SCHOOL BOARD “TECHNICAL COLLEGES”: BY WHAT LEGAL AUTHORITY? By: Steven J. Bracci, Esq. Steven J. Bracci, PA 9015 Strada Stell Court, Suite 102 Naples, Florida 34109 Ph: (239) 596-2635

Author’s Preface This author supports the mission of technical high school and post-secondary education, believing that it provides an alternative career path for individuals who are still completing their education, or who seek to transition their careers. Our nation must revitalize its skilled work force. This author does not, however, support government overreach. The Legislature has set up a system of K-20 governance, and the School Board must honor that legislative structure. This author maintains that in 2015, the School Board illegally changed the name of its “technical centers” or “career centers” to “technical colleges.”

By What Authority is the School Board Operating “Technical Colleges?” The School Board should request a detailed legal opinion answering by what authority the School Board is operating “technical colleges.” Immokalee Technical College (formerly Immokalee Technical Center) Lorenzo Technical College (formerly Lorenzo Walker Technical Center)

The School Board may operate “career centers.” § 1001.44, Fla. Stat. Career centers (1) District school board may establish or acquire career centers.--Any district school board, after first obtaining the approval of the Department of Education, may, as a part of the district school system, organize, establish and operate a career center, or acquire and operate a career center previously established.

School Boards may create a “technical center governing board.” § 1001.42(26), Fla. Stat. TECHNICAL CENTER GOVERNING BOARD.—May appoint a governing board for a school district technical center or a system of technical centers for the purpose of aligning the educational programs of the technical center with the needs of local businesses and responding quickly to the needs of local businesses for employees holding industry certifications. A technical center governing board shall be comprised of seven members, three of whom must be members of the district school board or their designees and four of whom must be local business leaders. The district school board shall delegate to the technical center governing board decisions regarding entrance requirements for students, curriculum, program development, budget and funding allocations, and the development with local businesses of partnership agreements and appropriate industry certifications in order to meet local and regional economic needs. A technical center governing board may approve only courses and programs that contain industry certifications. A course may be continued if at least 25 percent of the students enrolled in the course attain an industry certification. If fewer than 25 percent of the students enrolled in a course attain an industry certification, the course must be discontinued the following year.

Florida has a “single Florida College System” § 1001.60(2), Fla. Stat. FLORIDA COLLEGE SYSTEM.—There shall be a single Florida College System comprised of the Florida College System institutions identified in s. 1000.21(3). A Florida College System institution may not offer graduate degree programs.

Florida’s “colleges” are defined by name Florida’s “colleges” are defined by name. FSW State College is Collier’s state college. 1000.21(3). “Florida College System institution” except as otherwise specifically provided, includes all of the following public postsecondary educational institutions in the Florida College System and any branch campuses, centers, or other affiliates of the institution: (f) Florida SouthWestern State College, which serves Charlotte, Collier, Glades, Hendry, and Lee Counties.

Only state colleges can use the term “college” if it meets certain criteria or approvals § 1001.60(2), Fla. Stat. Florida College System (b)(1) With the approval of its district board of trustees, a Florida College System institution may change the institution’s name set forth in s. 1000.21(3) and use the designation “college” or “state college” if it has been authorized to grant baccalaureate degrees pursuant to s. 1007.33 and has been accredited as a baccalaureate-degree-granting institution by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. (b)(2) With the approval of its district board of trustees, a Florida College System institution that does not meet the criteria in subparagraph 1. may request approval from the State Board of Education to change the institution’s name set forth in s.1000.21(3) and use the designation “college.”

“College” cannot be used in combination with any series of words (such as “technical college”) § 1005.03, Fla. Stat. Designation “college” or “university.”— (1) The use of the designation “college” or “university” in combination with any series of letters, numbers, or words is restricted in this state to colleges or universities as defined in s. 1005.02 that offer degrees as defined in s. 1005.02 and fall into at least one of the following categories: (a) A Florida public college. (b) A Florida or out-of-state college that has been in active operation and using the designation “college” or “university” since April 1, 1970. (c) A college for which the commission has issued a license pursuant to the provisions of this chapter. (d) A college that is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Education, eligible to participate in the William L. Boyd, IV, Florida Resident Access Grant Program and that is a nonprofit independent college or university located and chartered in this state and accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to grant baccalaureate degrees. (e) A college that meets the description of either s. 1005.06(1)(e) or (f).

The purpose is to avoid “Misleading the Public” § 1005.03(4), Fla. Stat. An entity shall not use the designation “college” or “university” in its name in Florida without approval by the commission, unless the commission determines that its name is clearly and accurately descriptive of the services provided by the entity and is not one that may mislead the public.

Does the School Board Endorse the Retroactive Use of the Term “Technical College”? Did individuals who received course completion certificates from an “Institute of Technology” prior to the 2015 name change, now retroactively “graduate” from a “technical college?” For example, see Erick Carter’s Curriculum Vitae on the School Board’s web page: “Erick studied cosmetology and graduated from our own local Lorenzo Walker Technical College, a division of Collier County Public Schools.” http://www.collierschools.com/Page/9593

Questions this School Board should ask its legal counsel Under what legal authority is the school district running “technical colleges?” How are the “technical college” institutions classified under Florida Statutes? Has the new system of school board-operated “technical colleges” created a dual Florida College System, in contravention of Fla. Stat. § 1001.60(2) (“there shall be a single Florida College System”)? Is the School Board misleading the public Into believing they are graduating from “colleges” when they are not? a. If the School Board is misleading the public, is the School Board exposing itself to legal claims of “fraud” or “deceptive trade practices?” 5. Does the School Board endorse the retroactive use of the term “technical college” for those who have course completion certificates prior to 2015?

“Everyone Else is Doing It” is not an Acceptable Answer This School Board represents the Collier County School District, and must ensure, independently, that it is operating within the law. If the “technical colleges” are operated legally, it should be a simple exercise for your legal counsel to trace the legal authority.