Legislation

§ 23-231.2. Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center created; duties.
From such funds as may be appropriated, the Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center is hereby established and shall be referred to in this chapter as the Center. The Center shall:

1. Encourage the expansion of higher education, including adult and continuing education, associate degrees to be offered by Virginia Highlands Community College, undergraduate degrees to be offered by the University of Virginia's College at Wise, and graduate degree programs, in the Southwest region of the Commonwealth and foster partnerships between the public and private sectors to enhance higher education in the region;

2. Coordinate the development and delivery of continuing education programs offered by those educational institutions serving the region;

3. Facilitate the delivery of teacher training programs leading to licensure and graduate degrees;

4. Serve as a resource and referral center by maintaining and disseminating information on existing educational programs and resources; and

5. Develop, in coordination with the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia, specific goals for higher education in Southwest Virginia.

23-231.3. Membership of governing board; terms; compensation; officers.

A. The Center shall be governed by a Board of Trustees, consisting of the Director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia or his designee, the Chancellor of the Virginia Community College System or his designee, the presidents or chancellors, as appropriate, or their designees of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Radford University, the University of Virginia, the University of Virginia's College at Wise, Old Dominion University, Emory and Henry College, and Virginia Highlands Community College, and five citizen members to be appointed by the Governor, representing Southwest public education and area business and industry, including one school division superintendent and one public school teacher. Five members of the General Assembly, including three members of the House of Delegates to be appointed by the Speaker and two members of the Senate to be appointed by the Senate Committee on Privileges and Elections, shall serve as ex officio members of the Board with full voting privileges. Citizen members of the Board shall be chosen from among residents of the Southwest region of the Commonwealth.

B. Legislative members and the representatives of the State Council, the Virginia Community College System, and the named institutions of higher education shall serve on the Board until the expiration of their terms of office or until their successors shall qualify. Of the five citizen members to be appointed in 1991, two shall be appointed for three-year terms, and three shall be appointed for four-year terms. Thereafter, all such citizen appointments shall be for terms of four years, except that appointments to fill vacancies shall be for the unexpired terms.
No citizen member of the Board shall be eligible to serve for or during more than two successive four-year terms, but after the expiration of a term of three years or less, or after the expiration of the remainder of a term to which appointed to fill a vacancy, two additional four-year terms may be served by such member if appointed thereto.

C. Legislative members of the Board shall be compensated as specified in § 30-19.12, and all members of the Board shall be reimbursed for their actual expenses incurred in the performance of their duties in the work of the Center.

D. The Board shall elect a chairman and a vice-chairman from among its members.

§ 23-231.4. Powers of Board; contracts for educational services.

A. The Board of Trustees shall have, in addition to its other powers, all the corporate powers given to corporations by the provisions of Title 13.1, except in those cases where, by the express terms of its provisions, it is confined to corporations created under that title. The Board shall also have the power to accept, execute, and administer any trust in which it may have an interest under the terms of the instrument creating the trust.

B. The Board shall have the authority to establish and administer agreements with public institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth to provide graduate level instructional programs at the Center and with Emory and Henry College for the provision of graduate degree instructional programs in education at the Center. The Board shall be empowered to establish and administer agreements with the University of Virginia's College at Wise and Emory and Henry College for the provision of upper level undergraduate instructional programs at the Center and with Virginia Highlands Community College for the provision of associate degree instructional programs at the Center.