[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 218 (Monday, November 14, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68144-68145]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-24637]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Accrediting Agencies Currently Undergoing Review for the Purposes 
of Recognition by the U.S. Secretary of Education

AGENCY: Accreditation Group, Office of Postsecondary Education, 
Accreditation Group, U.S. Department of Education.

ACTION: Call for written third-party comments.

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SUMMARY: This notice provides information to members of the public on 
submitting written comments for accrediting agencies currently 
undergoing review for purposes of recognition by the U.S. Secretary of 
Education.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Herman Bounds, Director, Accreditation 
Group, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 
400 Maryland Avenue SW, Room 2C158, Washington, DC 20202, telephone: 
(202) 453-7615, or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This request for written third-party 
comments concerning the performance of accrediting agencies under 
review by the Secretary of Education is required by 496(n)(1)(A) of the 
Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended, and pertains to the 
winter 2024 meeting of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional 
Quality and Integrity (NACIQI). The meeting date and location have not 
been determined but will be announced in a later Federal Register 
notice. In addition, a later Federal Register notice will describe how 
to register to provide oral comments at the meeting.
    Agencies Under Review and Evaluation: The Department requests 
written comments from the public on the following accrediting agencies, 
which are currently undergoing review and evaluation by the 
Accreditation Group, and which will be reviewed at the winter 2024 
NACIQI meeting.
    The agencies are listed by the type of application each agency has 
submitted. Please note, each agency's current scope of recognition is 
indicated below. If any agency requests a change to its scope of 
recognition, identified are both the current scope of recognition and 
the requested scope of recognition.

Applications for Renewal of Recognition

    1. The Kansas State Board of Nursing. Scope of Recognition: state 
agency for the approval of nurse education.
    2. The Missouri State Board of Nursing. Scope of Recognition: state 
agency for the approval of nurse education.
    3. The Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education. 
Scope of Recognition: 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 the approval of public postsecondary vocational 
education offered via distance education.
    4. New York State Board of Regents (Public Postsecondary Vocational 
Ed). Scope of Recognition: state agency for the approval of public 
postsecondary vocational education in the field of practical nursing 
offered by a Board of Cooperative Educational Services, an Educational 
Opportunity Center, City School Districts, and County Boards of 
Supervisors to prepare persons for licensed practical nursing careers 
in the State of New York.
    5. The Pennsylvania State Board for Career and Technical Education. 
Scope of Recognition: state agency for the approval of public 
postsecondary vocational education.

Compliance Reports

    1. Accrediting Commission for Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine 
(ACAHM). Scope of recognition: the accreditation and pre-accreditation 
(``Candidacy'') of professional non-degree and graduate degree 
programs, including professional doctoral programs, in the field of 
acupuncture and/or Oriental medicine, as well as freestanding 
institutions and colleges of acupuncture and/or Oriental medicine that 
offer such programs. Geographic Area of Accrediting Activities:

[[Page 68145]]

throughout the United States. Please note, this accrediting agency 
changed its name from ``Accrediting Commission for Acupuncture and 
Oriental Medicine (ACAOM)'' effective September 8, 2021.
    The compliance report must address findings of noncompliance with 
34 CFR 602, as referenced in the senior Department official's (SDO) 
decision letter dated October 27, 2021. The SDO also required that the 
Department staff 34 CFR 602.33 inquiry findings concerning the Seldin/
Haring-Smith Foundation case study on Sex Trafficking and State 
Authorized Massage Schools, which involved an ACAHM accredited 
institution, be produced as part of the ACAHM compliance report. The 
SDO decision letter may be found under NACIQI meeting date July 27, 
2021, available at: https://surveys.ope.ed.gov/erecognition/#/public-documents
    2. Council on Occupational Education. Scope of recognition: the 
accreditation and pre-accreditation (``Candidacy Status'') of 
postsecondary occupational education institutions offering non-degree 
and applied associate degree programs in specific career and technical 
education fields, including institutions that offer programs via 
distance education. Geographic Area of Accrediting Activities: 
throughout the United States.
    The compliance report must address findings of noncompliance with 
34 CFR 602, as referenced in the SDO decision letter dated October 27, 
2021. The SDO decision letter may be found under NACIQI meeting date 
July 27, 2021, available at: https://surveys.ope.ed.gov/erecognition/#/public-documents.
    3. Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools, 
Accreditation Commission. Scope of Recognition: the accreditation and 
pre-accreditation (``Candidate'' status) of Christian postsecondary 
institutions that offer certificates, diplomas, and associate, 
baccalaureate, and graduate degrees, including institutions that offer 
distance education. Geographic Area of Accrediting Activities: 
throughout the United States. The compliance report must address 
findings of noncompliance with 34 CFR 602, as referenced in the SDO 
decision letter dated October 27, 2021. The SDO decision letter may be 
found under NACIQI meeting date July 27, 2021, available at: https://surveys.ope.ed.gov/erecognition/#/public-documents.

Military Degree Granting Authority Substantive Change Approval in 
Accordance With Department of Defense DOD Instruction 5545.04

    1. The National Defense University. Name Change of degree program 
from ``Master of Science in Government Information Leadership'' to 
``Master of Science in Strategic Information and Cyberspace Studies.''

Expansion of Scope

    1. National Nurse Practitioner Residency and Fellowship Training 
Consortium. Scope of Recognition: the accreditation of nurse 
practitioner (NP) postgraduate residency and fellowship training 
programs. This recognition also extends to the agency's Appeals Panel. 
Requested Scope: the accreditation of joint nurse practitioner/
physician assistant postgraduate residency and fellowship training 
programs. This recognition also extends to the agency's Appeals Panel.

Submission of Written Comments Regarding a Specific Accrediting Agency 
Under Review

    Written comments about the recognition of any of the accrediting 
agencies listed above must be received by December 12, 2022, in the 
[email protected] mailbox. Please include in the subject line 
``Written Comments: (agency name).'' The electronic mail (email) must 
include the name(s), title, organization/affiliation, mailing address, 
email address, and telephone number of the person(s) making the 
comment. Comments should be submitted as a PDF, Microsoft Word document 
or in a medium compatible with Microsoft Word that is attached to an 
email or provided in the body of an email message. Comments about an 
agency that has submitted a compliance report scheduled for review by 
the Department must relate to the criteria for recognition cited in the 
SDO's letter that requested the report, or in the Secretary's appeal 
decision, if any. Comments about an agency that has submitted a 
petition for initial recognition, renewal of recognition, or an 
expansion of scope must relate to the agency's compliance with the 
Criteria for the recognition of Accrediting Agencies or the Criteria 
for the recognition of state agencies, which are available at: https://www2.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.
    Only written materials submitted by the deadline to the email 
address listed in this notice, and in accordance with these 
instructions, become part of the official record concerning agencies 
scheduled for review and are considered by the Department and NACIQI in 
their deliberations.
    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: www.gpo.gov/fdsys. At this site, you can view this document, as 
well as all other documents of the 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: 
www.federalregister.gov. Specifically, through the advanced search 
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published 
by the Department.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1011c; 20 U.S.C. 1099b)

Annmarie Weisman,
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning and Innovation, Office 
of Postsecondary Education.
[FR Doc. 2022-24637 Filed 11-10-22; 8:45 am]
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