Lansing Community College
Procedure Details

Procedure Title: Establishment of Minimum Faculty Qualifications for a Course
Procedure #: AA.005
Revision #: 004

Unit Responsible: Academic Affairs
Individual Responsible: Academic Affairs

Effective Date: 01/21/2022
Initial Approval Date: 01/11/2019
Last Review/Update Date: 01/21/2022
Next Review Date: 01/01/2025

*Does this procedure support a Board Policy? Yes
If yes, identify: 3.160-Program Review

Board policies can be found at: LCC Board of Trustees Policy Page

*Does this procedure support HLC criteria? Yes
If yes, identify: 3C

HLC Criteria can be found at: HLC Accreditation Criteria

*Does this procedure support a State or Federal Regulation? No
If yes, identify: N/A

*Note: Standard Operating Procedures should be in furtherance of some LCC policy and/or accreditation criteria, even if the relationship is not direct. Assistance in determining this information can be obtained from the Academic Procedure Advisory Committee (APAC) and/or the Accreditation Liaison Officer.

Establishment of Minimum Faculty Qualifications for a Course, BP 3.160

1. Purpose

To establish a process by which to establish minimum faculty qualifications required for any credit-bearing course at Lansing Community College (LCC).


2. Scope

This procedure applies to any credit-bearing course offered at LCC, whether it is for on-campus, online, dual enrollment, or direct-fee.


3. Prerequisites

The requirements for minimum qualifications of faculty were established in 2016 and amended in 2018 to include tested experiences and alternative credentials. See procedure below for specific requirements.


4. Responsibilities

Minimum qualifications needed to teach a course are established by the program faculty with the approval of Academic Affairs.


5. Procedure

Establishment of Minimum Faculty Qualifications for New Courses:

  1. Prior to a new course proposal being sent to the Curriculum Committee (CC) for review and approval, the appropriate Division representative submits the Faculty Minimum Qualification Recommendation form through the 5-Star Ticket System for the Academic Affairs Project Manager (AAPM) to review of the recommended minimum faculty qualifications needed to teach this course.
  2. In accordance with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) criteria and LCC procedures, and in consultation with the Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) as necessary, the AAPM will approve or request adjustment to the proposed minimum faculty qualifications.
  3. The new course proposal then moves through CC approval processes toward Academic Senate review and Provost approval or denial.
  4. Upon Provost approval of the new course, the Academic Affairs Project Coordinator (AAPC), on behalf of the Chair of the CC informs, the AAPM, who then adds the course and required credentials to the master course spreadsheet. This spreadsheet lists the minimal credentials needed to teach any course at LCC.

Revision of Minimum Faculty Qualifications for Existing Courses:

    1. Program Faculty may request that the minimum faculty qualifications be revised for an existing course or courses by completing a Faculty Minimum Qualification Recommendation form through the 5-Star ticket system. The form is located on the landing page of the 5-star ticket linked above.
    2. The form must include justification and documentation (when necessary) for the qualification recommendations.
    3. In accordance with the Higher Learning Commission (HLC) criteria and LCC procedures, and in consultation with the Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) as necessary, the AAPM will approve or request adjustment to the proposed minimum faculty qualifications.

The form is reviewed by the program Associate Dean and academic division Dean before it is submitted to the AAPM for final review.

  1. The AAPM reviews this form and approves or denies the request. If the form is approved, the AAPM changes the notation in the area-appropriate tracking document in the N: drive workspace so that going forward the new minimum faculty qualification will be used to hire faculty for existing course or courses.


6. Reference

In the 2015 – 2016 Academic year, program/department heads reviewed all courses offered by Lansing Community College (LCC), regardless of type or modality, to define appropriate qualifications for teaching each course. Administrators collected input from faculty, who reviewed the learning outcomes from each course and recommended to Academic Affairs the minimum qualifications to teach the courses. This information was reviewed and is maintained by the Academic Affairs Office.

For purposes of establishing minimum faculty qualifications for each course, the courses were organized into the following categories:

  1. General education and transfer courses that typically and readily transfer into bachelor’s degree programs.
  2. Career, Technical and Occupational courses from occupational programs in Arts & Sciences (A&S), Health & Human Services (HHS), and Technical Careers (TC).
  3. Performance courses, for example, Art, Music, Dance, Theater, etc.
  4. Performance courses in non-performance programs (for example, creative writing courses in ENGL).
  5. 3rd Party Accreditation courses that lead to certification or licensure (primarily in occupational programs, for example, many programs in HHS and TC).
  6. ESOL and Developmental courses in mathematics, reading, and writing.
  7. Non-credit courses conducted through Community Education & Workforce Development (CEWD).


7. Definitions

Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO) – The individual identified by LCC to serve as a contact point with the Higher Learning Commission, in addition to the College’s President. The ALO is expected to be aware of HLC requirements and to guide the College’s efforts in relation to compliance.