Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 9, September, 2024
I.
Application/Approval
A.
Secondary Area Center Approval1. An
application for a new secondary area technical center must be submitted to the
Associate Director of Workforce Training in the Department of Workforce
Education (DWE) on or before October 1, prior to the school year
in which the center is scheduled to open. Guidelines and application forms for
a new secondary area technical center may be obtained by contacting the
Associate Director for Workforce Training, #3 Capitol Mall, Luther S.
Hardin Bldg., Little Rock, AR 72201-1083, or by calling (501)
682-1505.
2. Priority will
be given to areas not currently being served by a center. 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 educational service cooperative) that has been approved as
a secondary area technical center may begin operation with three
occupation specific programs, but must have six programs of study
in at least five career clusters by the start of the fourth year. Only
occupational specific programs will be eligible for secondary area technical
center funding. Other programs will not be eligible for vocational
center aid.
4. A secondary area
technical center that closes and desires to resume operation must submit a new
application to the State Board of Workforce Education and Career Opportunities
(SBWECO) for approval. A center that is approved by SBWECO for start-up, but
fails to begin operation within a two-year period, shall be considered null and
void.
B.
New or
Expanded Programs
1. For new or
expanded program approval, the sponsoring institution/entity shall submit a
proposal to the Deputy Director of Career and Technical Education,
Department of Workforce Education prior to October 1, preceding
the year in which the program(s) is to be implemented. The application is
available in the Career & Technical Education link on the DWE website at
Career and Technical Education.
2.
New programs must be approved by the Associate Director of Workforce Training
before the center can draw vocational center aid.
C.
Satellite Locations
1. An existing secondary area technical
center or proposed center, approved by the SBWECO 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 director's
office concerning the operation of satellite locations.
3.
All applications for a satellite
location require the approval of SBWECO.
II.
Finance
A.
Funding
1.
Vocational center aid will be
calculated and distributed by the Department of Workforce Education based upon
each center's FTE enrollment.
2.
The education/training fee is set at $3,250 per FTE (Act 59 of 2004) per year.
Each high school will receive $3,250 per FTE from the public school fund based
on the previous year's enrollment.
3. The secondary area technical center will
bill each high school a minimum of $1,625 per FTE based on current semester's
enrollment.
4. The $3,250 per FTE
received by the high school from the public school fund shall be used to pay
the center the education/training fee for students enrolled in the center for
the current year.
5. In the event
that the high school increased the enrollment to the center, the high school
must pay the additional amount from other resources.
6. In the event that the high school
decreases the enrollment to the center, the high school may hold the $3,250 per
FTE in excess of the amount needed to support students attending the secondary
area center.
7. Funding
modifications shall be approved by the SBWECO.
B.
Supplemental Funds
1. Secondary area technical centers shall be
eligible for new program startup funds as outlined in Program Policies
and Procedures for Secondary Programs (available on the Workforce Education
website at http://dwe.arkansas.gov).
2. Secondary area technical centers may from
time-to-time be eligible for federal vocational funds. The Department of
Workforce Education will inform secondary area center directors of these as
soon as they become available.
3.
Secondary area technical centers may apply for and receive on its own merits
any special grant funds from other agencies. Funding of secondary area centers
is not limited to state funding as described above.
III.
Expenditures
A.
Reporting
1. An annual expenditure report is to be
completed and sent to the Department of Workforce Education.
2. Enrollment data shall be submitted to DWE
each semester. Each center will include enrollment verification from each
participating high school. Enrollment and verification forms are available on
the Secondary Area Technical Center website.
3. The center will report to DWE each school
year a list of participating high schools (School Participation
Report)
4. The center will report
at the end of each school year all students that were enrolled in Career &
Technical Education programs (End of Year Report).
5. Funds not expended in accordance with Act
819 of 2001 shall be carried forward into the succeeding year.
IV.
Operations
A.
