The school located at Mobile in Mobile County, Alabama and presently known as State Vocational Technical School shall hereafter be designated and known as Southwest State Technical Institute.

The State Board of Education is hereby authorized and directed to change the name of such school as herein prescribed and to cause appropriate markers to be placed so designating it.

For purposes of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the respective meaning ascribed to them by this section:

(1) BOARD. The State Board of Education.

(2) JUNIOR COLLEGE. An educational institution offering instruction in the arts and sciences on the level of difficulty of the first two years above high school level.

(3) STATE. The State of Alabama.

(4) TRADE SCHOOL. An educational institution offering instruction primarily in useful trades, occupations or vocational skills.

(5) ATHENS STATE COLLEGE. An educational institution offering instruction on the level of difficulty of the third and fourth years above the high school level. Wherever used herein, the phrase "junior colleges and trade schools" shall be understood to include Athens State College.

(6) POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION DEPARTMENT. A parallel organization to the State Department of Education directly responsible to the State Board of Education for the direction and supervision of junior colleges and trade schools and community colleges with a chief executive officer entitled chancellor.

For the sole purpose of assisting the board in carrying out its authority and responsibility for each of the junior colleges and trade schools, the board shall have the authority to appoint a Chancellor who will also be Chief Executive Officer of the Postsecondary Education Department. The Chancellor shall serve at the pleasure of the board and perform such duties as assigned by the board; provided, however, that the board may enter into a contract with the Chancellor for his services for a period not to exceed four years. The Chancellor shall be a person of good moral character with academic and professional education equivalent to graduation from a recognized university or college, who is knowledgeable in postsecondary institution administration and has training and experience sufficient to qualify him to perform the duties of his office.

The authority and responsibility for the operation, management, control, supervision, maintenance, regulation, improvement, and enlargement of each of the junior colleges and trade schools shall be vested in the Chancellor, subject to the approval of the board.

Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the board shall have the authority to establish the salary of the State Superintendent of Education and the Chancellor. The board may also provide for expense allowances to be paid to the State Superintendent of Education and the Chancellor in whatever amounts and for whatever purposes deemed necessary and appropriate by the board. Such salary and expense allowances shall be paid in installments from the annual appropriation made to the board or the State Department of Education as appropriate.

The State Board of Education, upon recommendation of the Chancellor, shall be authorized to:

(1) Make rules and regulations for the government of each junior college and trade school.

(2) Prescribe for the junior colleges and trade schools the courses of study to be offered and the conditions for granting certificates, diplomas and/or degrees.

(3) Appoint the president of each junior college and trade school, each president to serve at the pleasure of the board.

(4) Direct and supervise the expenditure of legislative appropriations of each junior college and trade school.

(5) Prescribe qualifications for faculty and establish a salary schedule and tenure requirements for faculty at each junior college and trade school.

(6) Accept gifts, donations, and devises and bequests of money and real and personal property for the benefit of junior colleges and trade schools or any one of them.

(7) Disseminate information concerning and promote interest in junior colleges and trade schools among the citizens of Alabama.

The Chancellor shall act as Chief Executive Officer of the Postsecondary Education Department of the State Board of Education and will direct all matters involving the junior colleges and trade schools within the policies of the State Board of Education. The Chancellor shall:

(1) Execute and enforce the rules and regulations of the State Board of Education governing the junior colleges and trade schools.

(2) Interpret the rules and regulations of the board concerning the junior colleges and trade schools.

(3) Administer the office of the Chancellor and appoint to positions of employment such professional, clerical, and other assistants, including specialists and consultants, on a full-or part-time basis as may be needed to assist the Chancellor in performing the duties of the office of the Chancellor. The number of employees, their compensation and all other expenditures of the office of the Chancellor shall be within the limits of a budget for the office of the Chancellor which shall be approved by the board. The Chancellor and all employees of the office of the Chancellor shall not be subject to or governed by the provisions of the state Merit System law but shall be entitled to all benefits accruing to Merit System employees including the right to accumulate leave and participate in the Teachers' Retirement System under the same terms and conditions as employees of the State Department of Education.

(4) Have the authority to take any and all actions necessary and proper to administer policies, rules and regulations of the board in carrying out its responsibility for the management and operation of the junior colleges and trade schools.

(5) Prepare, or cause to be prepared, an annual report of the State Board of Education on the activities of the Postsecondary Education Department and shall submit on the first day of December, or as early thereafter as practicable, the same to the board for its approval and adoption. He shall also prepare, or cause to be prepared, all other reports which are or may be required of the board.

(6) Prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval by the State Board of Education such budget for each quadrennium, or for such other period as may be fixed by the Department of Finance or other duly authorized body.

(7) Prepare, or cause to be prepared, and submit for approval and adoption by the State Board of Education such legislative measures as are in his opinion needed for the further development and improvement of the junior colleges and trade schools.

Except where otherwise clearly indicated herein the board will delegate to the Chancellor, authority for the Chancellor to act and make decisions concerning the management and operation of the junior colleges and trade schools. The president of each junior college and trade school shall be responsible to the Chancellor for the day-to-day operation of each school.

The president of each junior college and trade school shall appoint the faculty and staff of each junior college and trade school according to qualifications prescribed by the board and such other regulations which may be adopted by the board in accordance with Section 16-60-111.4.

Upon this section becoming law, the board and the State Superintendent of Education shall be authorized to take all administrative action, including transfer of funds appropriated to the State Board of Education for administration of the junior college and trade school program, necessary to carry out the intent and purpose of this article.

Nothing contained in Section 16-60-110 or any provision of this article shall be construed as repealing any provision of the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act, Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96, or the provisions of Sections 16-5-1 through 16-5-14 relating to the Alabama Commission on Higher Education.

Any junior college or trade school shall have authority during any fiscal year upon the approval of the Chancellor to borrow money in anticipation of the current revenues for that fiscal year and to pledge the current revenues for said fiscal year for payment of such loan or loans if funds on hand are not sufficient to pay the salaries of teachers for any given month; provided, that any amount borrowed shall not exceed one month's allotment and shall not exceed the amount of the state appropriation minus the amount disbursed from said school's annual allotment.

Any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, the authority, powers and duties prescribed in Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96, relating to the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act, are hereby transferred to the Chancellor and expressly removed from the State Superintendent of Education; provided further, any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, this article shall be construed to require that all actions of the State Board of Education concerning the junior colleges and trade schools which previously have required the recommendation of the State Superintendent of Education shall now require only the recommendation of the Chancellor; provided, however, that this article shall not be construed as removing the State Superintendent of Education from membership on any board, commission, authority or other agency on which the State Superintendent of Education now serves except as otherwise provided herein.

(a) All powers, duties, responsibilities, and functions of, and all related records, property, equipment of, and all rights, obligations of, and unexpended balances of appropriations including federal and other funds or allocations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2002, of the Adult Education program, the State Approving Agency program, and the Private School Licensure program for postsecondary proprietary schools of the State Department of Education shall be transferred by the State Board of Education to the Postsecondary Education Department.

(b) All funds appropriated to the State Department of Education for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2003, for the Adult Education program and the components of that program, the State Approving Agency program and the components of that program, and the Private School Licensure program and the components of that program for postsecondary proprietary schools, shall be transferred to the Postsecondary Education Department for its use during that fiscal year under the same terms and conditions as specified for those funds in any appropriation bill, or as otherwise specified by law.

(c) All full-time nonprobationary employees of the Adult Education program and the components of that program, the State Approving Agency program and the components of that program, and the Private School Licensure program and the components of that program for postsecondary proprietary schools, shall be transferred to the Postsecondary Education Department on the effective date of this section to a full-time nonprobationary employee classification commensurate with the level of each respective employee classification at the Postsecondary Education Department on the date prior to the transfer.

(d) Any full-time nonprobationary employee transferred under this section shall be entitled to the due process rights provided under the Fair Dismissal Act as provided in Sections 36-26-100, et seq., and also to all other rights, benefits, and due process to which they were entitled before the passage of this section, including, but not limited to, the right to accumulate leave, participate in the Teachers' Retirement System, and consideration for annual salary increases. No employee shall be demoted or have his or her salary, position, or status adversely affected due to his or her transfer or any other provision of this section.

(e) Upon the vacating of any of the employee classifications designated under subsection (c), by any such incumbents, such classifications shall cease to be automatically considered full-time nonprobationary positions and persons to fill such positions thereafter shall serve at the pleasure of the Chancellor of the Postsecondary Education Department, having the same rights, benefits, terms, conditions, and due process to which other employees of the Postsecondary Education Department are entitled.

(f) The State Board of Education shall coordinate the transfer. The State Superintendent of Education and the State Department of Education shall assist the Chancellor and the Postsecondary Education Department with the highest degree of cooperation to carry out the intent and purpose of this section and to achieve an orderly transition.

