Northern Oklahoma College Tonkawa announced a partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections to offer micro-credentials and scholarships for correctional institutions state wide.
The criminal justice program at NOC is working with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections office of professional development to create customized courses allowing their correctional employees to expand on the knowledge and skills in their chosen field.
Funding for this program was provided by the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education through the Upskill OK initiative. Through this funding, NOC is providing scholarships to the Oklahoma Department of Corrections for the new partnership.
NOC Criminal Justice Program Director Troy Cochran said, “I’m excited to partner with prisons all across the state in such an innovative new way to increase the knowledge of the field of corrections and provide Oklahoma Department of Correction institutions and employees beneficial and real-world education.”
“I’m very pleased with Troy Cochran’s leadership and the way the team at NOC came together to prepare to offer this micro-credential in Corrections,” said Vice President for Academic Affairs Diana Watkins. “Troy has worked closely with registration, academic affairs, finance, and scholarships to develop this partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. Brad Griffith at the State Regents office was instrumental in guiding us through the micro-credentials process and this is the beginning of some exciting offerings to come at Northern.”
NOC’s micro-credential program consist of three courses online in an 8-week self-paced academic environment.
Courses include a college level academic course in corrections, one custom tailored to Oklahoma Departments of Corrections specific training needs as an institution and institutional cross-training that provides an overall institutional benefit. Career exploration experiences allow the student to investigate specific job requirements and work environments.
Once all three courses are complete, the employee will receive a total of four digital micro-credential badges with the final badge in Detention and Correctional Officers as well as nine credit hours through Northern Oklahoma College.
Digital badges are a web-based artifact that contains metadata that documents students’ completion of a credential, such as a micro-credential, certificate or degree, and can be shared and verified electronically.
Future plans are to expand this program at the county jail level in the surrounding area.
This program is designed for traditional students and also non-traditional students that have already earned college credit. More information is available at https://www.noc.edu/academics/programs/reach-higher/ .