F. Certification of Continued Institutional Compliance With Commission Policies
Gavilan College certifies that it continues to be in compliance with the federal regulations noted below, and Commission Policies on Rights and Responsibilities of the Commission and Member Institutions; Institutional Degrees and Credits; Transfer of Credit; Distance Education and on Correspondence Education; Representation of Accredited Status; Student and Public Complaints Against Institutions; Institution Advertising, Student Recruitment, and Representation of Accredited Status; Contractual Relationships with Non-Regionally Accredited Organizations; and Institutional Compliance with Title IV.
The Institutional Self-Evaluation Report was presented to the campus community via open comment on the Intranet before going through the shared governance process (F-1). The ISER then went to the Academic Senate (F-2) and Student Government (F-3) for review, comment and approval and then finally to the Gavilan College Board of Trustees in an open public forum as an information item at their November 2018 meeting, and then as an action item at their December 2018 meeting. Both agendas were published on the Gavilan College website, and posted on the Gavilan College campus prior to the meetings as required by law, and included the opportunity for Public Comment (F-4, F-5).
Gavilan College has established standards of student achievement through its Institution-set Standards. The Institution-set Standards are set and reviewed through the shared governance process. These standards align to the Student Success Scorecard and set a standard, “stretch” goal, historical data, and a multi-year average for the successful course completion rate, degree completion, certificate completion and transfer to 4-year Colleges (F-6). The College has also set standards for passage of licensure exams (F-7). The Institution-set Standards are reviewed every year as part of the requirements of Assembly Bill 1417. Through review of this data, the College discusses and updates goals. Section I.B.3 of the Self-Evaluation provides additional detail about the use of and commitment to the College’s Institution-set Standards for student achievement.
Regulation citations: 600.2 (definition of credit hour); 602.16(a)(1)(viii); 602.24(e), (f); 668.2; 668.9.
Credit-hour assignments and degree program lengths comply with Title 5 regulations and standards of practice in higher education. The College designs degrees in keeping with the practice of 60 semester credit hours awarded for achievement of an associate degree. Procedures for determining a credit hour have been determined by the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office and are published in its Program and Course Approval Handbook. The College has written policies (F-8) and procedures (F-9) for determining a credit hour that meets commonly accepted academic standards. The Curriculum Committee (F-10) reviews all course and program information before approval. Tuition is set by the California legislature, is standardized across all courses and programs, and is based on units (F-11). For additional information see Standards II.A.5, II.A.9, and I.C.6 of the Self-Evaluation.
Transfer Policies
Transfer policies are documented for students in the Gavilan College Catalog (F-12) and the College website (F-13). The College articulates courses with other institutions through the Common Course Numbering System (C-ID). This facilitates the transfer of credit for students enrolling at Gavilan College and for students transferring from Gavilan College. For more information about transfer see Standard II.A.10 of the Self-Evaluation.
Distance Education courses have the same learning outcomes and course outlines of record as face-to-face courses. Courses are approved for Distance Education through the College Curriculum process (F-14). Faculty possess the minimum qualifications for the disciplines listed on the course outline of record. To support the maintenance of regular and substantive interaction and good online course design, the College encourages online instructors to complete a self-paced online teacher training program in the College’s LMS (Canvas/iLearn). Online pedagogical and technical support is also provided by staff in the Office of Distance Education and through regular workshops and one-on-one appointments (F-15). Ensuring accessibility and establishing how regular, effective instructor contact and student-to-student contact will be maintained is also part of the online course approval process established by the Curriculum Committee. All students must verify identity by authenticating into the Canvas/iLearn learning management system to access their online courses. Login credentials are kept confidential and can only be reset using the student’s official email of record with the College. Student privacy practices are articulated in BP and AP 5040 (F-16, F-17) and apply to all students regardless of mode of instruction. Since the Canvas learning management system is remotely hosted, online Distance Education has limited impact on technology infrastructure.
The College does not offer Correspondence Education.
The College’s student grievance process is articulated in AP 5530 (F-18) and is published in the print Catalog (F-19) , online Catalog (F-20), the Student Rights, Responsibilities and Academic Standards Handbook (F-21), and on the College website. The College maintains records on student complaints in the respective Division offices and in the electronic Maxient system. Records of formal complaint concerning harassment or discrimination are maintained in Maxient and in the Human Resources Office. Contact information for Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC) is published in the Semester Guide and on the College website. Programmatic accreditation information can be found on the College web pages associated with the specific programs. The Accreditation status of the College and its programs is appropriately represented on the College website (F-22).
Gavilan College provides accurate and current information to the public through the College Catalog, all printed planning documents and the College website. The Catalog contains all of the information enumerated by the Accreditation Standards. Program and course information is provided to the public primarily through the Catalog which is available online (F-23) and in print (F-24). The College currently publishes the Catalog every two years, but In order to keep the information current, the Catalog is moving to an annual update. The Offices of Public Information, Student Services and Academic Affairs maintain the Catalog and ask respective divisions and department for updates each year. The College website is also updated as programs and services change (F-25). The College’s accreditation status is noted on the website as is information about programmatic accreditation on the respective department websites.
Regulation citations: 602.16(a)(1)(v); 602.16(a)(1)(x); 602.19(b); 668.5; 668.15; 668.16; 668.71 et seq.
The District participates in an annual financial audit that includes financial and regulatory compliance for the District’s Title IV programs. The audit findings are sent to the USDE. The College takes action to resolve any findings. Section III.D.4 of the Self-Evaluation provides further details on financial responsibility. The College’s Office of Financial Aid monitors the District cohort default rate. Gavilan College’s three-year default rate on student loans reported in FY 2015 was 13.3% (F-26), which is well below the requirement established by California. The District is not required to have a default reduction plan. The District has experienced no negative actions by the U.S. Department of Education regarding compliance of the College with the requirements of Title IV. When the District contracts for programs and services such as recruitment, student support, online support or instructional curriculum materials, the District follows Commission guidelines. All contracts are executed only by duly designated officers of the College and their counterparts in the related entity. Contracts are also placed on the Board of Trustee agenda for further review (F-27). Each contract clearly describes the work to be performed, the period of the agreement and the conditions of possible renewal or renegotiation. The contract also establishes the responsibilities of the College and the related entity with regard to Commission standards and relevant laws, regulations, policies and procedures. In each contract, the College retains ultimate responsibility for quality and performance. The College reviews and approves work performed through the contract and ends the contract if the work performed does not meet the College’s requirements.
There are no educational programs in which more than 25% of the College program is offered by a non-regionally accredited organization.
G. Institutional Analysis
Standard I: Mission, Academic Quality and Institutional Effectiveness, and Evidence of Meeting the Standard