(g) The Chancellor of the Postsecondary Education Department shall direct all matters involving the Adult Education program, the State Approving Agency program, and the Private School Licensure program for postsecondary proprietary schools in conformance with state and federal law and the policies of the State Board of Education. All responsibilities related to the Adult Education program, the State Approving Agency program, and the Private School Licensure program for postsecondary proprietary schools previously vested with the State Superintendent of Education shall be vested with the Chancellor of the Postsecondary Education Department.

(h) The State Approving Agency program shall be transferred from the State Department of Education to the Postsecondary Education Department pursuant to this section.

(i) The Private School Licensure program for postsecondary proprietary schools shall be transferred from the State Department of Education to the Postsecondary Education Department pursuant to this section.

(j) The State Board of Education and the State Superintendent of Education shall take all administrative action, including the transfer of funds, appropriate and necessary to carry out the intent and purpose of this section.

Upon receipt of a proper deed or such other conveyances as may be appropriate for the purpose, as determined by the Governor, he may accept on behalf of the state the property, buildings, facilities and effects appertaining to Southern Union College, Wadley, in Randolph County; and by executive order he may provide for the operation and maintenance of the college as a state educational institution of the same kind as the institutions provided for in Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96.

Upon the acceptance of Southern Union College as a state educational institution, as provided in Section 16-60-130, the college shall be operated, managed, controlled, maintained and regulated thereafter as other like institutions.

There shall be established a Southern Union College Advisory Board, to consist of not more than nine citizens who are members of the college community, appointed by the State Superintendent of Education, upon nomination and recommendation of the president of the college. The advisory board shall promote and serve the best interests of the institution in every way not inconsistent with the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act, Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96.

Upon receipt of a proper deed or such other conveyances as may be appropriate for the purpose, as determined by the Governor, he may accept on behalf of the state the property, buildings, facilities and effects appertaining to the Snead Junior College located at Boaz in Marshall County; and by executive order he may provide for the operation and maintenance of the college as a state educational institution of the same kind as the institutions provided for in Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96.

Upon the acceptance of Snead Junior College as a state educational institution as provided in Section 16-60-150, the college shall be operated, managed, controlled, maintained and regulated thereafter as other like institutions.

The state shall not incur any indebtedness by acquisition of the college and any debt of the college outstanding at the date of acquisition shall not be a debt of the State of Alabama but shall be payable solely from the revenues of the college and appropriations made for the support and maintenance thereof.

There shall be established a Snead Junior College Advisory Board, to consist of not more than nine citizens who are members of the college community, appointed by the State Superintendent of Education, upon nomination and recommendation of the president of the college. The advisory board shall promote and serve the best interests of the institution in every way not inconsistent with the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act.

The Alabama State Board of Education in cooperation with the Alabama Board of Corrections shall maintain the established trade school adjacent to the Frank Lee Youth Center in Elmore County. This school shall give priority to training the inmates in all state correctional institutions in Montgomery and Elmore Counties in useful occupations and prepare them to take their place as useful citizens in our society.

The school established under this article shall be constructed, leased, equipped, improved, enlarged and maintained by the Board of Education of the State of Alabama. The State Board of Education shall provide the equipment, supplies and materials for the operation of such trade school and shall staff the same with adequate teachers and instructors. The enrollment shall be selected by the Board of Corrections, with the approval of the State Board of Education.

For the purpose of constructing buildings and preparing building sites for the trade or technical school provided for by this article, there is hereby authorized the use of any bond issues, appropriations, grants, gifts or any other funds which may be made available to the board of education from any source whatsoever. All buildings to be constructed for the purpose of providing the physical facilities for such trade school shall be under the supervision and direction of the Building Commission, or any agency designated by the Legislature as its successor, and no funds shall be expended for such purpose without approval of the Building Commission.

(a) The property described in this subsection and all buildings thereon shall be transferred to the State Board of Education. The land description is as follows:

In Elmore County, beginning at the NE corner of the W 1/2 of the SW 1/4 of S. 32, T 19, R 17 and thence West 637.5 feet; thence South 385 feet; proceeding from that point East 500 feet; from that point East 551 feet; from that point 530 feet to the point of beginning.

(b) The State Board of Education and the state Board of Corrections shall proceed forthwith to transfer the property and buildings thereon as described in subsection (a) of this section. In the event this school ceases to give priority to the training of inmates, all of the property and buildings thereon as described in subsection (a) of this section shall revert to the Board of Corrections of the State of Alabama.

This article shall be known as the Regional Vocational and Trade Schools Act.

The State Board of Education shall establish and maintain regional trade schools for the purpose of training young men and women in useful occupations and in the arts and sciences. The State Board of Education shall have authority to purchase or lease buildings, land, equipment, machinery and supplies necessary for the teaching of trade courses. The State Board of Education is authorized and whenever possible is directed to negotiate leases or purchases with the war assets administration or other agencies of the United States for the lease or purchase of suitable facilities, equipment, machinery and supplies.

At least one school, which shall be similar to the Alabama School of Trades at Gadsden, shall be established, or the construction thereof commenced, during each of the fiscal years 1947-48, 1948-49, 1949-50 and 1950-51. Any construction shall be under the supervision of the state Building Commission, subject to the provisions of Section 16-60-193.

The State Board of Education, upon the recommendation of the State Superintendent of Education, shall designate the site for each of the trade schools and determine the order in which the schools shall be established. The board must devote the entire appropriation herein made for each fiscal year to the establishment of the school required to be established during that year; except that, of the appropriation for each year, $75,000.00 thereof shall be reserved as a fund for operating and maintaining such school. Each school shall be located in a different section of the state and so situated that every part of the state is within as close a radius as is reasonably possible to one of the schools of the Alabama School of Trades at Gadsden. No more than one trade school shall be located in a single congressional district; provided, that the trade school now located in Limestone County, Alabama and owned by the city board of education, Decatur, Alabama, shall, when its support by the federal government is terminated and the school has been conveyed to the State of Alabama, be considered an additional or fifth trade school under the operation of this article, and an additional sum of $75,000.00 per year is hereby appropriated from the Education Trust Fund for the maintenance of said school, the said yearly appropriation to commence upon the termination of federal government support of said school and the conveyance of the same by the city board of education, Decatur, Alabama to the State of Alabama.

(a) The authority to manage and control the trade schools is vested in the State Board of Education.

(b) The State Board of Education, upon the recommendation of the State Superintendent of Education, shall: Make rules and regulations for the government of the trade schools; prescribe the courses of study to be offered and the conditions for granting certificates and diplomas; appoint the president of each trade school and, upon the president's recommendations, appoint the members of the faculty and fix the tenure and salary of each; direct and supervise the use of legislative appropriations for the use of the trade schools; accept gifts, donations, devises and bequests of money and real and personal property for the purposes of this chapter; disseminate information concerning and promote interest in the trade schools among the pupils of the public schools; and provide a means whereby students may earn, if necessary, all or a portion of their tuition, board and lodging.

(c) The trade schools shall be managed and conducted in such a manner so as to be accredited as suitable institutions for veteran vocational and rehabilitation training programs sponsored by the United States.

(d) Members of the faculty of any such trade school may be paid for absences during the time such schools are in session, in the discretion of the State Board of Education, where such absence results from sickness or some other unavoidable cause which prevents the teacher from discharging his or her duties. Such leaves of absence shall be granted subject to rules and regulations duly promulgated and adopted by said board; provided, that payment for such absences caused by sickness shall be in accord with the provisions of law governing sick leave for teachers and other employees of city and county boards of education in the State of Alabama as provided in Section 16-12-21 and pay for such absences resulting from unavoidable causes other than sickness shall not be allowed for a total of more than one week during any one year.

The advisory councils for the state vocational trade schools shall each consist of not less than four nor more than nine members appointed by the Governor upon the recommendation of the State Superintendent of Education. The Governor shall designate one member as chairman. The members of the councils shall serve for terms of one year and shall be eligible for reappointment. The membership of each advisory council shall reflect, as nearly as possible, an equal representation of employer and employee groups or organizations. The councils shall serve in an advisory capacity to the directors of the state vocational trade schools and to the State Board of Education in promoting the interests of the individual schools and the development of the regional trade school program.

The county commission of any county in the state may make appropriations of county funds to support any vocational trade school or similar institution of this state in which residents of the county or dependents of such residents are enrolled as students or are entitled to be so enrolled.

