Panola College
Curriculum and Instruction Committee
The Curriculum and Instruction Committee is a college standing committee comprised of
faculty, students and administrative representatives. The purpose of the committee is to
review all curriculum change requests and, if applicable, make appropriate
recommendations to the Vice President of Instruction. The committee will seek consensus
on curriculum changes that best serve student interests in accordance with the Panola
College mission statement and within the requirements of relevant accrediting bodies. The
committee will serve as a single channel of communication for all curriculum changes
(WECM or ACGM) across the Panola College institution. Dissemination of information will
flow from the Curriculum and Instruction Committee to appropriate offices including the
Vice President of Instruction, Registrar, Financial Aid, Institutional Effectiveness, Library,
Deans and Department Chairs.
Membership
The membership shall consist of two members from each of the instructional divisions:
Nursing and Health Science, Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Professional & Technical
Programs. Members will serve two year term with the terms ending on alternate years.
Each school will have one new member and one experienced member serving on the
committee.
A chairperson will be appointed by the VPI and that person must have served a one year
term on the committee. The chairperson will attend the Assessment Committee meetings
in an ex-officio capacity and report pertinent information to the C&I committee. Ex-officio
membership shall consist of the VPI and a representative from the administration.
Duties and Responsibilities
Review request and make appropriate recommendations regarding:
a. New program offerings
b. New course offerings
c. Modifications to existing programs and courses
Verify the need for addition or change requested and consider the impact on:
a. Institution – support of mission, contact hour changes, other disciplines
b. Student – course value, transferability
Verify that proposed changes meet requirements of:
a. The Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) as documented in the:
a. Guidelines for Instructional Programs in Workforce Education (GIPWE);
http://www.thecb.state.tx.us/AAR/UndergraduateEd/WorkforceEd/gipwe.htm
b. Workforce Education Course Manual (WECM);
http://www.thecb.state.tx.us/AAR/UndergraduateEd/WorkforceEd/wecm/
c. Academic Course Guide Manual (ACGM);
http://www.thecb.state.tx.us/aar/undergraduateed/workforceed/acgm.htm
b. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS); http://sacscoc.org/
c. Program specific accrediting agencies as addressed in proposed curriculum packets
Upon verification, if applicable, the committee will make a recommendation to accept or
deny the proposal. A quorum (50% + 1) must be present to make a formal
recommendation. Virtual meetings require a ‘Reply to All’ response from everyone.
Once reviewed and approved/disapproved by the committee, packets will be returned to
the respective dean.
• Approved packets should be submitted to the Vice President of Instruction for
approval.
• Packets approved with corrections should be updated and submitted to the C&I
Committee chairperson for final approval. Once approved, the packet will be
returned to the dean for submission to the Vice President of Instruction for
approval.
• Disapproved packets will be returned to the respective dean with an explanation for
disapproval.
Submissions that are for information only (FYI) and require no recommendation by the
Curriculum and Instruction Committee will be forwarded to the appropriate parties.
Upon receipt of THECB approval for curriculum revisions, the C&I Committee will notify
appropriate offices.
Curriculum & Instruction Submissions Process
All changes to be implemented in the Fall of the following academic school year shall be
submitted by second Monday in December. The following timeframes should be used in
order to efficiently complete all processes before the end of the semester.
• Department chair submits proposed changes to Dean in memo format, after any
advisory committee meetings and review of applicable course selection rules, with a
two-week window for review by the Dean.
• Upon approval to move forward with curriculum revisions by the Dean, department
chair completes appropriate paperwork using current electronic forms which are
available on Curriculum & Instruction Webpage. Forms should be typed and
proofread for errors. In order for packet to be considered complete, forms must be
signed by department chair and dean(s) prior to submission to the C&I Committee.
Advisory Committee minutes must also have department chair and recorder
signatures. The Vice President of Instruction will not sign until the packet has been
approved by the C&I Committee.
• Deans submit proposed changes to the C&I Chairperson for placement on the
committee calendar.
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Deans submit original packet(s) to C&I Committee Chairperson two
weeks prior to the scheduled C&I meeting. Committee secretary will
copy packets to and forward to the committee for review 10 days prior to
the meeting date the packet is scheduled for presentation.
If multiple errors, inconsistencies or incorrect forms are observed by
committee members during preliminary review, the packet(s) will be
returned to the Dean and department chairs for correction and resubmission.
• Meetings will be scheduled during the month of November for department chairs and
deans to meet with the C&I Committee. There will be no C&I Committee
meetings during the month of December.
