Last revised: 9/17/08
Federal Compliance
TulsaCommunity College exhibits integrity and forthrightness in communicating its policies and consumer information to the public.The College follows established standard practices governing academic credits, program lengths, and certificate and degree requirements.Further, TCC faithfully complies with federal laws,and handles federal funding and reporting requirements with diligence, honesty, and good stewardship.
Credits, Program Length, and Tuition
All credit awarded at TulsaCommunity College is measured in semester credit hours.Fall and spring semesters are 16 weeks in length, including the week set aside for final examinations, but the College offers courses in a variety of formats, ranging from one week to the full sixteen.In courses of shorter durations, the number of hours spent in class per week is adjusted appropriately.The state of Oklahoma requires 800 minutes of seat time per credit hour awarded; exceptions,as for Internet courses, blended course percentages, etc., must be demonstrably justified by out-of-class assignments (see Core component3C).
TCC’s degree and certificate programs and their curricula are approved by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.In Oklahoma public higher education, the relationship between credits and program length is a minimum of 60 credit hours for an associate degree.
Because certificate programs with credit requirements below 16 hours or durations of less than 16 weeks do not qualify for Title IV assistance, the lists of certificate programs submitted to the Department of Education on the Eligibility and Certification Approval Report (ECAR) differ from those sent to the Higher Learning Commission in the Annual Institutional Update.Further, the Institutional Update includes all options within a program; ECAR lists once per program.ECAR shows that TCC offers certificates in 43 programs.
The Collegecharges tuition by the credit hour, with the per-hour rate set by the TCC Board of Regents each June for the following academic year.TCC tuition remains comparatively low among Oklahoma’s state institutions and varies only on the basis of a student’s status as a resident or non-resident of the state.It does not vary from one academic program to another or from course to course, although some courses carry academic services fees in addition to tuition and mandatory fees.Increases, additions, and deletions of academic services fees must be approved by the institution’s local governing board and then submitted to the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education for approval in February before they may be imposed.Such fees may not exceed the actual cost of the course of instruction or the academic services provided by the institution.These services may include, but are not limited to, special instruction, testing, and provision of laboratory supplies and materials (OSRHE Policy and Procedures Manual, Fiscal Affairs, Section 4, Part I.B.2).
Accreditation
TulsaCommunity College accurately characterizes its affiliation with the Higher Learning Commission in its catalog (2008-2009 TCC Catalog, p. 11), on its Web site, in class schedules, and in selected other marketing publications.In each case, the reference includes the Commission’s Chicago phone number and Web address ( or 312-263-7462).
In addition, the College is accredited by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education (655 Research Parkway, Suite 200, Oklahoma City, OK 73104; 405-225-9100).The College is a member of the American Association of Community Colleges and the North Central Association of Two-Year Colleges, and is approved by the federal government to offer education under the Veterans and Social Security laws.
Many of TCC’s academic programs hold specialized accreditation from national organizations and agencies.These are identified in the TCC catalog and in the table below.
PROGRAM / NAME OF ACCREDITING GROUP / STATUSDental Hygiene / American Dental Association Commission on Dental Accreditation
(800) 621-8099
211 E. Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL60611 / Full Approval
Health Information Technology / Associate Degree Program
Commission on Accreditation for Health Informatics and Information Management Education (CAHIIM)
(312) 233-1132
233 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2150
Chicago, IL60601-5519
Coding & Reimbursement Specialist Certificate Program
American Health Information Management Association
(800) 224-4621
233 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 2150
Chicago, IL60601-5519 / Full Approval
Medical Laboratory Technology / National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences
(733) 714-8880
8140 W. Bryn Mawr, Suite 670
Chicago, IL60631 / Full Approval
Medical Assistant / Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Program
(312) 553-9355
35 East Wacker Drive, Suite 1970
Chicago, IL60601-2208 / Full Approval
Nursing / Oklahoma Board of Nursing
(405) 962-1800
2915 N. Classen Blvd., Suite 524
Oklahoma City, OK73106
National League for Nursing Accrediting Commission
(212) 363-5555
61 Broadway
New York, NY10006 / Full Approval
Occupational Therapy Assistant / Accreditation Council for Occupational Therapy
(301) 652-2682
4720 Montgomery Lane
Bethesda, Maryland20814-3425 / Full Approval
Patient Care Technician / Oklahoma Board of Nursing
(405) 962-1800
2915 N. Classen Blvd., Suite 524
Oklahoma City, OK73106 / Full Approved
Phlebotomy Certificate / National Accrediting Agency for Clinical Laboratory Sciences
(733) 714-8880
8140 W. Bryn Mawr, Suite 670
Chicago, IL60631 / Full Approval
Physical Therapist Assistant / Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education