The State Board of Education is hereby authorized, empowered and directed to establish and provide for the construction of three new vocational trade schools in this state in addition to the trade schools heretofore provided by law, to be located at such places as will make such schools conveniently accessible to all areas of Alabama. The cost of constructing such schools shall be paid out of the proceeds realized from any bonds issued and sold by the State Board of Education or any other authority of this state for the purpose of financing the construction of public school buildings or from any other funds made available for the construction of trade schools. The first $750,000.00 made available for expenditure on trade schools through the issuance and sale of bonds shall be allocated to the State Board of Education for the purpose of acquiring land, constructing buildings, reconstructing, altering and improving existing buildings and building facilities, including the renewal and replacement of structural parts and for the procurement of equipment for the buildings so constructed, reconstructed or improved at the Decatur Trade School.

The new trade schools to be constructed and established pursuant to this section shall be maintained and operated in accordance with the provisions of this article.

Upon the transfer and conveyance of the Alabama Institute of Aviation Technology at Ozark to the State of Alabama by the Ozark City Board of Education, the State Board of Education is hereby authorized, directed and required to provide for the operation and maintenance of said Alabama Institute of Aviation Technology as an additional vocational trade school in accordance with the provisions of this article.

The State Board of Education may make such contracts, agreements, rules and regulations as may be necessary for carrying out the provisions of this section. After the establishment of the trade school herein provided for, the State Board of Education or any other state authority may expend for the operation, maintenance and capital improvements at such institution any funds which are made available to the board or other authority for the operation, maintenance and capital improvements at trade schools in this state.

The school located in Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama and previously known as the Shelton State Technical Trade School shall hereafter be designated and known as Shelton State Technical Institute.

The State Board of Education is hereby authorized and directed to change such name of the school as herein prescribed and to see that appropriate markers be displayed and designated as such.

The Governor, the State Superintendent of Education, the member of the State Senate representing the senatorial district composed of Franklin and Marion Counties, the member of the State Senate representing the senatorial district of which Winston County is a part, the members of the House of Representatives of the Alabama Legislature from Franklin, Marion and Winston Counties, the chairmen of the county commissions of each of these counties, the county superintendent of education of each of these counties, the representative in the House of Representatives of the United States Congress from the congressional district containing these counties and 10 members appointed by the Governor from among the mayors and other officers of the incorporated municipalities within these three counties are hereby constituted a board of trustees for a junior college to be established, maintained and operated in one of the above named counties.

The Governor shall be ex officio chairman of the board; and he shall call a meeting of such board within 60 days after September 8, 1961. At this meeting the board shall organize itself, make provision for the preparation and adoption of bylaws and rules and regulations to govern it and elect a vice-president and a secretary-treasurer. The vice-president elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall hold office for a term of two years and until his successor has been elected. Successors to the vice-president elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall hold office for such time as is prescribed in the bylaws and rules adopted by the board. The secretary-treasurer elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall serve until a president and a treasurer for the college have been elected and employed. Thereafter the president of the college and the treasurer of the college shall be ex officio the secretary and the treasurer, respectively, of the board of trustees.

The board may prescribe the number of regular meetings to be held each year and may provide that during the biennium immediately following September 8, 1961, the board shall meet more frequently than thereafter; however, the board shall meet at least once each quarter in every year. Special meetings may be called at any time by the chairman or by any six members thereof.

All ex officio members of the board of trustees shall serve as such members so long as they hold the office of which membership on this board of trustees is an ex officio duty; and the members appointed by the Governor shall serve for a term concurrent with the term of the Governor appointing them or until the expiration of the term of the municipal office which they held when appointed, whichever occurs last. Successors to the appointed members of the board of trustees shall be appointed by the Governor in like manner and for like terms as the first members appointed to the board.

Board members shall receive no compensation for serving on such board of trustees; however, they may be reimbursed for reasonable expenses actually incurred in attending meetings of the board and performing the duties hereby imposed upon them relative to the establishment, maintenance and operation of the proposed junior college.

The school heretofore established at Ragland, Alabama as the Alabama School of Trades and Industries and which was changed as to location from Ragland, Alabama to Gadsden, Alabama under the provision of an act approved September 29, 1923, is and shall remain a body corporate under the corporate name of Alabama School of Trades. The removal of said school to Gadsden, Alabama is hereby confirmed.

The Alabama School of Trades as a corporation shall have and exercise all the powers of a corporation established as a state educational institution for the education and training of male and female persons in all the useful and industrial occupations and in the arts and sciences, and to enable the students of the institution to acquire education and training by employing a part or portion of their time, if necessary, while in school to pay all or part of their board, lodging and tuition.

The Alabama School of Trades shall have the right to have and use a corporate seal and to sue and be sued in such corporate name in any of the courts of this state of competent jurisdiction as in the case of natural persons.

There shall be a Board of Trustees of the Alabama School of Trades to consist of the State Superintendent of Education as ex officio member and five members to be appointed by the State Board of Education on the nomination of the State Superintendent of Education. The Director of the Alabama School of Trades shall serve as secretary of said board. The appointive members of the board shall each serve for a term of four years; except, that for the first appointees, the State Board of Education shall designate one member to serve one year, one member to serve two years, one member to serve three years and two members to serve four years.

The board of trustees shall meet within 30 days after the State Board of Education appoints the members of the board, such meeting to be called by the State Superintendent of Education. In the first meeting the board shall organize itself by appointing a chairman and a vice-chairman. The board shall meet at least twice each year, the day of such meeting to be determined by the chairman, and shall meet at other times on call of the chairman or on any written request to the chairman on the part of any two members of said board. The members of the board shall be paid a per diem of $10.00 for each meeting attended and shall be reimbursed for actual travel expense from their residences to and from the Alabama School of Trades in accordance with the regular state plan for reimbursing employees of the state for travel expense. The travel expense and per diem shall be paid from appropriations made to the Alabama School of Trades.

It shall be the duty of the board of trustees to make such recommendations to the State Superintendent and State Board of Education as it deems wise with reference to courses of study, students to be trained in specific occupations, training standards, school plant facilities needed, the efficient operation of the school and on any other matters to the best interest of trade and industrial education in the State of Alabama. The board of trustees shall advise with the Director of the Alabama School of Trades with reference to the efficient operation of the school, trade and industrial education needs and standards, the placement of graduates in occupations and on such other matters as may be to the best interest of the school. The board of trustees is authorized to cooperate with the director, the State Superintendent and the State Board of Education in making known to the Legislature and the people of Alabama the needs of the school and in the acceptance of any gifts or donations for the development or operation of the school.

The entire management and control of such school shall be vested in the State Board of Education, who shall constitute a board of control for the said school.

The board of control may receive and accept for the use and benefit of such school all gifts, donations, devises and bequests of any and all money and real and personal property necessary and useful in carrying into effect the object and purpose of this article and in the name of such corporation may sell and dispose of such property which, in the judgment of such board, may aid in carrying into effect the object of this article and the building up and sustaining of such school.

The persons attending such school shall be taught and thoroughly trained in the useful occupations, arts and sciences with the concurrence and approval of such board.

The board of control may make and adopt all laws, rules and regulations not inconsistent with the laws of this state which may be necessary for the management, control and conduct of such school and the business connected therewith.

The junior college hereby authorized shall be established and ready for operation not later than September 1, 1963. The board of trustees, with the advice and consent of the State Superintendent of Education, shall decide exactly where in the above named counties the college shall be located. The board of trustees, for the purpose of ascertaining the most advantageous location for the college, may make such surveys as in its opinion are needed.

The said board of control shall be required to keep in a well-bound book or books a full and complete record of all of the acts and doings under the provisions of this article, which record or records shall at all times in seasonable hours be open to the public inspection for any and all persons interested in the same or in the school.

The State Superintendent of Education, with the board of control of said school, shall prepare a course of study to be pursued in said school in keeping with the intents and purposes of this article.

When a location for the college has been determined and the board has chosen a name for the college, the board of trustees shall file in the office of the Secretary of State a certificate stating the name and location of the college and the names of persons currently serving as members of the board of trustees. Thereafter, the college shall be a body corporate under the name so filed, with the right to have and use a corporate seal, to sue and be sued in such corporate name in any of the courts of this state of competent jurisdiction as in the case of natural persons.

The board of trustees is hereby invested with full and ample authority to receive and accept for the use and benefit of the college all gifts, donations, devises and bequests of any and all money and real and personal property necessary and useful in carrying into effect the objectives and purposes of this article. The board of trustees, in the name of such corporation, may sell and dispose of any such property when, in the judgment of such board, such sale or other disposition thereof may aid in carrying into effect the objectives of this article and the building up and sustaining of the college.

As used in this article, the term "displaced homemaker" shall have the following meaning unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

An individual who:

(1) Has worked in the home for a substantial number of years providing unpaid household services for family members;

(2) Is unemployed or underemployed;

(3) Has had or reasonably is expected to have difficulty in securing employment; and

(4) Has been dependent on the income of another family member, but is no longer supported by such income, or has been dependent on government assistance, but is no longer eligible for such assistance, or is supported by benefits of the Aid to Families with Dependent Children Program.

