1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to higher education; creating a technical 
  1.3             college printing and publishing program; appropriating 
  1.4             money; proposing coding for new law in Minnesota 
  1.5             Statutes, chapter 136F. 
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  [136F.371] [TECHNICAL COLLEGE PRINTING AND 
  1.8   PUBLISHING PROGRAMS.] 
  1.9      Subdivision 1.  [BEST-IN-CLASS REGIONAL PROGRAMS.] The 
  1.10  board shall create three best-in-class regional programs to 
  1.11  significantly upgrade technical training for production tasks in 
  1.12  printing and publishing.  These programs shall offer a two-year 
  1.13  degree, advanced continuing education classes, and fast-track 
  1.14  training programs.  Best-in-class programs shall also enter into 
  1.15  articulation agreements with four-year colleges and 
  1.16  universities.  These programs shall be structured to service 
  1.17  entire regions of the state through distance-learning 
  1.18  opportunities, faculty exchanges, industry internships, and by 
  1.19  hosting groups from other Minnesota state college and university 
  1.20  schools for short-term, intensive labs utilizing advanced 
  1.21  technical equipment. 
  1.22     Subd. 2.  [PRINTING AND EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP COMMITTEE.] A 
  1.23  printing and education partnership committee is created 
  1.24  consisting of 21 members as follows: 
  1.25     (1) four members of the printing industry to be designated 
  2.1   by the Printing Industry of Minnesota, Inc.; 
  2.2      (2) four members of the printing industry to be designated 
  2.3   by the Minnesota Newspaper Foundation; 
  2.4      (3) four members of the printing industry to be designated 
  2.5   by the International Prepress Association; 
  2.6      (4) one graphic arts union officer or representative to be 
  2.7   designated by the union; 
  2.8      (5) three administrators holding the rank of dean, vice 
  2.9   president, or president from the state colleges and universities 
  2.10  to be appointed by the chancellor; 
  2.11     (6) one state college and university printing instructor to 
  2.12  be appointed by the chancellor; 
  2.13     (7) one representative from the state college university 
  2.14  system office to be appointed by the chancellor; 
  2.15     (8) one representative from the University of 
  2.16  Wisconsin-Stout to be designated by that institution; 
  2.17     (9) one representative from Dunwoody Institute to be 
  2.18  designated by that institution; and 
  2.19     (10) one high school graphic arts teacher to be appointed 
  2.20  by the chancellor. 
  2.21     Subd. 3.  [TERMS.] All appointments to the printing and 
  2.22  education partnership committee must be ratified by the 
  2.23  chancellor.  Members of the committee shall serve a three-year 
  2.24  term with one-third of the committee selected each year.  Once 
  2.25  established, the original committee shall designate seven 
  2.26  positions to serve an original one-year term, to be followed by 
  2.27  regular three-year terms, and seven positions to serve an 
  2.28  original two-year term, followed by regular three-year terms.  
  2.29  If the committee is unable to make this designation, then the 
  2.30  chancellor shall so designate.  Members will be reimbursed for 
  2.31  expenses related to their service on the partnership committee, 
  2.32  but shall not receive salary or per diem.  The partnership 
  2.33  committee may hire one or more support staff, including a 
  2.34  coordinator.  The chair and vice chair of the committee will be 
  2.35  representatives of the printing industry. 
  2.36     Subd. 4.  [PURPOSE.] The partnership committee is 
  3.1   authorized to spend funds allocated to it by the state colleges 
  3.2   and universities on designated projects and staff.  The 
  3.3   partnership committee will be responsible for allocation of 
  3.4   money to be spent for equipment purchases at best-in-class 
  3.5   programs, coordinating with local colleges and local advisory 
  3.6   committees and participating in the selection of best-in-class 
  3.7   programs.  Additionally, the partnership committee shall 
  3.8   actively participate in the creation, direction, and periodic 
  3.9   certification of best-in-class programs, coordinate activities 
  3.10  between the printing industry and printing instructors in 
  3.11  Minnesota state college universities and Minnesota K-12 
  3.12  programs, promote Minnesota state college and university 
  3.13  training to Minnesota's printing industry, enhance faculty 
  3.14  recruitment and advancement, and promote printing as a desirable 
  3.15  occupation in Minnesota. 
  3.16     Subd. 5.  [FUNDING.] Funding for the partnership 
  3.17  committee's activities through June 30, 2000, will come from the 
  3.18  existing appropriation to the Minnesota printing and industry 
  3.19  partnership.  Funding for the continuing operation of the 
  3.20  partnership committee after June 30, 2000, will be allocated 
  3.21  within the Minnesota state college and university budget.  The 
  3.22  existing Minnesota printing and industry partnership is 
  3.23  dissolved on the date that the printing and education 
  3.24  partnership committee commences operation. 
