Missouri Code of State Regulations › Title 6 - DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT › Division 10 - Commissioner of Higher Education › Chapter 6 - Establishment of New Institutions and Instructional Sites › Section 6 CSR 10-6.010 - Standards for Establishing Community College Districts

Current through Register Vol. 49, No. 14, July 15, 2024
PURPOSE: This rule sets forth the standards and
				  procedures of the Coordinating Board for Higher Education, under which
				  community junior college districts may be established.
(1) Standards.
(A) Standard 1. Initiative to establish a
				district must come from the area to be served. Local initiative to establish a
				community college district is demonstrated by submitting a petition to the
				coordinating board in accordance with the provisions of section 178.800.1.,
				RSMo. The petition and the response to Standard 1 should include the official
				name of the proposed district. The official name of the district must adhere to
				the following format: "The Junior College District of __________________ ,
				Missouri."
(B) Standard 2. Need
				must be clearly established in terms of the total area to be served, including
				educational interest of citizens, manpower needs of local industry, business,
				government and other consumers, and compatibility with the statewide policy
				goals established by the Coordinating Board for Higher Education. Clear and
				convincing evidence of need for the proposed district shall be demonstrated by
				providing information which will be generated by a survey, the form and method
				for administration of the survey to be determined by the Coordinating Board for
				Higher Education. The cost of the administration of the survey shall be borne
				by the organizing body for the proposed district. The information provided by
				the survey will include, but not be limited to, the specific educational
				services needed by employers, high school students and representatives of the
				general public which can be provided by a community college. So that the
				respondents to the survey can make an informed judgment relating to the
				establishment of a community college, information will be provided to each
				respondent regarding the probable tax levy for the first five (5) years of
				operation of the community college, probable capital expenditures required
				during the first ten (10) years of operation and probable location of the
				initial site.
1. Supplemental to the results
				of the survey, additional demographic information will be provided to the
				coordinating board to further substantiate the need for a community college.
				The format and method for providing this information will be determined by the
				coordinating board.
2. If the board
				determines a bona fide need exists after examining the information regarding
				the establishment of a community college, the board will conduct a review to
				ascertain if alternative agencies can provide the identified
				services.
(C) Standard
				3. Proposed districts must be composed of one (1) or more public school
				districts. In the case of a proposal encompassing two (2) or more public school
				districts, those districts must be contiguous. Variations in traffic arteries,
				population density, tax base valuations and public school district boundaries
				require flexibility in geographic size. As a general guideline, student
				commuting time should not exceed forty-five (45) minutes each way. The proposed
				district should be described in terms of the public school districts it will
				encompass. A map detailing boundaries of the proposed district, the population
				centers and the boundaries of the public school districts shall be
				provided.
(D) Standard 4. There
				shall be substantive evidence to project an enrollment of at least one thousand
				(1,000) full-time-equivalent (FTE) students within five (5) years of the
				initial operation of the new district. Enrollment may be projected for an FTE
				greater than one thousand (1,000). The basis for projecting enrollment is as
				follows:
1. 2.5% of the proposed district
				population.
A. The proposed district base
				population shall be the populations of the component public school districts as
				determined from the School District Population Summary Tables prepared after
				the most recently completed decennial census;
B. The school district base populations will
				be incremented by the estimated growth rates for the counties in which the
				districts are headquartered through the most recent year for which county
				population estimates are available from the State Census Data Center;
				and
C. The district populations
				derived in subparagraph (1)(D)1.B. will be projected for future years using the
				average annual growth between the latest decennial census and the latest county
				population estimates for the counties in which the districts are
				headquartered;
2.
				Projections of FTE enrollment based on local demeand for-
A. Literacy and adult basic education
				programs;
B. Customized and
				contract training for area employees;
C. Other noncredit or nondegree types of
				instructional services; and
3. Projections of FTE enrollment based on
				documented demand for educational services to be offered by the proposed
				institution from areas within the proposed district's service area that are not
				currently within an existing community college district.
(E) Standard 5. The financial viability of
				the proposed district is dependent on several interrelated factors involving
				the estimation of both revenue and operating costs. The basis for computing
				operating costs is given in this subsection. The relevant revenue factors are
				assessed valuation of the proposed district, local tax levy and local tax
				income generated from the assessed valuation; student fee level and student fee
				income; state aid income; and other income. The local portion of revenue
				consists of the income generated by the tax levy on the assessed valuation of
				taxable, tangible property in the proposed district. The assessed valuation of
				the proposed district is a critical factor. The assessed valuation of the
				proposed district shall provide adequate financial support to the proposed
				district as determined by the coordinating board. The revenue derived from
				student fees is dependent upon the FTE enrollment and the fee amount charged to
				each student. Methods for computing these factors as well as state aid income
				and other income are given as follows:
1.
