§3165.1.  Academic transfer modules; career and technical education and industry-based certification courses

A.  To provide a career pathway between career and technical education and industry-based certification programs and academic degree programs offered by public community colleges, the Board of Supervisors of Community and Technical Colleges shall establish a process to recognize the academic content embedded in career and technical education and industry-based certification courses, award college-level credit for such content, and guarantee the transfer of such credit to any public state community college.

B.  The board shall:

(1)  Develop "academic transfer modules" to recognize the academic content embedded in career and technical education and industry-based certification courses which can be applied to award a student with partial or full credit in an equivalent academic course offered by any public state community college.

(a)  The content of each academic transfer module may be contained in a single course or a sequence of courses.

(b)  Each academic transfer module shall be equal to at least one college credit hour and modules can be combined to become the academic equivalent of a complete academic college course.

(2)  Align the content contained in each academic transfer module with the content standards and learning competencies established for the equivalent academic college course to which the module will be applied.

(3)  Develop testing, as necessary, to validate the content of each academic transfer module to ensure its academic equivalency to the college course to which the module will be applied.

(4)  Develop a process whereby academic transfer modules may be banked until such time as the student enrolls in an academic degree program offered by a public state community college and such modules can be transferred for academic college credit.

(5)  Ensure that career and technical education and industry-based certification course instructors are trained and meet the standards required for such courses and course work to be eligible for transfer for college credit.

(6)  Collaborate and coordinate with the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to ensure that students enrolled in postsecondary career and technical education and industry-based certification courses offered through local public school systems and secondary schools shall also be eligible to earn academic transfer modules pursuant to the provisions of this Section.

(7)  Submit the individual academic transfer modules and the process developed to transfer the postsecondary credit earned through such modules to the receiving community college to the Statewide Articulation and Transfer Council for consideration and recommendations. With the approval of the council, the board shall submit the proposed transfer process to the Board of Regents for approval prior to implementation.

C.  The Board of Supervisors of Community and Technical Colleges shall submit a written report to the Senate Committee on Education and the House Committee on Education, not later than September thirtieth of each year, regarding the status of the implementation of the academic transfer module process as provided by this Section.

Acts 2013, No. 174, §1, eff. June 7, 2013.