Wyo. Code R. 057-0001-1
Effective Date: 08/05/1997 to 06/04/2001
Rule Type: Superceded Rules & Regulations
Reference Number: 057.0001.1.08051997
Section 1. Authority. The Wyoming Community College Commission, created by W.S. 21-1-201, is required by W.S. 21-18-202(a)(ii) to promulgate and adopt rules and regulations which will insure that the State Community College System is operated and maintained in a coordinated, efficient and effective manner. The State Commission's Rules are promulgated under the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act (W.S. 16-3-103 and 16-3-104).
Section 2. Applicability. The State Commission's Rules apply to the Wyoming Community College Commission and all Wyoming community college districts. Matters not covered by statutes and State Commission Rules, or reasonably incident to them, will be governed by the individual district boards, following all applicable laws, rules and their own rules.
(a) 'Academic program' (transfer) means those programs approved by the State Commission which provide credits resulting in an associate's degree or which may be transferred to an accredited four (4)- year college or university. (W.S. 21- 18-102(a)(i))
(b) 'Accreditation' means the process by a national or regional organization to grant public recognition of a program or college, indicating that it meets established standards of quality, as determined through initial and periodic self-study and peer evaluation.
(c) 'Administrative computing system' is composed of the computer hardware and software components that support data processing activities for daily business operations and provide support for management information systems. It is distinct from academic computing operations that support instructional programs.
(d) 'Adult basic education' (ABE) means the effort to provide an adult with the ability to read, write and speak in English, to compute, and to solve problems at levels of proficiency that enable a person to function in society.
(e) 'Annualized full-time equivalence (AFTE)' means the number of credit full-time equivalent students for the summer, fall, and spring semesters (final report), divided by two (2)—[(Summer + Fall + Spring)/2].
(f) 'Annual variance' means the difference (increase or decrease) between the annualized full-time equivalence for one academic year when compared with the previous year.
(g) 'Approved courses' (formula) means district-approved courses and their catalog descriptions which have been approved and placed on the taxonomy by the Academic Affairs Council. The State Commission may subsequently disapprove such courses only for cause. Approval by the Academic Affairs Council will insure funding for the course the first time it is taught and until subsequent State Commission action.
Special topics or temporary courses approved by the Academic Affairs Council can be approved courses for two regular terms.
(h) 'Audit' means an enrollment in a credit course with the stated intention of receiving no credit and no grade.
(i) 'Census date' means the official date for counting student enrollment for the purpose of determining the amount of formula funding and for auditing the number of FTE reported. An official roster shall be kept for each class on that date and maintained for five (5) years. It shall be signed by the instructor of that class, and it shall clearly designate which students are enrolled for credit in that class on the census date, and it will accurately reflect each student's status.
The census date for each college term shall be the date immediately following the twelve percent (12%) mark for that term. In other words, when 12 percent of a regular or summer college term has expired, the following class period shall be the census date. For standard classes of full-term or summer term length, a college will typically have one census date. Classes which meet for more or less than one term, or which start after the beginning or conclude before the end of a regular or summer college term, will have their own census dates.
For classes of more or less than term duration, the census will be taken as soon as possible after 12 percent of the class term has passed.
(j) 'Certificate of completion' (or 'certificate') means a formal award offered by a district, typically to students in an occupational program, for successful completion of at least one year (30 semester hours) of course work in a specific occupational program.
(k) 'Chairman' shall mean the chairman of the Wyoming Community College Commission, or in his/her absence, the vicechairman.
(l) 'Chart of accounts' means those digit codes assigned to funds, programs, accounts, revenues and expenditures which are defined in the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) Accounting Standards.
(m) 'CIP code' shall mean the U.S. Department of Education's classification of postsecondary instructional programs.
(n) 'Code' means the Wyoming Community College Code of 1985 in its current form. (See W.S. 21-18-101 through 21-18-317.)
(o) 'Commission' or 'State Commission' means the Wyoming Community College Commission (WCCC). (W.S. 21-18-102(a)(ii))
(p) 'Commissioner' means a member of the Wyoming Community College Commission.
(q) 'Community college district' means a body corporate established by statute as a subdivision of a county or counties or parts of several counties which establish or maintain a community college. (W.S. 21-18-102(a)(iv))
(r) 'Community services programs' means all programs, class activities and services sponsored by a college which are not for credit and are not part of an academic, vocational-technical, or continuing education program. This would include avocational and recreational classes, seminars, lecture series, forum series, and conferences (except as noted in 'Continuing education' below). It would also include cultural activities, community development activities, recreational and avocational activities. (W.S. 21-18-102 (a)(v))
(s) 'Concurrent/dual enrollment' means to be enrolled in a class in which the student earns high school and college credit at the same time.
