Issue
This item presents an amendment of Title 5 regulations that would clarify and improve both the practices used in granting college credit for course work completed in high school and those used for granting college credit via Advanced Placement Examinations.

Background
The practice of granting college credit for high school course work is common, and through programs such as Tech-Prep and School-to-Career, the practice is expanding. Although the Chancellor’s legal staff has determined that granting college credit for course work completed in high school can be done under existing law and regulations, multiple advisory bodies in recent years have opined that current legal provisions are incomplete, not current with practices in higher education and have resulted in systemwide inconsistencies in practices.

As colleges have increased collaboration with high schools through 2+2, Tech-Prep, School-to-Career, Career Academies and other programs, curriculum articulation activities have evolved beyond traditional practices such as awarding credit for advanced placement to, among other things, the granting of college credit for successful completion of college-equivalent courses taken during high school. In 1996, the Chancellor’s Legal Counsel issued an opinion that colleges have the authority, under existing regulations, to grant credit for high school course work, provided the course work meets standards of academic rigor for college credit courses. The opinion indicated that one mechanism for awarding credit is through Credit by Examination. The executive bodies of the Chief Instructional Officers (CIOs) and the Academic Senate for California Community Colleges (ASCCC), among others, discussed the issue during the late-1990s, and numerous questions were raised which were worthy of further inquiry, data collection and evaluation.

During 1999, a survey was conducted on granting college credit for high school course work. It was learned that the practice is widespread, can pertain to transfer level course work, follows a wide range of policies and procedures, including varying approaches to transcript notation, and is based on faculty to faculty articulation of curricula. While not wanting to stifle collaboration between colleges and high schools, the Academic Senate and CIOs expressed concern that, as the practice expands, the system should probably clarify policies and procedures relating to high school articulation, assess the relationship to articulation with the universities, and should, above all, maintain the integrity of the curriculum.

Various approaches to these issues were discussed in a group of representatives of the Academic Senate, Chief Executive Officers, CIOs, and Chancellor’s Office staff. This group, derived from the existing Curriculum Procedures Task Force, produced a first draft of proposed changes to Title 5 regulations, along with an “Issues and Answers” clarifying document. These documents were widely disseminated to audiences inside and outside of the community college system, and various concerns were voiced from many perspectives. Particularly prominent were concerns about the potentially stifling effect of the proposal on articulation efforts in Tech-Prep and School-to-Career.

To forge a more satisfactory resolution, Vice Chancellor Victoria Morrow convened a more broadly constituted second task force – the Task Force on College Credit for Courses Completed in High School – to deliberate the issues during the 2000-2001 academic year. The task force included representation from the previous group, but was largely a newly-comprised body that included appointees of the Academic Senate, CEOs, CIOs, occupational administrators and Tech-Prep personnel, as well as resource representatives from the University of California President’s Office, the Chancellor’s Office of the California State University, and the California Department of Education.

In two meetings, the task force refined the proposed regulation amendments to respond to earlier concerns. Task force members commenced a period of field consultation with their respective constituencies and the Chancellor’s staff presented the proposal to various constituencies at conferences and meetings. This period of field consultation, with stakeholders both internal and external to the Community College system, generated a significant amount of comment on the proposed Title 5 regulation changes and their likely impacts.

On June 28, 2001, the task force concluded the period of field consultation with a third meeting. The task force reached consensus on several edits to the proposal that resolved remaining concerns and recommended that the regulations have an effective date of July 2002 to permit community college system personnel and other stakeholders to be provided with technical assistance on the new regulations and enable colleges to take the necessary policy and procedural actions and preparations to implement the new provisions.

On July 19, 2001, the task force’s recommendations were reviewed and endorsed by the Consultation Council without substantive alteration.

Analysis

In summary, the proposed regulation changes would:

• Expand the existing Section 55753. Credit by Examination to designate college curriculum committees to establish policies and procedures for faculty to use in determining when an examination “adequately measures mastery of the course content as set forth in the course outline of record,” would specify the grading options under Credit by Examination and would prescribe the circumstances under which credit for “prior experience” or “prior learning” may be awarded;

• Add a new Section 55753.5 Articulation of High School Courses which would assign responsibility for identifying such courses to discipline faculty, using policies and procedures approved by the curriculum committee, authorize governing boards to adopt policies and procedures regarding when such courses may be applied to community college requirements within parameters spelled out in the regulation and “grandparent in” credit awarded for high school courses before this regulation takes effect; and

• Add a new Section 55753.7 Advanced Placement Examinations which would authorize governing boards to establish policies and procedures that would permit discipline faculty to “approve advanced placement examinations…to constitute satisfactory performance in courses offered by the college…” The inclusion of this new section, though not part of the original charge to the task force, was regarded as advisable for “rounding out” in regulation the variations or options available under Credit by Examination.

