Guidance for Program Proposals​

Overview

Guidance for Program Proposals​

Use this webpage for quick definitions and guidance on proposals. For a more in depth walkthrough with guidance on every field in the CIM system use the “Program Walkthrough.”

If a new or modified program depends on new or modified courses, begin the course curriculum work early. New courses supporting a program should be sufficiently far along in the course approval process before the program advances through program review; the existing LBCC guidance specifically cautions that a program may be delayed if its supporting course curriculum is not ready.

Program Types

Definitions and content are extracted and modified from the Program and Course Approval Handbook (PCAH 9th Ed).

An educational program is defined in Title 5, § 55000(m) as “an organized sequence of courses leading to a defined objective, a degree, a certificate, a diploma, a license, or transfer to another institution of higher education.”

Long Beach City College offers the following types of programs:

Noncredit Certificate of Competency
  • A certificate in a recognized career field articulated with degree-applicable coursework, completion of an associate degree, or transfer to a baccalaureate institution.
  • Considered a Career Development and College Preparation (CDCP) program.
Noncredit Certificate of Completion
  • A certificate leading to improved employability or job opportunities.
  • Considered a Career Development and College Preparation (CDCP) program.
  • Does not need to be submitted to the regional consortia.
  • If CTE short-term vocational, LMI must be submitted.
Credit Certificate of Accomplishment
  • A certificate of fewer than 8 units.
  • Does not need to be submitted to the Chancellor’s Office for chaptering.
Credit Certificate of Achievement
  • Colleges must submit programs of 16 or more semester units or 24 or more quarter units of degree applicable coursework to be chaptered by the Chancellor’s Office. Colleges may submit programs of 8 or more semester units or 12 or more quarter units of degree-applicable coursework to be chaptered by the Chancellor’s office in order that the program may be included in the student transcript.
  • If CTE, must include Advisory, LMI, and consortia approval.
Credit Associates in Science/Arts
  • These are local degrees defined as a minimum of 60 semester units… of degree-applicable lower division credit courses… (Title 5 Section 55061 Associate Degree Course Requirements 2023).
  • If CTE, must include Advisory, LMI, and consortia approval.
Credit Associate Degrees for Transfer (ADT) including Associates in Science (AS-T) and Associates in Arts (AA-T)
  • Must be submitted to the Chancellor’s Office for chaptering.
  • The Chancellor’s Office develops a template for each approved TMC. All submissions must include a completed, current template. Faculty authors must work with the Curriculum Chair and Dean, Academic Affairs, to prepare or modify the TMC template.
  • Learn more about the specific conditional requirements when modifying ADTs under “Modifying an Existing Program.”

Proposal Types in CIM

New Program

Use New Program when proposing a degree or certificate that does not currently exist at LBCC.

In CIM, begin a New Program Proposal and complete the applicable program fields, curriculum requirements, educational rationale, resource considerations, and supporting documentation.

Plan for the Subcommittee Agenda Deadline 

Submitting a proposal in CIM does not automatically mean it will be placed on the next subcommittee agenda. The proposal must first complete the workflow steps that occur before the applicable subcommittee. 

To be considered for an upcoming meeting, plan for the proposal to reach the Subcommittee Chair’s workflow step at least one week before the meeting date. This gives the Chair and support staff time to review proposals and prepare the agenda. 

Because Department Head and Dean approval occur before subcommittee review, obtain those approvals early enough for the proposal to reach the Chair by the agenda-planning deadline. 

Work backward from the desired subcommittee meeting date. Allow sufficient time for Department Head and Dean review, possible revisions or rollbacks, and agenda preparation. Reaching the Chair on the meeting date is too late for that meeting’s agenda. 

Confirm Agenda Placement 

Once the proposal has reached the appropriate subcommittee step, faculty should follow up with the applicable subcommittee support staff to confirm that the proposal has been received in time for agenda preparation and is expected to be agendized.  

Propose New from Existing

Use Propose New from Existing when creating a new program that will be based substantially on an existing LBCC program. This option creates a new proposal by copying information from the existing program, reducing duplicate data entry while allowing the new program to be developed as a separate curriculum record. Requirements for All Program Proposals

Modify Program

Use Modify Program when changing an existing approved degree or certificate.