(t) 'Contact hour' is fifty (50) minutes of scheduled instruction given to students.
(u) 'Continuing education programs and classes' means those programs, class activities and services spon- sored by a college which provide job skills necessary to remain in or advance as a member of the work force which do not result in degrees or certificates of completion. These could include contract education and may include workshops, conferences, and seminars designed to maintain or enhance employability. (W.S. 21-18-102(a)(vi))
Requests for state appropriations for continuing education activities shall be limited to fifty percent (50 %) of the cost. (W.S. 21-18-203 (b)) See also Chapter 8, Section 7, paragraph (c).
(v) 'Contract courses' are special offerings which are not part of a college's normally approved offerings and which are provided at the request and for the benefit of business, industry or agency; enrollment therein is not open to the general public, and the course is subsidized by the business or industry. College districts, at their discretion, may offer academic credit for such programs, courses, or activities. No state aid may be claimed for contract courses.
(x) 'Cost per annualized full-time equivalency' means the fiscal year current funds expenditures for instruction, research, public service, academic support, student services, institutional support, operation and maintenance of plant, scholarships and fellowships (pell grants excluded), and educational and general mandatory transfers divided by the annualized full-time equivalency.
(y) 'Credit hour' is the unit by which a district measures its course work.
(i) One credit is assigned to a lecture class that meets the equivalent of at least fifty (50) minutes per week for fifteen (15) weeks or seven-hundred and fifty (750) minutes of instruction, exclusive of final examinations; or,
(ii) A laboratory or activity class that meets a minimum of one-hundred (100) minutes per week for fifteen (15) weeks or fifteen-hundred (1500) minutes of supervised laboratory experience, exclusive of final examinations.
(iii) Televised course is a complete and integrated instructional system that generally includes, in addition to the televised component, a textbook and a variety of other instructional material designed to be used by faculty and students as the principal components of a college course. The materials generally reflect the contributions of top scholars and curriculum designers from throughout the country and have been evaluated and refined through testing. These courses shall have at least four-hundred and forty (440) minutes of student involvement per credit hour.
In order to generate FTE for submission to the State Commission, each televised course must contain student requirements beyond viewing the classes and completing examinations.
(y) 'Current funds revenue' is defined by the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) and includes: tuition and fees, federal appropriations, state appropriations, local appropriations, federal grants and contracts, state grants and contracts, local grants and contracts, private gifts, grants and contracts, endowment income, sales and services of educational activities, sales and services of auxiliary enterprises, and other sources.
(z) 'Developmental courses' are those courses necessary to meet the needs of the underprepared entry-level college student. The courses are academically at a pre-collegiate level and provide skills that prepare students to engage in college-level course work. These courses are not normally considered part of an approved academic or vocational-technical program but are eligible for FTE funding.
(aa) 'Degree' means a title conferred on a student by a district on completion of at least sixty-two (62) semester hours of a defined program of study approved by the local board of trustees.
(bb) “Diploma” is an award of completion other than a degree or certificate. Several specific diplomas were grandfathered-in by the Wyoming Community College Code in 1985.
(cc) “Directed study” means independent study. It is a course supervised by a faculty member with a minimum of structure and formal direction. It is designed for use in exceptional circumstances. Such courses may be submitted for formula funding.
“District” means a Wyoming community college district.
“District board” means the elected board of trustees of a Wyoming community college district. (W.S. 21-18 -102 (a)(viii))
(ff) “Economic development training” means those courses and programs which are part of the college’s regular approved curriculum but which are taught at the request of local business, industry, or agency. (Session Laws 1993, Ch. 25) Such courses carry normal credit and may receive state funding, even though enrollment is limited to employees of business, industry, or agency.
“Effectiveness” is the fit between system mission and performance.
“Efficiency” means operation as measured by a comparison of production with cost (as in energy, time, and money).
“English as a second language” (ESL) means a level of language proficiency intended to benefit persons to whom English is not the native tongue.
“Executive director” means the executive director and chief operating officer of the Wyoming Community College Commission.
“Fees” include all revenue identified by subclass numbers 617 and 618 in the chart of accounts.
“Formula funding” (or “formula” or “fund formula”) means the formula approved by the State Commission.
(mm) “Full-time equivalency (FTE)” for the funding formula, as distinguished from W.S. 21-18-102(a)(vii), means the number of approved academic, vocational-technical, or developmental credit hours for each course section multiplied by the number of students enrolled as of the census date divided by twelve (12).
