SACS -- Online Compliance Certification

Standard 3.4.4: The Institution has a defined and published policy for evaluating, awarding, and accepting credit for transfer, experiential learning, advanced placement, and professional certificates that is consistent with its mission and ensures that course work and learning outcomes are at the collegiate level and comparable to the Institution’s own degree programs. The Institution assumes responsibility for the academic quality of any course work or credit recorded on the Institution’s transcript.

Judgment of Compliance
X	Compliance	Partial Compliance	Non-Compliance

NARRATIVE/JUSTIFICATION FOR JUDGMENT OF COMPLIANCE

Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College (SKCTC) has defined and published policies for evaluating and accepting academic credit. Policies meet the guidelines set forth in Kentucky law (KRS 164.583) [1], by the Council on Postsecondary Education [2], by the Board of Regents Policy 1.3.2.3 [3].

To ensure the academic quality of transferred credit, SKCTC accepts freshman and sophomore level courses from Institutions which are regionally accredited. A partnership between the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, the state public universities, and all KCTCS Colleges created a “guaranteed” Transfer Framework to facilitate the transfer of associate of arts and associate of science degree programs and general education credits. With this Framework, students who have the following are allowed to transfer the complete core: completed a general education program of 48 credit hours (which includes a 33 credit hour Core); completed all Institution specific general education courses (15 credit hours); and hold a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher. Students who have completed only some of the 33 credit hour Core transfer component will be certified on an area-by-area basis, such as in mathematics or social /behavioral sciences (see page 60 of the 2004-05 KCTCS Catalog) [4].

Credit for external experiences and experiential learning is awarded under the provisions published in the Catalog. Credit for students with military experiences is determined by following the Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Services, [5] published by the American Council of Education.

The Rules of the Senate [6] include policies that offer students an opportunity to challenge a course by submitting a written request to receive credit for knowledge already obtained, often by examination. Advanced standing examinations, such as Advanced Placement, the Special Technical Education Proficiency exam (STEP), and the College Level Examination Program (CLEP), are nationally prepared tests for students desiring to receive credit for knowledge already obtained. The KCTCS catalog list guidelines and scores for students wishing to earn credit by external examination (see pp. 61-64 of the KCTCS catalog) [7].

SKCTC gives credit for certain professional and industry standard certificates, such as Microsoft, Cisco, A+, Novell, Certified Professional Secretary, and Child Development Associate, as specified in the catalog. The rigor of these programs ensures that the course work and learning outcomes are at the collegiate level and comparable to SKCTC degree programs.

Students have the opportunity to earn credit for experiential learning, external training programs, workplace and service learning through the submission of Prior Learning Portfolio. SKCTC follows the recommendations for awarding credit for learning experience in business and industry as they appear in The National Guide to Educational Credit for Training Programs [8].

SKCTC and KCTCS policies regarding the receipt of credit from other colleges and external agencies comply with national standards of good practice. SKCTC follows the American Association of Collegiate Registrar and Admissions Officers (AACRO) guidelines and standards for best practices in records management, admissions, and enrollment management and assumes responsibility for the academic quality of any course or credit recorded on the college’s transcript.

Supporting Documents		Links to Supporting Documents
Supporting Documents		You must be connected to the World Wide Web to access the following links. (Click on the link to access the document.)
1	KRS 164.583 Lower division academic courses—Transfer of credits	http://lrc.ky.gov/krs/164-00/583.pdf
2	Council on Postsecondary Education Transfer Guidelines	http://cpe.ky.gov/NR/rdonlyres/6D7A8159-16D8-4810-A0B6-3D8161157D73/0/GenEdTranserPolicy.pdf
3	Board of Regents Policy 1.3.2.3	http://www.kctcs.edu/employee/policies/volumeI/boardpolicies1-3-2-3.pdf
4	Catalog, pages 60-65	http://www.kctcs.edu/catalog/index.cfm?action=display&cs_id=7&cc_id=10#cc
5	American Council of Education	ACE \| Guide to the Evaluation of Educational Experiences in the Armed Forces
6	Rules of the Senate 2004-05	http://unity.kctcs.edu/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-151752/Section%20VI%20External%20Experiance%202004-2005.doc
7	KCTCS Catalog – External Experiences	http://www.kctcs.edu/catalog/index.cfm?action=display&cs_id=7&cc_id=13#cc
8	National Guide to Educational Credit for Training Programs	http://www.psu.edu/dept/ufs/policies/42-00.html

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