House Bill 0179c1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.







    Florida House of Representatives - 1999              CS/HB 179

        By the Committee on Community Colleges & Career Prep and
    Representatives Dennis, Harrington and Chestnut





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to community colleges; amending

  3         s. 240.498, F.S., relating to the Florida

  4         Education Fund; establishing the Community

  5         College Faculty Diversity Program; providing

  6         for fellowships; requiring an annual

  7         accountability report; requiring service or

  8         repayment; establishing requirements; requiring

  9         the adoption of rules; providing an

10         appropriation to the Division of Community

11         Colleges; providing an effective date.

12

13         WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature recognizes the need

14  for additional ethnic and gender minorities as faculty and

15  executive, administrative, and managerial personnel in Florida

16  community colleges, and

17         WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature is interested in

18  increasing the number of ethnic and gender minorities employed

19  in these positions, and

20         WHEREAS, national availability statistics indicate a

21  severe shortage of minorities holding the requisite degrees to

22  enter the pool of potential faculty and senior-level employees

23  in Florida community colleges, and

24         WHEREAS, the Florida Legislature wishes to establish a

25  means to develop, utilize, promote, and maintain human

26  resources currently employed in the Florida Community College

27  System, NOW, THEREFORE,

28

29  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

30

31

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999              CS/HB 179

    613-123-99






  1         Section 1.  Subsection (9) is added to section 240.498,

  2  Florida Statutes, to read:

  3         240.498  Florida Education Fund.--

  4         (9)  There is created the Community College Faculty

  5  Diversity Program of the Florida Education Fund, a

  6  collaborative effort of the State Board of Community Colleges

  7  and the Florida Education Fund, to increase the number of

  8  ethnic minorities and women holding doctoral degrees in the

  9  Florida Community College System.  The Faculty Diversity

10  Program shall include, but not be limited to, a fellowship

11  program which shall receive funds from the Division of

12  Community Colleges, in accordance with criteria adopted by the

13  State Board of Community Colleges, to be administered by the

14  Board of Directors of the Florida Education Fund for this

15  purpose.

16         (a)  The board of directors shall provide financial,

17  academic, and other support to individuals selected for

18  participation in the program from funds appropriated for this

19  purpose. Administrative costs received by the board of

20  directors shall not exceed 8 percent of the cost per fellow.

21         (b)  The board of directors must appropriately

22  distribute between sponsoring institutions and selected

23  fellows the funds for the financial support of such fellows

24  and submit to the State Board of Community Colleges an annual

25  report of program expenditures and activities.

26         (c)  The sponsoring community college must agree to

27  grant the program participant release time for study and

28  continue the fellow on the payroll at up to one-half salary,

29  based on the salary earned by the fellow at the time of

30  initial entry into the program, and with full benefits.

31

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999              CS/HB 179

    613-123-99






  1         (d)  Selection of participants must be made in

  2  accordance with policies established by the Florida Education

  3  Fund, adopted by the board of directors for that purpose, and

  4  approved by the State Board of Community Colleges.  Selection

  5  must be based, in part, on an assessment of potential for

  6  student success, merit, and financial need.  Such selection

  7  shall consider representation of participants from throughout

  8  the state.  First preference shall be given to ethnic

  9  minorities and candidates holding credentials to attain

10  admission to, and to complete, doctoral programs.  Preference

11  shall also be given to participants employed by institutions

12  where ethnic minorities and women are underrepresented in

13  faculty and executive level positions. Selections shall also

14  consider applicants pursuing fields of study consistent with

15  the goals of the sponsoring institution.

16         (e)  Each fellow must agree in writing to return to the

17  sponsoring college in the term immediately following

18  completion of the targeted degree to:

19         1.  Render an amount of service equal to the cost of

20  aid provided by the college; or

21         2.  Repay the amount of aid, including salary and

22  benefits, received from the institution and from the Florida

23  Education Fund, pursuant to paragraph (f).

24         (f)  Each fellow must agree in writing that, if the

25  fellow fails to complete the targeted degree within the time

26  approved by the sponsoring institution or if the fellow fails

27  to meet the requirements of paragraph (e), the fellow must

28  repay to the college and to the Florida Education Fund an

29  amount equal to the amount of aid, including salary and

30  benefits, received from each of these entities, including

31  principal and applicable accrued interest.  Repayment to the

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999              CS/HB 179

    613-123-99






  1  Florida Education Fund must be consistent with policies and

  2  procedures established by the board of directors.

  3         (g)  The State Board of Community Colleges shall adopt

  4  rules for the implementation of this subsection, including

  5  procedures for repayment of funds to a community college by a

  6  fellow who fails to complete the doctoral degree as agreed or

  7  who, upon completing the degree, fails to serve the college as

  8  agreed.  Such rules shall address applicable interest rates

  9  and provisions for the exemption of an individual from the

10  requirements of paragraphs (e) and (f), based on a

11  demonstration of hardship.

12         Section 2.  The sum of $250,000 is appropriated from

13  the General Revenue Fund to the Division of Community Colleges

14  for fiscal year 1999-2000 for the purpose of implementing this

15  act. The State Board of Community Colleges must enter into an

16  agreement with the Board of Directors of the Florida Education

17  Fund to implement this act which shall provide for a minimum

18  of 10 fellowships at a minimum of $23,000 per fellow to defray

19  the cost of doctoral study and replacement of community

20  college employees granted educational leave pursuant to this

21  act.  At the discretion of the board of directors, as an

22  additional means to increase the number of doctoral scholars

23  in Florida community colleges, allowances may be made to

24  provide partial fellowships, equivalent to 10 full

25  fellowships, to candidates requiring less than full-time study

26  in order to complete the doctoral degree.  The Board of

27  Directors of the Florida Education Fund is authorized to enter

28  into agreements, at its discretion, with the Southern Region

29  Education Board (SREB) to support community college fellows

30  requiring doctoral study in institutions outside of Florida

31  that participate in the SREB Doctoral Scholars Program.  Funds

                                  4

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999              CS/HB 179

    613-123-99






  1  for the fellowship program shall be transmitted to the Florida

  2  Education Fund by the Division of Community Colleges in

  3  semiannual payments in July and January of the fiscal year.

  4         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1999.

  5

  6

  7

  8

  9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

                                  5