A2100.55 Articulation

 

Purpose Statement
Introduction
Roles and Responsibilities
Guiding Process
Conclusion

 

Purpose Statement

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These articulation procedures are established to provide a transparent and consistent framework by which the Academic Affairs Division and Student Affairs Division collaborate to create effective pathways, promote educational mobility, and improve academic outcomes for students who wish to achieve a baccalaureate degree.  These procedures are developed to serve the following needs:

• Facilitate Seamless Transfer – ensure students who begin their education at Shawnee Community College (SCC) can transfer their credits effortlessly to another higher education institution without losing progress or having to retake courses.
• Promote Clear Pathways – assist students with their educational and career plans by providing them with a recommended sequence of courses that connect SCC courses with specific university major program requirements in ways that align with the National Career Cluster framework.
• Ensure Quality Assurance – certify course standards and programs of study are aligned in ways where students obtain the skills needed to successfully navigate the transfer process and be successful in their career pursuits.
• Increase Access & Affordability – provide students with clear academic transfer plans aimed at increasing educational access, reducing time for completion, and lowering costs required to complete a baccalaureate degree.
• Foster Collaboration – create strategies for transparent communication and team engagement that strengthen relationships between the faculty, staff, and administration of both SCC and partner higher education institutions. By doing so, the possibility of expanding future partnership in areas like research, professional development, and community engagement, are strengthened.

 

Introduction

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As part of Shawnee Community College’s overall strategic plan, the College is committed to the articulation of baccalaureate and career/technical programs with regional universities to create seamless transfer opportunities for students. As part of this objective, the following strategies were designed to support clear articulation and seamless transfer pathways: 1) Review, renew, and revise (as appropriate) current articulation agreements (1.1.C) and 2) improve articulation agreement landing page (1.1.D). In implementing these strategies, it was evident that first the College needed to develop written procedures for developing and maintaining articulation agreements. The following guidelines have been designed to clarify roles and responsibilities and set forth a clear process for the development and maintenance of SCC articulation agreements.

 

Roles and Responsibilities

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1. Registrar: The Registrar will serve as the point of contact for articulation questions. The registrar will facilitate articulation requests, maintain accurate records, update the records on the webpage, in Etrieve, and in Colleague, and disseminate information to appropriate staff. While the registrar is not expected to be an expert in all curricular matters, he/she is expected to facilitate the process, bringing together the respective collaborators to ensure maximum transferability for students.
2. Dean of Transfer & Adult Education: The Dean of Transfer & Adult Education is responsible for reviewing, updating, and articulating all programs and courses to ensure applicability upon transfer. If the program is an AAS, the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education may work with the other appropriate deans for review of agreements. All articulation agreements should be reviewed and approved by the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education prior to finalization.
3. Academic Affairs Representation: The lead faculty, department chair, and/or division dean may intake or initiate requests for articulation agreements. They should inform the transfer coordinator/registrar of the request and work with the transfer coordinator/registrar throughout the process.
4. Vice Presidents: The Vice Presidents of Academic and Student Affairs will annually review the database of current articulation agreements as it relates to the strategic outcome monitoring reports. The Vice Presidents will collaborate to set priorities and goals for the upcoming academic years.

 

Guiding Process

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1. Initiation of agreement request or interest

• May be initiated by an appropriate representative of the curriculum – including, but not limited to, the Shawnee Community College lead faculty, department chair, division dean, transfer coordinator/registrar, or the corresponding representative at the transfer institution.

 

2. Communication of the agreement request or interest

• Regardless of who initiates the request, once it has been determined that an agreement will be developed or explored, the initial Shawnee Community College contact will inform the SCC transfer coordinator/registrar who will share information with the appropriate individuals and offices on campus – including but not limited to the Shawnee Community College lead faculty, Shawnee Community College department chair, and the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education. The Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar will also contact the transfer coordinator/registrar or other appropriate representatives at the transfer institution as needed. 
• Through communication at this stage, the Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar will facilitate discussion leading to a decision to move forward or not with the development of an agreement.
• If questions arise regarding the suitability of an articulation agreement, questions should be directed to the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education.

 

3. Development of the agreement

• Once it has been determined to move forward with the development of an agreement, the Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar will document the decision by adding the agreement to the Comprehensive Transfer Agreement Database as an “In Progress – Active” project, saving all working documents into the shared folder.
• The Dean Transfer & Adult Education is ultimately responsible for the general development of all articulation agreements and transferability of programs and courses. At the same time, this process should be collaborative in nature and general development may be assumed by the initial Shawnee Community College contact, the Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar, or by another appropriate representative of the curriculum. The transfer coordinator/registrar will involve appropriate parties as deemed necessary for the general development.
• Regardless of who spearheads the general agreement development, the technical aspects of the agreement must be reviewed and approved by Dean of Transfer & Adult Education and the transfer coordinator/registrar throughout the agreement development process. These technical aspects include, but are not limited to those items listed below.

