< [Effective until July 1, 2002, this section reads as follows:] >

There is established an optional retirement program for the publicly-supported four-year and postgraduate institutions of higher education and technical colleges. Only employees of participating institutions holding faculty and administrative positions are eligible to participate in the optional retirement program. No employee is eligible to participate in the optional retirement program unless he is eligible for membership in the South Carolina Retirement System. Retirement and death benefits must be provided for a participant in the optional retirement program through the purchase of an individual annuity contract, fixed or variable in nature, or a combination thereof. The State and the participant shall contribute toward the purchase of the contract which must be issued to, and become the property of, the participant. Eligibility is determined solely by the South Carolina Retirement System.