members to be appointed as follows: The county board of
education shall appoint two members in consultation with the
county superintendent of schools; the appropriate governing
board shall appoint two members in consultation with the
president of the affected state institution of higher
education; and one at-large member, who shall chair the joint
administrative board, shall be appointed by mutual agreement of
the respective boards in consultation with their superintendent and president. When two or more county boards of education are
participating in such shared program, such county board
appointments shall be made by mutual agreement of each of the
participating county boards in consultation with their
respective superintendents. Members shall serve for staggered
terms of three years. With respect to initial appointments,
one member appointed by the county board or boards of education
and one member appointed by the governing board shall serve for
one year, one member appointed by the county board or boards of
education and one member appointed by the governing board shall
serve for two years and the at-large member shall serve for
three years. Subsequent appointments shall be for three years.
A member may not serve more than two consecutive terms.
Members shall be reimbursed for reasonable and necessary
expenses actually incurred in the performance of their duties
as board members from funds allocated to the shared facility,
except that members who are employed by a board of education,
governing board or state institution of higher education shall
be reimbursed by their employer.
ARTICLE 4. GENERAL ADMINISTRATION.
§18B-4-1. Officers of governing boards; employment of chancellors and senior administrator; offices.
(a) At its annual meeting in June of each year, each
governing board shall elect from its members appointed by the
governor a president and such other officers as it may deem
necessary or desirable:
Provided, That the initial annual
meeting shall be held during July, one thousand nine hundred
eighty-nine. The president and such other officers shall be
elected for a one-year term commencing on the first day of July
following the annual meeting and ending on the thirtieth day of
June of the following year. The president of the board shall
serve no more than two consecutive terms.
(b) Each governing board shall employ a chancellor who
shall serve at the will and pleasure of the employing board and
shall assist the governing board in the performance of its
duties and responsibilities. No chancellor may hold or retain
any other administrative position within the system of higher
education while employed as chancellor. Each chancellor is
responsible for carrying out the directives of the governing
board by which employed and shall work with such board in
developing policy options. For the purpose of developing or
evaluating policy options, the chancellors may request the assistance of the presidents and other administrative heads of
the institutions under their jurisdiction and their staffs.
The respective chancellors shall jointly agree to and shall
hire one senior administrator who shall serve at their will and
pleasure in accordance with section two of this article.
(c) The director of health shall serve as the vice
chancellor for health affairs, who shall coordinate the West
Virginia university school of medicine, the Marshall university
school of medicine and the West Virginia school of osteopathic
medicine. The vice chancellor for health affairs shall conduct
a special study of the West Virginia university school of
medicine, the Marshall university school of medicine and the
West Virginia school of osteopathic medicine to determine the
role and mission of said institutions in the reorganized system
of higher education in the state. The special study shall
include, but is not limited to, coordinating medical education,
training and delivery of health services in the state;
preparing nurse-midwives, nurse practitioners, medical
technologists and other members of the allied health
professions; and providing for rural health care. The vice
chancellor shall submit a report on said study to the governor and to the Legislature by the first day of December, one
thousand nine hundred eighty-nine.
(d) Suitable offices for the senior administrator and
other staff shall be provided in Charleston.
(e) The governing boards shall jointly employ a vice
chancellor for instructional technology to establish a plan and
funding recommendations for development and implementation of
a multifaceted instructional technology strategy that includes,
but is not limited to, a goal that every full-time freshman
student beginning in the fall semester, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-six, and thereafter, and as many other students
and faculty as possible will own or lease a computer, and
alternatively that computers be available for part-time
students through on-site labs; integrating computer usage into
all course work; involving faculty in the development and use
of technology-based instruction and instructional courseware
for community and technical colleges, colleges and
universities; and expanding distance learning and technology
networks throughout the higher education systems to enhance
teaching and learning, promote access to quality educational
offerings with minimum duplication of effort, increase the delivery of instruction to nontraditional students, provide
services to business and industry, and increase the management
capabilities of the higher education system. The plan shall be
submitted to the Legislature on or before the first day of
January, one thousand nine hundred ninety-six.
The vice chancellor for instructional technology shall
supervise the administration, oversight, coordination and
implementation of such plan, or portions thereof, subject to
the availability of funds and the direction of the governing
boards. In addition, the vice chancellor shall review all
technology related matters within the department of education
and the arts and suggest appropriate integration and
compatibility of the technology systems within the department
and the institutions governed by the board.
(f) The governing boards shall jointly employ a vice
chancellor for community and technical education pursuant to
the terms of section three-a, article three of this chapter.
ARTICLE 5. HIGHER EDUCATION BUDGETS AND EXPENDITURES.
§18B-5-2b. Resource allocation policy relief.
