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BOULDER, Colo. – The Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) is ending its national program focused on simplifying the transfer process for college students.
Interstate Passport® was developed a decade ago to enable block transfer of lower-division general education attainment based on an agreed upon set of learning outcomes rather than specific courses and credits across a network of 70-plus public and private two- and four-year institutions.
The program’s review board voted to sunset Interstate Passport at the end of this year, switching from a focus on the recruitment of participating schools and students to instead developing evergreen resources for postsecondary institutions. The WICHE Commission was notified of the decision at its spring meeting last month.
Transferring course credits from one institution to another can be a frustrating process and often represents a step back in a student’s academic path and extra cost to repeat coursework. The postsecondary landscape has evolved dramatically in the last decade, and the program’s board recognizes this change was necessary to serve the needs of students and institutions.
“Over the last 10 years, faculty and staff from dozens of institutions worked diligently, bringing their expertise to develop and implement the Interstate Passport program and sharing the goal of improving transfer outcomes for their students,” said Dr. Raymonda Burgman Gallegos, vice president, WICHE programs and services unit which oversees the program. “WICHE staff are incredibly proud of the growth and accomplishments of the Interstate Passport Network and will continue to steward the tangible lessons learned through the life of this novel program to support the thinking around credit mobility for future students.”
WICHE staff is producing materials that can be used for curricular alignment, articulation agreements, and a framework for thinking about block transfer of credits. These materials will reflect the lessons learned through the implementation of Interstate Passport and will remain public and available to any institution at wiche.testing.brossgroup.com.
WICHE staff are hosting an informational webinar on June 15 at 11 a.m. MT to share findings from its 2021-22 Interstate Passport Annual Report, answer questions, and share insights into the resources that come out of this program. Register here.
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About WICHE
Since 1953, WICHE has worked collaboratively to expand educational access and excellence for all residents of the West. By promoting innovation, cooperation, resource sharing, and sound public policy, WICHE strengthens higher education’s contributions to the region’s social, economic, and civic life. WICHE members include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawai’i, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, and the U.S. Pacific Territories and Freely Associated States. Visit wiche.testing.brossgroup.com.
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