Senate Bill 1840c1
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Florida Senate - 1999 CS for SB 1840
By the Committee on Education and Senator Holzendorf
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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.
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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,
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29 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Florida Senate - 1999 CS for SB 1840
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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.
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Florida Senate - 1999 CS for SB 1840
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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
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Florida Senate - 1999 CS for SB 1840
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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
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Florida Senate - 1999 CS for SB 1840
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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.
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6 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
7 SB 1840
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9 The Committee Substitute:
10 Authorizes the Florida Education Fund to administer the
fellowship program, rather than the Southern Regional
11 Education Board.
12 Requires each fellowship to be at least $23,000 annually. Part
of the felowship may be paid to the recipient and part to the
13 college to replace the fellowship recipient.
14 Appropriates $250,000 for at least 10 fellowships and up to 8
percent administrative costs to the Florida Education Fund.
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