Course Substitution Criteria

Participants in the certification programs are required to complete six hours from each of the three topic areas, for a total of 18 hours for each certificate.

Program participants may participate in other professional development activities such as discipline specific conferences, seminars or workshops that meet the objectives of trainings offered through the Center for Professional Excellence (CPE) for program certification. Department chairpersons and supervisors may approve substitutions for CPE trainings to satisfy up to 50 percent of the required coursework from each of the key skill areas for a certificate of completion. Supervisors asked to approve a substitution should send the request to the CPE at cpe@hvcc.edu. The request must cite details to document the activity as a substitute for a course in a key skill area of one of the programs. Review the CPE certificate programs and their key skill areas.

The following criteria is to assist department chairs and supervisors compare alternate professional development activities to CPE offerings:

• Topical Match
  Each substitution must fit within one of the key (topical) areas of the certificate program.
• Rationale Appropriateness
  Each substitution must also relate to the rationale for the specific key skill area, as described in the program descriptions.
• Content Equivalence
  Each substitution must have substantial content to equal a minimum of one classroom/web hour and up to a maximum of three classroom/web hours.
• Broad Application
  Each substitution must be broad enough in nature to contribute to the overall development of a set of skills related to the certificate program.

Helpful Hints

• Many conference sessions may be too short to serve as substitutions. However, three conference sessions on a related topic might be packaged to serve as a substitution.
• Some long courses may cover material from more than one key skill area. A single request may document substitutions in several key skill areas.
• Documentation such as course outlines, conference publications, and program agendas should be attached to approval letters for inclusion in participants’ program files.