GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1989

S	1 

SENATE BILL 515*

Short Title:  Retooling for year 2000.	(Public)
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Sponsors: Senators Ward, Conder, Murphy; Swain and Daniel.
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Referred to:  Higher Education.
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March 20, 1989

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO BE KNOWN AS "RETOOLING FOR THE YEAR 2000:  GAINING THE COMPETITIVE EDGE."
Whereas, the General Assembly of North Carolina in 1963 created an educational system, different from any other in the country, to fulfill industry's demand for trained employees and to make education beyond high school accessible to every adult in North Carolina; and
Whereas, North Carolina business and industry face intense pressure to modernize and become more efficient, an immediate need which can only be met through building and maintaining a skilled adult workforce; and
Whereas, the Community College System is ideally positioned to respond to these present and future needs of business and industry; and
Whereas, it is the intent of the General Assembly to continue to support that system in a manner that will enable it to raise and keep the skills of North Carolina's adults equal to the best in the world and provide a gateway to opportunity for high school graduates and school dropouts alike; and
Whereas, it is the intent of the General Assembly to
(1)	Provide every community college student access to quality teaching and academic support services,
(2)	Establish effective mechanisms to promote accountability and increased flexibility in funding,
(3)	Provide opportunities for all adult North Carolinians to master the basic knowledge and skills demanded in a complex and competitive economy,
(4)	Help business and industry adapt to technicological change and promote small business development throughout the State,
(5)	Build strong partnerships with public schools, community colleges, and the State universities to establish a comprehensive educational system in North Carolina,
(6)	Develop strong leadership for the North Carolina System of Community Colleges at both the State and local levels; and
Whereas, the General Assembly believes it is time to begin a program of reform and investment in the Community College System to prepare it to meet the economic challenges for the year 2000 and beyond; and 
Whereas, it is further the belief of the General Assembly that these colleges must function both as a bridge to occupational opportunity for North Carolina's adults and as a conscious catalyst for economic growth; and
Whereas, it is the intent of the General Assembly that the community colleges be retooled to allow the State to gain the competitive edge; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  Chapter 115D of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 115D-8. ‘Retooling for the year 2000:  Gaining the Competitive Edge.'
(a)	The State Board of Community Colleges shall adopt a Community College Education Blueprint not inconsistent with the Commission on the Future Report on the North Carolina Community College System, ‘Gaining the Competitive Edge,' which will allow the State to compete successfully in the national and global economy of today and the next century.  The State Board shall implement the Education Blueprint for community colleges within funds appropriated for that purpose by the General Assembly.  It is the goal of the General Assembly that by July 1, 1993, the community colleges be fully funded to retool for the year 2000 in order to support the State in gaining the competitive edge.
(b)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall define the programs necessary to provide every community college student access to quality teaching and academic support services by addressing the following:
(1)	Exemplary faculty and staff,
(2)	Effective learning experiences,
(3)	Educational advancement for all adult learners,
(4)	Expanded access to adult education.
(c)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall establish effective mechanisms to promote accountability and increased flexibility in funding and shall address the following:
(1)	Flexible funding tied to performance,
(2)	Strategic goal setting and assessment,
(3)	Channels for outside assessment,
(4)	Efficient resource distribution.
(d)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall provide opportunities for all adult North Carolinians to master the basic critical thinking skills demanded in a complex and competitive economy by addressing the following:
(1)	A work force with comprehensive basic skills,
(2)	Reduction of the basic skills gap,
(3)	Performance based education for the underskilled.
(e)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall set forth methods to help business and industry adapt to technological change and promote small business development throughout the State by addressing the following:
(1)	Workplaces with competitive technology,
(2)	Job creation through expanded entrepreneurship.
(f)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall set forth ways to build strong partnerships with the public schools and the State's universities to establish a comprehensive, integrated education system in North Carolina.
(g)	The Community College Education Blueprint shall provide for strong leadership for the future of the system and its colleges by addressing the following:
(1)	Visionary leadership for the future,
(2)	Responsive governance and management."
Sec. 2.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Department of Community Colleges, the sum of forty-seven million two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($47,250,000) to be used by the State Board of Community Colleges in initiating the retooling of the Community College System.
Sec. 3.  The State Board shall report annually to the General Assembly on any changes in the Blueprint, on the accomplishments of the Blueprint, and on any changes anticipated during the coming fiscal year.
Sec. 4.  This act shall become effective July 1, 1989.