Procedure II.2001.A.b, Reporting Substantive Change

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Associated Policy

Policy II.2001.A, Substantive Change

Procedures

1. The College’s Institutional Accreditation Liaison to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), following approval by the Deputy Chancellor, will report substantive changes to the Chancellor for submission to SACSCOC according to the procedures defined by the SACSCOC Substantive Change Policy and Procedures available online via the SACSCOC website.
2. A College determination that a change does not constitute a substantive change based on College interpretation of SACSCOC policy and procedures will be documented by an internal Substantive Change Evaluation document. The College will consider a substantive change evaluation document to be an internal substantive change report for the purposes of compliance with SACSCOC principle 14.2 Substantive Change.
3. The SACSCOC Substantive Change Policy and Procedures defines a new program as a “significant departure” based on the percentage of “new content” (exclusive of general education) included in the new program. SACSCOC policy indicates institutions “make the determination of the percentage of new content.” To make that determination, the College defines “new content” as a course that is in a four-digit series Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) code in which the College has not offered any courses within the past five years.
1. The US Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, describes the four-digit series CIP code as a grouping of programs that “have comparable content and objectives” (p. 2). Adding courses in a four-digit series CIP the College has taught previously does not represent “new content” per existing federal definition.
2. The SACSCOC Substantive Change Policy and Procedure requires a program be reported as a new program if it has been inactive for five years. Applying that same standard to courses for the purposes of identifying “new content” is a reasonable precedent consistent with SACSCOC policy and procedure.

Definitions

Substantive change: a significant modification or expansion of the nature and scope of an accredited institution. Substantive change includes high-impact, high-risk changes and changes that can impact the quality of educational programs and services. The full scope of changes considered substantive changes, including those required by federal regulations, is defined by the SACSCOC Substantive Change Policy and Procedures.