Title: Products and Services Provided by the District
Number: BP 2.15
Adopted: July 2012
Reviewed: September 2015
Revised: November 2015
Any activity resulting in the provision of products or services by the College must be deemed important to fulfilling the institution’s education, training, and economic development functions; the activity must be needed to provide products or services necessary for College operations at a reasonable price, on reasonable terms, and at a convenient location and time; and the activity must be carried out for the primary benefit of the College community but with sensitivity to the impact on the broader community.
Criteria for Products and Services Provided by the District
All activities paralleling the private sector must be integral to the fulfillment of the College’s instructional, research or public service missions. The Board delegates its authority to the President or designee to authorize an exception if any of the following pertain:
- There are compelling reasons of economic efficiency where district resources can be made available to the broader community at relatively little additional cost to the institution.
- The product or service is unavailable elsewhere in the community in either sufficient quality or quantity.
- Providing the product or service is a major convenience to the College community including students, staff, and members of the public participating in institutional activities. Although other factors may be involved, convenience is typically defined in geographic terms (i.e. private sources are too far away to be, practically, the suppliers).
- The College’s offering of the product or service is of major importance to maintaining the quality of the institution’s operations and facilities.
Pricing
The pricing of products and services offered by the district shall recover full cost or be comparable to private sector prices, unless a reduced price is demonstrated to be necessary to fulfill a function integral to the mission of the institution. The objective of the sale or resale of products that emerge as a result of an educational program is to recover or defray the cost of program operation.
College administration may also establish additional fees in the following areas, which are compliant with s. 38.24(1s), Wis. Stats.:
- A court-approved alcohol or other drug abuse education program offered to individuals under s.48.245 (2) (a) 4., 48.345 (13) (b), 48.347 (5) (b), 938.245 (2) (a) 4., 938.32 (1g) (b), 938.34 (6r) (b) or (14s) (b) 3., 938.343 (10) (c) or 938.344 (2g) (a), Wis. Stats.
- 38.24(1s)(b)A professional development, vocational-adult seminar or workshop, consisting of no more than 24 hours of instruction, offered to individuals who are employed in a related field. The Board directs College administration to report to the WTCS Board the courses for which an additional fee was charged and the amount of the additional fee.
- 38.24(1s)(c)A vocational-adult course intended to improve an individual's skills beyond the entry level if the course is required by state or federal law, rule or regulation, or by a professional organization, to maintain licensure or certification in the individual's field of employment and the state director approves. The additional fee may not exceed an amount equal to the full cost of the course less the program fees.
Review Committee
The Board, through the President, shall appoint a Review Committee when needed to review specific proposed product or service additions, and/or complaints of potential competition with the private sector. Membership of the committee shall include representatives of the College, the private sector, and the general public.
Any proposed provision of products and services presented to the committee shall include full documentation of costs and pricing considerations. The committee shall review the proposal for compliance with College guidelines. The review shall include a determination as to whether the College pricing structure complies with the above guidelines. The committee shall report its findings to the President or designee before the College acts upon the proposed offering of products and services. The President or designee will provide the Board a summary of the final results of this process for their review and ratification at their general meetings.
The Private Sector Review Committee reviews any formal complaints made by private sector providers using the above guidelines and provides an advisory opinion to College administration. A private sector provider will be notified in writing of the College’s decision in regard to a complaint within 30 days of receipt of a formal written complaint. As an appeals process, the Board reviews the complaint if formally requested subsequent to the complainant’s notification of the College’s decision.