 Original packets are returned to the respective dean of the program
curriculum reviewed
 If corrections are suggested by the committee, the department chair will
make corrections and submit updated packet to the dean
 Deans submit original packet(s) with updates to C&I Committee
Chairperson for approval
• C&I Chairperson return curriculum packets to deans with final approval signature.
• Deans submit original packet(s) to Vice President of Instruction for approval.
 Approved curriculum packet(s) returned to respective Deans for
electronic submission to THECB. o Dean’s office scans original packet(s)
with final approval signatures and forwards to department chair
 Original copy is kept on file in Dean’s office
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Curriculum updates are submitted electronically to THECB on or before March 1, or
the deadline for Fall catalog entries.
All Curriculum Change Procedures (Transfer or Non-Transfer)
The following delineates the process and procedures of the respective bodies involved in
the curriculum change process.
Department Chairperson will:
1. Annually review GIPWE/WECM/ACGM, as applicable, for changes that affect
programs.
a. Refer to GIPWE for new program application process.
b. Refer to GIPWE/SACS for process to sunset programs.
2. Accept curriculum change proposal from faculty and ensure that the proposal is
discussed thoroughly within the department and obtain faculty signatures on
faculty support document.
3. Refer to WECM and/or the ACGM for course selection.
4. Review the proposal for impact on program requirements identifying the certificates
and degrees that will include the curriculum change and prerequisite requirements
for courses.
5. Review the proposal for impact on other disciplines and general education
requirements and obtain support and signature from the departments and deans of
those disciplines.
6. Work with Instructional Dean Council to review the proposal for impact on students
and articulation agreements.
7. Review course descriptions and learning outcomes in WECM/ACGM for updates.
8. Ensure that all WECM program curricular changes are presented and approved by the
department’s advisory committee.
9. Obtain a review of the proposal packet by a department chair peer to ensure the
forms are complete and correct.
10. Forward supported proposal packet to the Instructional Dean for approval.
Instructional Dean will:
1. Encourage department chairs to consider all filing deadlines and timeframes.
2. Review the proposal for impact on financial aid, enrollment management services,
including considerations for contact and credit hours, transferability and costs.
3. For a proposal for a new program:
a. Refer to GIPWE requirements.
b. Submit Substantive Change Forms to Dean of eLearning, Vice President of
Instruction and President will submit substantive letter to SACS.
c. Submit new program application to Vice President of Instruction and College
President for review and approval.
i. Upon College President approval, prepare summary of application to be
presented to the Panola College Board of Trustees for approval.
4. Approve or disapprove the proposal.
5. Return disapproved proposal packet to Department Chair with explanation.
6. Forward approved proposal packet/forms to Curriculum and Instruction (C&I)
Committee for recommendation, FYI, and dissemination to appropriate parties.
7. Upon receiving proposal packet returned from C&I committee:
a. Return any proposals with recommendation to disapprove to department chair.
b. Forward approved proposal(s) with recommendation to accept to Vice President
of Instruction.
8. Upon receiving proposal packets returned from Vice President of Instruction:
a. Return any disapproved proposal packet to Department Chair.
b. For approved proposal packets, submit the appropriate forms to:
i. Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) for approval.
ii. College President for submission to SACS.
iii. Financial Aid for state report to qualify programs for funding (upon THECB
approval).
iv. Office of the Registrar for modifications to college course inventory and
catalog.
Vice President of Instruction will:
1. Review the proposal for impact on the college.
2. Approve or disapprove the proposal.
3. Return all proposal packets to the Instructional Dean providing explanation if
disapproved.
4. Upon receipt of approval e-mail from THECB, forward approval to C&I Committee
chairperson and secretary.
C&I Committee will:
• Review all requests
o A minimum of at least two committee members will review each packet in
detail and report to other committee members. To avoid a conflict of interest, no
committee member should review packets from his/her own department.
o Packets with multiple errors or inconsistencies (including but not limited to forms
that are not typed and out-of-date forms) will be returned to the Dean and
department chair for correction before final review.
• Conduct formal committee meetings in February.
• Make appropriate recommendations where applicable.
• Return approved packets to respective deans.
o Approved packets submitted to Vice President of Instruction for approval.
 Upon approval, information will be disseminated to appropriate
offices including the registrar, advising, office of institutional
effectiveness, planning and research and to financial aid (upon THECB
approval).
• Return disapproved packets to respective deans.
• All FYI submissions (ACGM) will be reviewed and disseminated to appropriate offices
including the registrar, advising, and deans, department chairs and faculty.
• Notify offices including the registrar, advising, financial aid, institutional effectiveness,
library, deans and department chairs upon THECB approval of proposed curriculum
changes by forwarding the approval e-mail.