WHEELING — State rules governing districts where community and technical colleges operate may likely prevent Bluefield State College from offering two-year degree programs in the Wheeling area market without the blessing of West Virginia Northern Community College.

Three local colleges have remained firm in their stance against Bluefield offering courses in Wheeling and have blasted the city for offering to provide space for a new Engineering and Manufacturing Center at the former Ohio Valley Medical Center. However, all parties have recognized the fact that the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission will ultimately determine whether or not Bluefield State will be able to offer programs via a satellite campus in Friendly City.

But when the ball reaches the HEPC court, the issue gets slightly more complicated because of the different degree programs Bluefield intends to offer at a new location at the other end of the state.

This week Jessica Tice, senior director of communications for both the state HEPC and the West Virginia Community and Technical College System, explained the process in which Bluefield State will need to obtain approval to operate at a new location in the state. Different aspects of the college’s plan require approval from different state agencies, she said.

“This is a request that cuts through several agencies since this is a four-year institution seeking to offer two-year degree programs in a new location in the state,” Tice said.

For this scenario — according to agency rules that comply with state code — the HEPC, as the coordinating board for West Virginia’s four-year higher education system, would have to approve the request to offer degree programs at the new location, Tice said.

“Similarly, the Council for Community and Technical College Education — the coordinating body for West Virginia’s two-year higher education system — must approve any new associate degree programs,” Tice explained. “In addition to these two state-level approvals, the Higher Learning Commission — the independent regional accrediting body — must approve the opening of a new campus.”

According to CTCS rules, a community and technical college offering a program outside its consortia planning district — as defined by West Virginia Code — requires the approval of the CTC already operating in that area.

“Since there is a two-year institution already operating in this service region, it is Northern’s service region,” Tice said, noting that WVNCC would have to agree to allow Bluefield to offer its two-year programs within the Wheeling-area district.

Representatives from WVNCC and Bluefield State could not be immediately reached for comment.

Both WVNCC President Dr. Daniel Mosser and the WVNCC board of governors have made it clear to this point that they do not wish to see another institution of higher learning operating in their own backyard.

With Wheeling University President Ginny Favede and West Liberty University President W. Franklin Evans standing by his side, Mosser emphasized their collective stance against the outside college’s proposal during the last Wheeling City Council meeting, when he accused city leaders of engaging in questionable dealings with Bluefield State College President Robin Capehart, former president of West Liberty University. City officials late last week demanded evidence of any shady dealings and requested a public retraction from the three local college presidents.

While parties have expressed regret that the conversation had deteriorated into unconstructive public attacks, the college presidents have stood by their stance against Bluefield coming to Wheeling and the city’s memorandum of understanding that collaborates efforts to have them open a new center at OVMC. The Wheeling University board of trustees and WVNCC board of governors have both expressed their support for their presidents and against the city’s MOU with Bluefield.

In light of that ongoing dynamic, even if Bluefield wished to only bring its four-year programs to the Wheeling area, the HEPC still must approve the offering of such a program in a new location and the state’s Higher Learning Commission must approve the opening of a new campus. Tice noted that while the other local colleges cannot put the kibosh on Bluefield’s plan like WVNCC can in regards to two-year programs, the state agencies will consider input from all players in the matter.

“The commission certainly weighs community input when it comes to these requests,” she said. “They would listen to all impacted parties, certainly.”

It is not certain whether proposals for the Bluefield plan will be heard during the next round of meetings at the state agencies. Tice said agenda items for these meetings are still being compiled. The next regular HEPC meeting is slated to take place on April 30.