[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 211 (Tuesday, November 1, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67426-67429]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-28263]
=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
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 Amended Agenda and Procedures for Making Oral
Comments at December 14-16, 2011 Open Meeting of the National Advisory
Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity (NACIQI).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
ADDRESS: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary
Education, 1990 K Street NW., Room 8060, Washington, DC 20006.
SUMMARY: This notice sets forth changes to the December 14-16, 2011
NACIQI
[[Page 67427]]
meeting agenda that was published in the August 17, 2011, Federal
Register (76 FR 159); a complete listing of the agenda items for the
December 14-16, 2011 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).
Meeting Date and Place: The NACIQI meeting will be held on December
14-16, 2011, from 8:30 a.m. to approximately 5:30 p.m., Eastern
Standard Time, except for December 16, 2011, when it is anticipated
that the meeting will end mid-afternoon, at the Crowne Plaza Old Town
Alexandria, Washington Ballroom, 901 North Fairfax, Alexandria,
Virginia.
Changes to Agenda: Since the publication of the August 17, 2011
Federal Register notice, the Department has added an item to the
agenda: The review of an informational report on initial accrediting
decisions since October 2010 by the Higher Learning Commission of the
North Central Association of Colleges and Schools as required by the
corrective actions report issued by the Department's Office of
Postsecondary Education on May 6, 2010. The NACIQI will not be making a
recommendation to the Senior Department Official concerning the
informational report from the Higher Learning Commission of the North
Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Also, the Mississippi
Institutes of Higher Learning Board of Trustees of State Institutions
of Higher Education has been removed from the December meeting agenda.
Meeting Agenda: Below is a list of agencies and the current and
requested scopes of recognition scheduled for review during the
December 14-16, 2011 NACIQI meeting.
Petitions for Renewal of Recognition
Accrediting Agencies
1. American Podiatric Medical Association, Council on Podiatric
Medical Education. (Current Scope: the accreditation and
preaccreditation [``Candidate Status''] throughout the United States of
freestanding colleges of podiatric medicine and programs of podiatric
medicine, including first professional programs leading to the degree
of Doctor of Podiatric Medicine).
2. The Council on Chiropractic Education, Commission on
Accreditation. (Current Scope: The accreditation of programs leading to
the Doctor of Chiropractic degree and single-purpose institutions
offering the Doctor of Chiropractic program).
3. Commission on English Language Program Accreditation. (Current
Scope: The accreditation of postsecondary, non-degree-granting English
language programs and institutions in the United States).
4. Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology.
(Current Scope: The accreditation of education programs in radiography,
magnetic resonance, radiation therapy, and medical dosimetry, including
those offered via distance education, at the certificate, associate,
and baccalaureate levels).
5. North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School
Improvement, Board of Trustees. (Current Scope: The accreditation and
preaccreditation [``Candidacy Status''] of schools offering non-degree,
postsecondary education in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois,
Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New
Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West Virginia,
Wisconsin, Wyoming, and in the Navajo Nation).
State Approval Agencies for Nursing Education
1. Kansas State Board of Nursing. (Current Scope: A State agency
for the approval of nurse education).
2. Maryland State Board of Nursing. (Current Scope: A State agency
for the approval of nurse education).
3. New York State Board of Regents, State Education Department,
Office of the Professions (Nursing Education). (Current Scope: A State
agency for the approval of nurse education).
State Approval Agencies for Postsecondary Education Vocational
Education
1. New York State Board of Regents, State Education Department,
Office of the Professions (Public Postsecondary Vocational Education,
Practical Nursing). (Current Scope: State agency for the approval of
public postsecondary vocational education in the field of practical
nursing offered by the Board of Cooperative Educational Services, the
Educational Opportunity Centers, and the New York City Board of
Education to prepare persons for licensed practical nursing careers in
the State of New York).
2. Pennsylvania State Board for Vocational Education, Bureau of
Career and Technology Education. (Current Scope: State agency for the
approval of public postsecondary vocational education).
Petitions for Renewal of Recognition and Expansion of Scope to Include
Distance Education
Accrediting Agency
1. American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, Commission
on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education. (Current
Scope: the accreditation and preaccreditation [``Candidacy'']
throughout the United States of clinical training programs in marriage
and family therapy at the master's, doctoral, and postgraduate levels.
Requested Scope: The accreditation throughout the United States of
clinical training programs in marriage and family therapy at the
master's, doctoral, and postgraduate levels, including programs
offering distance education.)
