[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 216 (Tuesday, November 9, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68774-68776]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-28255]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and 
Integrity (NACIQI) Meeting

AGENCY: National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and 
Integrity, Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of December 1-3, 2010 meeting of the National Advisory 
Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI); changes to 
the proposed agenda for the meeting; and information related to members 
of the public making third-party oral comments at the meeting.

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SUMMARY: This notice sets forth changes to the proposed December 1-3, 
2010 NACIQI meeting agenda that was published in the August 23, 2010 
Federal Register (75 FR 21280); a complete listing of the proposed 
agenda items for the December 1-3, 2010 NACIQI meeting, as revised; and 
information related to members of the public making oral comments at 
the meeting. The notice of this meeting is required under section 
10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and section 
114(d)(1)(B) of the Higher Education Act (HEA).

ADDRESSES: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary 
Education, 1990 K Street, NW., Room 8060, Washington, DC 20006.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
    Meeting Date and Place: The NACIQI meeting will be held on December 
1-3, 2010, from 8:30 a.m. to approximately 5:30 p.m., Eastern Standard 
Time, at the U.S. Department of Education, Eighth Floor Conference 
Center, 1990 K Street, NW., Washington, DC.
    Changes to Proposed Agenda: Since the publication of the August 23, 
2010 Federal Register notice, the Department has added an item to the 
proposed agenda: The review of the National Defense University (NDU), 
as required by 10 U.S.C., section 2163, for the purpose of evaluating 
the proposed awarding of the NDU's Master of Science degree in 
Government Information Leadership.
    Also, due to two different agencies' requests, the Department 
removed the Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting 
Commission for Schools and AdvancED from the proposed December meeting 
agenda. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting 
Commission for Schools decided to withdraw from recognition and 
AdvancED decided to withdraw its request for initial recognition.

[[Page 68775]]

    Other proposed agenda topics for the December meeting will include 
the review of agencies that have submitted petitions for the renewal of 
recognition, and the review of agencies that have submitted compliance 
reports/interim reports.
    Proposed Agenda: The following agencies are tentatively scheduled 
for review during the December 1-3, 2010 NACIQI meeting:

Nationally Recognized Accrediting Agencies

Compliance Reports

    1. Association of Advanced Rabbinical and Talmudic Schools, 
Accreditation Commission.
    2. Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Management Education.
    3. Council on Accreditation of Nurse Anesthesia Educational 
Programs.
    4. Council on Education for Public Health.
    5. Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (progress 
report).
    6. The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association 
of Colleges and Schools.

Petitions for Renewal of Recognition

    1. American Academy for Liberal Education.
    2. American Board of Funeral Service Education.
    3. American Speech Language Hearing Association, Council on 
Academic Accreditation in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology.
    4. Commission on Massage Therapy Accreditation.
    5. Council on Naturopathic Medical Education.
    6. Midwifery Education Accreditation Council.
    7. Montessori Accreditation Council for Teacher Education, 
Commission on Accreditation.
    8. National Accrediting Commission of Cosmetology Arts and 
Sciences.