(703) 706-3245
1111 North Fairfax St.
Alexandria, VA22314
/ Full Approval
Radiography / Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology
(312) 704-5300
20 N. Wacker Dr., Suite 900
Chicago, IL60606 / Full Approval
Respiratory Care / Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
(312) 553-9355
35 East Wacker Drive, Suite 1970
Chicago, IL60601-2208 / Full Approval
Surgical Technology / Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs
(312) 553-9355
35 East Wacker Drive, Suite 1970
Chicago, IL60601-2208 / Full Approval
Veterinary Technology / American Veterinary Medical Association/Committee on Vet. Tech. Education & Activities
Headquarters: (800) 248-2862,Wash. D.C.: (847) 925-8070
(202) 789-0007
193 N. Meacham Rd., Suite 100
Schaumburg, IL60173-4360 / Full Approval
The College maintains good standing with all its accrediting bodies by engaging in rigorous self-study activities, submitting requested fees and documentation in a timely manner, and notifying the accrediting bodies of changes in program leadership or administrative structure, significant decreases in program resources, substantive changes in class size or curriculum pattern, or the establishment of an expansion program (2008-2009 TCC Catalog, p. 11).In 2007, the College voluntarily withdrew from its relationship with the American Bar Association, which had previously accredited the Paralegal Program, although the program was in good standing at the time and had not undergone any changes.The program’s coordinator and Associate Dean explained in a May 3, 2007, letter to the ABA that the program elected not to pursue the ABA reapproval process; that the Legal Assistant Advisory Committee members, adjunct faculty, current students, and TulsaCommunity College administration were informed of this intention; and that the program’s decision received unanimous support from those groups.Correspondence with the ABA is in the resource room.
Title IV
TulsaCommunity College has been approved for participation in Title IV student financial assistance programs since 1970, the year of the College’s founding.At TCC, these programs include the Federal Pell Grant, Federal Work-Study, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Oklahoma Tuition Aid Grant, FFEL Stafford Loan (both subsidized and unsubsidized), and the Federal PLUS Loan programs.In 2006-2007, 68% of TCC students received financial aid, with the average award of federal grant aid at $2,289 and the average student loan at $2,088.State, local, and institutional aid for the average student receiving such assistance totaled $2,160 (NationalCenter for Education Statistics,
The College’s student loan default rate has declined for the past three reported years, from 9.4% in FY 2003 to 9.2% in FY 2004 and finally 8.6% (217 of 2,498) in FY 2005.The TCC catalog summarizes the College’s Default Management Plan, which requires an entrance interview witheach student borrower and an exit interview with each student whose enrollment is less than half time (whether as a result of withdrawals or graduation).A hold may be placed on a student’s academic records for any of several infractions, including a financial aid overpayment that must be repaid by the student, the student’s failure to comply with the exit interview requirement, or the student’s delinquency or default on a student loan.Infractions must be resolved before holds can be released (2008-2009TCC Catalog, p. 36).A copy of the Default Management Plan is in the resource room.