For fiscal year one thousand nine hundred ninety-six only,
the board of directors of the state college system may use all special priority funds, as identified and distributed by
legislative rule title 131, series 5, effective the twenty-
eighth day of March, one thousand nine hundred ninety-four, to
help relieve state institutions of higher education of the
financial obligation created by the requirement that each
institution increase faculty salaries pursuant to section
three-a, article eight of this chapter, and increase classified
employee salaries pursuant to section eleven, article nine of
this chapter.
§18B-5-2c. Review of resource allocation model and policies.
The Legislature hereby finds that the establishment and
development of community and technical education, the
restructuring and refocusing of institutional missions and
programs to respond to change and the necessity of achieving
the goals established for post-secondary education by the
citizens of West Virginia will require a review of the methods
for distributing higher education funding.
It is the intent of the Legislature that increased state
appropriated funds shall be allocated using the resource
allocation model and resource allocation policies in effect at
the time of each appropriation. Given the changes of institutional missions, leadership, resources and programs, as
well as the establishment of targets and goals for faculty and
staff salaries, the Legislature recognizes the need for a
comprehensive review of the resource allocation model and
resource allocation policies. The governing boards shall
review and recommend changes to the resource allocation model
and resource allocation policies contained in article five of
this chapter. The governing boards shall submit a written
report describing this review and the recommended changes to
the legislative oversight commission on education
accountability by the first day of December, one thousand nine
hundred ninety-five.
§18B-5-4. Purchase or acquisition of materials, supplies,
equipment and printing.
(a) Each governing board, through the senior
administrator, shall purchase or acquire all materials,
supplies, equipment and printing required for that board, and
the state institutions of higher education under its
jurisdiction. The governing boards shall adopt rules governing
and controlling acquisitions and purchases in accordance with
the provisions of this section. Such rules shall assure that the governing board: (1) Shall not preclude any person from
participating and making sales thereof to the board except as
otherwise provided in section five of this article:
Provided,
That the providing of consultant services such as strategic
planning services will not preclude or inhibit the governing
boards from considering any qualified bid or response for
delivery of a product or a commodity because of the rendering
of those consultant services; (2) shall establish and prescribe
specifications, in all proper cases, for materials, supplies,
equipment and printing to be purchased; (3) shall adopt and
prescribe such purchase order, requisition or other forms as
may be required; (4) shall negotiate for and make purchases and
acquisitions in such quantities, at such times and under
contract, in the open market or through other accepted methods
of governmental purchasing as may be practicable in accordance
with general law; (5) shall advertise for bids on all purchases
exceeding fifteen thousand dollars, to purchase by means of
sealed bids and competitive bidding or to effect advantageous
purchases through other accepted governmental methods and
practices:
Provided, however, That for printing services, bids
shall be advertised by written notification of such bids to any print shop, affiliated with an institution of higher education
and operated by classified employees, on all purchases
exceeding five thousand dollars; (6) shall post notices of all
acquisitions and purchases for which competitive bids are being
solicited in the purchasing office of the specified institution
involved in the purchase, at least two weeks prior to making
such purchases and ensure that the notice is available to the
public during business hours; (7) shall provide for purchasing
in the open market; (8) shall make provision for vendor
notification of bid solicitation and emergency purchasing; and
(9) provide that competitive bids shall not be required for
purchases of one thousand dollars or less.
(b) Each governing board, through the senior
administrator, may issue a check in advance to a company
supplying postage meters for postage used by that board and by
the state institutions of higher education under its
jurisdiction.
(c) When a purchase is to be made by bid, any or all bids
may be rejected. However, all purchases based on advertised
bid requests shall be awarded to the lowest responsible bidder
taking into consideration the qualities of the articles to be supplied, their conformity with specifications, their
suitability to the requirements of the governing boards and
delivery terms:
Provided, That the preference for resident
vendors as provided in section thirty-seven, article three,
chapter five-a of this code shall apply to the competitive bids
made pursuant to this section.
(d) The governing boards shall maintain a purchase file,
which shall be a public record and open for public inspection.
After the award of the order or contract, the governing boards
shall indicate upon the successful bid that it was the
successful bid, and shall further indicate why bids are
rejected and, if the mathematical low vendor is not awarded the
order or contract, the reason therefor. No records in the
purchase file shall be destroyed without the written consent of
the legislative auditor. Those files in which the original
documentation has been held for at least one year and in which
the original documents have been reproduced and archived on
microfilm or other equivalent method of duplication may be
destroyed without the written consent of the legislative
auditor. All files, no matter the storage method, shall be
open for inspection by the legislative auditor upon request.