The Chancellor of Postsecondary Education is hereby authorized to establish multipurpose programs at designated two-year institutions to provide the necessary training, counseling and services to enable displaced homemakers to experience economic security vital to productive lives.

(a) The Chancellor of Postsecondary Education may appoint a director of displaced homemakers programs to conduct, or cause to be conducted, programs to assist displaced homemakers at such two-year institutions as the Chancellor may approve through a request for proposal process.

(b) Programs to assist displaced homemakers may include:

(1) Job counseling services which are specifically designed for displaced homemakers who may be entering the job market for the first time or who may be reentering the job market after a number of years as a homemaker;

(2) Job training and job placement services which shall be developed by working with federal, state, and local government agencies and the private sector;

(3) Assistance in gaining admission to existing public and private job training programs and opportunities;

(4) Assistance in identifying community needs and in creating new jobs for displaced homemakers in the public and private sectors;

(5) Health education and counseling services in cooperation with existing health programs with respect to general principles of preventive health care, family health care and nutrition, alcohol and drug addiction, and health care consumer education;

(6) Financial management services which provide information and assistance with respect to insurance, taxes, estate and probate problems, mortgages, loans, and other related financial matters;

(7) Educational services, which shall include outreach and information about courses offering credit through secondary or postsecondary education programs and information about such other programs which are determined to be of interest and benefit to displaced homemakers by the Chancellor;

(8) Referral of displaced homemakers to the appropriate private and public agencies for advice and assistance on health care, financial matters, educational opportunities, public assistance, and legal problems and on such other matters as shall be determined to be of interest and benefit to displaced homemakers; and

(9) Traditional and nontraditional occupational skill training.

If a director of displaced homemakers programs is appointed, he shall report annually to the Chancellor of Postsecondary Education on the effectiveness of the programs including the effectiveness of job training programs, placement, and other services rendered to displaced homemakers, the number of persons placed in employment, the number of displaced homemakers served under the various programs, and the cost effectiveness of the various components of the program.

The board of trustees shall have full, ample and sufficient power and authority to make, adopt and enforce all rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the laws of this state, which may be necessary for the management, control and conduct of the college and the business connected therewith.

The governing bodies of the Counties of Franklin, Marion and Winston and of each municipality in such counties are hereby authorized to appropriate funds in their respective treasuries, not otherwise appropriated, to be used for the acquisition of land and the construction thereon of buildings suitable for the college, or for the purchase of existing buildings adaptable to use for the college and the lands on which they are located. After the establishment of the college, such counties and the municipalities therein may make annual appropriations for the maintenance, support and operation of the college. The board of education of each of these counties and the board of education of every incorporated municipality having such a board within these counties may allocate, use and expend public school funds under their jurisdiction in aid of the establishment, maintenance and operation of the college and provide transportation facilities to students attending the college, or such other facilities for students as the board of trustees approves.

There is hereby created and established the Alabama Mining Academy which shall be located at Walker State Technical College in Walker County, Alabama. The Alabama Mining Academy shall be maintained as an agency of Walker State Technical College. The academy shall be the agency that assists in the mine safety and health training of Alabama miners. The purpose and function of this academy shall be to cooperate with and provide assistance to the mining industry of the state in developing effective mine health and safety programs and to improve and expand research and development and training programs aimed at developing a safer, more productive coal industry for the State of Alabama.

(a) The academy shall have the authority to enter into cooperative educational and training agreements with educational institutions, state governments, labor organizations, mine operators and related industries. Such training shall be conducted by the academy in accordance with curriculum needs and assignment of instructional personnel established by the user.

(b) The Alabama Mining Academy shall use the facilities and personnel of Walker State Technical College. The president of Walker State Technical College may appoint or assign to the academy such personnel as he deems necessary for the performance of the duties and functions of the academy.

(c) The President of Walker State Technical College is authorized to enter into contractual or other agreements for the performance of such safety-related research.

(d) Walker State Technical College shall be authorized to procure mining equipment and other articles that said institution deems necessary for the preservation of Alabama's mining history.

The Alabama Mining Academy shall expand programs for the education and training of operations and agents thereof and miners in:

(1) The recognition, avoidance, and prevention of accidents, unsafe or unhealthful working conditions in coal or other mines; and

(2) In the use of flame safety lamps, permissible methane detectors, and other means approved by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) for detecting methane and other explosive gases accurately.

The Alabama Mining Academy shall, to the greatest extent possible, provide technical assistance to operators in meeting the requirements of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977, the Alabama coal mining laws in further improving the health and safety conditions and practices in coal and other mines.

The Alabama Mining Academy shall conduct such studies, research, experiments, and demonstrations as may be appropriate:

(1) To improve working conditions and practices in coal or other mines, and to prevent accidents and occupational diseases originating in the coal or other mining industry;

(2) To prepare and publish from time to time, reports on new, innovative approaches to safer, more productive mining techniques;

(3) To develop improved means or methods of training maintenance personnel;

(4) To develop and continually upgrade programs for the safety awareness training of Alabama miners;

(5) To develop and maintain state-of-the-art training for electrical personnel;

(6) To maintain and train two fully equipped well-trained mine rescue teams;

(7) To develop techniques for the prevention and control of roof falls; and

(8) To develop new or improved means and methods of mine ventilation.

The college shall offer to all eligible students in attendance a program of general education consisting of courses parallel to those of the first and second years of work at a state institution of higher learning offering a four-year course. The State Board of Education shall prescribe minimum standards which must be met and which will assure that the purposes of the junior college are attained.

The educational institution resulting from the merger of Gadsden State Junior College, Gadsden State Technical Institute and Alabama Technical College in Gadsden, Alabama, shall be named and designated as Gadsden State Community College.

The junior college established pursuant to this article shall be under the direct control of the board of trustees hereby established and shall be under the immediate supervision and direction of a president, appointed by the board of trustees for a term to be fixed by the board. The president shall not be removed during the term for which he was appointed except for just cause, which shall be explicitly set forth in writing in the minutes of the board. The president shall possess such qualifications as are prescribed by the board of trustees and approved by the State Board of Education.

There shall be established a physical therapist assistant program at Wallace State Community College in Hanceville, Alabama. Funding for the program shall be allotted to the college based on distribution of appropriations of the Education Trust Fund in the same manner being distributed to all colleges of the Alabama college system and in accordance with funding for all major allied health courses.

The president, with the advice and consent of the board of trustees, shall appoint and fix the compensation for all professors, instructors and other necessary teachers and officers. The president, professors and instructors shall compose the faculty of the college.

The school located in Jefferson County, Alabama and presently known as Wenonah State Technical Trade School shall hereafter be designated and known as Wenonah State Technical School, and the school located in Jefferson County, Alabama and presently known as Wenonah State Technical Junior College shall hereafter be designated and known as Wenonah State Junior College.

The State Board of Education is hereby authorized and directed to change the names of such schools as herein prescribed and to cause appropriate markers to be placed so designating them.

The board of trustees of the college shall elect a secretary for the school who shall hold office for the term prescribed by the board and shall receive such compensation as may be fixed by the trustees and shall perform such services as may be required of him.

The President of Jefferson State Community College, the Presiding Chair of the State House of Representatives Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County, and the Chair of the State Senate Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County may become a corporation with the power and authority hereinafter provided by proceeding according to this article. This corporation shall be known as the Community Outreach Partnership Center at Jefferson State Community College.

(a) To become a corporation, the President of Jefferson State Community College, the Presiding Chair of the State House of Representatives Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County, and the Chair of the State Senate Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County shall present to the Secretary of State of Alabama an application signed by them which shall set forth all of the following:

(1) The name, official designation, and official residence of each of the applicants.

(2) The name of the proposed corporation.

(3) The location of the principal office of the corporation.

(4) Any other matter relating to the incorporation which the applicants may choose to insert and which is not inconsistent with this article or the laws of the State of Alabama.

(b) The application shall be subscribed and sworn to by each of the applicants before an officer authorized by the laws of this state to take acknowledgments to deeds.

(c) The Secretary of State shall examine the application and if the Secretary of State finds that it substantially complies with the requirements of this article and other applicable laws, the Secretary of State shall receive and file it and record it in the appropriate book of records in the office of the Secretary of State.

(a) When the application has been made, filed, and recorded as provided in this article, the applicants shall constitute a corporation under the name of the Community Outreach Partnership Center at Jefferson State Community College.

(b) The Secretary of State shall make and issue to the applicants a certificate of incorporation, under the Great Seal of the State, and shall record the certificate with the application.

(c) No fees shall be paid to the Secretary of State for any work in connection with the incorporation of the corporation, which is hereinafter sometimes referred to as "the center."

