Kansas colleges could affiliate with universities after approval

A technical college or community college could affiliate with a state university or municipal university. This applies to Kansas technical colleges and community colleges affiliating with a state educational institution or municipal university. The state board of regents or municipal university’s governing body, as applicable, and a majority of the college’s governing body must approve. The affiliation plan must address transfers of faculty, employees, and students, including employment terms. Necessary college employees may become university employees with governing board approval. For a community college, the plan must address bond debt and may assign payment to the university or leave the debt as a charge on the district. The bill gives no separate start date for an individual affiliation.

Upon affiliation, the university would supervise the college’s legal powers and duties. These provisions apply to a technical or community college after it affiliates with a state educational institution or municipal university. Unless the plan says otherwise, community college trustees would oversee the campus and manage its operating funds. The college’s governing body would become an industry advisory board. Community college trustees would remain elected; the university president or chancellor would appoint technical college advisory board members. An affiliated community college could not tax district property. The state would take on support, operation, and maintenance costs previously funded by those taxes. These governance and tax provisions apply upon affiliation.

Some students at an affiliated college could enter career programs without meeting university admission standards. This applies to students admitted by a state educational institution to career programs at an affiliated technical or community college. The exception covers students in career programs leading to an associate of applied science degree and students in career certificate programs who are not seeking a degree. Students who later seek to transfer to another school in the university or enter a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral program would have to meet university admission standards. The exception applies while the college is affiliated.