State Approval Agency for Postsecondary Education Vocational Education
1. Oklahoma Board of Career and Technology Education. (Current
Scope: State agency for the approval of public postsecondary vocational
education offered at institutions in the State of Oklahoma that are not
under the jurisdiction of the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher
Education. Requested Scope: State agency for the approval of public
postsecondary vocational education offered at institutions in the State
of Oklahoma that are not under the jurisdiction of the Oklahoma State
Regents for Higher Education, including programs offered via distance
education.)
Compliance Reports
Accrediting Agencies
1. American Optometric Education, Accreditation Council on
Optometric Education. (Current Scope: The accreditation in the United
States of professional optometric degree programs, optometric
technician [associate degree] programs, and optometric residency
programs, and for the preaccreditation categories of ``Preliminary
Approval'' for professional optometric degree programs and ``Candidacy
Pending'' for optometric residency programs in Department of Veterans
Affairs facilities).
2. Western Association of Schools and Colleges, Accrediting
Commission for Community and Junior Colleges. (Current Scope: The
accreditation and preaccreditation [``Candidate for Accreditation''] of
two-year, associate degree-granting institutions located in California,
Hawaii, the United States territories of Guam and American Samoa, the
Republic of Palau, the
[[Page 67428]]
Federated States of Micronesia, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, including
the accreditation of such programs offered via distance education at
these colleges].
Informational Report
Accrediting Agency
1. The Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association
of Colleges and Schools. (Current Scope: The accreditation and
preaccreditation [``Candidate for Accreditation''] of degree-granting
institutions of higher education in Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado,
Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri,
Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota, West
Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming, including tribal institutions, and the
accreditation of programs offered via distance education with these
institutions. This recognition extends to the Institutional Actions
Committee, jointly with the Board of Trustees of the Commission, for
decisions on cases for continued accreditation or reaffirmation and
continued candidacy. This recognition also extends to the Review
Committee of the Accreditation Review Council, jointly with the Board
of Trustees of the Commission, for decisions on cases for continued
accreditation or candidacy and for initial candidacy or initial
accreditation when there is a consensus decision by the Review
Committee.)
Instructions for Making a Third-Party Oral Comment at the December
2011 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 scheduled for review during the December 14-16, 2011 meeting.
Method One: Submit a written request by email 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 a minimum of three minutes
each. Each request must concern the recognition of a single agency
scheduled in this notice for review, must be received no later than
thirty days after the date of publication of this notice, and must be
sent to [email protected] with the subject line ``Oral Comments
re: (agency name).'' Your request (no more than one page maximum) must
include:
1. The name, title, affiliation, mailing address, email 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.
Method Two: Register on December 14, 15, or 16, 2011, for an oral
presentation opportunity during the NACIQI's deliberations concerning a
particular agency scheduled for review. The requester should provide
his or her name, title, affiliation, mailing address, email address,
telephone and facsimile numbers, and Web site (if any). A total of up
to fifteen minutes during each agency'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 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. The Committee may engage the commenter in
discussion afterwards.
Members of the public will be eligible for making third-party oral
comments only in accordance with these instructions. The oral 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 report must relate to the Criteria for the
Recognition of Accrediting Agencies, the Criteria and Procedures for
Recognition of State Agencies for Nurse Education, or the Criteria and
Procedures for Recognition of State Agencies for Approval of Public
Postsecondary Vocational 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 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.
Written Comments: This notice invites third-party oral testimony
about the agencies scheduled for review, not written comment. Requests
for written comments on agencies that are scheduled for review during
the meeting were published in the Federal Register (76 FR 159) on
August 17, 2011. The NACIQI will receive and consider only written
comments that were submitted by the September 17, 2011 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 emailing the
[email protected], or by calling (202) 219-7067 to schedule an
appointment.
Reasonable Accommodations: Individuals who will need accommodations
for a disability in order to attend the December 14-16, 2011 meeting
(i.e., interpreter services, assistive listening devices, and/or
materials in alternative format) should contact department staff by
telephone: (202) 219-7011; or, email: [email protected], no
later than November 21, 2011. 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: Contact Melissa Lewis, Executive
Director, NACIQI, U.S. Department of Education, Room 8060, 1990 K
Street, NW., Washington, DC 20006, telephone: (202) 219-7011; email:
[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.
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
[[Page 67429]]
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.
Electronic Access to this Document: 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 via the Federal Digital System
at: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site you can view this document,
as well as all other documents of this Department published in the
Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). To
use PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at
the site.
You may also access documents of the Department published in the
Federal Register by using the article search feature at: http://www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Eduardo M. Ochoa,
Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2011-28263 Filed 10-31-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P