I.
Application/Approval
A.
Secondary Technical Center
Approval
1. An application for a new
secondary technical center must be submitted to the Office of Skills
Development (OSD) Associate Director in the Department of Commerce on or before
October 1, prior to the school year in which the center is
scheduled to open. Guidelines and application for a new secondary technical
center may be obtained by contacting the Office of Skills Development at (501)
683-1152.
2. Priority shall be
given to the following:
* a region that is currently not being served by a
center
* program alignment with state and regional economic
development strategies and workforce priorities.
A center will not be approved within 25 miles of an existing
center unless it can be demonstrated that the creation of a new center will not
adversely impact adjoining centers.
3. A sponsoring institution/entity (public
high school, postsecondary technical institute, two-year college, or education
service cooperative) that has been approved by the Career Education and
Workforce Development Board (CEWDB) as a secondary technical center must begin
operation with three occupational specific programs. Only occupational
specific programs will be eligible for secondary technical center
funding.
4. A secondary
technical center or satellite that is approved by the CEWDB must serve multiple
high schools to qualify for secondary technical center funding.
5. A secondary technical center that closes
and desires to resume operation must submit a new application to the CEWDB for
approval. A center that is approved by CEWDB for start-up but fails to begin
operation within a two-year period shall be considered null and void and must
reapply.
B.
New or
Expanded Programs
1. For new or
expanded program approval, the secondary technical center shall submit a
proposal for new program start-up by October 1 of the preceding
year in which the program(s) is to be implemented. The application is available
by contacting the Office of Skills Development at (501) 683-1152.
2. Newly approved programs must be authorized
by the Director of OSD to receive secondary technical center funding.
3. Programs of study offered at the centers
must be selected from a list of approved programs as defined by the Department
of Education, Division of Career and Technical Education.
C.
Satellite Programs
1. An existing secondary technical center or
proposed center, approved by the CEWDB, may provide satellite location(s) to
school districts that are located outside the 25 miles or 30
minutes of driving time. Satellite locations must be shared by
more than one school district. Satellite locations will be
eligible for funding in the same manner as center programs.
2. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) shall
be completed, signed by cooperating parties, and on file in the secondary
technical center director's office concerning the operation of satellite
locations.
3. All applications for
a satellite location require the approval of the CEWDB.
a. The secondary technical center must
complete an application to open a satellite program(s). The application shall
be submitted to OSD along with all required documentation of support.
b. All satellite locations will be approved
by the CEWDB prior to startup of the satellite.
c. Documentation from the secondary technical
center's administration that indicates interest and approval in opening a
satellite program is required. This documentation should include at a minimum
(1) a letter from the center director to OSD stating the center's intent to
open the location; (2) minutes from the secondary technical center's board of
directors meeting showing the board's support; and (3) minutes from the
secondary technical center's sponsoring entity showing the sponsoring entity's
support.
d. Documentation from the
participating schools indicating their support of the satellite program(s) is
required. This should be in the form of (1) minutes from the participating
school's board meetings indicating the school will support the program(s) at
the satellite location; (2) a letter from each school's superintendent
indicating the school district's support of the program(s).
e. The secondary technical center must show a
need for the satellite program(s) through documentation including surveys of
area business and industry, job outlook forecasts, projected enrollment,
etc.
f. The host school agrees to
provide the following:
(1) facilities
including classroom(s), lab(s), utilities, maintenance, and janitorial
services;
(2) handle immediate
issues involving discipline until the center director can address the
situation; and
(3) statement
allowing the participation of other school districts.
g. The secondary technical center agrees to:
(1) furnish the classroom(s) and lab(s) with
equipment, furniture, etc.;
(2)
furnish supplies for the program;
(3) handle discipline matters under the
center's guidelines in a timely fashion; and
(4) employ instructor(s) for approved center
programs of study.
h.
Each participating high school shall be guaranteed seats at the satellite
program. The individual school's percentage of 10th
grade enrollment calculated from the total 10th
grade enrollment of all participating high schools shall be the method used to
determine available seats.
4. Existing Satellite Programs
All existing satellite programs shall be required to submit an
MOU identifying the program, location, participating schools, and projected
enrollment from participating schools. Host schools will be required to submit
a letter of support for the satellite program. Existing satellite programs will
be subject to the same guidelines as new satellite programs to be reviewed at
the end of a five-year period.
5. Consolidation
All satellite program(s) affected by school consolidation that
are reduced to single school status will be re-evaluated as to the status of a
satellite program(s).
