STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION – TOPIC SUMMARY
Topic: Community College Program Approval
Date: December 3-4, 2009
Staff/Office: Department of Community Colleges and Workforce Development
Action Requested:
Information only
Policy Adoption
Policy Adoption/Consent Calendar
ISSUE BEFORE THE BOARD: Approval of new community college programs:


Linn-Benton Community College: Occupational Therapy Assistant (Associate of Applied
Science Degree);
Portland Community College: Restorative Dental Hygiene (Business and Industry-Based
Certificate of Completion);
BACKGROUND: ORS 341.425 directs the State Board of Education to approve all proposed community
college programs. ORS 344.259 directs the board to coordinate continuing education in lower division,
developmental, adult self-improvement, professional and technical education for agencies under its regulator
authority.
341.425 Approval required to commence or change program and for transfer credits. (1) Before an
educational program is commenced at any community college, the board of education of a community college
district shall apply to the State Board of Education for permission to commence the program. After the first year
of the program, course additions, deletions or changes must be presented to the State Board of Education or a
representative of the Department of Community Colleges and Workforce Development authorized to act for the
state board for approval.
(2) Until the community college becomes accredited by the Northwest Association of Schools and Colleges
or its successor, the community college shall contract with an accredited community college for its instructional
services, including curricula, to ensure its courses carry accreditation and are acceptable for transfer.
(3) After reviewing the contractual agreement between the nonaccredited and the accredited colleges and
after suggesting any modifications in the proposed program of studies, the State Board of Education shall
approve or disapprove the application of a district. [Formerly 341.560; 1971 c.513 §89; 1991 c.757 §6; 1995
c.67 §17; 1997 c.270 §1; 1999 c.147 §§1,2]
344.259 Coordination of continuing education. (1) The State Board of Education shall coordinate continuing
education in lower division, developmental, adult self-improvement, professional and technical education for
agencies under its regulatory authority. The State Board of Higher Education shall coordinate continuing
education in upper division and graduate education for institutions under its jurisdiction.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
The Commissioner and Staff Recommend Adoption of the Following Resolution:
RESOLVED, that the State Board of Education approve the following programs:
Occupational Therapy Assistant Associate of Applied Science Degree at Linn-Benton Community College.
Restorative Dental Hygiene; Business and Industry Certificate of Completion at Portland Community College.
1
Oregon Department of Community Colleges
And Workforce Development
Public Service Building
255 Capitol St. N.E.
Salem, Oregon 97310-0203
Office of Educational Improvement & Innovation
Action Item
Policy Issue: Staff Action on New Career and Technical Education Programs
Proposed Community College Program
State Board Standards--Staff Analysis Abstract
Name of College:
Program Title:
Proposed Start Date:
Board Submission Date:
Adverse Impact Completed:
Type of Program:
Linn-Benton Community College
Occupational Therapy Assistant
Fall
2010
December 4, 2009
September 29, 2009
Associate of Applied Science Degree
Credits:
94 _____________________________
CIP Code: 51.0803 ______________________
CIP Title:
Occupational Therapist Assistant __
 Option Title
Credits:
_________________
CIP Code:
____________________________
CIP Title:
____________________________
 Certificate of Completion
Credits:
CIP Code:
CIP Title:
Business and Industry (closed enrollment)
Assurances: The College has met or will meet the four institutional assurances required for
program application.
1. Access. The college and program will affirmatively provide access, accommodations,
flexibility, and additional/supplemental services for special populations and protected classes
of students.
2. Continuous Improvement. The college has assessment, evaluation, feedback, and
continuous improvement processes or systems in place. For the proposed program, there will
be opportunities for input from and concerning the instructor(s), students, employers, and other
partners/stakeholders. Program need and labor market information will be periodically reevaluated and changes will be requested, as needed.
3. Adverse impact and detrimental duplication. The college will follow all current laws, rules,
and procedures and has made good faith efforts to avoid or resolve adverse intersegmental
and intrasegmental impact and detrimental duplication problems with other relevant programs
or institutions.
4. Program records maintenance and congruence. The college acknowledges that the
records concerning the program title, curriculum, CIP code, credit hours, etc. maintained by the
Department are the official records and it is the college’s responsibility to keep their records
aligned with those of the Department. The college will not make changes to the program
(Abstract continued)
3
without informing and/or receiving approval from the Department.
Summary
The Occupational Therapy Assistant program will prepare students to work under the
supervision of Occupational Therapists. Their areas of practice include mental health; children
and youth; health and wellness; work and industry; rehabilitation, disability, and participation;
productive aging. Occupational Therapy Assistants work in a variety of settings, including
mental health settings; school systems; work sites; hospitals (acute-care, rehabilitation, outpatient); skilled nursing facilities; homes; private practice settings; community-based settings.