Examples may include changes to required courses, electives, program units, program description, Program Student Learning Outcomes, or other approved program requirements.

Search for the existing program in CIM, select Edit, and choose Modify Program as the proposal type.

Inactivate Program

Use Inactivate Program when the department intends to discontinue an existing degree or certificate.

Program inactivation requires more than documenting that the program will no longer be offered. Faculty must evaluate its impact on currently declared students, identify completion options, determine appropriate course substitutions or continued course offerings, and develop a teach-out plan.

Foundational Documentation & Collaboration

This work applies broadly to new, modified, and inactivated programs, although the specific evidence needed will depend on the proposal.

Departmental Discussion

The program should be discussed by the department before the proposal is submitted. Upload documentation demonstrating that department faculty have reviewed and discussed the proposed curriculum action. The documentation should clearly identify the program and the department’s recommendation.

If the proposal affects courses or programs outside the department, consultation with those departments should also occur and be documented. The purpose is to establish that affected disciplines understand the proposed change and have had an opportunity to identify concerns or implementation issues.

Consultation is particularly important when adding, removing, or changing courses owned by another department.

Program Student Learning Outcomes

If the proposal creates, modifies, or inactivates Program Student Learning Outcomes (PSLOs), work with the department’s SLO Facilitator and the Assessment of Student Learning Outcomes Subcommittee as appropriate. The program proposal and PSLO information should remain consistent.

Articulation & Transfer

Consult the Articulation Officer when a program includes courses intended for CSU or UC transfer, Cal-GETC, C-ID, an Associate Degree for Transfer, or other transfer-related purposes. This consultation is especially important when program changes could affect existing articulation or the placement of courses within an ADT.

Resources & Feasibility

Faculty Authors, Department Heads, and the School Dean should discuss the resources necessary to implement or sustain the program. The Dean evaluates considerations such as staffing, scheduling, facilities, equipment, technology, and fiscal impact. The CIM proposal should accurately reflect these conversations rather than treating feasibility as an administrative step that occurs only after curriculum development.

Creating a New Program

Discuss the Program

Work with program faculty, the Department Head, and School Dean to establish the educational need, curriculum structure, resource implications, and relationship to existing programs.

Document departmental discussion and consultation with affected disciplines.

Develop the Supporting Courses

Identify all courses that will be required or included in the program.

If new or modified courses are necessary, initiate those proposals early. A program’s progress may be delayed if required course curriculum is not sufficiently developed or approved.

Complete the New Program Proposal in CIM

Select New Program and complete all applicable fields.

The CIM proposal serves as the primary curriculum record. Complete the rationale, program requirements, outcomes, feasibility information, and other applicable sections rather than relying on attachments to explain information that belongs in the proposal itself.

Upload Supporting Documentation

Upload the documentation required for the proposal, including department discussion and any applicable consultation, CTE, ADT, accreditation, licensure, workforce, or other supporting evidence.

Review and Submit

Review the entire program before submitting to workflow. Confirm that the courses, units, program requirements, narrative information, and supporting documentation are consistent.

Modifying an Existing Program

Review the Existing Program

Search for the existing program in CIM and select Edit. After selecting Edit, use the dropdown button to select Modify Program.

Evaluate the complete program rather than reviewing only the field you intend to change. Determine whether the modification affects program requirements, units, courses, PSLOs, transfer alignment, CTE requirements, or other departments.

Discuss the Modification

Document departmental discussion of the proposed changes and consult affected departments when their curriculum is involved.

Update the CIM Proposal

Make the proposed changes directly in CIM and provide a clear rationale explaining what is changing and why the modification benefits or is necessary for the program.

Complete Conditional Requirements

For CTE, obtain current LMI and advisory documentation and determine whether the modification requires LARC review.

For an ADT, coordinate with the Articulation Officer and Academic Services and complete the applicable TMC review and revalidation process.

Submit to Workflow

Review the complete modified program and supporting documentation before submission.