(a) The Community Outreach Partnership Center shall initially be governed by a five-member board of directors.

(b) The initial Board of Directors of the Community Outreach Partnership Center shall be as follows:

(1) The President of Jefferson State Community College (Place One).

(2) Two members (Place Two and Place Five) initially selected by the State House of Representatives Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County.

(3) Two members (Place Three and Place Four) initially selected by the State Senate Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County.

(c) The terms of the initial board shall be staggered as follows:

(1) Place Two: Five years.

(2) Place Three: Four years.

(3) Place Four: Three years.

(4) Place Five: Two years.

(d) With the exception of Place One and subject to the limitations set out in Section 16-60-304, members succeeding the initial board members in Places Two to Five, inclusive, shall serve a six-year term. Members may serve an unlimited number of consecutive terms.

(e)(1) When the term of any member of the board in Places Two to Five, inclusive, expires, the remaining members of the board shall elect a successor.

(2) When the term of a board member holding an expanded board position, as provided in subsection (f) expires, the board may appoint another person to that position for such term as the board designates, but not to exceed six years.

(f) After the initial board is selected and functioning for a period of one year, the board may expand its membership to as many as 15 members. These additional members shall be appointed by the board and may serve terms of up to six years as designated by the board.

(g) Place One shall be reserved for the President of Jefferson State Community College, or the designee of the president, and shall have an indefinite term. A designee shall serve at the pleasure of the president.

(h) The appointment, removal, and designation of terms of office of board members shall be by majority vote of the board by public ballot.

(a) A member of the board of directors, other than a member holding Place One, may be removed for cause by a vote of the board.

(b) Any member of the board may resign by giving written notice of resignation to the board, which shall become effective upon delivery unless the notice specifies an alternative date.

(c)(1) If there is a vacancy on the board in Places Two to Five, inclusive, due to removal, resignation, or other reason, the remaining members of the board shall elect a successor to serve the remainder of the term of the vacating member.

(2) If there is a vacancy on the board of a member holding an expanded board position, as provided in subsection (f) of Section 16-60-303, the board, by majority vote, may appoint another person to that position for such term as the board designates, not to exceed six years.

(d) If the President of Jefferson State Community College names a designee to serve in Place One, and that designee vacates that position, the president shall serve in that position, or the president may designate another person to so serve as provided in subsection (g) of Section 16-60-303.

The purpose of the center is to promote the community that the center serves through funding of programs in all of the following areas:

(1) Housing.

(2) Economic development.

(3) Neighborhood revitalization.

(4) Infrastructure.

(5) Health care.

(6) Job training.

(7) Education.

(8) Crime prevention.

(9) Community planning.

(10) Recreation.

(11) Day care.

The center shall have all of the following powers:

(1) To have succession by its corporate name in perpetuity.

(2) To sue and be sued and to prosecute and defend in any court having jurisdiction of the subject matter and of the parties thereto.

(3) To adopt and use a corporate seal and to alter the seal at pleasure.

(4) To adopt and amend bylaws.

(5) To execute contracts and other necessary documents.

(6) To acquire by gift, grant, purchase, or otherwise, and to hold title to real or personal property, or both, together with all rights incidental thereto.

(7) To solicit and accept devises, bequests, grants, and donations.

(8) To promulgate rules and regulations.

(9) To have all other powers necessary or desirable to accomplish its corporate purpose.

(a) The center may seek and accept gifts, devises, grants, or bequests and hold or expend the same to carry out this article. The center may accept appropriations or grants from the federal government, the state, any county, or any municipality, and the center may hold or expend the same to carry out this article.

(b) The Legislature may, from time to time, appropriate state funds to the center.

The responsibilities of the board shall include all of the following:

(1) Evaluate grant proposals based on the purpose shown in Section 16-60-305.

(2) Monitor and ensure that expenditures of grant funds are in accordance with the associated grant proposal, this article, and relevant state laws.

(3) Upon finding that such grant expenditures are not in accordance with the aforementioned conditions, suspend the release of further grant funds and take action to recover the improperly expended grant funds.

(4) Design and distribute its grant proposal instrument.

(5) Maintain up-to-date records of all grants that are currently in effect.

(6) Maintain records, for a period of three full years, of all completed grants and grant proposals that were denied.

(7) Promulgate necessary reasonable rules to implement and enforce this article.

(a) The center shall evaluate grant proposals based on all of the following criteria:

(1) The relevance of such proposal to the purpose for which such grants are made, as stated in Section 16-60-305.

(2) The extent to which such grant proposal advances the program objectives of the center.

(3) The ability of the grant recipient to fulfill the objectives of the grant proposal.

(4) The extent to which the grant proposal can benefit the greatest number of citizens.

(b) Any payment from the center to Jefferson State Community College for administrative services related to a direct state or local appropriation to the center may not exceed 10 percent of that appropriation.

The board of trustees shall also elect a treasurer for the college who shall not be a trustee. The treasurer shall receive, hold and pay out all moneys belonging to the college, or that may be paid in for the necessary expenses of any student in the college or for the use and benefit of any such student. The treasurer shall hold office for the term and receive the compensation fixed for such office by the board of trustees. Before entering upon his duties, the treasurer must give bond in such penalty as the trustees prescribe, payable to the college, conditioned that he will faithfully receive, safely keep and lawfully pay out, and promptly, fully and fairly account for all money or choses in action which may come to him by virtue of his office, and the trustees may require a new bond or an additional bond whenever, in their opinion, the interests of the college require it.

The Department of the Examiners of Public Accounts shall perform a yearly audit of all public monies received by the center and shall provide a copy of the audit to the Presiding Chair of the State House of Representatives Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County and the Chair of the State Senate Legislative Delegation of Jefferson County by the fifth legislative day of each regular session of the Legislature.

(a) All assets and properties of the center, the income therefrom, and all other income of the center are exempt from any form of taxation in the State of Alabama whether imposed by the state, a county, or a municipality.

(b) All gifts, grants, devises, and bequests to the center by individuals, associations, corporations, and other business entities are exempt from all county and municipal taxes, and are deductible from state income taxes in accordance with Section 40-18-15 and other applicable law.

It is the intent of this article that the center be a nonprofit public corporation. No part of the net earnings of the center shall inure to the benefit of any private individual, firm, or corporation.

Whenever the funds in the hands of the treasurer or funds about to be received by him are in danger of being lost, the board of trustees or the president may remove the treasurer from office and take from him all funds and choses in action belonging to the college or any student therein, and may, in that event, appoint a temporary custodian with bond or security to hold such funds.

The secretary, the treasurer and all other officers, agents or servants of the college who are required to keep, use or dispose of any property of the college shall keep accounts of transactions relative thereto in books to be furnished them by the board of trustees, which shall at all reasonable times be open to the inspection and examination of the president, the board of trustees or anyone appointed by the board of trustees to inspect such books. Any person withholding such book or books belonging to the college from the inspection of any officer entitled to examine the same shall be immediately removed from his office or employment by the president or the board of trustees.

A matriculation fee may be collected from all students enrolled in the college, and the amount of such fee shall be determined by the board of trustees. The proceeds of the fee shall be expended under the direction of such board. A reasonable fee for the use of the library and laboratory facilities may be required; the amount of such fee shall be determined by the board of trustees.

The property of the college, of every kind and description, shall forever be exempt from all taxes, municipal, county or state, and from all local assessments. The president, other officers, professors, teachers and employees of the college are exempted from jury duty, and all employees are further exempted from payment of town licenses for their labor while working for the college.

The faculty, with the approval of the board of trustees, may grant and confer diplomas or certificates upon such students as may be entitled thereto under the rules adopted by the board of trustees governing the subject.

It shall be the duty of the board of trustees to make or cause to be made to the Legislature at each session thereof a full report of its transactions and of the condition of the college, embracing an itemized account of all receipts and disbursements on account of the college by those charged with the administration of its finances. A copy of this report shall be submitted to the boards of education and to the county commissions of Franklin, Marion and Winston Counties, to the governing bodies of each municipality and to the city board of education of any municipality having such a board of education within such counties.

If the Board of Trustees of the Northwest Alabama Junior College, established pursuant to this article, determines that it is to the advantage of the college to convert it to a trade school and junior college which may be constructed, enlarged and equipped under Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96, it may petition the State Board of Education to consider designating such college as the location at which one of the trade schools and junior colleges authorized by such sections may be constructed and equipped. If the State Board of Education acts favorably on the petition and designates the Northwest Alabama Junior College as one of the institutions to be constructed and equipped under such sections, then the Board of Trustees of the Northwest Alabama Junior College is hereby authorized to execute such deeds and other contracts and conveyances to the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority as will enable such authority to proceed with construction and equipment of needed buildings to enable Northwest Alabama Junior College to operate efficiently to fill the needs of the area for which it is designated as a trade school and junior college. The board of trustees is also authorized to relinquish such authority and responsibility for the operation, management, control, supervision, maintenance, regulation, upkeep, improvement, equipment and enlargement of the Northwest Alabama Junior College to the State Board of Education as to give it the same authority and responsibility relative to Northwest Alabama Junior College that is vested by Sections 16-60-110 through 16-60-112, in said board of education relative to other educational institutions in the state of the types known as trade schools and junior colleges authorized by the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act. However, the Board of Trustees of said Northwest Alabama Junior College shall continue to exist and shall serve as an advisory committee to advise and assist the State Board of Education in matters relative to the operation, supervision and control of Northwest Alabama Junior College.