(e) The governing boards shall also adopt rules to
prescribe qualifications to be met by any person who is to be
employed as a buyer pursuant to this section. These rules
shall require that no person shall be employed as a buyer
unless that person, at the time of employment, either is: (1)
A graduate of an accredited college or university; or (2) has
at least four years' experience in purchasing for any unit of
government or for any business, commercial or industrial
enterprise. Any person making purchases and acquisitions
pursuant to this section shall execute a bond in the penalty of
fifty thousand dollars, payable to the state of West Virginia,
with a corporate bonding or surety company authorized to do
business in this state as surety thereon, in form prescribed by
the attorney general and conditioned upon the faithful
performance of all duties in accordance with sections four
through eight of this article and the rules of the governing
boards. In lieu of separate bonds for such buyers, a blanket
surety bond may be obtained. Any such bond or bonds shall be
filed with the secretary of state. The cost of any such bond
or bonds shall be paid from funds appropriated to the
applicable governing board.
(f) All purchases and acquisitions shall be made in
consideration and within limits of available appropriations and
funds and in accordance with applicable provisions of article
two, chapter five-a of this code, relating to expenditure
schedules and quarterly allotments of funds.
(g) The governing boards may make requisitions upon the
auditor for a sum to be known as an advance allowance account,
in no case to exceed five percent of the total of the
appropriations for the board, and the auditor shall draw a
warrant upon the treasurer for such accounts; and all such
advance allowance accounts shall be accounted for by the
applicable governing board once every thirty days or more often
if required by the state auditor. Such authority shall not be
delegated to any state institution under the control and
supervision of the board.
(h) Contracts entered into pursuant to this section shall
be signed by the applicable governing board in the name of the
state and shall be approved as to form by the attorney general:
Provided, That a contract or a change order for that contract
which in total does not exceed fifteen thousand dollars and
which uses terms and conditions or standardized forms previously approved by the attorney general and does not make
substantive changes in the terms and conditions of the contract
does not require approval by the attorney general:
Provided,
however, That the attorney general shall make a list of those
changes which he or she deems to be substantive and the list,
and any changes thereto, shall be published in the state
register. A contract that exceeds fifteen thousand dollars
shall be filed with the state auditor:
Provided further, That
upon request, the governing boards shall make all contracts
available for inspection by the state auditor. The governing
board shall prescribe the amount of deposit or bond to be
submitted with a bid or contract, if any, and the amount of
deposit or bond to be given for the faithful performance of a
contract. If the governing board purchases or contracts for
materials, supplies, equipment and printing contrary to the
provisions of sections four through seven of this article or
the rules pursuant thereto, such purchase or contract shall be
void and of no effect.
(i) Either governing board may request the director of
purchases to make available, from time to time, the facilities
and services of that department to the board in the purchase and acquisition of materials, supplies, equipment and printing,
and the director of purchases shall cooperate with that
governing board in all such purchases and acquisitions upon
such request.
(j) Each governing board shall permit private institutions
of higher education to join as purchasers on purchase contracts
for materials, supplies and equipment entered into by that
governing board. Any private school desiring to join as
purchasers on such purchase contracts shall file with that
governing board an affidavit signed by the president of the
institution of higher education or a designee requesting that
it be authorized to join as purchaser on purchase contracts of
that governing board and agreeing that it will be bound by such
terms and conditions as that governing board may prescribe, and
that it will be responsible for payment directly to the vendor
under each purchase contract.
(k) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to
the contrary, the governing boards may make purchases from the
federal government or from federal government contracts if the
materials, supplies, equipment or printing to be purchased is
available from the federal government or from a federal contract and purchasing from the federal government or from a
federal government contract would be the most financially
advantageous manner of making the purchase.
(l) An independent performance audit of all purchasing
functions and duties which are performed at any institution of
higher education shall be performed each fiscal year. The
joint committee on government and finance shall conduct the
performance audit and the governing boards shall be responsible
for paying the cost of the audit from funds appropriated to the
governing boards.
(m) The governing boards shall require each institution
under their respective jurisdiction to notify and inform every
vendor doing business with that institution of the provisions
of section fifty-four, article three, chapter five-a of this
code, also known as the "Prompt Pay Act of 1990".
(n) Consultant services, such as strategic planning
services, shall not preclude or inhibit the governing boards
from considering any qualified bid or response for delivery of
a product or a commodity because of the rendering of those
consultant services.
§18B-5-5. Prequalification disclosure by vendors;
register of vendors; exceptions; suspension of vendors.
(a) Every person, firm or corporation selling or offering
to sell to the governing boards, upon competitive bids or
otherwise, any materials, equipment or supplies in excess of
fifteen thousand dollars shall comply with all of the
provisions of section twelve, article three, chapter five-a of
this code and shall file with the director of the purchasing
division of the state of West Virginia the affidavit required
herein:
Provided, That every such person, firm or corporation
who is presently in compliance with said section shall not be
required to requalify thereunder to be able to transact
business with the governing boards.
