Section 1501.507 Credit Hour Claims

a) Claims. Claims for credit hours shall be submitted within 30 days after the end of each term in a format used by ICCB.

b) Course Requirements. Courses that produce credit hours eligible for ICCB grants shall satisfy the following requirements:

1) Courses shall be offered for the number of credit hours for which they are approved by ICCB.

2) Courses that have variable credit hours shall be claimed in specified increments only up to the maximum credit value approved for the course.

3) Course data shall be posted to the permanent academic record of each student claimed.

4) Courses shall be a part of units of instruction that have been approved by ICCB, or the courses must be authorized extensions of existing units of instruction.

5) Courses shall have specific written objectives.

6) A course outline shall be available for review by any student or citizen.

7) Courses shall have a method of evaluating student performance that follows the adopted college grading system.

8) Courses shall follow the adopted college policies on student tuition.

9) The following categories of physical education courses shall be the only ones to produce eligible credit hours:

A) elective physical education courses;

B) required courses for majors and minors in physical education, recreational leadership, and related programs;

C) physical education courses in teacher education programs as required by the State Educator Preparation and Licensure Board.

10) Courses shall produce a maximum rate of one semester credit hour or equivalent per week. Requests for exceptions to this requirement may be submitted to ICCB. The criteria utilized by ICCB for exceptions shall include:

A) documentation of need for an intensified or accelerated schedule;

B) student population identified with testing and/or screening to indicate special needs and/or competencies;

C) how courses are instructed, including schedule of classes, study time allotted for students, method of instruction and how students are evaluated;

D) time period of instructional activity and projected termination date;

E) procedures to evaluate the accelerated instructional activity.

c) Student Requirements. The following requirements shall apply to students who generate credit hours eligible for ICCB grants.

1) Students shall be certified by their instructors as being in attendance at midterm by including a certification statement on the midterm class roster, signed and dated by the instructor.

2) Students who complete a course with a passing grade by the end of the term and who were not certified as being in attendance at midterm by the instructor shall be considered as having been in attendance at midterm.

3) Students enrolled in variable entry/variable exit classes or short-term classes of less than eight weeks may be certified by their instructors as having been in attendance at midterm by including a certification statement on the final class roster, signed and dated by the instructor.

4) Students shall be residents of the State of Illinois.

5) Auditors or visitors in a course shall not produce eligible credit hours.

6) Students who repeat enrollment in a course shall produce credit hours eligible for ICCB grants when one of the following conditions is met.

A) If the student completed the course the first time of enrollment with less than a grade of C (or equivalent) and if the student was claimed for funding, the student may enroll and be claimed in the course one additional time.

B) If the student enrolled in the course previously and withdrew before completing the course, and if the student was claimed for funding, the student may enroll and be claimed in the course one additional time.

C) If a student completed the course previously and was claimed for funding, the student may be claimed for retaking the course if the student uses his/her option to retake the course tuition free under the college's educational guarantee program.

D) If the last time the student completed the course was at least four years previously, the student may be claimed for funding if the student repeats the course to upgrade his/her skills in that area.

E) If a course has been approved by ICCB to be repeated, the student may repeat the course and be claimed as often as approved by ICCB.

d) Exceptions. The following credits will not be eligible for ICCB funding:

1) credit by examination;

2) military service credit for physical education;

3) transfer of credit earned at other institutions or in the armed forces;

4) proficiency examinations;

5) advanced placement credits;

6) other methods of program acceleration that do not include instruction; and

7) credit hours generated by freshman and sophomore students for dual credit courses.

e) Midterm Class List Certification Requirements

1) The midterm class lists' primary purpose shall be for certification of students' credit hours for State funding eligibility or ineligibility.

2) The process must rely on the course section's instructor's assessment of the students' pursuit of successful completion at the midpoint of the class, as indicated by that instructor's midterm certification signature.

3) The college shall document and communicate district requirements to faculty each semester.

4) The college must be able to provide, upon request, a hardcopy midterm class list print out of each course section, submitted on ICCB credit hour claims, containing either a manual faculty signature or an authenticated electronic faculty signature for either ICCB or external audit purposes.

5) Students who participate in an approved program with an intensified or accelerated schedule shall be exempt from the midterm class list requirements of this subsection (e) provided that a final class list is provided.

(Source: Amended at 44 Ill. Reg. 18680, effective November 13, 2020)