(nn) “General educational development (GED)” means the equivalent of secondary education for adults. It is designed to prepare adults to pass the high school equivalency examination.
(oo) “Instructional program” means a defined area of study, approved by the State Commission, made up of a group of interrelated, specific courses and general education requirements developed by a community college which, when completed, will satisfy the college’s requirements for a degree or certificate in that area of study.
(pp) “Institutional revenue” means tuition and fees, sales and services of educational activities, sales and services of auxiliary enterprises, and other sources identified by subclass numbers 61, 72, 73, and 74, respectively, in the chart of accounts.
Institutional revenue sources that contribute to funding the formula are: initial biennial tuition projections (611, 612, 613 and 614), initial projections of other sources (742 and 743), and other sources (741).
(qq) “Local appropriations” means mill levies, motor vehicle taxes, and other sources identified by subclass numbers 641, 642 and 643, respectively, in the chart of accounts.
Local appropriations sources that contribute to funding the formula are: mill levy (641), motor vehicle taxes (642), and other sources (643).
(rr) “Management Information Systems (MIS)” are organized methods of providing information related to past, present, and projected operations. They support the planning, control, and operational functions of an organization by furnishing uniform, timely information to assist in the decision-making process.
(ss) “Open entry/open exit classes” feature individualized, self-paced instruction, and have clear, written competency bases. They may commence at any time during the fiscal year and are characterized by students entering at various times and exiting upon mastery of specified competencies. For formula funding, such credit hours shall be reported in the semester that the student registers. These courses do not necessarily require minimum times.
(tt) “Sanction” means an individual college has the State Commission’s support to continue to receive state aid. State Commission sanction is acquired and maintained in the following manner:
(i) New college districts approved by the State Commission will receive initial sanction.
(ii) Continued sanction is maintained by following applicable state statutes and State Commission Rules, by maintaining North Central accreditation, and by submitting all required reports in proper form in a timely manner.
(uu) “Section” means one offering of one course.
(xx) “Special topics” (or “temporary courses”) are courses which are intended to be temporary in nature. They may be offered by a district to take advantage of special circumstances or to experiment with curricular modifications. These courses are developed on such short notice that they will not be included in catalogs.
(yy) “State appropriations” means the appropriations from the Wyoming Legislature to the State Commission for the assistance of those community colleges that meet the requirements for receipt of state funds as specified in W.S. 21-18-205. State appropriations (excluding those identified as ABE, GED, ESL (6311)) contribute to funding the formula.
(zz) “State Community College System” means the Wyoming Community College System, consisting of the State Commission and all districts.
(aaa) “Student credit hours” means the number of credit hours for the course (section) multiplied by the enrollment for the course (section) as of the census date.
(bbb) “Taxonomy of approved courses” means a list of courses which have been submitted by colleges and approved for formula funding and are maintained by the State Commission office. In order to simplify the auditing of formula funding requests, the State Commission will maintain a taxonomy of approved courses.
(ccc) “Tuition” means a uniform amount of money, excluding fees, set by the State Commission and charged by a district for a student to enroll in a program, course, or courses. (W.S. 21-18202(a)(xiii))
(ddd) “Unrestricted operating fund” supports instruction, research, public service, academic support, student services, institutional support, operation and maintenance of plant, scholarships and fellowships (pell grants excluded), and educational and general mandatory transfers. The fund includes those expenditures supported by tuition and fees, state appropriations, local appropriations, and other sources (investment income, miscellaneous deposits, and gate receipts).
(eee) “Vice-chairman” means vice-chairman of the Wyoming Community College Commission.
(fff) “Vocational-technical programs” means those programs approved by the State Commission which provide job skills necessary to enter, remain in, or advance as a member of the work force and which result in degrees or certificates of completion. (W.S. 21-18-102(a)(x))
(a) Rule interpretations. The State Commission’s Rules will be interpreted and construed to effect their general purposes.
Section 5. Community College Mission. Session laws (Session Laws 1991, Ch. 228, Sect. 3(a)) provide permissive language regarding the functions of the state’s community colleges. Within this broad statement, activities are authorized at the discretion of local districts. Colleges may provide access to postsecondary educational opportunities by offering broad comprehensive programs in academic as well as vocationaltechnical subjects. Wyoming’s community colleges are low tuition, open access institutions focusing on academic transfer programs, career and occupational programs, developmental and basic skills instruction, adult and continuing education, economic development training, public and community service programming, and student support services. (Session Laws 1991, Ch. 228, Sect. 3(a))