Policies governing reasonable academic progress and student appeals of financial aid suspension are also detailed in the TCC Catalog and online (2008-2009 TCC Catalog, pages 34-36; ).For financial aid purposes, a student enrolled in an eligible degree program may attempt up to 150% of the hours required for that degree or certificate, with the total number of attempted hours capped, for financial aid purposes, at 95.(In the course of this self study, a mistake was discovered in the 2008-2009 Catalog, which states the total number of attempted hours cannot exceed 94; this mistake will be corrected in the next printing.)Students may appeal this limitation—for example, when pursuing a second associate degree—but if an appeal is approved, financial aid will be paid only for the courses required for completion of the degree.To meet the minimum standards for reasonable academic progress, all students must successfully complete at least 70% of their total credit hours.Students with 30 or fewer attempted hours must achieve a cumulative GPA of at least 1.70, while students with more than 30 attempted hours must attain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.00.Course grades of F, W, AW, WP, WF, I, U, etc., are considered hours attempted but not hours successfully completed.Audited classes do not qualify for financial aid, and students who receive aid for a class they decide to audit will be required to repay any applicable financial aid funds.A student who has earned a previous bachelor’s degree is not eligible to receive Pell Grants or SEOG aid.
The academic progress of students participating in Title IV programs may be evaluated at the end of every semester (including summer).A student who does not meet minimum requirements will be placed on financial aid probation for the following semester, during which the student may continue to receive aid.If the student fails to meet minimum standards at the end of the probationary semester, Title IV assistance is suspended.
In the case of a student’s complete withdrawal or dismissal prior to completion of the semester, he or she would be immediately suspended from financial aid and subject to the Department of Education’s Return of Title IV policy.Students who have been suspended from receiving financial aid may re-establish eligibility by satisfactorily completing enough courses to attain the minimum standards for reasonable academic progress.
The College’s 2007A-133 audit reveals no significant deficiencies.The one finding, that a single student was notified late about the requirement to return funds, led the College to introduce a new grade of “WN” (withdrawn, never attended), which faculty are instructed to post for students who have not participated by the conclusion of the second week of a 16-week class.(Courses with other durations have adjusted deadlines.)The WN grade serves to alert Financial Aid to students who will require such notification.This remedy would have prevented the problem identified by the audit and should make a recurrence very unlikely.The College’s A-133 audits for the past two years are in the resource room; they may be found within each year’s Annual Financial Report.
Public Disclosure
Through its Department of Public Safety/Campus Police, TulsaCommunity College complies with the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act by publishing an annual campus security report in the Student Handbook and online ( copies are available through the Campus Police Office and the Dean of Student Services Office on each campus, and reports are sent annually by email to all employees and students.
The annual report contains campus crime statistics for the previous three years, including arrests for drug, alcohol, and weapons violations.The report also includes information about prevention programs that address sexual assault and drug or alcohol abuse, information about available support services for victims, crime prevention tips, Web addresses of sex offender and violent offender registries, and instructions for getting help or reporting a crime.
In addition to fully disclosing information about crime on its campuses, the College takes varied and proactive steps to make its campuses safe environments for students and employees.TCC’s Campus Police officers, who are vested with full law enforcement powers and responsibilities, patrol campuses and campus parking lots 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.An emergency 911 system serves all campus phones, and emergency call boxes are available and clearly visible in the campus parking lots.TCC Campus Police are part of a mutual aid agreement with several area law enforcement agencies using the National Incident Management Systems (NIMS) and Incident Command System (ICS) models.Throughout each year, Campus Police receives support from the President of the College, the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs, Student Health Services, Counseling offices, Phi Theta Kappa, the Student Government Association, and Staff Development to provide safety seminars on each campus.Topics range from crime and alcohol/drug abuse prevention to avoiding date rape.Other recent seminars and critical incident resources available online include TCC Mass Notification System FAQs; Training for the Use of Emergency Kits; TCC Emergency Notification Procedures Handbook; Responding to the Aftermath of Workplace Violence;a Powerpoint on campus violence prepared by Dr. John Nicoletti, the author of Violence Goes to College; Behavioral Intervention Strategies; Dealing with Disruptions in the Classroom and Office; and Emergency Preparedness for students, faculty, and staff.
The College’s crime statistics from the past three years reveal that TCC is indeed a low-crime environment compared to other colleges, universities, and communities of similar size.The statistics reported on the TCC Web site include some offenses that the College is not required to report under the Clery Act (larcenies), but TCC’s Campus Police professionals decided it is important to report all crimes that occur on campuses.As is true for most police departments in the U.S., TCC Campus Police report that larceny is the most prevalent property crime.