Inactivating a Program

Program inactivation is both a curriculum action and a student-completion process. The proposal should establish why the program should be discontinued and how LBCC will protect the ability of currently declared students to complete an educational goal.

Establish the Rationale

Explain why the program should be inactivated and provide supporting evidence.

For CTE programs, current LBCC guidance calls for relevant LMI and advisory committee documentation supporting the proposed inactivation. Advisory minutes should identify the discussion and vote related to discontinuing the program.

Identify Currently Declared Students

Work with Institutional Effectiveness to identify students who are still declared in the program and determine whether they remain actively enrolled.

This information becomes the foundation of the teach-out analysis.

Develop the Teach-Out Plan

•Determine how currently declared students can complete their educational goal. This may include:

•Continuing to offer required courses through the program’s end date.

•Establishing appropriate course substitutions.

•Transitioning students to a new or similar LBCC program.

•Identifying comparable offerings at another local community college when LBCC cannot provide a viable completion path.

•The department may also need to communicate approved substitutions to Counseling and Records Specialists.

Complete the Inactivation Proposal in CIM

Complete the rationale, impact analysis, teach-out information, and supporting documentation required by the Inactivate Program proposal.

The CIM proposal should make clear both why the program is being retired and what will happen to affected students.

Complete Local Approval Before Student Notification

The current LBCC guidance specifies that student notification occurs after Board of Trustees approval of the program inactivation.

Notify Declared Students

After Board approval, the department contacts students who have the program declared.

The communication should provide a viable path forward, such as a new/similar major, approved substitutions, or information about final course offerings and comparable programs when substitutions are not available.

The current process directs departments to BCC the affected students and copy the Curriculum Chair, Accreditation Liaison Officer, and Counseling Department Head(s).

Accreditation & Federal Notification

Following local approval, the Accreditation Liaison Officer manages the appropriate communication concerning the inactivation with ACCJC. The existing LBCC guidance states that ACCJC then communicates the award inactivation to the U.S. Department of Education for applicable federal records

Career Technical Education (CTE) Requirements

Career Technical Education (CTE) Programs

Career Technical Education (CTE) programs have additional requirements intended to demonstrate that the curriculum responds to current workforce needs and industry expectations. The requirements depend on whether the program is credit or noncredit and on the type of proposal.

Labor Market Information (LMI)

Labor Market Information (LMI) provides evidence that employment opportunities exist for students completing the program. LMI can include information about employment demand, projected job openings, wages, regional workforce supply, and industry trends. The Chancellor’s Office requires current LMI and analysis for new credit CTE programs.

Which Programs Need LMI?
  • Credit CTE Programs — LMI is required to demonstrate workforce need.
  • Noncredit Vocational Programs — LMI is required for short-term vocational programs with high employment potential.

Faculty should begin LMI research early so that workforce evidence can inform the design of the program, rather than simply being added as supporting documentation at the end.

LMI Requests

Labor Market Information (LMI) provides evidence of workforce demand for a proposed CTE program. It may include regional employment projections, job openings, wages, occupational growth, and the number of existing programs producing workers for the same occupations.

Use Lightcast to begin exploring the labor market, and consult applicable COE research for formal CTE program development and documentation.

  • Request Lightcast LMI for internal research.

    • Lightcast provides tools for exploring occupations, employment demand, wages, skills, job postings, and other workforce trends. It is useful for initial research and program exploration.
  • Request Centers of Excellence LMI for official curriculum proposals.
    • California Community Colleges Centers of Excellence (COE) provides labor-market research specifically designed to support California Community Colleges workforce and program planning. Faculty can also explore COE’s statewide and regional data tools for occupational demand and educational supply.
CTE Advisory Committee Minutes

CTE Advisory Committees bring industry and employer perspectives into curriculum development. They help faculty evaluate whether program curriculum reflects current occupations, technologies, skills, and workforce expectations.

Which Programs Need Advisory Committee Input?