II.
Finance
A.
Funding
1. Vocational center aid shall be calculated
by OSD and distributed by the Department of Education based upon each secondary
technical center's eligible student FTE count, once verified by OSD. The
Department of Education will distribute one payment, during the fall and spring
semesters, to each secondary center.
2. A three-tiered funding system shall be
established by OSD and approved by the CEWDB to determine the amount of
vocational center aid for each program of study. Program of study tier
placement shall take into account the different funding needs and costs of
individual programs of study, along with the workforce needs of the State of
Arkansas.
3. Vocational center aid
received by a secondary career center not expended in accordance with ACA
6-51-305 shall be carried forward
into the succeeding year. Beginning with fiscal year 2022, and at the close of
each fiscal year thereafter, any secondary career center that has a fund
balance which exceeds twenty percent (20%) of the current year tiered revenue,
shall have its fall VCA payment reduced by the amount of carryover exceeding
20%. Vocational Center aid (VCA) received by a secondary center not expended in
accordance with ACA
6-51-305 shall be carried forward
into the succeeding year for the purpose of conducting summer programs and
community-based education centers or supporting secondary technical center
operations in succeeding years.
4.
The amount of vocational center aid, determined by multiplying the verified FTE
enrollment by the applicable tiers, may be greater than the funding available
in a given fiscal year. In this scenario, the CEWDB may adjust the tiered
funding rates as necessary to accommodate the funding shortfall.
5. The funding available in a given fiscal
year may be greater than the amount of vocational center aid, determined by
multiplying the verified FTE enrollment by the applicable tiers. OSD, in
coordination with ADE, would then recommend that the CEWDB take one of two
actions:
(1) disperse the excess funding
based on need, or
(2) carry forward
the excess to the next fiscal year.
B.
Supplemental Funds
1. Secondary technical centers may from
time-to-time be eligible for federal funds. Department of Education, Division
of Career and Technical Education will inform secondary center directors of
these as they become available.
2.
Secondary technical centers may apply for and receive on their own merit any
special grant funds from other agencies. All revenue shall be disclosed on the
revenue page of the annual expenditure report. Funding of secondary centers is
not limited to state funding as described above.
IV.
Operations
A.
Secondary Technical Center
Responsibility
1. The management,
maintenance, and operation of a secondary technical center shall be the
financial responsibility of the sponsoring institution or entity in accordance
with the policies established by the CEWDB. Expenses associated with the
maintenance and operations of a secondary technical center/satellite shall not
be paid with vocational center aid funding, however, a secondary technical
center/satellite that is physically detached from a public school district or
state-supported institution of higher education may use vocational center aid
funding for the management, maintenance, and operation of the secondary
technical center/satellite. Failure to comply with this policy may result in a
reduction of vocational center aid to the secondary technical center.
2. Failure to properly maintain and operate a
secondary center may result in, by recommendation to the CEWDB, closure of the
center.
3. Each participating high
school shall be guaranteed seats in each program. The individual school's
percentage of 10th grade enrollment calculated from
the total 10th grade enrollment of all participating
high schools shall be the method used to determine available seats. Any school
not fulfilling its quota shall relinquish the unfilled seats to other
schools.
B.
Designation of Secondary Technical Center Director
1. Each secondary technical center,
regardless of location, must employ a secondary technical center director on
full-time basis.
2. Secondary
technical centers that are not located on the campus of a secondary school may,
but need not, employ directors who hold a secondary technical center 175
endorsement.
3. The secondary
technical center director should have a minimum of 3 years' experience (in
areas including, but not limited to, teaching, supervision, and administration)
at the secondary or post-secondary levels. However, subject to the requirements
for secondary technical center directors stated elsewhere in these rules,
equivalent experience may be substituted on a case by case basis.
C.
Secondary Technical
Center Council
1. Each secondary
technical center shall have an active secondary technical center council. The
council shall meet twice annually, and minutes, sign-in sheets, agendas, and
any other supporting documentation shall be kept. The council shall be
comprised of superintendents of the sponsoring and local school districts
participating in the secondary technical center along with the director of the
center. When a postsecondary institution is designated as a secondary technical
center, the director or president/chancellor of that institution shall be a
member. Additionally, where secondary technical centers are sponsored by an
education service cooperative, the director shall be a member of the council.
The secondary technical center council shall serve in an advisory capacity for
the secondary technical center in all areas of administration and operation,
e.g., scheduling, student discipline, program design, etc. The center council
may also assist with determining the capacity of a center.