  3.25     Sec. 2.  [136F.372] [BEST-IN-CLASS DESIGNATION.] 
  3.26     Subdivision 1.  [REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS.] The board shall 
  3.27  make best-in-class designations through a competitive process.  
  3.28  All Minnesota state college and university system institutions 
  3.29  are eligible to apply for best-in-class designation.  
  3.30  Institutions may respond to the request for proposal as single 
  3.31  organizations or as regional consortia.  Regional responses must 
  3.32  identify a lead institution that will have ultimate fiscal and 
  3.33  program responsibility.  The board shall commence the request 
  3.34  for proposal process by distributing an application, developed 
  3.35  by the partnership committee, to all qualified institutions.  
  3.36  The application shall contain at least the following: 
  4.1      (1) an explanation of the best-in-class program; 
  4.2      (2) a description of funds available to best-in-class 
  4.3   designates; 
  4.4      (3) grantee requirements; 
  4.5      (4) information on technical assistance workshops for the 
  4.6   application process; 
  4.7      (5) a description of the review process including criteria 
  4.8   and scoring method; 
  4.9      (6) any necessary additional information regarding the 
  4.10  process; 
  4.11     (7) application instructions and forms; and 
  4.12     (8) notification of the application deadline. 
  4.13     Subd. 2.  [SELECTION PROCESS.] The partnership committee 
  4.14  coordinator, with the assistance of a representative from the 
  4.15  state college and university system, will organize and implement 
  4.16  a peer and industry review process for the purpose of reviewing 
  4.17  application responses.  Recommendations shall be made by a 
  4.18  seven-person review committee which shall make their 
  4.19  recommendations based on the criteria and scoring method 
  4.20  developed by the printing and education partnership committee.  
  4.21  The review committee shall consist of seven persons, two of whom 
  4.22  shall be industry representatives appointed by the printing and 
  4.23  education partnership committee of which not more than one shall 
  4.24  reside in the seven-county metro area, and two education 
  4.25  representatives appointed by the chancellor, who must be from 
  4.26  institutions not applying for best-in-class designation, only 
  4.27  one of which may be from within the seven-county metro area, and 
  4.28  two representatives from public entities involved in economic 
  4.29  development or work force training, not more than one of whom 
  4.30  shall reside within the seven-county metro area, and the 
  4.31  chairman of the partnership committee or his designee.  The 
  4.32  partnership committee coordinator and the representative from 
  4.33  the state college and university system shall serve on the 
  4.34  committee in an ex officio capacity to provide assistance with 
  4.35  the review, scoring, and recommendation process. 
  4.36     Subd. 3.  [SELECTION.] After completing its review, the 
  5.1   review committee will present summary reports of proposal 
  5.2   quality and recommendations to the printing and education 
  5.3   partnership committee.  After reviewing the recommendations, the 
  5.4   committee will present recommendations to the board.  The board 
  5.5   may accept or revise the recommendations and award best-in-class 
  5.6   designation. 
  5.7      Subd. 4.  [RECERTIFICATION.] Best-in-class certification 
  5.8   must be reviewed every four years by the printing and education 
  5.9   partnership committee.  The committee will conduct a formal 
  5.10  review of best-in-class programs in their third year of 
  5.11  operation.  If a program is found to be performing in an 
  5.12  unsatisfactory manner, it may be placed on a one-year 
  5.13  probation.  If the identified deficiencies are not corrected 
  5.14  within that one-year period, then the committee may remove the 
  5.15  best-in-class designation from the institution.  If an 
  5.16  institution loses its best-in-class designation, a new 
  5.17  best-in-class designation process shall commence and another 
  5.18  institution shall be awarded the best-in-class designation.  
  5.19  When a new institution is awarded the best-in-class designation, 
  5.20  all of the equipment and program material shall be transferred 
  5.21  out of the program losing the certification into the newly 
  5.22  designated best-in-class program. 
