Academic Program Suspension

The Academic Program Suspension Procedure establishes the College’s process for suspending an academic program, including the steps required to develop and approve any required teach-out plan or teach-out agreement, obtain external approvals, communicate with affected students and employees, and implement the suspension.

A suspension may result from the College’s annual Academic Portfolio Review.  Academic Portfolio Review evaluates programs and disciplines/fields of study and may result in a final decision to suspend a program. When a suspension has been decided through Portfolio Review, this Academic Program Suspension Procedure is used to implement that decision; it does not reconsider whether the program should be suspended.

A suspension may also become necessary outside of the Portfolio Review process. Examples include requirements imposed by an external body, replacement of an existing program with an updated program, loss of essential staffing or facilities, or other unforeseen or extenuating circumstances. Regardless of how a suspension originates, the same requirements apply to developing and approving any required teach-out plan or teach-out agreement, obtaining external approvals, communicating with affected students and employees, and implementing the suspension.

A program may be considered for permanent or temporary suspension to allow time for curricular revisions, enrollment stabilization, or other changes intended to strengthen the program and support its long-term viability.

The administrative decision not to admit a new cohort of students for one academic cycle is not considered a program suspension. A Dean considering this action must obtain formal approval from the Vice President of Academic Affairs.

Definitions 

For this procedure, LCC utilizes definitions provided by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities: suspension, termination, teach-out plan and teach-out agreement. Definitions may be found in NWCCU’s Substantive Change Manual. 

NWCCU defines suspending a program as ceasing to enroll incoming students into a program with the intent to review, redesign, and reactivate the program, or terminate the program after any teach-out of the existing students enrolled in the program. 

Terminating means, according to NWCCU, that there are no longer students enrolled in the program, and the program will be closed indefinitely with no intention of reopening.  Any students who remain enrolled in a program after a teach-out period (see below) must be deactivated prior to termination. 

A teach-out plan is a written plan that provides for the equitable treatment of students and a reasonable opportunity for students to complete their program of study, which may extend up to 150% of the program’s normal time to completion (e.g., up to three years for a two-year degree).

In the event that Lane Community College must suspend a program sooner than 150% time,  LCC is also obligated to develop a teach-out agreement, a written agreement between two or more institutions that provides a reasonable opportunity for students to complete the program at the receiving institution(s).  

Both teach-out plans and teach-out agreements must be submitted and approved by NWCCU prior to implementation.  LCC’s Accreditation Liaison Officer oversees this process. 

Step 1: Determine the Route into the Suspension Procedure

All program suspension requests, whether originating from the Program Portfolio Review or another circumstance, must be submitted using the template provided by the Curriculum Office.

Suspension Resulting from Academic Program Portfolio Review

When a program has been suspended through the academic program portfolio  review process, the process will proceed directly to Step 2 to develop the suspension and teach-out plan. 

Suspension Arising from Another Circumstance

When a possible suspension arises outside of Academic Program Portfolio Review, the responsible Dean, in consultation with faculty, will develop a brief, data-informed rationale outlining the need to suspend the program. The rationale should describe the circumstances leading to the proposed suspension and how the recommendation was developed, such as required curricular changes from an external body, replacement with an updated program, loss of essential staffing or facilities, or other factors.

The Dean will meet with the appropriate Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs and the VPAA to review the rationale. The VPAA may consult with others as needed and will determine whether the College should proceed with development of a formal suspension and teach-out plan. 

In extenuating circumstances, an Associate Vice President of Academic Affairs and/or the VPAA may initiate this process. In such cases, the responsible Dean and faculty will be engaged in developing the formal suspension and teach-out plan as circumstances allow.

Step 2 Develop the Teach-Out Plan and Teach-Out Agreement if Required

Per NWCCU policies and procedures, institutions proposing the suspension of an academic program must identify all students currently enrolled in the affected program, determine whether a teach-out plan and a teach-out agreement is necessary, and establish an estimated timeframe for completion of the teach-out process.

LCC will provide currently enrolled students with a reasonable opportunity to complete their program requirements with minimal disruption to their educational progress. In most circumstances, this will include offering courses necessary for program completion for a limited period, which may extend up to 150% of the program’s normal time to completion (e.g., up to three years for a two-year degree). However, when continued course offerings by the College are not practical, the College may develop a teach-out agreement with another institution to provide affected students with a pathway to complete their program.