Upon receipt of a petition from the Board of Trustees of Northwest Alabama Junior College to become an institution authorized under the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act, Sections 16-60-80 through 16-60-96, the State Board of Education shall consider the need for a trade school and junior college in northwest Alabama. If in its opinion this need can be filled by designating the said Northwest Alabama Junior College as one of the institutions authorized under the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act, the State Board of Education may agree to designate Northwest Alabama Junior College as a location where funds may be expended for buildings and equipment under said act; and such board of education shall thereupon assume the same authority and responsibility relative to Northwest Alabama Junior College as is vested in it by Sections 16-60-110 through 16-60-112 relative to other educational institutions authorized by the provisions of the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act except as hereinafter provided. After the management and control of Northwest Alabama Junior College is assumed by the State Board of Education, whenever practicable such board shall consult and advise with the Board of Trustees of Northwest Alabama Junior College relative to the management, control, operation and supervision of Northwest Alabama Junior College; and the State Board of Education may delegate such duties and responsibilities relative to the college to such board of trustees as, in its opinion, will serve the best interest of the college and as are not inconsistent with the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act and will not adversely affect bonds issued under such act.

The school established at Athens, Alabama, known as and called Athens State College, is and shall remain a body corporate under the corporate name of Athens State University, and by that name may have and exercise all powers previously enjoyed by Athens State College and shall succeed to all the rights, privileges, obligations, liabilities, emoluments, benefits, interests, and titles at any time vested in the institution in its respective names. None of the powers, authority, obligations, liabilities, or functions of the institution shall be abated or impaired by this section. Only the name of the institution shall be changed by this section. Whenever the institution is referred to in the constitution, laws, rules, or regulations of this state, or any instrumentality of this state, by any one of the respective names by which it has been known, the same shall be considered to refer to Athens State University.

The provisions of Sections 16-60-38 and 16-60-39 are supplemental, and this chapter shall be liberally construed to the end that Sections 16-60-20 through 16-60-37, 16-60-80 through 16-60-96 and 16-60-110 through 16-60-112 shall each have a field of operation and be construed in pari materia. However, such parts of Sections 16-60-20 through 16-60-37 as are in conflict herewith shall be superseded by Sections 16-60-38 and 16-60-39 when control of Northwest Alabama Junior College is transferred pursuant hereto to the State Board of Education.

The Governor, the State Superintendent of Education, the member of the State Senate representing the senatorial district of which Jackson County is a part and the member of the State Senate representing the senatorial district of which DeKalb County is a part, the members of the House of Representatives of the Alabama Legislature from Jackson and DeKalb Counties, the chairman of the county commission of each of these counties, the county superintendent of education of each of these counties, the representative in the House of Representatives of the United States Congress from the congressional districts containing these counties and nine members appointed by the Governor from the two counties at large, making the overall representation of the two counties equal on the board, are hereby constituted a board of trustees for a junior college to be established, maintained and operated in one of the above named counties.

The Governor shall be ex officio chairman of the board, and he shall call a meeting of such board within 60 days after September 15, 1961. At this meeting the board shall organize itself, make provisions for the preparation and adoption of bylaws and rules and regulations to govern it and elect a vice-president and a secretary-treasurer. The vice-president elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall hold office for a term of two years and until his successor has been elected. Successors to the vice-president elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall hold office for such time as is prescribed in the bylaws and rules adopted by the board. The secretary-treasurer elected at the organizational meeting of the board shall serve until a president and a treasurer for the college have been elected and employed. Thereafter the president of the college and the treasurer of the college shall be ex officio the secretary and the treasurer, respectively, of the board of trustees.

The board may prescribe the number of regular meetings to be held each year and may provide that during the biennium immediately following September 15, 1961, the board shall meet more frequently than thereafter, however, the board shall meet at least once each quarter in every year. Special meetings may be called at any time by the chairman or by any six members thereof.

All ex officio members of the board of trustees shall serve as such members so long as they hold the office of which membership on this board of trustees is an ex officio duty; and the members appointed by the Governor shall serve for a term concurrent with the term of the Governor appointing them or until the expiration of the term of the municipal office which they held when appointed, whichever occurs last. Successors to the appointed members of the board of trustees shall be appointed by the Governor in like manner and for like terms as the first members appointed to the board.

Board members shall receive no compensation for serving on such board of trustees; however, they may be reimbursed for reasonable expenses actually incurred in attending meetings of the board and performing the duties hereby imposed upon them relative to the establishment, maintenance and operation of the proposed junior college.

The junior college hereby authorized shall be established and ready for operation not later than September 1, 1963. The board of trustees, with the advice and consent of the State Superintendent of Education, shall decide exactly where in the above named counties the college shall be located. The board of trustees, for the purpose of ascertaining the most advantageous location for the college, may make such surveys as in its opinion are needed.

When a location for the college has been determined and the board has chosen a name for the college, the board of trustees shall file in the office of the Secretary of State a certificate stating the name and location of the college and the names of persons currently serving as members of the board of trustees. Thereafter, the college shall be a body corporate under the name so filed, with the right to have and use a corporate seal, to sue and be sued in such corporate name in any of the courts of this state of competent jurisdiction as in the case of natural persons.

The board of trustees is hereby invested with full and ample authority to receive and accept for the use and benefit of the college all gifts, donations, devises and bequests of any and all money and real and personal property necessary and useful in carrying into effect the objectives and purposes of this article. The board of trustees, in the name of such corporation, may sell and dispose of any such property when, in the judgment of such board, such sale or other disposition thereof may aid in carrying into effect the objectives of this article and the building up and sustaining of the college.

The board of trustees shall have full, ample and sufficient power and authority to make, adopt and enforce all rules and regulations, not inconsistent with the laws of this state, which may be necessary for the management, control and conduct of the college and the business connected therewith.

The governing bodies of the Counties of Jackson and DeKalb, and of each municipality in such counties, are hereby authorized to appropriate funds in their respective treasuries, not otherwise appropriated, to be used for the acquisition of land and the construction thereon of buildings suitable for the college, or for the purchase of existing buildings adaptable to use for the college and the lands on which they are located. After the establishment of the college, such counties and the municipalities therein may make annual appropriations for the maintenance, support and operation of the college. The board of education of each of these counties and the board of education of every incorporated municipality, having such a board, within these counties may allocate, use and expend public school funds under their jurisdiction in aid of the establishment, maintenance and operation of the college and provide transportation facilities to students attending the college or such other facilities for students as the board of trustees approves.

The college shall offer to all eligible students in attendance a program of general education consisting of courses parallel to those of the first and second years of work at a state institution of higher learning offering a four-year course. The college shall also offer and administer a program for vocational education. The State Board of Education shall prescribe minimum standards which must be met and which will assure that the purposes of the junior college are attained.

The junior college established pursuant to this article shall be under the direct control of the board of trustees hereby established and shall be under the immediate supervision and direction of a president, appointed by the board of trustees for a term to be fixed by the board. The president shall not be removed during the term for which he was appointed except for just cause, which shall be explicitly set forth in writing in the minutes of the board. The president shall possess such qualifications as are prescribed by the board of trustees and approved by the State Board of Education.

The president, with the advice and consent of the board of trustees, shall appoint and fix the compensation for all professors, instructors and other necessary teachers and officers. The president, professors and instructors shall compose the faculty of the college.

The board of trustees of the college shall elect a secretary for the school who shall hold office for the term prescribed by the board and shall receive such compensation as may be fixed by the trustees and shall perform such services as may be required of him.

The board of trustees shall also elect a treasurer for the college who shall not be a trustee. The treasurer shall receive, hold and pay out all moneys belonging to the college, or that may be paid in for the necessary expenses of any student in the college, or for the use and benefit of any such student. The treasurer shall hold office for the term and receive the compensation fixed for such office by the board of trustees. Before entering upon his duties, the treasurer must give bond in such penalty as the trustees prescribe, payable to the college, conditioned that he will faithfully receive, safely keep and lawfully pay out, and promptly, fully and fairly account for all money or choses in action which may come to him by virtue of his office, and the trustees may require a new bond, or an additional bond, whenever, in their opinion, the interests of the college require it.