(b) Any person, firm or corporation failing or refusing to
comply with said statute as herein required shall be ineligible
to sell or offer to sell commodities or printing to the
governing boards as hereinafter set forth:
Provided, That any
person suspended under the provisions of section thirty-nine,
article three, chapter five-a of this code shall not be
eligible to sell or offer to sell commodities or printing to
the governing boards:
Provided, however, That the governing
boards shall have the power and authority to suspend, for a period not to exceed one year, the right and privilege of a
person to bid on purchases of the governing boards when there
is reason to believe that such person has violated any of the
provisions in sections four through seven of this article or
the rules of the governing boards pursuant thereto. Every
person whose right to bid has been so suspended shall be
notified thereof by a letter posted by registered mail
containing the reason for such suspension and shall have the
right to have the appropriate governing board's action reviewed
in accordance with section forty, article three, chapter five-a
of this code.
§18B-5-6. Other code provisions relating to purchasing not
controlling; exceptions; criminal provisions and
penalties; financial interest of governing boards, etc.;
receiving anything of value from interested party and
penalties
therefor; application of bribery statute.
The provisions of article three, chapter five-a of this
code shall not control or govern the purchase, acquisition or
other disposition of any equipment, materials, supplies or
printing by the governing boards, except as provided in
sections four through seven of this article:
Provided, That sections twenty-nine, thirty and thirty-one, article three,
chapter five-a of this code shall apply to all purchasing
activities of the governing boards.
Neither the governing boards, nor any employee of the
governing boards, shall be financially interested, or have any
beneficial personal interest, directly or indirectly, in the
purchase of any equipment, materials, supplies or printing, nor
in any firm, partnership, corporation or association furnishing
them. Neither the governing boards nor any employee of said
boards shall accept or receive directly or indirectly from any
person, firm or corporation, known by the governing boards or
such employee to be interested in any bid, contract or
purchase, by rebate, gift or otherwise, any money or other
thing of value whatsoever or any promise, obligation or
contract for future reward or compensation.
A person who violates any of the provisions of this
section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction
thereof, shall be imprisoned in jail not less than three months
nor more than one year, or fined not less than fifty nor more
than one thousand dollars, or both imprisoned and fined, in the
discretion of the court:
Provided, That any person who violates any of such provisions by receiving money or other
thing of value under circumstances constituting the crime of
bribery under the provisions of section three, article five-a,
chapter sixty-one of this code, shall, upon conviction of
bribery, be punished as provided in section nine of said
article.
§18B-5-7. Disposition of obsolete and unusable equipment,
surplus supplies and other unneeded materials.
The governing boards shall dispose of obsolete and
unusable equipment, surplus supplies and other unneeded
materials, either by transfer to other governmental agencies or
institutions, by exchange or trade, or by sale as junk or
otherwise. The governing boards shall adopt rules governing
and controlling the disposition of all such equipment, supplies
and materials. At least ten days prior to the disposition, the
governing boards shall advertise, by newspaper publication as
a Class II legal advertisement in compliance with the
provisions of article three, chapter fifty-nine of this code,
in the county in which the equipment, supplies and materials
are located the availability or sales of such disposable
equipment, supplies and materials and may sell the disposable equipment, supplies and materials, in whole or in part, at
public auction or by sealed bid, or may transfer, exchange or
trade same to other governmental agencies or institutions (if
by exchange or trade, then without advertising), in whole or in
part, as sound business practices may warrant under existing
circumstances and conditions.
§18B-5-8. Report card on West Virginia business.
The governing boards shall make an annual report to the
finance committees of the House of Delegates and the Senate
regarding the entities with which the governing boards
contracted in the previous year. This report shall be
submitted on or before the fifteenth day of January of each
year and shall be cumulative in nature. The report shall
include, but not be limited to, information regarding the
number of out-of-state entities with which the governing board
contracted, the number of in-state firms with which the
governing board contracted, the dollar amount of each contract;
the equipment, commodity or service for which the contract was
let; the governing board's recommendations, if any, on the
manner in which the purchasing procedures could be improved.
ARTICLE 6. OTHER BOARDS AND ADVISORY COUNCILS.
§18B-6-1. Institutional boards of advisors.
(a) There shall be established at each state institution
of higher education, hereinafter referred to as the
"institution", excluding centers and branches thereof, an
institutional board of advisors. The board of advisors shall
consist of eleven members, including an administrative officer
of the institution appointed by the president of the
institution; a full-time member of the faculty with the rank of
instructor or above duly elected by the faculty; a member of
the student body in good academic standing, enrolled for
college credit work and duly elected by the student body; a
member of the institutional classified staff duly elected by
the classified staff; and, appointed by the appropriate
governing board, seven lay citizens of the state who have
demonstrated a sincere interest in and concern for the welfare
of that institution and who are representative of its
population and fields of study, including at least two alumni
of the institution. Of the seven lay citizen members, no more
than four may be of the same political party.
The administrative officer and student member shall serve
for a term of one year; the faculty member and the classified staff member shall serve for a term of two years and the seven
lay citizen members shall serve terms of four years each. All
members, except the administrative officer, shall be eligible
to succeed themselves for no more than one additional term. A
vacancy in an unexpired term of a member shall be filled within
sixty days of the occurrence thereof in the same manner as the
original appointment or election. Except in the case of a
vacancy, all elections shall be held and all appointments shall
be made no later than the thirtieth day of April preceding the
commencement of the term.