Programmatic accreditation agencies may have additional requirements for suspension and termination. The Dean of the program is responsible for contacting these agencies and providing them with the necessary information.

Process for Step 2

After a suspension decision has been made through Portfolio Review, or after the VPAA has approved development of a formal plan for a suspension arising from another circumstance, the Dean will work with faculty to prepare a suspension plan that includes:

• A list of students declared in the program, requested from Institutional Research;
• An outline of impacts to other programs;
• A communication plan, including draft communications to affected students, faculty and staff, and external partners.
• A teach-out plan; and
• A teach-out agreement, only in the event that Lane is unable to internally teach out the program.

For a suspension with a teach-out plan at LCC: Identify the term in which the program will be removed from the admissions list and the estimated teach-out start and end dates. The timeframe should provide students with a reasonable opportunity to complete the program. This is typically two to three years for an associate degree program, or approximately 150% of the standard time to completion.

For a suspension with the intention of bringing the program back: Identify the term in which the program will be removed from admissions, the planned revisions or other actions to be undertaken during the suspension, and the term in which the program is intended to be added back to the admissions list.

For an expedited suspension due to extenuating circumstances: If the College cannot provide students with an opportunity to complete the program at Lane Community College within a reasonable period of time, the Dean is responsible for developing a teach-out agreement with one or more institution(s). In such cases, the Dean must consult with the relevant VPA and VPAA regarding the teach-out process and may be required to complete additional documentation and approvals prior to initiating a teach-out plan.

All required information must be submitted using the template provided by the Curriculum Office.

Step 3 Review and Final Approval

Once the proposed suspension and teach-out plan has been completed, the VPAA will coordinate the review with the relevant Dean and Associate Vice President and consult with appropriate College areas, which may include the Curriculum Team, Advising, Degree Evaluators, Enrollment Services, Institutional Research, Student Affairs, and others as appropriate.

The Dean may be asked to make revisions or provide additional information based on this review.

For a suspension approved through Academic Program Portfolio Review, the decision to suspend the program has already been made. The review under this step is limited to confirming that the proposed teach-out plan and any required teach-out agreement are sufficient and may proceed to external review.

For a suspension arising from another circumstance, the VPAA will present the proposed suspension to the President, who will make the final determination and may determine that action by the Board of Education is required.

Step 4 NWCCU Notification and Required External Approvals

Following institutional approval: The VPAA will ensure that NWCCU is notified of the planned suspension and submit the teach-out plan and teach-out agreement, if required.

Once NWCCU approval is received, the appropriate Dean will complete any required notifications to the relevant professional or programmatic accrediting agencies.

Any additional external approvals required before implementation will be completed.

Implementation of the suspension, including communications to students, will proceed after NWCCU approval is received.

Step 5 Implement the Suspension and Communicate with Students

Once required approvals have been received:

The VPAA will notify the Dean and the Curriculum Office that the suspension may be implemented.

The Dean will communicate with affected students, faculty, the Curriculum Office, Student Affairs, and other program stakeholders.

The Dean will serve as the primary program contact for matters related to the suspension, including communication with professional accrediting agencies and external partners.

The Curriculum Office will ensure that the program is removed from the appropriate systems, that catalogs are updated as needed, and that the suspension is communicated to the Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC) through the established state process after NWCCU has approved the suspension.

The Dean will oversee the implementation of the teach-out plan and ensure that issues affecting students’ ability to complete the program are raised promptly.

Step 6 Completion of the Teach-Out Program Termination or Reactivation

For programs suspended with the intention of reactivation, the Dean will provide the VPAA with an update prior to the established end date of the suspension, and the program will be updated and reincluded in the catalog and reactivated in the NWCCU portal.

For programs that will not be reactivated, the program will remain suspended while currently enrolled students complete the approved teach-out plan. At the conclusion of the teach-out period, the Dean is responsible for working with Enrollment Services to ensure timely deactivation of remaining program records and students, as appropriate. Once the approved teach-out period has ended, the Dean will notify the VPAA of the enrollment status of students within the program. In consultation with the Dean and relevant Associate Vice President, the VPAA will determine whether to allow additional time for any remaining students or to proceed with formal program termination.

Once the teach-out time period has commenced and no students are enrolled in the suspended program, the VPAA will initiate the formal termination of the program and ensure that NWCCU and HECC are notified, as required.

The VPAA will notify the LCC Board of Education of program suspensions and terminations annually.