Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 9 - Education- Mississippi Community College Board › Part 3 - Programs › Chapter 13 - Workforce Projects General Rules of Good Practice › Rule 9-3-13.1 - Workforce Projects General Rules of Good Practice

Current through June 25, 2024
The Mississippi Community College Board's policy on
				  workforce projects general rules of good practice is as follows:
A.
Workforce Projects General
				Rules of Good Practice
These guidelines are not intended to be restrictive but to
				  offer a set of general standards to be followed under normal circumstances when
				  submitting and/or recommending approval of workforce projects. We must continue
				  to maintain our goals for projects and project approval: simplicity,
				  responsiveness, and flexibility. Our objective must remain: meeting business
				  needs, while being cost effective, maximizing partnerships, cost sharing, and
				  always remembering we practice the Rule of Reasonableness. If it sounds or has
				  the perception of anything unethical or will bring question upon a college or
				  board, DO NOT DO IT.
B.
Instructor Salaries and Benefits
Instructor salaries are reimbursed at a rate not to exceed
				  $35.00 per hour for all types of training. The rate should be determined by the
				  Workforce Center Director with the high end ($35.00 per hour) reserved for
				  highly technical disciplines or difficult to obtain instructors because of the
				  time or location of instruction. This is a partnership; business should be
				  willing to pick up any cost differential. Benefits will depend on the type
				  contract college's use with their workforce instructors. Fringe benefits would
				  be based on current rates applied by the college business office for that
				  portion of the benefits not paid for by the college. These rates will be paid
				  based on actual costs. During FY 2000, also called the SB 2796 transition year,
				  previous commitments that were pre-approved in excess of the above limits made
				  by industrial coordinators and approved by MDE will be honored as
				  submitted.
C.
Preparation Time
Up to 25% of the total class or instruction time may be
				  allowed for instructor preparation time. This is to be reduced if the
				  instructor is teaching similar classes to different groups at different times.
				  This allowed preparation time should be monitored carefully and not used as a
				  salary supplement.
D.
Assessment Time
Pre and Post Assessment times are allowed in the project and
				  must be identified in the appropriate sections. This time must also be kept to
				  a minimum; for example, as many persons as allowed should be assessed
				  simultaneously to keep monitoring time down. This is an expense that should
				  also be shared by industry. The tests or assessment vehicles used are usually
				  considered as part of the training materials costs and are listed as a
				  commodity.
E.
Course and Student Training Materials
Assistance for materials, including training manuals, texts,
				  software, and any other general usage materials utilized in the training
				  project, are allowed up to $35.00 per student/per training course. Partnering
				  in this area is desired and should include all parties; the MCCB/college
				  allowance, the company, and the student or trainee when appropriate.
				  Consideration will be given to higher state cost sharing with projects
				  requiring high cost training items such as welding rod, silver solder, etc.
				  These items and costs must be fully explained in the project
				  application.
F.
Other Training Costs
Consideration for other training costs, determined by the
				  workforce development center director as essential to the success of the
				  project, will be considered by the MCCB on an individual project basis.
G.
Leased
				Equipment
Equipment may be leased for training purposes only and must
				  be designated as such. This equipment will not be used for production or
				  profit. There will be no reimbursement for leasing of company owned
				  equipment.
H.
Ownership of Equipment
Ownership of equipment bought with state funds, even though
				  private funds were also used in partnership, becomes the property of the
				  community or junior college that performed the project with the respective
				  customer or the state depending on the best and most efficient use. For
				  example, if a computer lab was used for training a workforce and the state paid
				  for five (5) computers and the industry paid for five (5) computers, all ten
				  (10) computers would become the property of the college, or the state, after
				  the total project was complete. This is to encourage maximum partnering by the
				  business or industry. The industry should also receive a tax credit for the
				  equipment when turned over to the college or the state. Equipment should be
				  shared between programs and college's when not in use. Because computers, for
				  example, that were paid for by workforce funds should not preclude their use by
				  other programs such as literacy, GED or JTPA if they are not being used for
				  workforce projects. Equipment is paid for with tax dollars and does nothing to
				  help people when sitting dormant. Equipment purchased by the above process is
				  to be used to benefit all Mississippians.
I.
Equipment and Computer
				Up-Grades
We encourage upgrading equipment as needed for projects
				  rather than purchasing new equipment. If it is more cost effective to upgrade
				  the equipment, the cost of the upgrade should be identified and placed in the
				  project with justification. For example, if it costs $300.00 to upgrade the
				  hard drive of a computer that will meet the needs for a new software package,
				  the state encourages and will pay for the upgrade rather than being faced with
				  the cost of a new computer. You can do a significant amount of upgrading for
				  the cost of new equipment. This holds true with other equipment and training
				  simulators as well.
J.
Mobile Labs
Mobile Labs are the property of the college for which they
				  were purchased, or are currently located in that particular college district,
				  or the state depending on the best and most efficient use. Mobile labs are like
				  any other piece of equipment; they are to be used. If a college finds it has a
				  mobile lab not being utilized, it should make that fact known and transfer the
				  lab to a college that identifies a need for it. It is the responsibility of the
				  colleges and MCCB to ensure that all equipment, including mobile labs are
				  utilized in the best and most efficient manner.
K.
