Houston Community College Accepts DETC Credentials

Well it has been officially approved. My school, Houston Community College ( who I love working for. Mark Tengler is amazing at what he does as acceditation officer. He was really pushing this) has officially approved all credits and degrees earned at DETC schools. This follows the approval by the THECB of DETC degrees.


Improving Transfer for Students: Removing the Barriers

Transfer of academic credit is a public policy issue for several reasons:
• an increase in student mobility,
• the proliferation of distance learning programs and common acceptance of their legitimacy,
• the economics of expending public money twice for the same course, and
• consumer protection from expending private money twice for the same course


“The accreditation standards of this Commission require member institutions to analyze credit accepted for transfer in terms of level, content, quality, comparability, and degree program relevance. The accreditation standards do not mandate that institutions accept transfer credit only from regionally accredited institutions.” SACS, 2003

“Transfer of credit from one institution to another involves at least three considerations:
1. the educational quality of the learning experience which the student transfers;
2. the comparability of the nature, content, and level of the learning experience to that offered by the receiving institution; and
3. the appropriateness and applicability of the learning experience to the programs offered by the receiving institution, in light of the student's educational goals…
Institutions and accreditors need to assure that transfer decisions are not made solely on the source of accreditation of a sending program or institution.” Joint Statement on the Transfer and Award of Credit, AACRAO, ACE, & CHEA, 2001


HCC’s Traditional Position: We have only accepted in transfer and for employment the six regional accrediting bodies believing that this was all we were allowed to. Many students coming from “non-accredited” institutions would have to apply for advanced standing credit and CLEP to transfer their knowledge and skills.

However, all six regional accreditation agencies state that transfer should not be based solely on type of accreditation (see above).

A New Development in Texas:
The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in the past year or two approved the quality of two national accrediting agencies in addition to regional accreditation:
Association of Biblical Higher Education (ABHE)
Association of Theological Schools in the US and Canada (ATS)

In July, 2008, the CB approved five additional accreditations to offer courses in Texas:
Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES)
Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT)
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS)
Council on Occupational Education (COE)
Distance Education and Training Council (DETC)

What this means is that the door is open for HCC to also allow direct transfer of credit from institutions possessing these accreditations.

Why should we trust the quality of courses from these schools?
• All are approved by CHEA for financial aid
• SACS and AACRAO encourages removing barriers in transfer
• Texas schools have to follow the same CB rules for quality of program as we do (e.g. all have to comply with GIPWE and TSI rules)
• CTE programs can review for quality and content

Proposal:
Accept the institutions with the following accreditations for transfer and for employment:
Association of Biblical Higher Education (ABHE)
Association of Theological Schools in the US and Canada (ATS)
Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES)
Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology (ACCSCT)
Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS)
Council on Occupational Education (COE)
Distance Education and Training Council (DETC) (employment only)

This means that I maybe referred to as doctor ( If I want my students to, not really hung up on that), I can be payed at doctorate salary (EDD, PhD and DA) and can wear doctoral regalia at my school's graduation. They will not ( at this time..Mark is still working on it) pay the stipend granted doctoral students at RA schools.

 

That is a start at least for DETC.

Congratulations, Doctor!

 

Great news!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Keep up the good work. I am happy to see the continual positive strides NA's have been making.

Abner See ya Doc!

 

Not yet. I defend April 2010.

 

Anyone working towards two doctorate degree at the same time deserves the honorific title of "Doctor". After all when the patients take over the asylum they often like to dress-up as doctors.

 

Congratulations, Doktorand! Is that the University of Houston or Harrison Middleton University where you defend your dissertation April 2010?

 

Which one?

Why is DETC acceptable for employment only?

 

Best of luck to you.

 

Not sure on that one Bruce. Mark sent this to me Friday. I will ask for verification on Monday.

 

Harrison Middleton. I have a TON of work to do to get to that point however.

 

Will Mark Tengler inform the rest of the Community Colleges within the HCC's College District about this new transfer policy? I would imagine so. Perhaps he can influence the other accreditation officers to adopt this policy, if he has not done so already.

Keep up the good work Tireman!!!!!!

Abner

 

Abner,

He speaks for all HCC campuses. By the way, my dissertation is around 250 pages right now. I will have to drink, eat, sleep, run and write for 7 solid months. Now my plan is to defend in April 2010. It could slide to June, but I want to make it to April.