Substantive Change

This page provides a link to the ACCJC 2009 Substantive Change Manual to guide institutions in developing substantive change proposals. In addition, basic information for substantive change is available here, as is the letter announcing the new Substantive Change fee which goes into effect January 2009, sent by the Commission President, Dr. Barbara A. Beno on October 8th 2008.

Substantive Change Manual (Published 2009)

Substantive Change Proposal Instructions and 2010-2011 Meeting Dates

The Commission expects accredited institutions to undertake change responsibly and to continue to meet the Eligibility Requirements, Accreditation Standards and Commission policies even as they make changes. To provide assurance of institutional quality to the public and to maintain Title IV financial aid funds for students of the institution, a Substantive Change Proposal must be reviewed and acted upon by the Commission’s Committee on Substantive Change, or the Commission as a whole.

For purposes of scheduling, and for an initial staff determination about the nature of the substantive change in question, it is important to contact staff before submitting a Substantive Change Proposal. Proposals must be completed according to the requirements as detailed in the ACCJC Substantive Change Manual at www.accjc.org. At the time the institution submits a draft proposal to the ACCJC office for review, the institution will be invoiced a $500 fee. The Committee reserves the right to return incomplete final proposals.

Review of a draft proposal, instructions for submission, and the outcome of the Committee’s review will be provided to the institution by ACCJC staff. Staff assigned to facilitate and assist with the substantive change process is Dr. Susan B. Clifford, sclifford@accjc.org.

One example of a substantive change is if an institution offers courses that constitute 50% or more of a program, degree, or certificate, including general education requirements, through a distance mode, electronic delivery, or correspondence education. A complete list of changes that require a Substantive Change Proposal can be found in the Substantive Change Manual.

Other Commission resources include:

Substantive Change Policy.
Policy on Distance Education and on Correspondence Education.
Contractual Relationships with Non-Regionally Accredited Organizations Institutions with Related Entities.
Interregional Policies on the Accreditation of Institutions Operating Across Regions.

The policies can be found in the Accreditation Reference Handbook at www.accjc.org/publications.htm .
Dates of scheduled meetings for the ACCJC Committee on Substantive Change for the 2010-2011 year are: November 4-5, 2010; March 14-15 and June 23-24, 2011.