Authority: §§ 23-9.3, 23-9.6:1, 23-20, 23-38.13, and 23-38.45, Code of Virginia; SJR 22 (1949).

A.1. It is the intent of the General Assembly to provide general fund support to contract with Mary Baldwin College for Virginia women resident students to participate in the Virginia Women's Institute for Leadership at Mary Baldwin College.

2. The amounts for Higher Education Coordination and Review include $701,616 the first year and $701,616 the second year from the general fund based on an estimated participation of 94 in-state students the first year and 94 in-state students the second year in the program. Funds paid to Mary Baldwin College under the contract will be based on the actual number of Virginia resident students participating in the program.

3. General fund appropriations provided under this contract include financial aid for the participating students at Mary Baldwin College in the Virginia Women's Institute for Leadership program, therefore, these students are not eligible for Tuition Assistance Grants.

B. By October 15 of the first year of the biennium, each four-year and two-year public institution of higher education shall submit to the Secretary of Education and the State Council of Higher Education a progress report on implementing its strategic plan. Such plans should continue to pursue the principles of restructuring, accountability, and efficiency, and include an assessment of the effectiveness of academic programs. The progress report shall be prepared according to a format approved by the Secretary of Education and the State Council of Higher Education. A presentation on the progress of institutions in implementing their plans shall be made by the Secretary and the State Council of Higher Education to the House Appropriations and Senate Finance Committees at their regularly scheduled meetings in November.

C. In discharging the responsibilities specified in § 23-272 D, Code of Virginia, the State Council of Higher Education shall provide exemptions to individual proprietorships, associations, copartnerships or corporations which are now or in the future will be using the words "college" or "university" in their training programs solely for their employees or customers, which do not offer degree-granting programs, and whose name includes the word "college" or "university" in a context from which it clearly appears that such entity is not an educational institution.

D. Out of the appropriation for Higher Education Coordination and Review, $2,735,000 the first year and $2,735,000 the second year from the general fund is provided for continuation of the Commonwealth Virtual Library. This appropriation includes $125,000 the first year and $125,000 the second year to allow students and faculty at the Commonwealth's independent colleges and universities to participate in the Virtual Library.

E. Out of this appropriation, $154,990 the first year and $157,315 the second year from the general fund, is designated to support annual membership dues to the Southern Regional Education Board.

F. Out of this appropriation, $250,000 the first year and $250,000 the second year from the general fund shall be provided for institutes for technology training for public school teachers and administrators at institutions identified by the State Council of Higher Education and subject to a plan approved by the State Council, pursuant to § 23-9.13:1, Code of Virginia.

G. The State Council of Higher Education and the Secretary of Education, in cooperation with the three medical schools, shall monitor the results of the Generalist Initiative, especially the decisions of graduates from the undergraduate medical programs to enter generalist residencies, and the composition of the residencies in the two associated academic health centers. It is the intent of the General Assembly that continued funding for the Generalist Initiative is contingent upon achievement at each participating institution of these goals: (i) at least 50 percent of Virginia medical school graduates shall enter generalist practice and (ii) at least 50 percent of Virginia medical school graduates entering generalist practice shall enter practice in Virginia upon completion of residency training. The three medical schools shall report annually to the State Council by October 2.

H. The medical schools are encouraged to be aggressive in setting tuition rates that are above national average tuition rates for both in-state and out-of-state students.

I. To reflect the value of noncredit instruction for workforce training, the State Council of Higher Education shall develop guidelines that recognize those noncredit courses which are 1) instructional in format and 2) which meet requirements for reporting as community education, for inclusion in state funding formulas for facility utilization and space justification, equipment, and positions.

J. 1. It is the intent of the General Assembly that pursuant to the report and recommendation of the Governor’s Commission to Evaluate the Needs and Goals of Higher Education in Virginia in the 21st Century, established by Executive Order 1 (98) and continued by Executive Order 39 (99), institutional performance agreements promoting quality, accountability and affordability in the Virginia public institutions of higher education be considered for implementation in the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2001.

