281—21.45 (260C) Purpose. A distribution plan for general state financial aid to Iowa’s community colleges is established for the fiscal year commencing July 1, 1999, and succeeding fiscal years. Funds appropriated by the general assembly to the department of education for general financial aid to community colleges shall be allocated to each community college in the manner defined in this chapter.
	 21.45(1) Definitions. For the purpose of this rule, the following definitions shall apply:
“Academic year” means a period of time which begins with the first day of the fall term for each community college and continues through the day preceding the start of the next fall term as indicated in the official college calendar.
“Base funding” means the amount of general state financial aid each community college received as an allocation from appropriations made from the state general fund in the base year.
“Base year” means the fiscal year ending during the calendar year in which a budget is certified.
“Contact hour” for a noncredit course equals 50 minutes of contact between an instructor and students in a scheduled course offering for which students are registered.
“Credit hour,” for purposes of community college funding distribution, shall be as defined in subrule 21.2(13).
“Eligible credit courses” means all credit courses that are eligible for general state financial aid and which must be part of an approved program of study. Developmental education courses that award credit hours are eligible for inclusion in the FTEE calculation. The department of education shall review and provide a determination should a question of eligibility occur.
“Eligible noncredit courses” means all noncredit courses eligible for general state financial aid that must fit one of the following ten eligible categories for noncredit courses:
	  1. 	 Community resource development: courses that provide participants with information which may result in improved and enhanced community resources or community development programs.
	  2. 	 State-mandated or state-approved: organized educational instruction designed to meet legislated or licensing requirements as defined in the Code of Iowa. The educational curriculum for such instruction is approved by the department of education, licensing boards, or state departments.
	  3. 	 Legal and consumer rights: a group of instructional courses that provide the opportunity to become a better-informed and more thoughtful consumer and identify the consumer’s rights and obligations under a contract.
	  4. 	 Health: courses designed to enhance understanding, attitudes, and practices relating to individual, family, and community health. Instruction is based on scientific facts that serve as a foundation for decision making and action to achieve health potentials.
	  5. 	 Employment and business: learning activities that are designed to develop skills needed to obtain and enhance employment. The activities will provide an understanding of business principles and practices having applications in business and industry locally, regionally, nationally, and internationally.
	  6. 	 Programs for individuals with restricted incomes: a group of instructional courses designed for individuals living on a restricted income. These individuals include the elderly, widows and widowers, unemployed or those receiving financial aid from federal and state welfare agencies and organizations. Each course offered in this classification must clearly indicate that it is offered for restricted-income individuals, and enrollment efforts must be directed to these individuals.
	  7. 	 Environmental education: instructional courses designed to assist individuals to understand the effect upon one’s health and well-being of environmental factors such as water supply, pollution control, food contamination, air pollution, radiation exposure, and hazardous materials.
	  8. 	 Consumer and homemaking adult education: instructional courses designed to include instruction on child development, care and guidance; clothing and textiles; consumer education; family/individual health; family living and parenthood; food and nutrition; home management (including resource management); and housing, home furnishing and equipment.
	  9. 	 Adult vocational training/retraining education: individual vocational courses, each complete in itself and designed for the specific purposes of training persons for upgrading the skills of persons presently employed, and retraining persons for new employment.
	  10. 	 ABE/adult high school completion/ESL: includes adult basic education, adult high school completion and English as a second language.
The department of education shall review and provide a determination should a question of eligibility occur.
“Eligible student” means a student enrolled in eligible credit or eligible noncredit courses. Ineligible students include students enrolled in courses that deal with recreation, hobbies, casual culture, or self-enjoyment subjects; programs or contracts funded from 260E sources; students in high school completion programs registered with a community college on or before the third Friday in September, which are claimed for funding by a K-12 school district; students registered as a part of the department of corrections contracts through the state penal institutions; students served for the sole purpose of testing; or students who reside in nursing homes. The department of education shall review and provide a determination should a question of eligibility occur.
“Enrollment,” for the purposes of calculating the distribution of the proportional share of state general aid, means full-time equivalent enrollment (FTEE).
“Fiscal year” means a year beginning July 1 of a given calendar year and ending June 30 of the next calendar year.
“Full-time equivalent enrollment (FTEE)” means that one FTEE equals 24 credit hours for credit courses or 600 contact hours for noncredit courses generated by all eligible students enrolled in eligible courses.
“Inflation rate” shall be calculated by determining the percent change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U) as a percent change from the value for the quarter ending June 30 twelve months prior to the beginning of the base year to the value for the quarter ending June 30 prior to the base year.
	 21.45(2) Moneys appropriated by the general assembly from the general fund to the department of education for community college purposes for general state financial aid for a fiscal year shall be allocated to each community college by the department of education based on each community college’s base funding, the inflation rate, and the college’s proportional share of the total FTEE. The appropriations shall be allocated in the following manner and sequence:
	  a.   	 Base funding. The amount of general state financial aid each community college received as an allocation from appropriations made from the state general fund in the base year.
	  b.   	 Inflation rate. After the base funding has been determined, a 2 percent inflation increase shall be multiplied by each college’s state aid allocation from the base year.
	  c.   	 If the increase in the total state general aid exceeds 2 percent, an amount up to 1 percent shall be distributed based upon each college’s most recently determined proportional share of FTEE.
	  d.   	 Additional inflation rate. If the inflation rate exceeds 2 percent and the increase in total state aid permits, each community college’s allocation shall be increased until the inflation rate is satisfied.
	  e.   	 Additional proportional share of total FTEE. If the increase in the total state general aid exceeds the funds needed to meet the allocation requirements in paragraphs “a” through “d” above, the remaining amount shall be distributed based on each college’s most recent proportional share of total FTEE.
If the total increase in total state general aid is equal to or less than 2 percent, the increase shall be distributed as inflation.
	 21.45(3) Program length for the associate of applied sciences (AAS) degree in vocational-technical subjects and for the associate of applied arts (AAA) degrees shall consist of an academic program being the equivalent of a maximum of four semesters and two summer sessions of instruction. AAS and AAA degree programs shall not exceed a maximum of 86 credit hours unless the department of education has granted a waiver pursuant to 21.45(5).
	 21.45(4) All credit-bearing courses required for program admittance or graduation, or both, must be included in the 86-credit-hour maximum, with the exception of developmental credit hours. Prerequisites that provide an option to students for credit or noncredit shall be counted toward the program maximum of 86 credit hours. Noncredit prerequisites will not be counted toward the 86-credit-hour maximum.
	 21.45(5) AAS and AAA programs that receive accreditation from nationally recognized accrediting bodies may appeal maximum credit-hour-length requirements to the department of education for consideration of a waiver. All AAS and AAA degree programs over the 86-semester-hour maximum must have approved program-length waivers.
	 21.45(6) All credit certificate and diploma programs as defined in subrule 21.2(10) shall not exceed 48 credit hours.
	 21.45(7) Each community college shall provide information in the manner and form as determined by the department of education to implement this chapter. If the community college fails to provide the information as requested, the department shall estimate the FTEE of that college.
	 21.45(8) Each community college is required to complete and submit an annual student enrollment audit to the department of education. Adjustments to community college state general aid allocations shall be made based on student enrollment audit outcomes.
This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code sections 260C.14(21) and 260C.49.