Whenever the funds in the hands of the treasurer or funds about to be received by him are in danger of being lost, the board of trustees or the president may remove the treasurer from office and take from him all funds and choses in action belonging to the college or any student therein, and may, in the event, appoint a temporary custodian with bond or security to hold such funds.

The secretary, the treasurer and all other officers, agents or servants of the college who are required to keep, use or dispose of any property of the college shall keep accounts of transactions relative thereto in books to be furnished them by the board of trustees, which shall at all reasonable times be open to the inspection and examination of the president, the board of trustees or anyone appointed by the board of trustees to inspect such books. Any person withholding such book or books belonging to the college from the inspection of any officer entitled to examine the same shall be immediately removed from his office or employment by the president or the board of trustees.

A matriculation fee may be collected from all students enrolled in the college, and the amount of such fee shall be determined by the board of trustees. The proceeds of the fee shall be expended under the direction of such board. A reasonable fee for the use of the library and laboratory facilities may be required; the amount of such fee shall be determined by the board of trustees.

The property of the college, of every kind and description, shall forever be exempt from all taxes, municipal, county or state and from all local assessments. The president, other officers, professors, teachers and employees of the college are exempted from jury duty, and all employees are further exempted from payment of town licenses for their labor while working for the college.

The faculty, with the approval of the board of trustees, may grant and confer diplomas or certificates upon such students as may be entitled thereto under the rules adopted by the board of trustees governing the subject.

It shall be the duty of the board of trustees to make or cause to be made an annual report to the State Board of Education, to the boards of education and county commissions of Jackson and DeKalb Counties, to the governing bodies of each municipality within said counties and to the city board of education of any municipality having a board of education within said counties, such report to contain a full statement of the transactions of the board and of the condition of the college, embracing an itemized account of all receipts and disbursements on account of the college by those charged with the administration of its finances. It shall also be the duty of the board of trustees to make or cause to be made a full report to the Legislature at each session thereof containing the same information as hereinabove required.

This article may be cited as the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority Act.

For the purpose of this article, the following words and phrases shall have the respective meanings ascribed to them by this section:

(1) AUTHORITY. The Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority organized under the provisions of this article.

(2) BONDS. The bonds issued under the provisions of this article.

(3) BUILDING COMMISSION. The Alabama Building Commission.

(4) JUNIOR COLLEGE. An educational institution offering instruction in the arts and sciences on the level of difficulty of the first two years above high school level.

(5) ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT. The total original equipment, machinery and facilities acquired and installed or stored in a trade school or junior college for purposes of instruction, operation and maintenance.

(6) STATE. The State of Alabama.

(7) TRADE SCHOOL. An educational institution offering instruction primarily in useful trades, occupations or vocational skills.

Pronouns used in this article shall be deemed to include all appropriate genders.

The Legislature hereby makes the following findings of fact and declares its intent to be as follows: The number of students enrolled in trade schools and colleges supported wholly or in part by the state has increased greatly during recent years. Further increases in enrollment are anticipated because of the increased rate of births, the increased need for skilled workers and other factors. In order to meet these needs and to provide residents of this state with the opportunity to receive adequate instruction in the arts and sciences and in useful skills and trades, it is imperative that junior colleges and additional trade schools be constructed, equipped and operated. The tax revenues and other funds currently available for trade schools and junior colleges are not sufficient to permit immediate outlays of the large amounts of capital necessary for such construction and equipment and at the same time to permit the State Board of Education to meet current expenses for operation and maintenance. The most feasible way in which the urgent need for the construction of buildings and the purchase of equipment can be met is by anticipating the receipt of a portion of the revenues devoted by law to educational institutions of the types known as trade schools and junior colleges by capitalizing such revenues, to the end that such revenues may be applied for retirement of the costs of such construction and equipment as such revenues are received during the useful life of said buildings and equipment. It is necessary and desirable that said revenues be anticipated in the manner hereinafter provided for the purpose of effecting the needed capital outlays. It is the intention of the Legislature by the passage of this article to authorize the formation of a public corporation for the purpose of providing for the construction and equipment of additional trade schools and junior colleges, and to make capital improvements at existing trade schools and at institutions of higher learning heretofore or hereafter established; and to authorize said corporation for that purpose to anticipate those portions of the privilege or excise tax hereinafter referred to that is required by law to be paid into the Education Trust Fund by issuing the bonds of said corporation payable out of and secured by a pledge of said portion of the said privilege or excise tax. This article shall be liberally construed in accordance with this intent.

The Governor, the Director of Finance and the State Superintendent of Education may become a public corporation with the powers hereinafter provided by proceeding according to the provisions of Section 16-60-84.

To become a corporation, the Governor, the Director of Finance and the State Superintendent of Education shall present to the Secretary of State of Alabama an application signed by them which shall set forth:

(1) The name, official designation and official residence of each of the applicants, together with a certified copy of the commission evidencing each applicant's right to office;

(2) The date on which each applicant was inducted into office and the term of office of each applicant;

(3) The name of the proposed corporation, which shall be the Alabama Trade School and Junior College Authority;

(4) The location of the principal office of the proposed corporation; and

(5) Any other matter relating to the incorporation which the applicants may choose to insert and which is not inconsistent with this article or the laws of the State of Alabama.

The application shall be subscribed and sworn to by each of the applicants before an officer authorized by the laws of this state to take acknowledgments to deeds. The Secretary of State shall examine the application and, if he finds that it substantially complies with the requirements of this section, he shall receive and file it and record it in an appropriate book of records in his office.

When the application has been made, filed and recorded as provided in Section 16-60-84, the applicants shall constitute a corporation under the name proposed in the application, and the Secretary of State shall make and issue to the applicants a certificate of incorporation under the Great Seal of the State and shall record the certificate with the application. No fees or compensation shall be paid to the Secretary of State for any service rendered or work performed in connection with the authority, its incorporation, dissolution or records.

The applicants named in the application and their respective successors in office shall constitute the members of the authority. The Governor shall be the president of the authority, the State Superintendent of Education shall be the vice-president thereof, and the Director of Finance shall be the secretary thereof. The State Treasurer shall be the treasurer of the authority, shall act as custodian of the funds of the authority and shall pay the principal of and interest on the bonds of the authority out of the funds hereinafter provided for. The members of the authority shall constitute all the members of the board of directors of the authority, and any two members of the board of directors shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. Should any person holding any state office named in this section cease to hold office by reason of death, resignation, expiration of his term of office or for any other reason, then his successor in office shall take his place as a member and officer of the authority. No member, officer or director of the authority shall draw any salary in addition to that now authorized by law for any service he may render or for any duty he may perform in connection with the authority. All proceedings had and done by the board of directors shall be reduced to writing by the secretary of the authority, shall be signed by the members of the authority and shall be recorded in a substantially bound book, which shall be kept in the office of the Secretary of State. Copies of such proceedings, when certified by the secretary of the authority, under the seal of the authority, shall be received in all courts as prima facie evidence of the matters and things therein certified.

The authority shall have the following powers:

(1) To have succession by its corporate name until dissolved as hereinafter provided;

(2) To sue and be sued and to prosecute and defend in any court having jurisdiction of the subject matter and of the parties thereto;

(3) To have and to use a corporate seal and to alter the seal at pleasure;

(4) To establish a fiscal year;

(5) To provide for acquiring and improving sites for additional trade schools and junior colleges, constructing, acquiring, reconstructing, improving and altering buildings therefor and purchasing, acquiring and installing the original equipment thereof, and to make capital improvements to existing trade schools and at institutions of higher learning heretofore or hereafter established;

(6) To anticipate by the issuance of its bonds the receipt of the revenues herein appropriated and pledged;

(7) As security for the payment of the principal of and interest on its bonds, to pledge the proceeds of the appropriations and pledges herein provided for; and

(8) To appoint and employ such attorneys and agents as the business of the authority may require.

The location of each new trade school or junior college for which the authority provides funds shall be determined by the State Board of Education after consideration of the needs of industry for particular skills in the area under consideration, the convenience and accessibility of the location to labor markets and to potential students or applicants for training, an estimate of the number of potential students or applicants in the area and such other factors as might demonstrate the existence of a need for a trade school or junior college in such area. No funds of the authority shall be expended for the acquisition of sites or existing buildings, but nothing herein contained shall be construed to prohibit the use of funds of the authority for the purpose of improving sites or reconstructing, altering or improving buildings donated to the authority. No such trade school or junior college shall be built on a site other than one donated to the authority.

All contracts entered into by the authority involving the expenditure of funds in the preparation of plans and specifications, and all work done with respect to the construction of buildings involving the expenditure of funds of the authority shall be let on competitive bids in the same manner and according to the same procedure as contracts for public works are awarded as prescribed in Sections 39-2-1 through 39-2-13.