These proposed regulations do not diminish colleges’ discretion or authority to place additional requirements on the transfer and application of credit. All other applicable requirements of Title 5 remain the same.

Recommended Action

That the Board of Governors approve the proposed regulations, as presented.

Staff: Ron Selge
Interim Dean, Work Force Preparation

1. Section 55753 of Subchapter 9 of Chapter 6 of Division 6 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations is amended to read:

55753. Credit by Examination.

(a) The governing board maintaining one or more of each community colleges district shall adopt and publish procedures and regulations pertaining to credit by examination in accordance with the provisions of this Subchapter. Section and the provisions of sections 55751, 55752, 55758, 55760, 55761, 55762, and 55764.

(b) The governing board may grant credit to any student who satisfactorily passes an examination approved or conducted by proper authorities of the college. Such credit may be granted only to a student who is registered at the college and in good standing and only for a course listed in the catalog of the community college.

(c) The nature and content of the examination shall be determined solely by faculty in the discipline that normally teaches the course for which credit is to be granted in accordance with policies and procedures approved by the curriculum committee established pursuant to Section 55002. The faculty shall determine that the examination adequately measures mastery of the course content as set forth in the outline of record. The faculty may accept an examination conducted at a location other than the community college for this purpose.

(d) A separate examination shall be conducted for each course for which credit is to be granted. Credit may be awarded for prior experience or prior learning only in terms of individually identified courses for which examinations are conducted pursuant to this section.

(ce) The student’s academic record shall be clearly annotated to reflect that credit was earned by examination.

(f) Grading shall be according to the regular grading scale approved by the governing board pursuant to Section 55758, except that students shall be offered a credit-no credit option if that option is ordinarily available for the course.

(dg) Units for which credit is given pursuant to the provisions of this section shall not be counted in determining the 12 semester hours of credit in residence required for an associate degree.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 66700 and 70901, Education Code.
Reference: Sections 70901 and 70902, Education Code.

2. Section 55753.5 of Subchapter 9 of Chapter 6 of Division 6 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations is added to read:

55753.5. Articulation of High School Courses

(a) For purposes of this section, the term “articulated high school course” means a high school course or courses that the faculty in the appropriate discipline, using policies and procedures approved by the curriculum committee established pursuant to Section 55002, have determined to be comparable to a specific community college course.

(b) The governing board of a community college district may adopt policies to permit articulated high school courses to be applied to community college requirements in accordance with this Section. Articulated high school courses may be accepted in lieu of comparable community college courses to partially satisfy:

(1) requirements for a certificate program, including the total number of units required for the certificate; or,

(2) the major requirements in a degree program.

(c) Articulated high school courses used to partially satisfy certificate or major requirements shall be clearly noted as such on the student’s academic record. Notations of community college course credit shall be made only if community college courses are successfully completed or if credit is earned via credit by examination.

(d) Except through credit by examination, as defined in Section 55753, high school courses may not be used to satisfy:

(1) the requirement of Section 55806 that students complete at least 60 semester or 90 quarter units in order to receive an associate degree; or,

(2) any general education requirement for the associate degree established by the district.

(e) All community college district-high school articulation agreements shall be subject to the provisions of this Section. However, any student who, prior to the date this Section takes effect, has successfully completed a high school course articulated under the terms of a previous agreement shall be permitted to apply the credit so earned according to the terms of the previous agreement.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 66700, 70901, and 70902, Education Code.

Reference: Sections 66700, 70901 and 70902, Education Code.

3. Section 55753.7 of Subchapter 9 of Chapter 6 of Division 6 of Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations is added to read:

55753.7. Advanced Placement Examinations

The governing board of a community college district may adopt policies to grant credit for satisfactory completion of advanced placement examinations typically recognized by colleges and universities as measuring competencies comparable to those achieved in baccalaureate level courses.

The faculty in the appropriate discipline must approve advanced placement examinations, scores deemed to constitute satisfactory performance, courses offered by the college for which credit will be granted, and requirements that may be met by such examinations in accordance with policies and procedures approved by the curriculum committee established pursuant to Section 55002.

The student’s academic record shall be clearly annotated to reflect that credit was earned through an advanced placement examination.

NOTE: Authority cited: Sections 66700, 70901, and 70902, Education Code.

Reference: Sections 66700, 70901, and 70902, Education Code.

Tech Prep: In November 2001, the Board of Governors passed new and revised regulations concerning articulation and “College credit for work completed in high school.” The Chancellor's Office is providing technical assistance during spring 2002 to assist in implementation, as the effective date for these changes will be July 1, 2002. The adopted regulations and background can be found at: http://www.cccco.edu/cccco/bog/November_Order/09-3-T5_Regs-College_Credit.doc

Go to the top of the page