  • Credit CTE Programs — Advisory Committee input and documentation are required for applicable CTE program development and approval. For new CTE programs, Chancellor’s Office documentation includes the committee membership, minutes showing discussion and approval of the program, and a summary of the committee’s recommendations.
  • Noncredit Vocational Programs — Advisory Committee recommendation is not required.

When Advisory Committee documentation is required, the minutes should clearly identify the discussion of the program and the applicable recommendation, motion, or approval action.

CTE Los Angeles Regional Consortium (LARC) Recommendation

The Los Angeles Regional Consortium (LARC) provides regional review of applicable credit CTE program proposals to help ensure that new and substantially changed programs respond to regional workforce needs and complement existing programs.

Which Programs Need LARC Review?
  • New Credit CTE Programs — Require LARC recommendation.
  • Modified Credit CTE Programs — Require LARC review when the modification is significant enough to require a new Chancellor’s Office control number.
  • Noncredit Vocational Programs — Do not require LARC recommendation.

Faculty do not submit the proposal directly to LARC. Complete the applicable CTE requirements and supporting documentation in coordination with the curriculum process. The Curriculum Chair submits the program for LARC review. Once the regional recommendation is received, the Curriculum Chair enters the LARC approval/recommendation date in CIM.

Associate Degrees for Transfer (ADTs) & Baccalaureate Degree Programs (BDPs)

Associate Degrees for Transfer (ADTs)

An Associate Degree for Transfer (AA-T or AS-T) is more structured than a local associate degree because it must remain aligned with the applicable Transfer Model Curriculum (TMC) and required transfer documentation.

An ADT modification requires more than reviewing the newly proposed course. LBCC’s established process requires the courses already included in the ADT to be revalidated to confirm that they continue to satisfy the current TMC requirements.

To begin modifying the ADT, locate and review the current Chancellor’s Office TMC template for the discipline. ADTs must continue to conform to the approved TMC, including its prescribed title, TOP Code, unit structure, course lists, and transfer documentation requirements.

Work with the Articulation Officer, before changing the courses included in the ADT. The Articulation Officer will help determine whether a proposed course is eligible for the appropriate TMC list based on applicable C-ID approval, articulation agreements, transferability, and CSU major preparation requirements. LBCC guidance identifies this consultation as a necessary step before Academic Services modifies the existing TMC.

Previously completed TMC documentation is maintained by the Office of Academic Services. Once the department and Articulation Officer have confirmed the proposed curricular structure. 

  • Work with the Dean of Academic Services to update the TMC documentation. 

Upload the collaboratively completed TMC and supporting documentation in the proposal.

Baccalaureate Degrees (BDPs)

Baccalaureate degree development begins with an internal LBCC review process before a formal program proposal is developed in CIM. Faculty interested in proposing a bachelor’s degree should also first complete the Potential Baccalaureate Degree Program Intake Form.

The intake process allows the College to evaluate the proposed degree’s educational need, workforce relevance, institutional capacity, resources, and overall feasibility before significant curriculum development begins.

The intake is shared through the appropriate College review process, including the Curriculum Committee, and may advance to the Baccalaureate Degree Program Workgroup and President’s Leadership Council for further consideration of institutional viability and whether LBCC should pursue the program.

Do not begin developing a full baccalaureate degree proposal in CIM until the proposed degree has completed the applicable LBCC intake and internal review process and the department has been advised to proceed.

What Happens After Your Submit in CIM?

Once the Faculty Author submits the proposal, CIM generates the appropriate program workflow. Faculty do not select or manually assemble the approval path.

The proposal moves through the applicable departmental, administrative, subcommittee, and governance review steps. Reviewers may approve the proposal, complete authorized live edits, or roll back the proposal with comments when additional information or revision is needed.

Program proposals receive review through the Associate Degree & General Education (AD&GE) Subcommittee before advancing to the Curriculum Committee when applicable. The existing LBCC process states that reviewers may identify questions before the meeting and may request additional documentation or faculty participation when needed. Following recommendation by AD&GE, proposals advance through Curriculum Committee and applicable Board of Trustees and Chancellor’s Office processes.

A rollback is not a denial. It returns the proposal to an earlier workflow step so that identified concerns can be addressed before the proposal continues.