The crimes listed below are shown by year and by location.Crimes in the “TCC” column were reported to TCC Campus Police and took place on property “owned and controlled by the College within the same reasonable contiguous area” ( in the “PD” column “were reported to the city police departments having jurisdiction on all public property, including thoroughfares, streets, sidewalks, and parking facilities, that are adjacent to and accessible from the campus.”These statistics are provided by the cities of Sand Springs and Tulsa, and they have not been independently verified by TCC.Further, the city police departments report crimes classified by geographical assignment codes that cover large areas,and they are currently not able to provide statistics limited to crimes that occur on property in the near vicinity of a campus.PD statistics, therefore, reflect crimes that occurred in geo codes that include a campus but also property as far as a mile away from campus. The “CSA” column indicates crimes that occurred on College property and were reported to other campus security authorities.At TCC, other campus security authorities are defined asthe campus deans.Crimes in the CSA column are not always verified, by either Campus Police or city police,as having occurred, and they may duplicate crimes concurrently reported to the Campus Police or city police.
Crime Statistics Chart - TCC CommunityOffense / Year 2005 / Year 2006 / Year 2007
TCC / TCC / PD / CSA / TCC / PD / CSA / TCC / PD / CSA
Murder / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 0
Forcible Sex Offenses (1.) / 1 / 4 / 0 / 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 2 / 0
Nonforcible Sex Offenses (2.) / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Robbery / 1 / 18 / 0 / 0 / 22 / 0 / 0 / 16 / 0
Aggravated Assault / 0 / 51 / 0 / 2 / 44 / 0 / 2 / 43 / 0
Motor Vehicle Theft / 3 / 84 / 0 / 5 / 65 / 0 / 13 / 106 / 0
Arson / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Burglary / 14 / 84 / 0 / 15 / 72 / 0 / 9 / 102 / 0
Larceny / 30 / 347 / 0 / 25 / 359 / 0 / 42 / 264 / 0
Liquor Law Arrests / 0 / NA / 0 / 2 / 4 / 0 / 0 / N/A / 0
Liquor Law Violations / 1 / NA / 0 / 2 / 4 / 0 / 4 / N/A / 4
Drug Law Arrests / 0 / NA / 0 / 1 / 3 / 1 / 1 / N/A / 0
Drug Law Violations / 0 / NA / 0 / 3 / 3 / 1 / 4 / N/A / 0
Illegal Weapons Arrested / 0 / NA / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / N/A / 0
Illegal Weapons Violations / 1 / NA / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / N/A / 0
The College annually notifies students of the public’s right to view campus crime statistics and where those may be found through electronic communications on the MyTCC portal. An example ofthis communicationisavailable in the resource room.
The College also makes public, annually, other consumer information required by federal regulations.Through the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, the Office of Institutional Planning and Research reports enrollments, retention and graduation rates, program completions, prices, financial aid, demographic information, and other institutional data.The most current published data reveals that TCC’s fall-to-fall retention rate for full-time, first-time students who entered the College in fall 2006 was 51%; the retention rate for part-time students in the same period was 37%.The most recent IPEDS-reported graduation rate for full-time, first-time freshmen (those who began in 2004) was 13%, while the transfer-out rate was 21%.The percentage of entering students counted in calculating the graduation rate was 21%.Because TCC has no varsity athletic programs, the College reports no separate data on student athletes.The full consumer data reported through IPEDS can be found in the resource room or onlineat
Providing accurate information about itself and its programs is a high priority for the College.To ensure consistency and accuracy in communicating to students, prospective students, employees, and the public, the Office of Marketing Communications makes updates and changes in all its publications annually as part of the catalog revision process.Information that is submitted and approved for publication in the annual TCC catalog is used throughout the year in other publications, on the Web, and in other forms of student communications such as the MyTCC portal; the course delivery system, Blackboard; the Student Web system; etc.By using the catalog as a common source, the College knows that the information for a specific academic year is consistent and current—unless a policy change occurs during the year.In such cases (for example, the development of the deferred payment plan during the 2007-2008 academic year), specific communications about that policy change are created, immediately distributed to affected groups, and followed in subsequent publications and future catalog updates.