  5.23     Subd. 5.  [CRITERIA.] Best-in-class applications will be 
  5.24  evaluated according to the following criteria: 
  5.25     (1) the resources and efforts that the institution will 
  5.26  devote to the program if accepted; 
  5.27     (2) print education accreditation or the official site 
  5.28  review by a print education evaluator; 
  5.29     (3) the focus that the program's core two-year curriculum 
  5.30  has on production skills and its consistency with the national 
  5.31  skills standards including, at a minimum, the areas of job 
  5.32  engineering, image acquisition, assembly, output, technical 
  5.33  services, sheet paper transfer systems, web paper transfer 
  5.34  systems, basic press operations, ink and inking, printing 
  5.35  safety, preventive maintenance, quality control, binding 
  5.36  operations, specialty operations, mailing and distribution 
  6.1   operations; 
  6.2      (4) equipment presently possessed by the institution and an 
  6.3   estimate of the cost of the purchase of the required new 
  6.4   equipment and installation; 
  6.5      (5) facilities; 
  6.6      (6) industry support from within the region; 
  6.7      (7) continuing education and plans to identify local needs 
  6.8   and the ability to provide training requested by printing 
  6.9   interests in the region; 
  6.10     (8) recruitment plans; 
  6.11     (9) faculty; and 
  6.12     (10) regional accessibility. 
  6.13     Sec. 3.  [136F.373] [LOCAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES.] 
  6.14     (a) Local advisory committees for best-in-class programs 
  6.15  shall consist of at least 11 members appointed by the chief 
  6.16  executive officer of the local institution, one of whom shall be 
  6.17  a faculty member serving in an ex officio role.  The committee 
  6.18  shall meet at least four times per year, with members expected 
  6.19  to attend at least three meetings.  The chair and vice-chair 
  6.20  shall be representatives of the printing industry.  Members 
  6.21  shall serve two year terms except for the faculty member who may 
  6.22  be appointed annually.  At least eight of the private industry 
  6.23  representatives shall hold titles equivalent to a chief 
  6.24  executive officer, president, chief financial officer, chief 
  6.25  operating officer, vice-president, or production supervisor.  
  6.26  Local advisory committees for best-in-class programs shall 
  6.27  report directly to the chief executive officer of the 
  6.28  institution. 
  6.29     (b) Individual Minnesota state college and university 
  6.30  programs will continue to consult with local advisory 
  6.31  committees.  The local advisory committees shall have an 
  6.32  advisory status.  The local committees will also report to the 
  6.33  partnership committee.  At a minimum, local advisory committees 
  6.34  will report the following: 
  6.35     (1) membership of the committee; 
  6.36     (2) dates of any meetings; 
  7.1      (3) attendance at each meeting; 
  7.2      (4) short summary of major topics; 
  7.3      (5) summary of any recommendations or decisions; and 
  7.4      (6) equipment needs, financial needs, and the upgrading of 
  7.5   faculty technical skills. 
  7.6      Local committees shall report to the partnership committee 
  7.7   any problems that they identify with existing programs and 
  7.8   suggestions for improving the programs. 
  7.9      Sec. 4.  [136F.374] [CURRICULUM.] 
  7.10     Curriculum for printing programs shall include: 
  7.11     (1) basic introductory courses to provide for quick 
  7.12  placement into entry-level positions; 
  7.13     (2) strong technical core curriculum to prepare workers to 
  7.14  be effective in entry-level jobs and to advance on the job as 
  7.15  they acquire additional experience; 
  7.16     (3) continuing education tailored to the needs of specific 
  7.17  incumbent workers at specific companies; and 
  7.18     (4) management training that includes but goes beyond 
  7.19  technical training. 
  7.20     Sec. 5.  [136F.375] [REVIEW AND ACCREDITATION.] 
  7.21     Best-in-class programs shall seek review and accreditation 
  7.22  every two years from the print education program administered 
  7.23  through Printing Industries of America.  The review shall 
  7.24  determine whether or not the program: 
  7.25     (1) has clear goals related to the needs of the students 
  7.26  and employers served; 
  7.27     (2) offers instructional activities that adequately support 
  7.28  and promote the goals of the program; 
  7.29     (3) provides adequate textbooks and materials available to 
  7.30  staff and students; 
  7.31     (4) maintains funding adequate to meet goals and 
  7.32  performance objectives; 
  7.33     (5) offers students systematic interviews, counseling, and 
  7.34  placement follow-up procedures; 
  7.35     (6) has a strong, high-level curriculum based on skill 
  7.36  development; 
  8.1      (7) uses equipment of the type and quality found in the 
  8.2   industry; 
  8.3      (8) maintains adequate facilities to meet the program goals 
  8.4   and performance objectives; and 
  8.5      (9) employs instructors who meet state requirements and 
  8.6   possess technical competency. 
  8.7      Sec. 6.  [APPROPRIATION.] 
  8.8      $....... from the general fund in fiscal year 2001 is 
  8.9   appropriated to the board of trustees of the Minnesota state 
  8.10  colleges and universities for the purposes of sections 1 to 5.  
  8.11  Of this amount: 
  8.12     (1) $....... shall be used to purchase equipment including 
  8.13  software, prepress, press, and finishing equipment; and 
  8.14     (2) $....... shall be used for facility and faculty 
  8.15  expenses.