Their job duties include performing select assessment activities; contributing to the
development of treatments plans; providing education to clients, caregivers, and communities;
providing treatment according to the treatment plan that has been developed by the
occupational therapist; monitoring, reporting, and documenting client response to treatment;
preparing for discontinuation of direct services.
The Occupational Therapy Assistant program will be a two-year associate degree program
accredited by the Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy Education. It will follow the
Linn-Benton Community College (LBCC) Diagnostic Imaging delivery model for statewide
distribution, with the didactic portion of the program delivered via distance technology to allow
participation by students at remote sites, and the laboratory and clinical portions delivered
locally and at partner sites. A group of 24 students will be admitted to each class. This
number includes students from eight (8) other community colleges in Oregon who have
agreed to participate. Students will develop an understanding of occupational therapy theory
and practice, including activity analysis and problem solving for helping clients meet their
goals. Successful graduates will be eligible and prepared to sit for the national certification
examination, and to function as entry-level occupational therapy assistants in a variety of
settings.
Program Highlights
Standards: The College has met the five program approval standards.
1. Need
The community college provides clear evidence of the need for the program.
There are no Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) programs in Oregon.
 LBCC has conducted an employer/stakeholder forum, administered an
employer/stakeholder survey, and consulted with Oregon’s
Occupational Therapy Licensing Board, Occupational Therapy
Association, and only current Occupational Therapy Program (master's
level). All of these sources have demonstrated overwhelming need for
and support of an OTA Program in Oregon.
 Nationally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Occupational Outlook
Handbook, 2008-2009 Edition reports the following:
o There were 126 accredited occupational therapist assistant
programs in 2007.
o Employment of occupational therapist assistants and aides is
expected to grow 25 percent from 2006 to 2016, much faster than
the average for all occupations.
o Opportunities for individuals interested in becoming occupational
3
(Abstract continued)



2. Collaboration
4
therapist assistants are expected to be very good.
In 2006, the Oregon Healthcare Workforce Needs Assessment
evaluated current and expected demand for and supply of workers in 71
healthcare occupations, including OTA. This assessment determined
that 63 of the 71 healthcare occupations studied were projected to have
growth rates that exceeded the state average of 15 percent over the
next ten years. Of these 71 healthcare occupations, OTA ranked
seventeenth, with 25.4 percent projected growth in employment. It also
found that in 2005, 84 percent of OTA vacancies in Oregon were open
for 60 days or longer. This studied concluded that without training
programs in Oregon, the state is not producing enough occupational
therapy assistants to meet demands. Creating a supply of trained
occupational therapy assistants would help meet the state’s current and
future demand for these workers.
Oregon Workforce Needs 2006 Worksource Oregon (June 2006):
o LBCC’s proposed OTA program involves partnerships with other
community colleges to allow for distance delivery of the program to
a larger geographic area. Within the specific service territories of our
program, this projected growth in employment described above is
even more pronounced. In the counties serviced by this program,
the cumulative average growth in OTA jobs is forecasted at 44.3
percent between 2006 & 2016.
Occupational Reports for OTAs OLMIS Occupational Information
Center (November 2005):
o Additionally, employers have told us they are forced to meet the
shortage of OTAs by recruiting outside of Oregon (both nationally
and internationally), utilizing Occupational Therapists to perform
duties that would normally be provided by Occupational Therapy
Assistants, and/or contracting with traveling service providers. All of
these are significant expenses for employers.
The community college utilizes systemic methods for meaningful and ongoing
involvement of the appropriate constituencies.



The Occupational Therapy Association of Oregon has provided support
for this program throughout its development, (e.g. representation on our
advisory board). It provides numerous services for occupational therapy
professionals and students, including professional development
activities, networking opportunities, and advocacy for the profession.
Our students will be encouraged to actively participate in this
organization throughout their schooling and professional careers.
Pacific University (PU)'s Occupational Therapy program has provided
support for this program throughout its development, (e.g. providing
release time for a faculty member to sit on our curriculum development
committee). PU's program director has suggested we collaborate on
joint programming for our students, which we will do.
Community Colleges throughout Oregon have agreed to be host sites
for the OTA program: Blue Mountain, Chemeketa, Clatsop, Columbia
4
(Abstract continued)
5
Gorge, Lane @ Florence, Oregon Coast, Tillamook Bay, Umpqua. They
will have representation on our advisory committee; be involved with
the development of administrative systems; advertise the program in
their service area; provide support services to students in their area
(e.g. advising, financial aid, library services).
 The Regional High School Health Occupations program will continue to
offer opportunities for students to explore the field of occupational
therapy, e.g. during its Summer Health Career Academy, annual Health
Career Fair field trip to Portland Community College, and annual Open
House at the Health Career & Training Center in Lebanon.