The preparation of all plans and specifications for any building constructed wholly or in part with any of the money, and all work done hereunder in regard to the construction, reconstruction, alteration and improvement of buildings shall be supervised by the Alabama Building Commission, or any agency that may be designated by the Legislature as its successor. The authority and the Building Commission shall agree to a construction cost estimate for each building constructed wholly or in part with any of the funds provided for in this article, and the authority shall reimburse the Building Commission for its reasonable direct costs in having plans, specifications and contract documents prepared and in supervising and inspecting the work.

The authority shall purchase and install the original equipment necessary to place each such additional trade school and junior college in a condition of efficient operation. Such equipment shall be purchased on the basis of competitive bidding, to be conducted in the same manner and according to the same procedure as provided for state purchases in Sections 41-16-20 through 41-16-32; except, that the purchasing procedure shall be conducted by the authority instead of the state Purchasing Agent.

Not more than $1,500,000.00 shall be expended by the authority with respect to any one trade school or junior college.

The authority may from time to time sell and issue its bonds, not exceeding $15,000,000.00 in aggregate principal amount, for the purpose of providing funds for the construction and equipment of trade schools and junior colleges, including the improvement of sites therefor, the construction of buildings and the reconstruction, improvement and alteration of existing buildings therefor and the acquisition, purchase and installation of original equipment therefor. No part of the proceeds from the sale of the bonds may be used to pay the cost of the acquisition, by purchase or otherwise, of real estate to be used as a site for any such school or college or any building connected therewith or the acquisition, by purchase or otherwise, of any existing building.

The bonds of the authority shall be signed by its president and attested by its secretary and the seal of the authority shall be affixed thereto, and any interest coupons applicable to such bonds shall be signed by the president; provided, that a facsimile of the signature of one, but not both, of said officers may be printed or otherwise reproduced on any such bonds in lieu of his signing the same, a facsimile of the seal of the authority may be printed or otherwise reproduced on any such bonds in lieu of being manually affixed thereto and a facsimile of the president's signature may be printed or otherwise reproduced on any such interest coupons in lieu of his signing the same. Any bonds of the authority may be executed and delivered by it at any time and from time to time, shall be in such form and denominations and of such tenor and maturities, shall bear such rate or rates of interest, shall be payable at such times and evidenced in such manner, may contain provisions for redemption prior to maturity and may contain other provisions not inconsistent herewith, all as may be provided by the resolution of the board of directors whereunder such bonds are authorized to be issued; provided, that no bond of the authority shall have a specified maturity date later than 30 years after its date. All bonds of the authority having specified maturity dates more than 10 years after their date shall be made subject to redemption at the option of the authority not later than the end of the tenth year after their date, and on any interest payment date thereafter, under such terms and conditions as may be provided in the resolution or resolutions under which such bonds are authorized to be issued. Bonds of the authority may be sold from time to time as the board of directors may consider advantageous, but bonds of the authority must be sold only at public sale, either on sealed bids or at public auction, to the bidder whose bid reflects the lowest net interest cost to the authority for the bonds being sold, computed from their date to their respective maturities; provided, that if no bid acceptable to the authority is received, it may reject all bids. Notice of each such sale shall be given by publication in either a financial journal or a financial newspaper published in the City of New York, New York, and also by publication in a newspaper customarily published in the State of Alabama not less than five days during each calendar week, each of which notices must be published one time not less than 10 days before the date fixed for the sale. The board of directors may fix the terms and conditions under which such sale may be held; provided, that none of the bonds may be sold for a price less than the face value thereof; and provided further, that such terms and conditions shall not conflict with any of the requirements of this article. Approval by the Governor of Alabama of the terms and conditions under which any bonds of the authority may be issued shall be requisite to their validity. Such approval shall be entered on the minutes of the meetings of the board of directors at which the bonds are authorized and shall be signed by the Governor. Such approval by the Governor may be shown on any such bond by a facsimile of his signature printed or otherwise reproduced thereon, when authorization of such facsimile is contained in the said approval signed by him. The authority may pay out of the proceeds of the sale of its bonds all expenses, including fees of agents and attorneys, which the said board of directors may deem necessary or advantageous in connection with the issuance of such bonds. Bonds issued by the authority shall not be general obligations of the authority but shall be payable solely out of the funds appropriated and pledged therefor in Section 16-60-94. As security for the payment of the principal of and interest on the bonds issued by it, the authority is hereby authorized and empowered to pledge for payment of such principal and interest the funds that are appropriated and pledged in Section 16-60-94 for payment of such principal and interest. All such pledges made by the authority shall take precedence in the order of the adoption of the resolutions containing such pledges; provided, that any pledge for the benefit of refunding bonds that may be issued in compliance with the provisions of the fourth sentence of Section 16-60-92 shall have the same priority as the pledge for the benefit of the bonds refunded thereby. Contracts made and bonds issued by the authority shall be solely and exclusively obligations of the authority and shall not constitute or create an obligation or debt of the State of Alabama. Bonds issued by the authority shall be deemed to be negotiable instruments although payable solely from a specified source, as provided herein. All bonds issued by the authority and the income therefrom shall be exempt from all taxation in the State of Alabama. Any bonds issued by the authority may be used by the holder thereof as security for any funds belonging to the state, or to any instrumentality or agency of the state, in any instance where security for such deposits may be required by law. Unless otherwise directed by the court having jurisdiction thereof, or the document that is the source of authority, a trustee, executor, administrator, guardian or one acting in any other fiduciary capacity may, in addition to any other investment powers conferred by law and with the exercise of reasonable business prudence, invest fiduciary or trust funds in bonds of the authority. Neither a public hearing nor consent of the state Department of Finance or any other department or agency shall be prerequisite to the issuance of bonds by the authority.

The authority may from time to time issue refunding bonds for the purpose of refunding any matured or unmatured bonds of the authority then outstanding. Any premium that may be necessary to redeem or retire the bonds to be refunded and all expenses of issuing the refunding bonds may be paid out of the proceeds from the sale of the refunding bonds. The principal of the refunding bonds shall not exceed the principal of the bonds to be refunded plus any such premium and expenses. If the total of the principal and interest maturing with respect to any refunding bonds, during each fiscal year in which any of the bonds secured on a parity with the bonds to be refunded have a stated maturity, does not exceed the total of the principal and interest that would have matured during the same fiscal year on the said bonds to be refunded, then the refunding bonds shall be subrogated and entitled to all priorities, rights and pledges to which the bonds refunded thereby were entitled. Except in cases covered by the preceding sentence, all pledges for the benefit of refunding bonds shall be subject to pledges theretofore made for the benefit of all bonds of the authority then outstanding. All the provisions of Section 16-60-91 shall apply to the refunding bonds issued under this article.

The proceeds of all bonds, other than refunding bonds, issued by the authority remaining after paying expenses of their issuance shall be deposited in the State Treasury and shall be carried in the State Treasury in a special or separate account. Such funds shall be subject to be drawn upon by the authority and shall be used solely for the purposes for which the bonds were issued as authorized in this article.

For the purpose of providing funds to enable the authority to pay at their respective maturities the principal of and interest on all bonds issued by it under the provisions of this article, and to accomplish the objects of its creation, there is hereby irrevocably pledged to such purpose and hereby appropriated such amount of money as may be necessary for said purpose out of the residue of the receipts from the privilege or excise tax levied by Section 28-3-181, after there shall have been taken from said receipts the amounts necessary to meet all prior charges thereon, including the amounts specified in subdivisions (1) and (2) of subsection (c) of Section 28-3-181, said residue constituting that portion of the receipts from the said tax that is now required by law to be paid into the Education Trust Fund. The moneys hereby appropriated and pledged shall constitute a sinking fund for the purpose of paying the principal of and the interest on the bonds of the authority.

Out of the revenues appropriated and pledged in Section 16-60-94, the State Treasurer is hereby authorized and directed to pay the principal of and interest on the bonds issued by the authority under the provisions of this article, as such principal and interest shall respectively mature, and the State Treasurer is further authorized and directed to set up and maintain appropriate records pertaining thereto.

At any time when no bonds of the authority are outstanding, the authority may be dissolved upon the filing with the Secretary of State of an application for dissolution, which shall be subscribed by each of the members of the authority and sworn to by each member before an officer authorized to take acknowledgments to deeds. Upon the filing of such application for dissolution, the authority shall cease to exist. The Secretary of State shall file and record the application for dissolution, in an appropriate book of record in his office, and shall make and issue, under the Great Seal of the State, a certificate that the authority is dissolved and shall record such certificate with the application for dissolution. Title to all property held in the name of the authority shall be vested in the state upon dissolution of the authority.