College Now Partnership between MCC and Your High School

Administrative Handbook Shortcuts:

High school administrators who would like to offer their students MCC College Now pathways for college and high school credit are encouraged to email collegenow@monroecc.edu.  As stated above, if your school already participates in College Now with another SUNY community college, we ask that you let us know that information immediately. Your Chief Academic Officer must provide us approval in writing to offer our courses to your students.

For a high school to be considered for College Now credit, these NACEP processes must be completed:

• High school curriculum is modified to meet our accreditation requirements
• Courses administered through a concurrent enrollment program are MCC catalogued courses with the same departmental designations, course descriptions, numbers, titles, and credits;
• Concurrent enrollment courses reflect the learning objectives, and the pedagogical, theoretical and philosophical orientation of the respective MCC department;
• College courses offered in the high school are of the same quality and rigor as the courses offered on-campus at MCC.
• High school teachers are certified by MCC to teach a College Now course or courses
• High school teachers must meet the same qualifications as instructors teaching the course on the MCC campus.

The College Now office is happy to help you through this process.

In MCC’s College Now program, high school teachers are a crucial element in offering a high quality, rigorous, college-level experience to students. Students are only eligible for MCC credit when they are seated in the class of a College Now-certified teacher. For these reasons, a review of the credentials of the proposed high school teacher is required.

The first step in teacher certification is to submit a current resume and unofficial transcripts of graduate and undergraduate coursework along with the Teacher/Course Approval Request form indicating which MCC College Now Course they would like to be considered for.

Once certified, each high school teacher is assigned a Faculty Liaison who will provide guidance and serve as a resource for the time the course is offered.

Teacher certification never expires; however, College Now courses for which the certification is granted, may be discontinued. There are a few instances where a certified teacher may lose their certification:

• The high school teacher does not respond to the College Now office or to his/her Faculty Liaison;
• The high school teacher does not maintain departmental standards for curriculum and / or grade assignment;
• A teacher misses two or more professional development offerings;
• The Faculty Liaison is prohibited from visiting the school and observing the classroom;
• A change in MCC teaching credentials.

In the case that an approved high school teacher will be out of school for an extended absence*, the high school will notify the College Now office immediately. School administration will provide the College Now office with credential information (resume and transcripts) of the substitute, which will be reviewed for certification.

After this review, high school administration and the substitute will be notified of the status of their certification. If a substitute does not meet MCC’s teaching criteria, the course may not be offered as College Now.

* An extended absence is when the approved teacher is replaced by substitutes, or a long-term substitute, for a prolonged length of time.

Monroe Community College serves high schools and BOCES locations within the limits of Monroe County. According to SUNY guidelines, MCC has first right of refusal in working with schools within Monroe County. This means schools will first seek a College Now partnership and if MCC is willing and able, a partnership will be established. If the high school teacher meets departmental standards for College Now teachers, and MCC is unable or unwilling to partner with the school for a particular course, this will be stated in writing. A letter from the MCC Provost may be written allowing the school to seek partnership with another community college. SUNY guidelines allow community colleges to update agreements annually.  Letters are not written when teacher credentials do not match MCC criteria.

When a high school outside of Monroe County wishes to partner with MCC the process is the same. The school will first seek partnership with the community college that serves the county in which the school is located. If the community college is unable or unwilling to partner with the high school, the Chief Academic Officer will write a letter allowing the school to partner with MCC.

This process provides consistency in service delivery and maintains a transparent and collaborative relationship within SUNY community colleges.