 Linn-Benton-Lincoln Workforce Board (WIB Region #4) will be invited to
sit on the OTA advisory board; they will refer potential students from
their service area, and assist them with the application process.
 Community Services Consortium will be invited to sit on the OTA
advisory board; they will refer potential students from their service area,
and assist them with the application process.
 Industry partners have pledged support for this program by offering
their sites for laboratory use and clinical experiences: Samaritan Health
Services, Samaritan Physical Rehabilitation, Samaritan Albany General
Hospital, Samaritan Lebanon Hospital, Mennonite Village, Pinnacle
Healthcare, Infinity Rehab, Consonus, Willamette Valley Medical
Center, Salem Hospital, Mid-Columbia Medical Center, Holy Rosary
Medical Center, Columbia Gorge ESD, Tillamook Community Hospital.
 The OTA Steering Committee has met sporadically during the
development phase of the program, and communicated via email as
well. It will become the OTA Advisory Committee and begin meeting on
a regular basis by the September, 2010. This committee will continue to
a) be kept informed of the state of the program and b) provide guidance
for its ongoing development.
3. Alignment
The community college program is aligned with appropriate education, workforce
development, and economic development programs.








This program will be accredited by the Accreditation Council of
Occupational Therapy Education.
This program aligns with the Governor's Workforce Agenda, which
places particular emphasis on the healthcare industry.
This program aligns with the Oregon Skill Sets' Health Sciences Career
Learning Area.
OTA program pre-requisites may be taken in high school through
College Now.
OTA program pre-requisites may be taken at community colleges
throughout the state.
Rehabilitation Aide program graduates will be awarded points when
applying to the OTA program.
OTA students will work with Rehabilitation Aide students on a project
developed in partnership with the Rehabilitative Aide program.
OTA students will work with Occupational Therapy students on a
5
(Abstract continued)
project developed in partnership with the Occupational Therapy
program at PU.
4. Design
The community college program leads to student achievement of academic and
technical knowledge, skills, and related proficiencies.










5. Capacity
6
This program will adhere to the educational standards set by the
Accreditation Council of Occupational Therapy Education.
Its curriculum will provide opportunity for sequential development of
knowledge, skills, and attitudes designed to prepare the student to pass
the national certification examination and obtain employment as an
entry-level occupational therapy assistant in a variety of settings.
The OTA program will be offered state wide. The didactic portion of the
curriculum will be offered via distance education (a combination of realtime and any-time access), and the laboratory and clinical components
will be offered locally and at partner sites. This method allows for
greater access to and increased options for students to participate and
achieve.
Students will get 640 hours of practical experience in the field.
Student fees will cover all program costs, except for travel expenses
(e.g. to and from laboratory and clinical sites).
The program will be on LBCC's 3-year review cycle.
We will track graduation rates.
We will track national certification examination passage rates.
We will administer post-graduation surveys to students.
The advisory committee will meet regularly.
The community college identifies and has the resources to develop, implement,
and sustain the program.






LBCC's administration has given their approval and pledged their
support for this program.
The Business, Healthcare, and Workforce division has developed the
distance delivery model that we will be using, which recently won the
prestigious Bellwether award for innovation in community colleges.
The OTA development team has established a strong network of
statewide support as noted in the collaboration section of this
document.
For the primary site, LBCC will provide the classroom, the laboratory
space, support services (e.g. advising, counseling, admissions,
financial aid, library, learning center, business office, facilities), and
$40,000 to help with start-up costs. Local employers have pledged to
provide clinical sites and preceptors.
For the host sites, Community Colleges will provide support services
(e.g. advising, counseling, library, learning center). Local employers
have pledged to provide clinical sites and preceptors, as well as
laboratory space (with access to equipment) during off hours.
This will be a cost-recovery program, thus ongoing costs will be
6
(Abstract continued)
7
covered by student fees.
 New faculty will need to be hired.
 Start-up equipment, materials, and supplies will need to be purchased.
 Clinical sites will need to be developed.
Approval
Signature
Name
Title
Date
Larry Cheyne
Education Specialist
11/6/2009
Camille Preus
Commissioner
The Commissioner and Staff Recommend Adoption of the Following Resolution:
RESOLVED, that the State Board of Education approve the Occupational
Therapy Assistant Associate of Applied Science Degree program at Linn-Benton
Community College.
