Dec 04, 2024  
2024-2025 Student Handbook 
    
2024-2025 Student Handbook

ACC Consumer Information



General Information

Accreditation

Alamance Community College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award certificates, diplomas, and associate degrees. Questions about the accreditation of Alamance Community College may be directed in writing to the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097, by calling 404-679-4500, or by using information available on SACSCOC’s website (www.sacscoc.org).

Degree Programs, Training and Other Educational Offerings

A complete and detailed listing of the college’s degree programs and completion requirements can be found in the College catalog or at https://www.alamancecc.edu/academic-divisions/index.php.

Full-time faculty members, with their degree qualifications, are listed by program area in the College catalog. Contact information for college faculty is on the College’s website at: www.alamancecc.edu. Click on Employee Directory at the bottom of the home page.

Students who need to complete a high school diploma or high school equivalency exam can find information at the College’s Assessment Center (336-506-4376) or at www.alamancecc.edu and click on Degrees and Programs, then click GED/ Adult High School/ESL.

Tuition and Costs of Attendance

Tuition is established by the North Carolina General Assembly. The current tuition and fee rates change annually and are published on the College’s website at https://www.alamancecc.edu/how-to-pay/financial-aid/types-of-aid.php. Specific program fees, insurance and graduation fees are listed in the college catalog. Transportation costs vary depending on the distance a student must commute to the college. Programs containing work-based learning, clinicals, or externships also have transportation requirements to the individual sites. Programs with these requirements are listed in the College catalog. Cost of textbooks for each course is posted on Self Service on the College website.

Withdrawals and Refunds

Students must officially withdraw from courses to be eligible for refunds. To withdraw from a course, students should contact their faculty advisor or the Registrar’s office. Students will receive a 100 percent refund of tuition and fees if they withdraw before classes begin or if a course for which they are registered is canceled. A 75 percent refund is given once classes begin and up to the 10 percent point of a given course. Information on refund policies is in the ACC Policy 6.1.4 https://www.alamancecc.edu/_resources/images/about-acc/ACC-Policy-and-Procedure-Manual_031924.pdf

Accessibilty Services

The Accessibility Services Office is located in the Student Support Center on the Carrington-Scott Campus. Information on available services and how to access these services can be found on the College website at https://www.alamancecc.edu/services-and-support/accessibility-services/index.php.

Student Right to Know Act Policy

Pursuant to the Student Right to Know and Campus Security Act (the “Act”), the College is required to publicly disclose relevant graduation and transfer rate information for its students.

The Act provides a consumer information report designed for public access to relevant graduation and transfer information to enable students to make informed decisions regarding their college choice. The College makes available to currently enrolled as well as prospective students the graduation and transfer rate for the most recent cohort of entering students based on a one-year reporting period.

The report is a cohort-based study. The cohort is comprised of students who enrolled as first- time college students who attended full-time (i.e., 12 or more hours) and declared themselves as degree seeking. The graduation and transfer rate for the cohort is calculated one year after the cohort’ initial date of enrollment. These numbers can be misleading because many community college students attend part-time. Those students are not included in this report. Moreover, students with academic goals other than transfer or degree seeking are not included in this report. Also, not included with the report are those students who leave school to serve in the armed services, on an official church mission, or with a recognized foreign aid service of the Federal government.

The report is updated annually and is available online at https://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator. Students should type “Alamance Community College” under “Name of School” and press the “Enter” key.

June 13, 2022

FERPA Annual Notice Procedure

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law, provides students with certain rights with respect to their education records. These rights are:

  1. The right to inspect and review your education records within 45 days of the day the College receives a request for access. You should submit to the College’s Registrar a written request that identifies the record(s) you wish to inspect. The College’s Registrar will make arrangements for access and notify you of the time and place where the records may be inspected. If the records are not maintained by the College’s Registrar, the Registrar will advise you of the correct official to whom your request should be made.
  2. You have the right to challenge an item in your education records believed to be inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of your privacy rights. You may file a grievance pursuant to Policy 5.3.6 - Student Grievance beginning at Step Three. If the final decision is that the information in the record is, in the College’s determination, not inaccurate, misleading, or otherwise in violation of the privacy rights of the student, the Vice President of Student Success shall inform the student of the right to place a statement in the record commenting on the contested information in the record or stating why he or she disagrees with the College’s decision.
  3. The right to consent to disclosures of personally identifiable information contained in your education records. FERPA requires that the College obtain your written consent prior to the disclosure of any such information with certain exceptions. College officials with a legitimate educational interest are an exception and do not need your consent. For a complete list of the disclosures that may be made without your consent, see 34 CFR Part 99.31 - 99.39. Exceptions to disclosures include, but are not limited to:
    1. Organizations conducting studies;
    2. Health/safety emergencies;
    3. Under the U.S. Patriot Act;
    4. Federal, state and local authorities;
    5. Accrediting organizations;
    6. State, local or tribal welfare agencies;
    7. College officials with legitimate educational interest;
    8. In response to subpoenas and court orders; and
    9. In response to a lawsuit where a student names the College as a party.
  4. A College official includes any of the following when that person has a legitimate educational interest in having access to the information:
    1. Any administrator, certified staff member, or support staff member (including health, medical, safety, and security staff) employed by the College;
    2. A member of the College’s Board of Trustees;
    3. A contractor, consultant, volunteer, or other party to whom the College has outsourced services or functions, such as, but not limited to: an attorney, auditor, cloud storage provider, consultant, expert witness, hearing officer, law enforcement unit, investigator, insurer/insurance company adjuster, investigator, or any other claims representative, medical providers or consultants, or counselors/ therapists, provided that the person is performing a service or function for which the College would otherwise use employees, is under the direct control of the school district with respect to the use and maintenance of education records, and is subject to FERPA requirements governing the use and re-disclosure of personally identifiable information from education records; and
    4. A person serving on a committee appointed by the College, such as a disciplinary or grievance committee or other review committee.
      A College official has a legitimate educational interest if the official needs to review an education record in order to fulfill his or her professional responsibility.
  5. The College may release Directory Information about you unless you have advised the College to the contrary. The College has designated the following information as Directory Information: name; program (major field) of study; dates of attendance, grade level and enrollment status; and degrees, diplomas, certificates, honors and awards received. In addition, the College releases the following limited-use directory information: College-issued photographs, videos, or other media containing a student’s image or likeness are disclosed by the College and/or third parties contractually affiliated with the College (such as vendors and partner institutions with a joint memorandum of understanding) for purposes limited to: a) publication in print and/or on web sites/social media hosted by, on behalf of, or for the benefit of the College for purposes including but not limited to marketing, public relations, outreach, press releases, or College ID cards; and b) at College events including but not limited to college fairs, job fairs, open houses, and student organization activities.
    1. The College shall only release Directory Information to individuals and organizations that demonstrate, in the College’s opinion, a legitimate, education interest in the information or provide a direct service to the College; provided, however, the College shall release Directory Information to military recruiters in compliance with the Solomon Amendment unless you specifically restrict the release of your Directory Information.
    2. If you do not want the College to disclose your Directory Information described above from your education records to the recipients identified above without your prior written consent, you must submit a completed Student Release Form to the Office of Enrollment Management within 14 days of the beginning of the academic year or within 14 days of you enrolling in the College.
  6. The College shall release a student’s educational records to the student’s parents or guardian when requested by the parents or guardian and: i) the student is listed as a dependent on the parents’ tax returns; ii) the student violated a law or the College’s policies regarding drugs and alcohol and the student is under the age of 21; or iii) the disclosure is needed to protect the health or safety of the eligible student or other individuals in an emergency situation.
  7. You have the right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education concerning alleged failures of the School District to comply with the requirements of FERPA. The name and address of the office that administers FERPA is the:

    Student Privacy Policy Office
    U.S. Department of Education
    400 Maryland Avenue, SW
    Washington, DC 20202-5901

Questions regarding student records should be directed to the College’s Registrar’s Office.

June 13, 2022

Campus Security Reporting Act Clery Act Policy

I. POLICY OVERVIEW

The College is committed to providing a safe and secure environment for all members of the College’s community and visitors. The College shall comply with the Crime Awareness and Security Act of 1990, as amended by the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act.