 

4. Minimum required technical aspects of the agreement

• Curriculum
  • Ideally, all Shawnee Community College credit earned in the completion of the Shawnee Community College degree is accepted as credit and applies toward the major offered at the receiving institution.
  • Clear course by course (or course by requirement) articulation. Where a course by course (or course by requirement) articulation is not evident, every effort should be made to agree on appropriate substitutions.  Such substitutions or other special course articulation agreements should be clearly identified in the agreement.
  • The Shawnee Community College course patterns identified in the agreement must meet graduation requirements for a Shawnee Community College degree as identified through degree audit. An agreement that identifies any adjustments to current Shawnee Community College degree audit degree requirements must be communicated to the appropriate college official and to the Shawnee Community College records office for approval or revision.  The Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar will facilitate such requests.
  • The course patterns identified in the agreement must meet applicable IAI, general education, and other degree requirements and must match existing course articulation agreements (Transferology, etc). Requests for deviations from these requirements must be communicated to the appropriate college official for approval or revision.  The Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar will facilitate such requests. 
  • As appropriate, relevant transfer policies and admission guidelines.
  • Institutional contacts.
• Agreement Document
  • Titles of programs to which the articulation applies.
  • Review, renewal, and termination deadlines/timelines.
  • As appropriate, relevant transfer policies and admission guidelines.
  • Other policy information as needed.
  • Signature lines, typically and minimally to include Shawnee Community College VPAA and Shawnee Community College Transfer Coordinator/Registrar

 

5. Pre-approval review of the agreement

• Prior to approval, the articulation agreement should be reviewed and approved by the below people/offices. Reviews should continue until all parties approve.
  • Dean of Transfer & Adult Education, as the transfer coordinator/registrar, and the respective Dean of the program begin approval.
  • Shawnee Community College transfer coordinator/registrar for degree audit verification/updates
  • Appropriate representatives from academic affairs who participated in developing the agreement (i.e., department chair and/or division dean)
  • Appropriate representatives at the transfer institution.

 

6. Approval of the agreement

• When the agreement has been approved by all parties listed above, the document may be finalized and prepared for signatures. In addition to the 2+2 articulation agreements by programs, an Intergovernmental agreement (IGA) should be completed and signed as well.

 

7. Documentation of approved agreement

• Approved agreements will be added to the Comprehensive Transfer Agreement Database as a “Summary – Current” agreement and as an agreement in the appropriate divisional and institutional tabs.
• Physical copies of the approved agreement will be kept in the office of the Transfer Coordinator/registrar and will be cc’d to the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education appropriate lead faculty, department chair, division dean, VPAA, and any other required party.
• Approved agreements will be added to the listing on the appropriate page of the Shawnee Community College website.
• Approved agreements will be scanned into Etrieve for documentation purposes.
• The Transfer Coordinator/registrar (or representative) will note all active agreements in Colleague under the PROG screen.

 

8. Communication of agreement

• After finalization of each articulation agreement, the Transfer Coordinator/Registrar will notify/share agreement information with the appropriate internal constituents via email group, including but not limited to: the Administration for informational purposes, Recruiting and Advising, Public Information & Marketing, Department Chairs, Directors, and current students for informational purposes.
• The Dean of Transfer & Adult Education may also determine agreement information to be shared externally through the media as facilitated by the Public Information & Marketing Office as deemed appropriate. Development of articulation agreements should be viewed as a marketing/recruitment tool designed to enhance enrollment and support the strategic plan goals.

 

9. Renewal/Maintenance of agreements

• The Transfer Coordinator/Registrar and the Dean of Transfer & Adult Education should meet quarterly to review pending articulation agreements and any other areas of business.
• In the summer of each year, the Shawnee Community College Transfer Coordinator/Registrar will review the database of current agreements to identify those requiring renewal due to expiration timelines.
• Renewal of the agreement will follow the same outline and process identified here for the development of agreements to ensure that all relevant constituencies and considerations are included in the process.

 

10. Annual documentation

• Each year at the close of the academic year, the Transfer Coordinator/Registrar will download, save, and upload into Etrieve, the comprehensive transfer agreement database for historical purposes and continuity planning.

 

Conclusion

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This procedure ensures the College’s efforts to expand academic pathways, increase educational mobility, promote higher education access, and streamline the transfer process for students is organized, accurate, and consistent with our commitment to transparency, accountability, and high-quality learning outcomes.

 

Change Log
Date	Description of Change	Governance Unit
04.25.24	Initial Adoption	Acad. Affairs Council