A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to permit courses for students enrolled in the gateway to college program to generate budget FTE and to develop an approval process for dropout recovery program partnerships between local community colleges and local school ADMINISTRATIVE units.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 115D‑20(4) reads as rewritten:
"(4)	To apply the standards and requirements for admission and graduation of students and other standards established by the State Board of Community Colleges. Provided, notwithstanding any law or administrative rule to the contrary, local administrative boards and local school boards may establish cooperative programs in the areas they serve to provide for college courses to be offered to qualified high school students with college credits to be awarded to those high school students upon the successful completion of the courses. Provided, further, that during the summer quarter, persons less than 16 years old may be permitted to take noncredit courses on a self‑supporting basis, subject to rules of the State Board of Community Colleges. Provided, further, that high school students may be permitted to take noncredit courses in safe driving on a self‑supporting basis during the academic year or the summer. Provided, further, that local administrative boards and local school boards may establish dropout recovery programs in the areas they serve, subject to the approval of the State Board of Community Colleges."
SECTION 2.   Section 7.24(h) of S.L. 2010-13 reads as rewritten:
"SECTION 7.24.(h)  Beginning with the 2010‑2011 school year, courses provided in (i) general education, except for mathematics, science, and technology, (ii) physical education, and (iii) college success skills courses offered to high school students shall no longer generate State funding through budget FTE.  If an institute of higher education offers these courses to high school students, the colleges may charge an amount sufficient to cover the costs of the courses.
This subsection does not apply to courses provided to students of Early and Middle College High Schools or students enrolled in the Gateway to College programs operating at Durham Technical Community College or the College of the Albemarle."
SECTION 3.  The State Board of Community Colleges, in conjunction with the State Board of Education, shall develop a process for approval of high school dropout recovery program partnerships between local community colleges and local school administrative units.  The State Board of Community Colleges and the State Board of Education may examine the Gateway to College programs at Durham Technical Community College and College of the Albemarle for examples of best practices in establishing high school dropout recovery program partnerships. The State Board of Community Colleges and the State Board of Education shall report to the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee no later than March 1, 2012, on any recommended legislation needed for approval of such programs.
SECTION 4.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2011.