7
(Abstract continued)
8
Oregon Department of Community Colleges
And Workforce Development
Public Service Building
255 Capitol St. N.E.
Salem, Oregon 97310-0203
Office of Educational Improvement & Innovation
Action Item
Policy Issue: Staff Action on New Career and Technical Education Programs
Proposed Community College Program
State Board Standards--Staff Analysis Abstract
Name of College:
Program Title:
Proposed Start Date:
Board Submission Date:
Adverse Impact Completed:
Type of Program:
Portland Community College
Restorative Dental Hygiene
Fall
2010
December 3-4, 2009
September 29, 2009
Associate of Applied Science Degree
Credits:
_______________________________
CIP Code:
____________________________
CIP Title:
____________________________
 Option Title
Credits:
_________________
CIP Code:
____________________________
CIP Title:
____________________________
 Certificate of Completion
Credits:
17
CIP Code: 51.0602
CIP Title:
Dental Hygiene/Hygienist
Business and Industry (closed enrollment)
Assurances: The College has met or will meet the four institutional assurances required for
program application.
5. Access. The college and program will affirmatively provide access, accommodations,
flexibility, and additional/supplemental services for special populations and protected classes
of students.
6. Continuous Improvement. The college has assessment, evaluation, feedback, and
continuous improvement processes or systems in place. For the proposed program, there will
be opportunities for input from and concerning the instructor(s), students, employers, and other
partners/stakeholders. Program need and labor market information will be periodically reevaluated and changes will be requested, as needed.
7. Adverse impact and detrimental duplication. The college will follow all current laws, rules,
and procedures and has made good faith efforts to avoid or resolve adverse intersegmental
and intrasegmental impact and detrimental duplication problems with other relevant programs
or institutions.
8. Program records maintenance and congruence. The college acknowledges that the
records concerning the program title, curriculum, CIP code, credit hours, etc. maintained by the
8
(Abstract continued)
9
Department are the official records and it is the college’s responsibility to keep their records
aligned with those of the Department. The college will not make changes to the program
without informing and/or receiving approval from the Department.
Summary
The Restorative Dental Hygiene program will prepare students to undergo regional
examination and apply for state licensure endorsement in the area of dental restorative
functions as approved by the Oregon State Practice Act. The program is a closed enrollment
award of a minimum of 17 credits offered as a short-term sequence of courses. It is designed
to provide skills and knowledge determined to be essential for a career in Dental Hygiene:
Restorative Dental Hygiene. The program includes instruction in cardiology, dental materials
and restorative dentistry. The curriculum has received approval from the Oregon State Board
of Dentistry
Program Highlights
Standards: The College has met the five program approval standards.
6. Need
The community college provides clear evidence of the need for the program.
As per the Oregon Labor Market Information System (OLMIS) report,
statewide employment for dental hygienists is estimated to be larger than
the statewide average. The occupation is also expected to grow much
faster than the statewide average. Total job openings are projected to be
somewhat higher than the statewide average. Between the years 2006 and
2016 statewide employment is expected to increase 30.5%.
7. Collaboration
The community college utilizes systemic methods for meaningful and ongoing
involvement of the appropriate constituencies.
The Restorative Dental Hygiene Certificate is a business and industry
partnership between Kaiser Permanente NW and Portland Community
College (PCC) with support from Willamette Dental Group. Both
organizations are major providers of health care in the metropolitan area
and employ a large number of hygienists.
8. Alignment
The community college program is aligned with appropriate education, workforce
development, and economic development programs.
All dental hygiene programs at PCC are accredited by the Commission on
Dental Accreditation and endorsed by the American Dental Association
(ADA). The 17 credit hour program meets the expectations of OAR 818035-0072: Restorative Functions of Dental Hygienists. The curriculum
provides students with necessary coursework and clinical practice to
complete the board examination and apply for state licensure
endorsement. The curriculum was approved by the State Board of
Dentistry June 2008.
9
(Abstract continued)
10
The PCC dental hygiene and restorative dental hygiene provides a broadbased education in dental sciences, clinical techniques, biological sciences
and humanities preparing graduates for work in private practice and
community settings. All coursework is fully transferable to four-year
institutions.
9. Design
The community college program leads to student achievement of academic and
technical knowledge, skills, and related proficiencies.
The certificate program in conjunction with the dental hygiene Associate of
Applied Science (AAS) degree prepares the student for state licensure and
clinical practice. Upon completion of the specialized certificate coursework,
clinical practice and completion of the basic dental hygienist program the
program completer will be prepared to perform the placement and finishing
of direct alloy and direct anterior composite restoration, under the indirect
supervision of a licensed dentist.
10. Capacity
The community college identifies and has the resources to develop, implement,
and sustain the program.
The college maintains a state of the art dental hygienist teaching facility.
The college has been training dental hygienists and dental laboratory
assistants and dental laboratory technicians for 30 years.
Approval
Signature
Name
Title
Date
Larry Cheyne
Education Specialist
10/21/2009
Camille Preus
Commissioner
The Commissioner and Staff Recommend Adoption of the Following Resolution:
RESOLVED, that the State Board of Education approve the Restorative Dental
Hygiene Business and Industry-Based Certificate of Completion program at Portland
Community College.
10