Each board of advisors shall hold a regular meeting at
least quarterly, commencing in July of each year. Additional
meetings may be held upon the call of the chairman, president
of the institution or upon the written request of at least four
members. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum
for conducting the business of the board of advisors.
(b) One of the seven lay citizen members shall be elected
as chairman by the board of advisors in July of each year:
Provided, That no member shall serve as chairman for more than
two consecutive years at a time.
The president of the institution shall make available resources of the institution for conducting the business of the
board of advisors. The members of the board of advisors shall
be reimbursed for all reasonable and necessary expenses
actually incurred in the performance of their official duties
under this section upon presentation of an itemized sworn
statement thereof. All expenses incurred by the board of
advisors and the institution under this section shall be paid
from funds allocated to the institution for such purpose.
(c) The board of advisors shall review, prior to the
submission by the president to its governing board, all
proposals of the institution in the areas of mission, academic
programs, budget, capital facilities and such other matters as
requested by the president of the institution or its governing
board or otherwise assigned to it by law. The board of
advisors shall comment on each such proposal in writing, with
such recommendations for concurrence therein or revision or
rejection thereof as it deems proper. Such written comments
and recommendations shall accompany the proposal to the
governing board and the governing board shall include such
comments and recommendations in its consideration of and action
on the proposal. The governing board shall promptly acknowledge receipt of the comments and recommendations and
shall notify the board of advisors in writing of any action
taken thereon.
(d) The board of advisors shall review, prior to their
implementation by the president, all proposals regarding
institution-wide personnel policies. The board of advisors may
comment on such proposals in writing.
(e) The board of advisors shall provide advice and
assistance to the president in establishing closer connections
between higher education and business, labor, government,
community and economic development organizations to give
students greater opportunities to experience the world of work,
such as business and community service internships,
apprenticeships and cooperative programs; to communicate better
and serve the current work force and work force development
needs of their service area, including the needs of
nontraditional students for college-level skills upgrading and
retraining and the needs of employers for specific programs of
limited duration; and to assess the performance of the
institution's graduates and assist in job placement. The
administrative officer of the institution serving on the advisory council may be assigned the responsibility for
coordinating the institution's activities related to economic
development.
(f) Upon the occurrence of a vacancy in the office of
president of the institution, the board of advisors shall serve
as a search and screening committee for candidates to fill the
vacancy under guidelines established by its governing board.
When serving as a search and screening committee, the board of
advisors and its governing board are each authorized to appoint
up to three additional persons to serve on the committee as
long as the search and screening process is in effect. The
three additional appointees of the board of advisors shall be
faculty members of the institution. Only for the purposes of
the search and screening process, such additional members shall
possess the same powers and rights as the regular members of
the board of advisors, including reimbursement for all
reasonable and necessary expenses actually incurred. Following
the search and screening process, the committee shall submit
the names of at least three candidates to the governing board
for consideration and appointment. If the governing board
rejects all candidates so submitted, the committee shall submit the names of at least three additional candidates, and this
process shall be repeated until the governing board appoints
one of the candidates so submitted. The governing board shall
provide all necessary staff assistance to the board of advisors
in its role as a search and screening committee.
ARTICLE 7. PERSONNEL GENERALLY.
§18B-7-1. Seniority for full-time classified personnel;
seniority to be observed in reducing work force; preferred
recall list; renewal of listing; notice of vacancies.
(a) Definitions for terms used in this section shall be in
accordance with those provided in section two, article nine of
this chapter except that the provisions of this section shall
apply only to classified employees whose employment, if
continued, shall accumulate to a minimum total of one thousand
forty hours during a calendar year and extend over at least
nine months of a calendar year:
Provided, That this section
shall also apply for one year to any classified employee who is
involuntarily transferred to a position in nonclassified status
for which he or she did not apply.
(b) All decisions by the appropriate governing board or
their agents at state institutions of higher education concerning reductions in work force of full-time classified
personnel, whether by temporary furlough or permanent
termination, shall be made in accordance with this section.
For layoffs by classification for reason of lack of funds or
work, or abolition of position or material changes in duties or
organization and for recall of employees so laid off,
consideration shall be given to an employee's seniority as
measured by permanent employment in the service of the state
system of higher education. In the event that the institution
wishes to lay off a more senior employee, the institution must
demonstrate that the senior employee cannot perform any other
job duties held by less senior employees of that institution in
the same job class or any other equivalent or lower job class
for which the senior employee is qualified:
Provided, That if
an employee refuses to accept a position in a lower job class,
such employee shall retain all rights of recall hereinafter
provided. If two or more employees accumulate identical
seniority, the priority shall be determined by a random
selection system established by the employees and approved by
the institution.