				Operating costs. Estimations of operating costs are for education and general,
				and do not include capital expenditures or costs for auxiliary purposes. The
				estimated operating costs shall be based upon a student faculty ratio of twenty
				to one (20:1) and faculty compensation which is sufficient to attract and
				retain qualified and competent faculty;
2. Student fee income. This factor is
				determined by computing the average percent of total income, less auxiliary and
				restricted, provided by student fees at existing community college districts,
				established under the provisions of sections 178.770-178.890, RSMo for the most
				recent fiscal year for which data are available preceding the new district
				proposal. If the proposed district has a population of two hundred thousand
				(200,000) or fewer, the average for existing districts with populations of two
				hundred thousand (200,000) or fewer shall be used. If the proposed district has
				a population of over two hundred thousand (200,000), the average for all
				existing districts shall be used. This factor shall be computed by the
				coordinating board staff;
3. State
				aid income. This factor is determined by applying the current method of
				determining state aid to the five (5)-year projected size and program diversity
				of the proposed community college. This factor shall be computed by the
				coordinating board staff;
4. Other
				income. An amount equal to two percent (2%) of the estimated cost of operations
				shall be allowed as estimation of other income for districts with populations
				of two hundred thousand (200,000) or less and an allowance of one-half percent
				(.5%) for proposed districts of over two hundred thousand (200,000) population.
				If the proposed new district feasibility study categorically demonstrates, in
				the judgment of the coordinating board, other reliable sources of income, the
				actual dollars so demonstrated may be added to the two percent (2%) or one-half
				percent (.5%) allowance;
5. Local
				tax levy. The tax levy per one hundred dollars ($100) assessed valuation, for
				purposes of computing the adequacy of the assessed valuation to support the
				proposed district, shall be the maximum levy allowed, without voter approval,
				by section
				178.870,
				RSMo, as follows:
LEVY
ASSESSED VALUATION
$.10
$1.5 Billion plus
.20
$750 Million but less than $1.5 Billion
.30
$500 Million but less than $750 Million
.40
Less than $500 Million; and
6.
				Local tax income generated from assessed valuation. The purpose of establishing
				an assessed valuation requirement for a proposed new district is to assure that
				the valuation is sufficient to generate adequate funds to provide a viable
				college fiscal operation and education of acceptable quality. That adequacy is
				assessed by formulae which produce either an assessed valuation from a known
				amount of needed revenue or the amount of revenue generated from a known
				assessed valuation. The steps and formulae of the computation are-
A. Estimated operating costs less estimated
				student fee income, less estimated state aid, less estimation of other income
				produces a balance which is the estimated operating cost to be provided through
				local tax revenue;
B. The amount of
				assessed valuation required to generate the needed tax revenue is computed with
				the following formula: (a)(x/100) = y
in which: a=the amount of the tax levy per $100 of assessed
				  valuation;
x = the assessed valuation required to generate needed tax
				  revenue; and
y = the tax revenue to be generated. In this formula, x is
				  the unknown. If the computation reveals the value of x to be equal to or less
				  than the actual assessed valuation of proposed district, then the assessed
				  valuation shall be judged to be adequate; and
C. The amount of tax revenue which would be
				generated by the assessed valuation of the proposed district is computed as
				follows: (a)(x/100) = y
in which: a = the amount of the tax levy per $100 of
				  assessed valuation;
x = the actual assessed valuation of the proposed district;
				  and
y = the tax revenue generated.
In this formulay is the unknown. If the computation reveals
				  the value of y to be as great or greater than the balance of income to be
				  provided through local tax revenue, then the assessed valuation of the proposed
				  district shall be judged to be adequate.
(F) Standard 6. A study of the
				feasibility of a proposed district shall be prepared and submitted to the
				coordinating board. In addition to comprehensively addressing all other
				standards and requirements specified in this rule, the feasibility study shall
				include detailed plans both for meeting the initial physical facility needs of
				the proposed new district and for meeting the additional start-up instructional
				and support costs of operation until revenue from local taxes, state aid and
				student fees become available, above and beyond state appropriations for
				existing districts.