Satellite Seminars/CCN
				Training
Many nationally recognized persons and organizations offer
				  highly professional, sought after presentations via satellite. These
				  inter-active video seminars offer the career centers a unique opportunity to
				  present highly sought after and usually expensive presentations to the business
				  persons in their district at no or very little cost. When the cost for such
				  programming is an allowable cost for an approved project and it is written into
				  a project, the state will pick up the cost of the video seminar and transmit it
				  over the CCN. This provides everyone interested in the subject throughout the
				  state the opportunity to participate.
L.
Curriculum
				Developmen
t
Customized curriculum development to meet the needs of
				  individual businesses has been a hallmark of our workforce training system.
				  Reasonable curriculum development hours are allowed within the project. The RCU
				  is the repository for all curricula especially those containing proprietary
				  information.
M.
Instructional Training Aids
The RCU is the primary provider of assistance in developing
				  manuals/curricula, training videos and CD's and any training materials in
				  general. If these materials cannot be produced because of RCU workload or
				  inability to meet a specific requirement, the Workforce Development Center
				  Director may seek to produce the training manuals and videos through another
				  public entity, such as the local community and junior college or IHL labs, or
				  ETV. If the aforementioned cannot be accomplished, the Workforce Development
				  Center Director may consider purchase of commercial materials or solicit
				  private bid. The bid chosen should be the lowest and best bidder. This can be
				  accomplished with greater financial participation by the business or industry.
				  It is the responsibility of the contracting workforce development center to
				  follow all college and state purchasing regulations. Justification must be a
				  part of the project and submitted under the commodities section of the
				  application if the materials are to be purchased, developed, produced, or under
				  a contractual agreement.
N.
Training to Develop a Resource (Train-the-Trainer) and Reasonable
				Travel
Travel costs are allowed to meet requirements for
				  train-the-trainer persons who will provide the community or junior college with
				  a resource to train a business or industry with a capability not currently
				  available in the district. Training shall be obtained at the closest location
				  to the industry. The career center director must include the justification for
				  the travel in the project application which will include all proposed training
				  for the business or industry for the state fiscal year in which the
				  train-the-trainer training is to be accomplished. The travel costs for
				  Train-the-Trainer training will normally be included in the travel section of
				  the application. In-state travel will be reimbursed for mileage at the current
				  college rate but never to exceed the state rate. Out-of-state travel will be
				  reimbursed for mileage at the state rate per mile or an airline ticket,
				  whichever is less.
In-state and out-of-state travel will be reimbursed at the
				  current college rate, but never to exceed the state rate of mileage, lodging
				  and meals. All state travel rules and regulations must be followed.
				  Reimbursements per trainee will be limited to (2) out-of-state trips maximum.
				  All travel must be recommended and justified by the workforce development
				  center director and approved by the MCCB prior to travel. Authorization for
				  travel is not to be considered as part of workforce development center director
				  $5,000.00 emergency application authorization. This travel authorization is not
				  to be misconstrued as instructor travel costs for normal accomplishment of
				  duties associated with project instruction. Those costs are not normally
				  allowed and are considered as part of the contracted salary. The MCCB will
				  consider a travel allowance for special circumstances associated with difficult
				  classes at difficult times and areas.
O.
One-on-One Training or
				OJT
Salaries for One-on-One, OJT, and vendor training must be
				  carefully documented, justified and report a minimum that will not exceed
				  $20.00 per hour. One-on-One, OJT, and vendor training are defined as five (5)
				  participants or fewer per instructor. The maximum number of trainees eligible
				  for one-on-one, OJT, and vender training reimbursement shall not exceed the
				  total number employed per industry location.
P.
State Licensed
				Programs
Achieveglobal (Zenger-Miller)/Plexus, ISO-9000, QS-9000,
				  ISO-14000-01, Zig Ziglar, Phi Theta Kappa Leadership are training packages to
				  which the state has purchased training rights. A company or business may
				  receive a $1,500.00 subsidy toward the instructor's payment and a $3,000.00
				  subsidy toward the material to be utilized per program. However, in no case
				  should the amount paid by the company or organization be less than a fifty
				  percent (50%) split with the state. This is an annual subsidy based on state
				  fiscal year and is available for each non co-located plant; for example:
				  Company X branch in Senatobia and Company X branch in Gloster are treated as
				  two separate and distinct companies. A company may participate in multiple
				  programs receiving the above allowance for each program. A company should not
				  stop at what the state has subsidized. They should be willing to make a
				  commitment to the program and pay their fair share. This is a true partnership.
				  Companies training greater than 100 persons in any of the above programs may
				  request additional financial assistance. This additional funding will be based
				  on a partnership of cost sharing. The state should never contribute more than
				  the company or organization being served contributions.
Q.
Accountability
The Legislative Accountability Report (LAR) will remain the
				  primary reporting document. However, it will be necessary to modify the LAR to
				  assure compliance with section (1), paragraph 4 of SB 2796. The LAR must now
				  include a listing of all companies, businesses or organizations that received
				  training, the number of persons taught in the classes, the location and cost of
				  the class to the state. This should also be broken down to include cost per
				  student trained per class and cost per contract, instruction, and hour for the
				  class. All of the above will have to be tracked by each workforce development
				  center and submitted annually to the State Board for Community and Junior
				  College, as required by SB 2796.
Miss. Code Ann. §
										37-4-3
				  and
				  37-4-11.