(c) Any employee laid off during a furlough or reduction in work force shall be placed upon a preferred recall list and
shall be recalled to employment by the institution on the basis
of seniority. An employee's listing with an institution shall
remain active for a period of one calendar year from the date
of termination or furlough or from the date of the most recent
renewal. If an employee fails to renew the listing with the
institution, the employee's name may be removed from the list.
An employee placed upon the preferred list shall be recalled to
any position opening by the institution within the
classification(s) in which the employee had previously been
employed or to any lateral position for which the employee is
qualified. An employee on the preferred recall list shall not
forfeit the right to recall by the institution if compelling
reasons require such employee to refuse an offer of
reemployment by the institution.
The institution shall be required to notify all employees
maintaining active listings on the preferred recall list of all
position openings that from time to time exist. Such notice
shall be sent by certified mail to the last known address of
the employee. It shall be the duty of each employee listed to
notify the institution of any change in address and to timely renew the listing with the institution. No position openings
shall be filled by the institution, whether temporary or
permanent, until all employees on the preferred recall list
have been properly notified of existing vacancies and have been
given an opportunity to accept reemployment.
(d) A nonexempt classified employee, including a nonexempt
employee who has not accumulated a minimum total of one
thousand forty hours during the calendar year or whose contract
does not extend over at least nine months of a calendar year,
who meets the minimum qualifications for a job opening at the
institution where the employee is currently employed, whether
the job be a lateral transfer or a promotion, and applies for
same shall be transferred or promoted before a new person is
hired unless such hiring is affected by mandates in affirmative
action plans or the requirements of Public Law 101-336, the
Americans with Disabilities Act. If more than one qualified,
nonexempt classified employee applies, the best-qualified
nonexempt classified employee shall be awarded the position.
In instances where such classified employees are equally
qualified, the nonexempt classified employee with the greatest
amount of continuous seniority at that state institution of higher education shall be awarded the position. A nonexempt
classified employee is one to whom the provisions of the
federal Fair Labor Standards Act, as amended, apply.
§18B-7-11. Compensatory time off in lieu of overtime; written
agreement; other conditions.
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this code to
the contrary, employees of the governing boards may receive in
lieu of overtime compensation, compensatory time off at a rate
not less than one and one-half hours for each hour of
employment. Said employees may receive compensatory time only
pursuant to written agreements arrived at between the employer
and the employee before the performance of the work, and
recorded in the employer's record of hours worked, and if the
employee has not accrued compensatory time in excess of the
limits prescribed herein. Any written agreement may be
modified at the request of either the employer or employee, but
under no circumstances shall changes in the agreement deny an
employee compensatory time heretofore acquired.
(b) An employee may accrue up to four hundred eighty hours
of compensatory time if the employee's work is a public safety
activity, an emergency response activity or a seasonal activity. An employee engaged in other work for the governing
board may accrue up to two hundred forty hours of compensatory
time. Any such employee who has accrued four hundred eighty or
two hundred forty hours of compensatory time, as the case may
be, shall, for additional overtime hours of work, be paid
overtime compensation. If compensation is paid to an employee
for accrued compensatory time off, such compensation shall be
paid at the regular rate earned by the employee at the time the
employee received such payment.
(c) An employee who has accrued compensatory time off
pursuant to this section, shall, upon termination of
employment, be paid for the unused compensatory time at a rate
of compensation not less than:
(1) The average regular rate received by such employee
during the first three years of the employee's employment; or
(2) The final regular rate received by such employee,
whichever is higher.
(d) An employee of the governing boards who has accrued
compensatory time off authorized to be provided under this
section, and who has requested the use of compensatory time,
shall be permitted by the employee's employer to use such time within a reasonable time after making the request if the use of
the compensatory time does not unduly disrupt the operation of
the employing agency. Compensatory time must be used within
one year from the time it is accrued.
(e) For purposes of this section, the terms "compensatory
time" and "compensatory time off" mean hours during which the
employee is not working, which are not counted as hours worked
toward during the applicable work week or other work period for
purposes of overtime compensation, and for which the employee
is compensated at the employee's regular rate.
ARTICLE 9. CLASSIFIED EMPLOYEE SALARY SCHEDULE AND
CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM.
§18B-9-2. Definitions.