II. DEFINITIONS

  1. Campus Security Authority (CSA) is a Clery-specific term that encompasses four groups of individuals and organizations associated with an educational institution:
    1. A member of the educational institution’s police department or campus security department;
    2. Any individual(s) who has responsibility for campus security but who does not constitute a campus police department or a campus security department (e.g., an individual who is responsible for monitoring the entrance into the College’s property);
    3. Any individual or organization specified in an institution’s statement of campus security policy as an individual or organization to which students and employees should report criminal offenses. For purposes of this College, this individual is the Director of Public Safety; and
    4. An official or someone who has significant responsibility for student and campus activities, including, but not limited to: student discipline and campus judicial proceedings. An official is defined as any person who has the authority and the duty to take action or respond to particular issues on the College’s behalf.
  2. Clery Act Crimes are the following crimes that must be reported by Campus Security Authorities to law enforcement and crimes that are listed in the College’s Annual Security Report:
    1. Murder/non-negligent manslaughter; negligent manslaughter; sex offenses (forcible and nonforcible); domestic and dating violence; stalking; robbery; aggravated assault; burglary; motor vehicle theft; and arson;
    2. Hate Crimes: any of the abovementioned offenses, and any incidents of larceny-theft; simple assault; intimidation; or destruction/ damage/ vandalism of property that was motivated by bias towards race, religion, ethnicity, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability; and
    3. Arrests and referrals for disciplinary action for weapons (carrying, possessing, etc.); drug abuse violations and liquor law violations.
  3. College Property is all of the following property:
    1. Campus Grounds, Buildings and Structures - Any building or property owned by or controlled by the College within the same reasonably contiguous geographic area and used by the College in direct support of, or in a manner related to, the College’s educational purposes; and any building or property that is within or reasonably contiguous to such buildings, or property that is owned by the College but controlled by another person and is frequently used by students and supports College purposes.
    2. Off-Campus and Affiliated Property - Any building or property owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the College; or any building or property owned or controlled by the College that is used in direct support of, or in relation to, the College’s educational purposes, is frequently used by students, and is not within the same reasonably contiguous geographic area of the College.
    3. Public Property - All thoroughfares, streets, sidewalks, and parking facilities that are within the campus, or immediately adjacent to and accessible from the campus.

III. SAFETY AND REPORTING PROCEDURES

The College encourages all members of the College community to report suspicious or criminal activity to law enforcement as soon as possible. Crimes may be reported anonymously. In the event of a crime in progress or a risk of harm to persons or property, call 911.

In addition, CSAs have a legal obligation to file a report of suspected criminal activity with the Department of Public Safety to ensure statistical inclusion of all Clery Act Crimes in the College’s Annual Security Report, when those crimes occur on or near College Property. Any individual identified by the College as a CSA shall receive notification of that designation and the requirement that the individual report information about Clery Act Crimes. Training will also be provided to all persons with this designation. While CSAs must report any Clery Act Crime that comes to their attention, at the request of the victim, the victim’s identity may remain anonymous.

To promote safety and security at the College, and in compliance with the Clery Act, the College shall:

  1. Submit crime statistics to the United States Department of Education.
  2. Maintain a daily crime log (open to public inspection).
  3. Issue campus alerts to warn the College community in a timely manner when there is information that a Clery Act Crime has occurred that represents a serious or ongoing threat to campus safety.
  4. Issue emergency notifications upon the confirmation of a significant emergency or dangerous situation involving an immediate threat to the health or safety of students or employees occurring on the campus. The College tests the emergency notification procedure bi-annually.
  5. Publish and maintain an Annual Security Report containing safety and security related policy statements and statistics of Clery Act Crimes occurring on College Property. To prepare the Annual Security Report, the College collects, classifies, and counts crime reports and crime statistics. The Annual Security Report is available on the College’s website, and hard copies are available through the Department of Public Safety for inspection.

June 13, 2022

Registered Sex Offender Information

Members of the campus community can obtain information about registered sex offenders by contacting the online national registry at nsopw.gov or State Bureau of Investigation web page at https://sexoffender.ncsbi.gov/search.aspx, where they can search North Carolina and national registries, obtain contact information for their local sheriff’s office, and/or sign up to receive e-mail alerts when registered sex offenders report an address in the local area.

Constitution Day Activities

Held annually on September 17, Constitution Day is a campus-wide, collaborative event hosted by the Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences and the Student Government Association. The event is held on the Carrington-Scott Campus, in and around the school auditorium. The day is highlighted by a guest speaker and also includes games, a Constitution quiz, and voter registration. Announcement of Constitution Day activities are sent via students’ ACCess email and can be found on the College’s website: www.alamancecc.edu under News and/or Events.