Lansing Community College
Procedure Details

Procedure Title: Curriculum Code Changes
Procedure #: AA.019
Revision #: 001

Unit Responsible: Academic Affairs
Individual Responsible: Director of Academic Operations

Effective Date: 02/03/2023
Initial Approval Date: 01/20/2023
Last Review/Update Date: 02/03/2023
Next Review Date: 02/2026

*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: 2B, 3A

HLC Criteria can be found at: HLC Accreditation Criteria

*Does this procedure support a State or Federal Regulation? No
If yes, identify: 34 CFR §§602.16(a)(1)(viii), 600.2, and 668.8(k) and (l)

*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.

Curriculum Code Changes, BP 3.160

1. Purpose

To provide guidance in determining when revisions to a program pathway may require a Higher Learning Commission (HLC) screening/application and/or a curriculum code change.


2. Scope

This Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) applies to Associate Deans/Program Directors, HLC Accreditation Liaison Officer (ALO), Senior Instruction Coordinators, and the Director of Academic Operations.


3. Prerequisites

Program pathways are reviewed annually. During this process:

  • Programs will identify any changes that are needed to the pathways for the upcoming year.
  • The Senior Instruction Coordinators receive these revisions from the programs and complete a review of the pathway changes.
  • After divisional review and approval, the Director of Academic Operations will complete the final review.


4. Responsibilities

The Associate Deans, Program Directors, Senior Instruction Coordinators and/or Director of Academic Operations will notify the ALO of any situations as outlined below which could result in a curriculum code change.

The ALO is responsible for reviewing the pathway changes, submitting information in the HLC screening tool, and helping facilitate the Substantive Change application when that application is required. In addition, the ALO will, in consultation with the Director of Academic Operations and other Academic Affairs staff as necessary, determine when a new curriculum code is needed.


5. Procedure

  1. During the annual review of program pathways, when a reviewer identifies that revisions to the pathways may be substantial, the ALO should be provided with the following information:
    1. The current title, award type, and curriculum code, along with any changes to the title or award type.
    2. Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) Code changes.
    3. Subspecialties within the pathway that were added or deleted.
    4. Changes to total credits.
    5. Required courses in Career Community and/or Program of Study that were added and/or removed.
    6. Limited Choice and/or Elective courses that were added and/or removed.
    7. Any changes in mode of delivery, e.g., adding Online, Hybrid, or Hyflex sections.
  2. The ALO will review the changes to determine if the program of study should be resubmitted through the HLC screening process. A CIP Code change alone requires the screening process. A screening also is required for changes roughly equivalent to 25% or more of the pathway. The ALO will base the decision for screening on the information provided.
  3. If the HLC screening process determines that the program needs to submit a Substantive Change Form, a new curriculum code will be required.
  4. Other circumstances which require a new curriculum code are listed below:
    1. A change to the type of award, such as a degree going from an Associate of Arts to an Associate of Applied Arts, or a certificate going from a Certification of Completion to a Certificate of Achievement. For certificates, this would result from changes to the total credit hours. A Certificate of Completion is under 30 credits. A Certificate of Achievement is 30 or more credits.
    2. A change to the number of credits for a certificate that results in a change in the Financial Aid (FA) eligibility for the program of study. For example, the certificate may have been under 16 credits, and changing it to 16 or more makes it FA-eligible. Similarly, a certificate may have been 16 or more credits and FA-eligible, and changing it to under 16 credits makes it not FA-eligible.
    3. If for any reason a program of study was FA-eligible and becomes ineligible. Examples include when a program is no longer 15-weeks in length or when the Department of Education determines it is not eligible because it does not meet the requirements for gainful employment.
  5. In the following circumstances, a curriculum code change may be needed. These types of situations, and other unique situations, should be discussed with the Academic Affairs department for a final decision.
    1. The change of courses and/or the title of the degree or certificate would impact current students within that declared major. Examples include removing a concentration or subspecialty area or revising the title when current students still would need the concentration and/or program title for employment purposes.
    2. A previously discontinued program of study is requested to be reactivated. In that case, a summary of the changes is needed such as that listed in 5.1.


6. Reference

National Center for Education Statistics – CIP Information


7. Definitions

HLC Screening Process: Involves the ALO submitting necessary information via the appropriate form on the HLC website regarding new programs or changes to programs per HLC policy.

Course offerings fit into six types.

  • In-Person/Face-to-Face: Traditional courses with all instruction delivered in-person in the classroom, clinical, or worksite.
  • HYF - Hyflex: Students have the flexibility to choose how they will participate for each class session: in-person, online during the meeting time, or online asynchronously.
  • ON - Online: Traditional, asynchronous, online courses.
  • ORT - Partial Scheduled Lecture: Online real time (ORT)/live online courses with some regularly scheduled online meeting day(s) and times.
  • ORT - Full Scheduled Lecture: Online real time (ORT)/live online courses where all instruction is delivered online during designated meeting day(s) and times.
  • OH - Online Hybrid: Required in-person instruction with online coursework and activities.

All Course Offerings