As used in this article:
(a) "Classified employee or employee" means any regular
full-time or regular part-time employee of a governing board,
including all employees of the West Virginia network for
educational telecomputing and beginning the first day of July,
one thousand nine hundred ninety, includes employees at the
central office of the governing boards, who hold a position
that is assigned a particular job title and pay grade in accordance with the personnel classification system established
by the appropriate governing board and shall include all
employees of the West Virginia network for educational
telecomputing;
(b) "Nonclassified employee" means an individual who is
responsible for policy formation at the department or
institutional level or reports directly to the president:
Provided, That the percentage of personnel placed in the
category of "nonclassified" at any given institution shall not
exceed ten percent of the total number of employees of that
institution who are eligible for membership in any state
retirement system of the state of West Virginia or other
retirement plan authorized by the state. Final approval of
such placement shall be with the appropriate governing board;
(c) "Job description" means the specific listing of duties
and responsibilities as determined by the appropriate governing
board and associated with a particular job title;
(d) "Job title" means the name of the position or job as
defined by the appropriate governing board;
(e) "Merit increases and salary adjustments" means the
amount of additional salary increase allowed on a merit basis or to rectify salary inequities or accommodate competitive
market conditions in accordance with rules established by the
appropriate governing board;
(f) "Pay grade" means the number assigned by the
appropriate governing board to a particular job title and
refers to the vertical column heading of the salary schedule
established in section three of this article;
(g) "Personnel classification system" means the process of
job categorization adopted by the appropriate governing board
by which job title, job description, pay grade and placement on
the salary schedule are determined;
(h) "Salary" means the amount of compensation paid through
the state treasury per annum to a classified employee;
(i) "Schedule" or "salary schedule" means the grid of
annual salary figures established in section three of this
article; and
(j) "Years of experience" means the number of years a
person has been an employee of the state of West Virginia and
refers to the horizontal column heading of the salary schedule
established in section three of this article. For the purpose
of placement on the salary schedule pursuant to said section, employment for nine months or more shall equal one year of
experience, but no classified employee may accrue more than one
year of experience during any given fiscal year. Employment
for less than full time or less than nine months during any
fiscal year shall be prorated. For the purpose of determining
the amount of annual salary increase pursuant to subsection
(b), section five of this article, employment for less than
twelve months during any fiscal year shall be prorated. In
accordance with rules established by the appropriate governing
board, a classified employee may be granted additional years of
experience not to exceed the actual number of years of prior,
relevant work or experience at accredited institutions of
higher education other than state institutions of higher
education.
§18B-9-6. Biennial review of equitable system of job
classifications.
The secretary of education and the arts shall, on or
before the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-
six, conduct a review of the progress made on implementation of
the equitable system of job classifications established by
board rule pursuant to the provisions of section four of this article. A similar review shall be conducted biennially
thereafter until the secretary determines that the goals of the
rule establishing the system have been achieved.
§18B-9-12. Probationary employees.
Each full-time classified employee hired by the governing
boards shall serve an initial six-month probationary period.
At the end of said probationary period the employee shall
receive a written evaluation of his or her performance. The
employee's supervisor shall meet with the employee and explain
the contents of said evaluation and whether the employee is
being offered regular employment.
ARTICLE 10. FEES AND OTHER MONEY COLLECTED AT STATE
INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION.
§18B-10-1. Enrollment, tuition and other fees at educational
institutions; refund of fees.
(a) Each governing board shall fix tuition and other fees
for each school term for the different classes or categories of
students enrolling at each state institution of higher
education under its jurisdiction and may include among such
fees any one or more of the following: (1) Health service
fees; (2) infirmary fees; (3) student activities, recreational, athletic and extracurricular fees, which said fees may be used
to finance a student's attorney to perform legal services for
students in civil matters at such institutions:
Provided, That
such legal services shall be limited to only those types of
cases, programs or services approved by the administrative head
of such institution where such legal services are to be
performed; and (4) graduate center fees and branch college
fees, or either, if the establishment and operations of
graduate centers or branch colleges are otherwise authorized by
law. All fees collected at any graduate center or at any
branch college shall be paid into special funds and shall be
used solely for the maintenance and operation of the graduate
center or branch college at which they were collected:
Provided, however, That the governing boards shall use the
median of the average tuition and required fees at similarly
classified institutions in member states of the southern
regional education board as a goal in establishing tuition and
required fee levels for residents at state institutions of
higher education under their jurisdiction:
Provided further,
That the governing boards shall use the actual instructional
cost as the same shall be determined in accordance with board rule, in establishing nonresident undergraduate fees, with the
goal of having tuition and fees cover the actual cost by fiscal
year one thousand nine hundred ninety-six:
And provided
further, That students enrolled in undergraduate courses
offered at off-campus locations shall pay an off-campus
instruction fee and shall not pay the athletic fee and the
student activity fee. The off-campus instruction fee shall be
used solely for the support of off-campus courses offered by
the institution. Off-campus locations for each institution
shall be defined by the appropriate governing board. The
schedule of all fees, and any changes therein, shall be entered
in the minutes of the meeting of the appropriate governing
board, and the board shall file with the legislative auditor a
certified copy of such schedule and changes.
