The Board of Regents in Iowa has long been a national leader in articulation and transfer credit policy development. This has occurred through cooperative effort, communication, and mutual trust among faculty and staff in Iowa's community colleges and Regent Universities.

From the early development of the community college system in the mid/late 1960s to the present, voluntary articulation has provided a successful vehicle for the smooth transfer of students from one Iowa public institution to another.

The Liaison Advisory Committee on Transfer Students (LACTS), formed in 1972, has been instrumental in fostering good relationships and forging the seven statewide agreements that serve as the foundation for the transfer of credit. You might think of the "transfer triangle" as the key to successful transition. This sets up direct communication between the student, the community college, and the Regent University. All of the information that follows will describe the many ways this exchange of information can happen.

LACTS has produced two publications - the first to explain the seven statewide agreements, including the Associate of arts and the Associate of Science degrees (Public Connection - part I (PDF)) and the second to document the individual Regent university agreements by community college (Public Connection - part II (PDF)). These publications detail the work that goes on at many levels across the public higher education system to ensure that the articulation agreements are working and that students have an opportunity to experience a smooth and seamless transition from Iowa's community colleges to the Regent Universities. To make this happen, information is provided and exchanged on many fronts.