Message from President Lixin Huang

Welcome to the web site of the Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine. On this web site you will find a wealth of information concerning the Council, its member schools, and acupuncture and Oriental medicine (AOM) education in the U.S., including information under separate tabs on the homepage of value to prospective acupuncture students, career counselors, and AOM practitioners and their patients.

Mission and Work of the Council

The Council is a 501(c)(6) voluntary membership association for acupuncture schools and programs in the U.S. Established in 1982, the Council currently has a membership of 53 acupuncture schools. As a requirement of membership, all of the Council’s member schools have obtained either full accreditation or accreditation candidacy status with the Accreditation Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (ACAOM), which is the national organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to accredit AOM schools and programs in the U.S.

The mission of the Council is to advance AOM by promoting educational excellence in the field. In furtherance of this mission, the Council endeavors to promote the following goals:

to support the development and improvement of educational programs in acupuncture and Oriental medicine
to develop recommended curricula for degree, diploma and other educational programs
to support and foster academic freedom and a diversity of educational approaches within the field
to encourage scientific research, innovative teaching methodology, and faculty development
to provide a forum for discussion of issues relevant to member colleges
to serve as an information resource for member colleges, other colleges and organizations, regulatory agencies, and the public
to encourage ethical business practices among member colleges
to work with accreditation, certification, licensing and regulatory agencies to develop appropriate educational standards and requirements
to promote increased public access to high quality health care provided by well-trained practitioners of acupuncture and Oriental medicine.

The membership of the Council meets twice each year to engage in committee work, conduct strategic planning, host special panels and workshops on topics of interest to its members, and participate in plenary business sessions. Each of these activities provides a forum for Council members to come together with their colleagues for dialogue and planning around the major issues affecting AOM education and the AOM profession. The meetings also provide other benefits through an opportunity for Council members to hear reports from other national AOM organizations and to share information and resources among themselves in an atmosphere of collegiality and mutual support.

The Council administers a national needle safety course known as the Clean Needle Technique Course. This course is required by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) in order to take the national certification examination in acupuncture. As an important verification of an acupuncture graduate’s safe needling technique, the CNT course contributes to the high confidence level in the safety of acupuncture by patients, regulators, and third party payors in the U.S.

CCAOM Leadership in AOM Education

As recommendations for ACAOM, the Council developed academic and clinical guidelines and core curriculum requirements for first-professional master’s level programs in acupuncture and in Oriental medicine. The Council also developed core curriculum recommendations to ACAOM for master’s level programs in Chinese herbology and for post-graduate doctoral programs in acupuncture and in Oriental medicine.

Beginning in 2005, the Council annually has invited the leadership of other national AOM organizations to an informal dialogue concerning issues of interest to the profession, including a discussion of the work plans of each organization and of opportunities for mutual collaboration. These meetings serve not only to inform the Council of the views of other organizations when the Council reviews its strategic plan, but also to enhance mutual understanding among all the participating organizations.

Between meetings of the full Council, which occur twice each year, the Council is governed by an Executive Committee composed of a President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, three Members-at-Large, and the Immediate Past President. In practice, the members of the Executive Committee are generally Presidents, Chief Executive Officers, or Program Directors at the Council’s member schools.

CCAOM Participation in Other Organizations

The Council’s primary focus on advancing AOM by promoting educational excellence in the field is complemented by its participation in a number of other organizations whose work is consistent with that goal. Within the AOM field, the Council is a member of the American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (AAAOM) and provides representation to ACAOM’s Doctoral Task Force and to NCCAOM’s Examination Development Committee and Job Analysis Task Force. Outside the AOM field, the Council is a member of the Academic Consortium for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (ACCAHC), National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions (NAAHP), and the International Tiger Coalition (ITC).