(b) In addition to the fees mentioned in the preceding
paragraph, each governing board may impose and collect a
student union building fee. All such building fees collected
at an institution shall be paid into a special student union
building fund for such institution, which is hereby created in
the state treasury, and shall be used only for the
construction, operation and maintenance of a student union building or a combination student union and dining hall
building or for the payment of the principal of and interest on
any bond issued to finance part or all of the construction of
a student union building or a combination student union and
dining hall building or the renovation of an existing structure
for use as a student union building or a combination student
union and dining hall building, all as more fully provided in
section ten of this article. Any moneys in such funds not
immediately needed for such purposes may be invested in any
such bonds or other securities as are now or hereafter
authorized as proper investments for state funds.
(c) The boards shall establish the rates to be charged
full-time students enrolled during a regular academic term.
For fee purposes a full-time undergraduate student shall be one
enrolled for twelve or more credit hours in a regular term, and
a full-time graduate student shall be one enrolled for nine or
more credit hours in a regular term. Undergraduate students
taking fewer than twelve credit hours in a regular term shall
have their fees reduced pro rata based upon one twelfth of the
full-time rate per credit hour, and graduate students taking
fewer than nine credit hours in a regular term shall have their fees reduced pro rata based upon one ninth of the full-time
rate per credit hour.
Fees for students enrolled in summer terms or other
nontraditional time periods shall be prorated based upon the
number of credit hours for which the student enrolls in
accordance with the above provisions.
(d) All fees are due and payable by the student upon
enrollment and registration for classes except as provided for
in this subsection:
(1) The governing boards shall permit fee payments to be
made in up to three installments over the course of the
academic term. The payments shall include interest at a rate
set by the governing board:
Provided, That all fees must be
paid prior to the awarding of course credit at the end of the
academic term.
(2) The governing boards shall also authorize the
acceptance of credit cards or other payment methods which may
be generally available to students for the payment of fees:
Provided, That the governing boards may charge the students for
the reasonable and customary charges incurred in accepting
credit cards and other methods of payment.
(3) If a governing board determines that any student was
adversely, financially affected by a legal work stoppage that
commenced on or after the first day of January, one thousand
nine hundred ninety-three, it may allow the student an
additional six months to pay the fees for any academic term:
Provided, That the governing board shall determine if a student
was adversely, financially affected on a case-by-case basis.
(e) The governing boards shall establish legislative rules
regarding the refund of any fees upon the voluntary or
involuntary withdrawal from classes of any student which rules
shall comply with all applicable state and federal laws and
shall be uniformly applied throughout the systems.
(f) The governing boards shall establish legislative rules
using the fee structure or other penalties to provide a
disincentive for students to register for classes in excess of
the typical full-time course load, that being from twelve to
eighteen credit hours for an undergraduate student and from
nine to fifteen credit hours for a graduate student, and then
to withdraw from such excess classes after the semester has
begun.
(g) In addition to the fees mentioned in the preceding subsections, each governing board may impose, collect and
distribute a fee to be used to finance a nonprofit, student-
controlled public interest research group:
Provided, That the
students at such institution demonstrate support for the
increased fee in a manner and method established by that
institution's elected student government:
Provided, however,
That such fees shall not be used to finance litigation against
the institution.
(h) Any proposed fee increase which would become effective
on or after the first day of July, one thousand nine hundred
ninety-seven, which has been approved by the governing boards,
shall then be submitted by the governing boards to the
secretary of education and the arts for approval. Such
approval shall only be granted upon the certification that such
institution requesting a fee increase is in compliance with the
strategic plans required to be submitted, pursuant to section
one-b, article one of this chapter. Notice, in the form of a
report, shall be provided by the secretary to the legislative
oversight commission on education accountability describing
such fee increases and showing of how such increases compare
with the average tuition and fees charged at comparable peer institutions in member states of the southern regional
education board.
ARTICLE 11. MISCELLANEOUS INSTITUTES AND CENTERS.
§18B-11-5. Institute for instructional technology.
The governing boards are hereby authorized to create an
institute for instructional technology which shall be located
within the higher education central office. The governing
boards are hereby authorized to enter into research agreements
pursuant to article twelve of this chapter with respect to the
institute for instructional technology. The vice chancellor
for instructional technology shall perform such functions,
tasks and duties as may be prescribed by law and shall share
resources with the higher education central office, the state
institutions of higher education and other agencies to the
extent practical to avoid unnecessary duplication of staff and
other administrative efforts.
ARTICLE 14. MISCELLANEOUS.
§18B-14-5. Authorization to sell property generally.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this code to the
contrary, the governing boards are hereby authorized and
empowered to sell any surplus real property and deposit the net proceeds into a special revenue account in the state treasury
to be appropriated by the Legislature for the purchase of
additional real property or technology, or for capital
improvements at the institution that sold the surplus real
property:
Provided, That prior to such action the appropriate
governing board shall have the property appraised by two
licensed appraisers and shall not sell the property for less
than the average of the two appraisals:
Provided, however,
That before such action, the governing boards shall provide
notice to the public by a Class II legal advertisement as
defined in section two, article three, chapter fifty-nine of
this code and shall hold a public hearing on the issue.