State Agencies Recognized for the Approval of Nurse Education

    1. Missouri State Board of Nursing.

Federal Agency Seeking Degree-Granting Authority

    1. National Defense University, Washington, DC (request to award a 
Master of Science degree in Government Information Leadership).
    In accordance with the Federal policy governing the granting of 
academic degrees by Federal agencies (approved by a letter from the 
Director, Bureau of the Budget, to the Secretary, Health, Education, 
and Welfare, dated December 23, 1954), the Secretary is required to 
establish a review committee to advise the Secretary concerning any 
legislation that may be proposed that would authorize the granting of 
degrees by a Federal agency. The review committee forwards its 
recommendation concerning a Federal agency's proposed degree-granting 
authority to the Secretary, who then forwards the committee's 
recommendation and the Secretary's recommendation to the Office of 
Management and Budget. The Secretary uses the NACIQI as the review 
committee required for this purpose.
    NACIQI'S Statutory Authority and Functions: The NACIQI is 
established under Section 114 of the Higher Education Act (HEA) as 
amended, 20 U.S.C. 1011c. The NACIQI advises the Secretary of Education 
about:
     The establishment and enforcement of the Criteria for 
Recognition of accrediting agencies or associations under Subpart 2, 
Part H, Title IV, HEA, as amended.
     The recognition of specific accrediting agencies or 
associations, or a specific State approval agency.
     The preparation and publication of the list of nationally 
recognized accrediting agencies and associations.
     The eligibility and certification process for institutions 
of higher education under Title IV, HEA.
     The relationship between: (1) Accreditation of 
institutions of higher education and the certification and eligibility 
of such institutions, and (2) State licensing responsibilities with 
respect to such institutions.
     Any other advisory functions relating to accreditation and 
institutional eligibility that the Secretary may prescribe.
    Instructions for Making a Third-Party Oral Comment at the December 
2010 NACIQI Meeting: There are two methods the public may use to make a 
third-party oral comment of three to five minutes concerning one of the 
agencies tentatively scheduled for review during the December 1-3, 2010 
meeting.
    The first method is to submit a written request by e-mail in 
advance of the meeting to make a third-party oral presentation. All 
individuals or groups submitting an advance request in accordance with 
this notice will be afforded an opportunity to speak, for up to a 
maximum of three minutes each. Each request must concern the 
recognition of a single agency or institution tentatively scheduled in 
this notice for review, must be received no later than November 22, 
2010, and must be sent to [email protected] with the subject 
line listed as ``Oral Comments re: (agency/institution name).'' Your 
request (no more than one page maximum) must include:
    1. The name, title, affiliation, mailing address, e-mail address, 
telephone and facsimile numbers, and Web site (if any) of the person/
group requesting to speak, and
    2. A brief summary of the principal points to be made during the 
oral presentation.
    Only requests made in accordance with these instructions will 
result in an opportunity to speak under this method. Individuals making 
oral presentations may not distribute written materials at the meeting. 
Please do not send material directly to the NACIQI members.
    The second method is to sign up on the day of the meeting to make 
oral comments during the NACIQI's deliberations about an agency or 
institution scheduled for review. The requester should provide his or 
her name, title, affiliation, mailing address, e-mail address, 
telephone and facsimile numbers, and Web site (if any). A total of up 
to 15 minutes during each agency's/institution's review will be 
allotted for commenters who sign up the day of the meeting (in addition 
to those commenters who signed up in advance); and, if a person or 
group requests to make comments in advance, they cannot also sign-up to 
make comments the day of the meeting. Individuals or groups that sign 
up on the day of the meeting will be selected on a first-come, first 
served basis. If selected, each commenter may speak from three to five 
minutes, depending on the number of individuals or groups who signed up 
the day of the meeting.
    Members of the public will be eligible for making third-party oral 
comments only in accordance with these instructions. Their comments 
will become part of the official record and will be considered by the 
Department and the NACIQI in their deliberations. Individuals and 
groups making oral presentations may not distribute written materials 
at the meeting.
    Oral comments about agencies seeking continued recognition or 
presenting a compliance/interim report must relate to the Criteria for 
the Recognition of Accrediting Agencies, or the Criteria and Procedures 
for Recognition of State Agencies for Nurse Education, which are 
available at http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.
    If the Committee is reviewing an agency's petition, comments must 
relate to whether the agency meets the Criteria for Recognition. If the 
Committee is reviewing an agency's compliance/interim report, comments 
must relate to the NACIQI's area of consideration, which will be 
whether the agency has demonstrated compliance with the

[[Page 68776]]

specific criteria specified in the Department's request for the report. 
Third parties having concerns about agencies regarding matters outside 
the scope of the requested compliance report should report those 
concerns to Department staff.
    Comments concerning the National Defense University's degree-
granting authority request must relate to the criteria used to evaluate 
the institution. Those criteria may be obtained by submitting a request 
to [email protected], with the subject line listed as ``Request 
for Degree-Granting Authority Criteria.''
    This notice invites third-party oral testimony, not written 
comment. Requests for written comments on agencies that are tentatively 
scheduled for review during the meeting were published in the Federal 
Register (75 FR 21280) on August 23, 2010. The NACIQI will receive and 
consider only written comments that were submitted by the September 23, 
2010 deadline specified in the above referenced Federal Register 
notice.
    Access to Records of the Meeting: The Department will post the 
official report of the meeting on the NACIQI Web site shortly after the 
meeting. Pursuant to the FACA, the public may also inspect the 
materials at 1990 K Street, NW., Washington, DC, by e-mailing the 
[email protected] or by calling (202) 219-7067 to schedule an 
appointment.
    Electronic Access to this Document: You may view this document, as 
well as all other Department of Education documents published in the 
Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), on 
the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/legislation/fedregister.
    To use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available 
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. 
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-866-512-1830; or, in 
the Washington, DC area at (202) 512-0000.
    Reasonable Accommodations: Individuals who will need accommodations 
for a disability in order to attend the December 1-3, 2010 meeting 
(i.e., interpreter services, assistive listening devices, and/or 
materials in alternative format) should contact Department staff by 
telephone: (202) 219-7011; or, e-mail: [email protected], no 
later than November 22, 2010. We will attempt to meet requests after 
this date but cannot guarantee the availability of the requested 
accommodation. The meeting site is accessible.
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION: Contact Melissa Lewis, Executive Director, 
NACIQI, U.S. Department of Education, Room 8060, 1990 K Street, NW., 
Washington, DC 20006, telephone: (202) 219-7011; e-mail: 
[email protected]. Individuals who use a telecommunications device 
for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Information Relay Service at 1-
800-877-8339, between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, Monday 
through Friday.

    Note:  The official version of this document is the document 
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the 
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal 
Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/index.html.


Eduardo M. Ochoa,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2010-28255 Filed 11-8-10; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P