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Respiratory care students with instructors Robert Vega (left) and Jung Eun Kim (right) in the foreground.

For the fifth straight year, Kapiʻolani Community College’s respiratory care program will receive the Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success Award from the Commission on Accreditation for Respiratory Care (CoARC). The registered respiratory therapist credential is a standard for professional achievement that measures a program’s success in inspiring its graduates to attain their highest educational aspirations.

In determining the award, CoARC used objective criteria based on key accreditation metrics documented in the 2015 Annual Report of Current Status.

Competing programs were required to:

  • Have three or more years of outcomes data
  • Hold accreditation without a progress report
  • Document registered respiratory therapist credentialing success of 90 percent or above
  • Meet or exceed established CoARC thresholds for certified respiratory therapist credentialing success, attrition and positive (job) placement

Robert Vega, program director for respiratory care and lead instructor Jung Eun Kim have led the program to reach the top 10 percent of approximately 450 accredited programs nationwide. According to Vega, 100 percent of Kapiʻolani CC’s program graduates are certified and registered as a registered respiratory therapist since 2008.

Kapiʻolani CC’s certificate of recognition will be conferred at the annual American Association for Respiratory Care’s Summer Forum which is scheduled in June at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

—By Louise Yamamoto

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