2. An institutional performance agreement shall be developed in accordance with the following process:

a. The agreement shall be initiated by the institution of higher education in the form of a document submitted to the State Council of Higher Education not later than July 1, 2000. The document shall contain the elements described in subdivision 3 below. The State Council of Higher Education shall transmit copies of the proposed agreement to the Secretaries of Education, Finance, Administration, and Technology, and to the Chairmen of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance Committees.

b. The agreement as thus submitted shall be approved, modified or rejected by the Secretary of Education and the Council in consultation with the institution. In reviewing the agreement, the Secretary of Education and the Council shall obtain the comments of the Secretaries of Finance, Administration, and Technology.

c. The agreement as approved by the Secretary of Education and the Council shall be submitted to the Governor not later than October 2, 2000. The Governor may approve, modify or reject the agreement in consultation with the institution, the Secretary of Education and the Council. The Governor shall transmit the agreement, as finally approved by him, to the Chairmen of the House Appropriations and Senate Finance Committees, not later than December 20, 2000. The Governor shall report the fact of transmission to the committee chairmen by language in the introduced 2001 Budget Bill within the State Council of Higher Education section of the bill.

d. The General Assembly may approve, modify or reject the agreement by language in the enrolled 2001 appropriation bill presented to the Governor. The agreement as thus enacted into law shall be transmitted to the institution of higher education by the State Council of Higher Education, to take effect on July 1, 2001.

3. The agreement presented by the institution of higher education to the Secretary of Education and the State Council of Higher Education shall be for a period of six years beginning July 1, 2001, and shall incorporate the following as a minimum:

a. The institution’s mission statement.

b. The performance measures to be used in assessing the institution’s performance in each of the six years of the agreement.

c. The projected enrollment of the institution in each of the six years of the agreement, including the number of Virginia undergraduate, graduate and professional students and the number of out-of-state undergraduate, graduate and professional students.

d. The base budget proposed by the institution for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2001. The proposed base budget shall reflect the institution’s requested general fund appropriations and nongeneral fund appropriations for (1) educational and general programs (2) student financial assistance (3) auxiliary enterprises, and 4) sponsored programs. In addition, the proposed base budget shall show a projection for each of the five succeeding years, displaying changes in the base funding due to enrollment changes, inflation changes and other factors.

e. A projection of capital outlay and maintenance requirements, including a description of each project and the source of funds therefor.

f. Proposals by the institution for

1. Undertakings designed to enhance and preserve the quality of its programs and outcomes

2. Undertaking designed to enhance its administrative efficiency and productivity.

3. Addressing governmental and management tools

4. Addressing deregulation, enhanced managerial autonomy and streamlined reporting to the state.

5. Addressing financial accountability

6. Enhancing private support and fund-raising.

7. Enhancing research and technology.

4. An institutional performance agreement approved in accordance with the foregoing process shall be terminated under any of the following conditions:

a. Any change by the General Assembly at a subsequent date, by language in the Appropriation Act, in the funding or conditions of the original agreement.

b. Any finding by the State Council of Higher Education that the institution is not achieving the performance measures set out in the agreement. Such finding shall be communicated in writing by the Council to the Director, Department of Planning and Budget, who shall have authority to withhold allotment of appropriations to the institution accordingly.

K. The State Council of Higher Education shall issue a Request for Proposal to obtain the services of a qualified independent consultant to verify and assess the various methodologies used by the institutions of higher education to determine their deferred maintenance needs. The results of the study shall be used to uniformly determine maintenance reserve backlog needs at each institution. Each institution of higher education will contribute towards the cost of the consultant based on a formula developed by the State Council.

L. Out of this appropriation, $50,000 the first year from the general fund is designated to conduct a feasibility study for establishing a four-year university in south-central Virginia. The feasibility study shall consider all available options, including but not limited to the feasibility of establishing a branch campus of an existing doctoral university. The feasibility study shall also consider opportunities for partnership between public and private institutions to provide educational services. The study shall also address the: 1) educational needs of Southside Virginians, 2) costs associated with providing higher educational services in south-central Virginia, 3) available sources of funds and other resources for south-central Virginia economic and educational enhancements, and 4) economic benefits that can be obtained for the people and general economy of south-central Virginia through the development of a four-year institution of higher education in that region of the Commonwealth. The State Council for Higher Education shall work in collaboration with the Secretary of Education and the Joint Subcommittee to Study the Need for Increased Availability of Higher Education Services in south-central Virginia. The feasibility study shall be submitted to the Governor by October 2, 2000.