3-11.1 Procedure - REACH Act Compliance

In accordance with South Carolina statute Section 59-29-130 and through guidance of the South Carolina State Technical College System, Greenville Technical College (GTC) requires undergraduate students completing a baccalaureate degree to complete a three-credit course that requires, at a minimum, the reading of the Founding Documents in their entirety. The Founding Documents include: 

• The United States Constitution
• The Declaration of Independence
• The Emancipation Proclamation
• Five (5) Federalist Papers
• One or more documents foundational to the African American Struggle

Although associate degree programs are not required to include the Founding Documents within their curricula, Commission on Higher Education (CHE) recommends that these readings be included in courses that are transferrable to a four-year institution. Therefore, Founding Documents will be included in all sections of the PSC 201 (American Government) and the HIS 201 (American History: Discovery to 1877) courses.

All syllabi must be found in compliance prior to the start of each semester.

Review Process

A list of sections for PSC 201 and HIS 201 must be reviewed and approved by the respective department head and the Dean of Arts & Sciences (Dean)

• Department Head:
  1. Download each section for each course from Concourse.
  2. Review the syllabus for each section of each course for required content.
  3. Complete and submit the REACH Act Verification form and a copy of each syllabus to the Dean of Arts & Sciences (Dean) no later than one week after the start of each course.
• Dean:
  1. Verify information submitted by each respective department head.
  2. Complete and submit the REACH Act Verification form and a copy of each syllabus to the Office of Academic Compliance and Review by the end of each semester.
• Office of Academic Compliance and Review:
  1. Prepare final REACH Act Verification form.
  2. Maintain all syllabi for submission to CHE upon request.
  3. Submit REACH Act Verification form to the VP of Learning and Workforce Development for final review.
• VP of Learning and Workforce Development:
  1. Review REACH Act Verification form.
  2. Prepare letter verifying the results of the review process for the prior academic year, along with a complete list of courses offered in the prior academic year that satisfy the REACH Act.
  3. Submit to the president for signature.
• President will send a signed annual certification letter and the REACH Act Verification form to the SCSTC president (or designee) annually by June 30th.
• CHE Staff will identify a random set of courses (the larger of 10% of sections or ten sections) from the concluding academic year for review from the college.
• Office of Academic Compliance and Review will submit the syllabi for the random set and for each section taught by a new instructor by July 31 as requested by CHE.

Review by CHE

Through the review of the random set of courses by CHE, if it is determined that any syllabus is out of compliance, the college will be required to submit a copy of every syllabus from a REACH Act course for subsequent years until all syllabi are found in compliance by CHE, at which point review will revert to the randomized selection of courses. Further, the respective department head(s) will develop and submit a plan to ensure that the affected students are given the opportunity to meet the REACH requirements without additional cost to the student.

CHE staff will prepare a final report outlining compliance. This report will be shared with the Committee on Academic Affairs & Licensing (CAAL) and the full Commission prior to submit to the General Assembly in December of each year.

Advising

Faculty and/or professional advisors are responsible for:

1. Advising all students enrolled in a baccalaureate degree program at Greenville Technical College to complete with PSC 201 or HIS 201.
2. Advising all students who plan to transfer to a public 4-year institution of higher learning in South Carolina to complete either PSC 201 or HIS 201.
3. Document advising actions within Student Planning.

Verification of Completion

The registrar is responsible for verifying completion of the requirements as written in the REACH Act Compliance Policy through degree audit. Any student seeking a baccalaureate degree who does not successfully complete the requirements will not be awarded a degree.