2. The council serves in advisory capacity
only. The local board of the host institution serves as the governing authority
of the secondary technical center.
D.
Instructor Qualifications
1. Technical instructors teaching at a
college-based secondary technical center or a high-school based secondary
technical center must have a minimum of a technical permit in the area of
instruction or an associate's degree within the area of instruction or related
area. Tested experience may substitute for an earned credential or portions
thereof. (Institutional (or HLC) requirement)
2. Technical instructors must have completed
Arkansas State Police, FBI, and the Arkansas Child Maltreatment Registry
background checks and meet all college accrediting standards for instructors.
These background checks must be completed every five years. Instructors shall
submit documentation of these records to their employer.
3. Instructors not meeting these requirements
or instructors teaching nonconcurrent credit classes must hold an Arkansas
Teacher's License/Technical Permit.
E.
Employee Policies
The sponsoring institution/entity shall adopt official employee
policies and procedures, including a salary schedule, sick leave, inclement
weather, grievance, benefits, and other policies. These must be adopted by the
start of the second semester of operation.
F.
Student Handbook
The sponsoring institution/entity shall adopt a student
handbook outlining the rules and regulations relating to discipline,
attendance, hand tools, textbooks, OCR Grievance Procedures, and other matters.
These must be adopted by the start of the second semester of operation.
G.
Class Periods
Class periods shall conform to the minimum class hours
established by the Standards for Accreditation of Public Schools and AdvanceEd.
Travel time shall not be counted in the time on task determination. In order to
restructure a program of study, the secondary technical center may work with
OSD and the Arkansas Department of Education, Division of Career and Technical
Education to implement course designs and class lengths.
H.
Instruction
1. Programs shall align with program of study
standards and meet requirements as established for each program of
study.
2. Concurrent credit classes
offered for secondary career and technical credit in a college-based secondary
technical center shall meet or exceed Department of Education, Division of
Career and Technical Education standards. One 3-hour college course shall
equate to one Carnegie unit.
3. An
active advisory committee is required for each occupational
program area. The committee shall meet twice annually and minutes, sign-in
sheets, agendas, and any other supporting documentation shall be
kept.
I.
Transportation
The secondary technical center director and the administration
of the local school district shall determine responsibility for transporting
students to and from the local school to a secondary technical center.
J.
Exceptions
Expansion of secondary technical centers into areas not being
served is a priority of the OSD. The OSD Director may, upon request, make
exceptions to the stated policies when such requests are supported by adequate
justification.
V.
Definitions
* Access is an attempt for every high school
student in Arkansas to have the opportunity to participate in any of a minimum
of three occupation-specific technical programs offered within 25 miles or 30
minutes of the home school.
* Concurrent credit is received by high school
career and technical education students who take classes offered through an
institution of higher education. These classes will be transcripted by the
local high school for secondary credit and by the institution of higher
education for college credit.
* Eligible student is a student enrolled in grades
10-12 and who is pursuing a program of study in a secondary technical
center.
* Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) shall be considered
the equivalent of one student attending class for six class periods per day per
year, e.g., one student attending a three-period class the full year would be
equal to one-half FTE. Travel time cannot be included in FTE count.
* Local districts are the districts in the
locality, which are eligible to participate in secondary technical center
programs.
* Occupation-specific programs are technical
programs, which have paid employment in specific occupations as their
objectives.
* Satellite location is the extension of a
secondary technical center located outside the boundaries of an existing center
(25 miles or 30 minutes of driving time) or to students in isolated areas.
Satellite locations will be provided by an approved secondary technical center
and must be shared by more than one school district. All satellite locations
require the approval of the CEWDB.
* Secondary technical center is a public secondary
or post-secondary institution organized for the specific purpose of educating
high school students in specific occupational/technical programs. A center will
serve students from more than one participating high school. Students eligible
to attend a secondary technical center will generally come from a twenty-five
(25) mile radius or thirty (30) minute driving time from the local
school.
* Sponsoring institution is a comprehensive high
school, a post-secondary technical institute, a two-year or community/technical
college, an education service cooperative, or any other entity authorized by
law that has been approved by the CEWDB. The sponsoring institution will
function as the fiscal agent and will manage and administer the secondary
technical center.
(Reference ACA
6-51-301 to
6-51-305)
* Vocational center aid is calculated and
distributed by the Department of Education based upon each secondary technical
center's eligible student FTE count.
