(1) “Municipality” shall mean any city, borough, town, township or county.

(2) “Local sponsor” shall mean a school district or a municipality or a county board of school directors or any combination of school districts, municipalities or county boards of school directors which participate or propose to participate in the establishment and operation of a community college.

(3) “Member” of a local sponsor shall mean any school district or municipality which alone is or with other districts and municipalities is included in a local sponsor.

(4) “Community college” shall mean a public college or technical institute which is established and operated in accordance with the provisions of this act by a local sponsor which provides a two-year, postsecondary, college-parallel, terminal-general, terminal-technical, out-of-school youth or adult education program or any combination of these. The community college may also provide area career and technical education services and credit, nonremedial college courses to secondary senior high school students.

(5) “Community college plan” shall mean a plan prepared in accordance with the policies, standards, rules and regulations of the State Board of Education for the establishment or operation of a community college and shall include a survey of any industrial development and manpower needs of the area and of any career and technical and occupational shortage and the means by which the community college program and curriculum shall further industrial development, reduce unemployment and improve employable skills of residents of the area to be served by the community college.

(6) “Governing body” of a school district or municipality shall mean respectively its board of school directors or its council or board of commissioners or supervisors and may include the county board of school directors.

(7) “Board of trustees” shall mean the board of trustees of a community college.

(8) “Annual” shall mean a twelve-month period coterminous with the Commonwealth fiscal year beginning July 1 and ending June 30; hence, annual capital expenses and reimbursement therefor shall be regarded as those incurred during a full twelve-month fiscal year of operation.

(9) “Academic year” shall mean the period of instruction which includes two semesters, two trimesters, or three terms or quarters; hence, operating expenses for the academic year and reimbursement therefore shall be those incurred during two semesters, two trimesters, or three terms or quarters of college operation.

(10) “Summer term” shall mean an additional session, semester, trimester or quarter offered at the end of the regular academic year.

(11) “Independent certified public accountant” shall mean a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants who has a minimum of five years' verifiable experience in performing audits of government funds for nonprofit organizations with a comparable or larger annual budget.

(12) “High-priority and high-instructional-cost occupation program” shall mean a for-credit, two-year or less-than-two-year occupational or technical program approved by the Department of Education to qualify for an economic development stipend in order to prepare students to enter high-priority occupations pursuant to section 1913-A(b)(1.8)(ii).¹

(13) “High-priority occupation program” shall mean a for-credit, two-year or less-than-two-year occupational or technical program approved by the Department of Education to qualify for an economic development stipend in order to prepare students to enter high-priority occupations pursuant to section 1913-A(b)(1.8)(iii).

(14) “Noncredit workforce development courses” shall mean noncredit courses approved by the Department of Education to qualify for an economic development stipend pursuant to section 1913-A(b)(1.8)(iii) and having the specific purpose of providing opportunities for students and incumbent workers to develop or upgrade skills necessary in high-priority occupations. Noncredit workforce development courses may be offered by a community college at an off-campus site, at any of its facilities or through any form of distance education.

(15) “Workforce development courses” shall mean those noncredit courses having the specific purpose of providing opportunities for students and incumbent workers to develop or upgrade skills necessary or useful in gainful employment, for promotion or other similar opportunities in existing employment or for learning new job skills and that have, as their subject matter, instruction in any of the following general areas:

(1) Computers and information processing and technology, including the study of both hardware and software applications.

(2) Management, supervision and basic employability skills, including, but not limited to, working in teams, management and supervisory skills, effective interpersonal relations, problem solving, self-management strategies, project management and the application of Federal and State laws to the workplace.

(3) Health professional and allied health job skills.

(4) Technical, manufacturing and service industries, including, but not limited to, jobs in such fields as powdered metals, machine tool and diemaking, electronics, safety, plastics technology, hydraulics, construction, warehouse/materials management, automotive repair and management, heating, ventilation and air conditioning, refrigeration and tourism.

(5) Other similar areas.