Secondary Area
Technical Center Responsibility1. The
management, maintenance, and operation of a secondary area technical center
shall be the responsibility of the sponsoring institution or entity in
accordance with the policies established by the SBWECO.
2. Failure to properly maintain and operate a
secondary area center may result, by recommendation to the SBWECO, closure of
the center.
B.
Designation of Secondary Area Technical Center Director
1. Each secondary area technical center
having a minimum of six programs must employ a vocational director on a
half-time or full-time basis.
C.
Secondary Area Center
Council1. Each secondary area
technical center shall have an active area center council. The
council shall be comprised of superintendents of the sponsoring
and local school districts participating in the secondary area technical center
along with the director of the center. When a postsecondary
institution is designated as a secondary area technical center, the director or
president/chancellor of that institution shall be a member. Additionally, where
secondary area technical centers are sponsored by an education service
cooperative, the director shall be a member of the council. The secondary area
technical center council shall serve in an advisory capacity for the secondary
area 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. An active advisory council is
recommended for each occupational program area.
D.
Instructor Qualifications
1. See certification/qualifications in
Program Policies and Procedures Manual.
E.
Employee Policies
1. 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
1. 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 Periods1. Class periods
shall conform to the minimum class hours established by the Standards for
Accreditation of Public Schools and North Central Association (NCA). In order
to restructure a program of study, the secondary area technical center may work
with the Department of Workforce Education to implement course design and class
lengths.
H.
Instruction1. Each approved program
offered must follow curriculum content frameworks and administer student
competency tests.
I.
Transportation1. Responsibility
for transporting students to and from the local school to a secondary area
technical center shall be determined by the secondary area technical center
director and the administration of the local school district.
J.
Exceptions
1. Expansion of secondary area technical
centers into areas not being served is a priority of the Department of
Workforce Education. The director may, upon request, make exceptions to the
above 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 vocational programs offered within 25 miles or 30 minutes
of the home schools.
* Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) shall be considered the
equivalent of one student attending class for six class periods, e.g., one
student attending a three period class the full year would equal one-half FTE.
* Capacity of a secondary area technical center is
determined by multiplying the number of blocks of occupation-specific programs
(two or three hours) by 20.
* Local districts are the districts in the locality, which
are eligible to participate in vocational center programs.
* Occupation-specific vocational education programs are a
vocational or technical program which have paid employment in specific
occupations as their objective.
* Private and/or home-schooled students are eligible to
participate in secondary area technical center programs through the local
school district in which they officially reside.
* Satellite location is the extension of a secondary area
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 area technical center, and
must be shared by more than one school district. All satellite locations
require the approval of the SBWECO.
* Secondary area technical center is a public secondary
vocational institution organized for the specific purpose of educating high
school students in specific occupational/vocational areas. A center will serve
students from more than one participating school district. Students eligible to
attend a secondary area technical center will generally come from a twenty-five
(25) mile radius or thirty minute driving time from the local school. A
secondary area technical center must be comprised of three specific vocational
programs to begin operation. Also, it must have at least six programs out of
five career clusters in operation by the start of the fourth year.
* Short-term adult vocational classes are specialized
classes organized for the purpose of providing training, retraining, and
upgrading of skills for which there is an identified demand in the employment
market.
* Sponsoring institution is a comprehensive high school, a
postsecondary vocational 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 SBWECO. The sponsoring institution will
function as the fiscal agent, manage, and administer the secondary area
technical center. (Reference Act 788 of 1985 and Act 819 of 2001)
RELATED LINKS for Secondary Area Technical Centers:
http://dwe.arkansas.gov/postsecond.html
http://dwe.arkansas.gov/about.html
http://dwe.arkansas.gov/CTElogopage.htm
http://dwe.arkansas.gov/CTESCTENewandExpandedPrograms.htm
http://dwe.arkansas.gov/sacdirectorinformation.html
http://uark.edu/depts/awecc/content/listing.html
http://www.uark.edu/misc/sct/
Effective Date: December 17, 2004
