Proposed Revision to 220.1 - Community College Education Centers
Introduction:
Montana's
community colleges and the units of the University System, in cooperation with
the independent colleges of Montana, share the responsibility to maximize the
availability of educational opportunities for the state's citizens in a manner
that will enhance quality while minimizing unnecessary duplication of effort
and potentially harmful competition. This policy governs the offerings of instructional programs by community
colleges in geographical areas outside of the community college district.
Board policy:
1. A CCEC (community college education
center) may only be offered pursuant
to the provisions of this policy. A
community college may create and operate several CCECs, but each CCEC is
subject to this policy. A community
college may not offer courses, as part of their regular instruction, at
geographical locations outside of the community college district except through
a CCEC established under this policy. All courses for credit at geographical locations outside of the
community college district that are not offered through a CCEC shall be subject
to Section 304.1 of the Policy and Procedures the Montana University System.
2. The content of a CCEC may not be
duplicative of existing courses of instruction offered in the same geographical
area by another Montana institution of higher education unless the affected
institution gives written consent to the offering.
3. A CCEC must be within the approved role
and scope and the authorized programs of the community college. A CCEC shall offer a structured, coherent
educational program and may not be merely a vehicle for occasional course
offerings.
4. Existing education centers established
at Sidney and Baker are not subject to the provisions of this policy relating
to the establishment of the center. These centers will be subject to an
evaluation as prescribed by paragraph 11, under Operation, during the 1984-85
academic year.
Operation of CCEC:
1. Persons assigned to teach courses for a
CCEC for which resident credit is to be granted must have credentials at least
the equivalent of those required of faculty teaching the same or similar
courses at the same institution.
2. Resources, in addition to faculty and
including library and/or laboratory facilities and resources developed
specifically for a specific course or program, must be sufficient to offer a
quality program.
3. Students must meet the same admission
and academic standards, including grade point averages, that are required of
students taking the same or similar programs at the home institution.
4. A local coordinator shall be designated
and be available in the geographic area served by the CCEC. Such individual shall handle administrative
arrangements and serve as a contact person.
5. Provision shall be made for student
counseling and advisement.
6. Student credit hours generated in degree
credit programs at community college education centers shall be subject to the
same reporting requirements as regular instructional programs at the home
institution; however, separate reports shall be prepared for each center. The Montana University System Registrars'
Manual for Reporting Enrollment Data shall be followed. If a course would not be eligible for credit
at the home institution, it shall not be granted credit at a CCEC.
7. The following provisions shall govern
the fee schedules for CCEC coursework:
a. Centers shall charge students enrolled
in a CCEC the normal authorized on-campus fees including admission,
tuition, building, etc. Centers may
waive the student activity and student
health fees for students enrolled in a CCEC.
b. Upon approval of the Board of Trustees
of the community college district, an additional educational services fee may
be charged each student to provide the services required by the program.
c. Fees
for any non-credit or community service programs which may be offered
through a community college education center shall be governed by the
appropriate Regent and/or Trustee policies.
8. If concerns arise about potential
competition or duplication of effort between a CCEC and the offerings of
another institution of higher education, the Commissioner of Higher Education
may establish measures for addressing the problems.
9. Any proposed changes in an established
CCEC must be submitted to the Commissioner of Higher Education to determine if
such changes are significant enough to require treating the proposed modified
CCEC as a new CCEC subject to the procedural steps outlined below. If the Commissioner determines that the
changes require treatment as a new CCEC, the Commissioner shall inform the
community college, which then has the responsibility of initiating the
procedures below. If the Commissioner
determines the changes are not significant, the Commissioner may grant or deny
the request and shall notify the Board of Regents of any such actions.
10. It is the responsibility of the
Commissioner of Higher Education and the president of the community college to
insure that the quality of programs at a CCEC meets the same criteria by which
the quality of programs is assessed at the home institution.
11. The Commissioner, in conjunction with the
community college president, shall provide for the evaluation of the CCEC after
the third year of operation and periodically thereafter. If the CCEC is not
meeting its original or modified objectives, the Commissioner may recommend to
the Regents that the CCEC be terminated.
12. A CCEC shall be formally designated as
the (name of the institution) Center at (location) (for) (geographical area
served).
Procedure:
1. The formal procedure to establish a CCEC
begins with the passage of a resolution by the Board of Trustees of the
community college district requesting the Board of Regents to authorize the
establishment of a CCEC.
2. Prior to the formal procedure, the Board
of Trustees may meet with interested persons in the area to be served by the
CCEC, hold public hearings to gather public opinion, establish preliminary
proposals and engage in other planning activities of a preliminary nature.
3. The resolution referred to in paragraph
(1) above may not be adopted until the Trustees have received in writing
requests for establishment of a CCEC by residents of the area to be served.
4. After a resolution has been adopted, the
Trustees shall transmit the resolution to the Commissioner of Higher
Education. The transmittal must be
accompanied by copies of the written requests for establishment of the CCEC
referred to in paragraph (2) and by a memorandum in support of the proposal and
may be accompanied by such other
documents and exhibits that the Trustees believe to be of value. The memorandum in support must contain the
following information:
a. a description of the proposed CCEC,
including anticipated course offerings, the geographical area to be served and
the population thereof, and the anticipated commitments of resources (staff and
cash outlays),
b. a
narrative discussion, with supporting documentation if necessary, as to how the
operation requirements above will be met, and
c. such other information as the
Commissioner may require.
5. After receipt of a resolution, the
Commissioner shall transmit a copy of the resolution and memorandum of support
to the other community colleges, the units of the University System, the
vocational technical centers in the state, and the independent colleges of the
state for their review and comments. These institutions shall have 30 days from date of receipt to submit
their comments to the Commissioner. Their time period may be extended at the discretion of the
Commissioner.
6. After the time period for comment
referred to in paragraph (5) has passed and after the Commissioner has had
sufficient time to examine and review the proposal, the Commissioner shall
formulate a recommendation as to establishment of the CCEC and shall place the
question of establishment on the Board of Regents agenda as soon as is
practical, along with the Commissioner's recommendation. In the course of reviewing the proposal, the
Commissioner may hold public hearings in the area to be served by the
CCEC. The cost of such a hearing shall
be borne by the community college district.
7. The Board of Regents shall either grant
or deny the Trustees the authority to establish a CCEC, and a grant of
authority may include conditions.
8. At any time during the review procedure,
the Trustees may by resolution request that the proposal be withdrawn, and in
such case all proceedings shall be terminated.
9. Once a proposal has been submitted by a
community college and acted upon by the Board of Regents, no same or similar
proposal may be submitted to the Commissioner until after 1 year has passed
from the date of Board action, unless the Board otherwise permits.
Definitions:
A community
college education center is a program in instruction in one or more areas of
academic interest by a community college in a geographical area outside of the
community college district.
History:
Item 38-1000-R0183, Community College Education Centers, March 4, 1983.