82 FR 10479 - Request for Comments on Review of Accrediting Agencies

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Federal Register Volume 82, Issue 28 (February 13, 2017)

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. This solicitation of third-party comments concerning the performance of accrediting agencies under review by the Secretary is required by the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended.

[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 28 (Monday, February 13, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10479-10480]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2017-02867]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Request for Comments on Review of Accrediting Agencies

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

ACTION: Notice.

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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. This solicitation of third-party comments concerning the 
performance of accrediting agencies under review by the Secretary is 
required by the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965, as amended.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Herman Bounds, Director, Accreditation 
Group, Office of Postsecondary Education, U.S. Department of Education, 
400 Maryland Avenue SW., Room 6C115, Washington, DC 20202, telephone: 
(202) 453-7615, or email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Agencies under Review and Evaluation: Below is a list of agencies 
currently undergoing review and evaluation by the Accreditation Group, 
including their current and requested scopes of recognition:

Applications for Renewal of Recognition

    1. American Occupational Therapy Association, Accreditation Council 
for Occupational Therapy Education, Scope of Recognition: The 
accreditation of occupational therapy educational programs offering the 
professional master's degree, combined baccalaureate/master's degree, 
and occupational therapy doctorate (OTD) degree; the accreditation of 
occupational therapy assistant programs offering the associate degree 
or a certificate; and the accreditation of these programs offered via 
distance education.
    2. Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, Scope of 
Recognition: The accreditation and preaccreditation, within the United 
States, of professional degree programs in pharmacy leading to the 
degree of Doctor of Pharmacy, including those programs offered via 
distance education.
    3. Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, Inc., Scope of 
Recognition: The accreditation of both clinical pastoral education 
(CPE) centers and Supervisory CPE programs located within the United 
States and territories.
    4. Association for Biblical Higher Education, Scope of Recognition: 
The accreditation and preaccreditation (``Candidate for 
Accreditation''), at the undergraduate level, of institutions of 
biblical higher education in the United States offering both campus-
based and distance education instructional programs.
    5. American Dental Association, Commission on Dental Accreditation, 
Scope of Recognition: The accreditation of predoctoral dental education 
programs (leading to the D.D.S. or D.M.D. degree), advanced dental 
education programs, and allied dental education programs that are fully 
operational or have attained ``Initial Accreditation'' status, 
including programs offered via distance education.
    6. Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, Scope of 
Recognition: The accreditation of nursing education programs in the 
United States, at the baccalaureate, master's and doctoral degree 
levels, including programs offering distance education.
    7. Distance Education Accrediting Commission, Scope of Recognition: 
The accreditation of postsecondary institutions in the United States 
that

[[Page 10480]]

offer degree and/or non-degree programs primarily by the distance or 
correspondence education method up to and including the professional 
doctoral degree, including those institutions that are specifically 
certified by the agency as accredited for Title IV purposes.
    8. Middle States Commission on Secondary Schools, Scope of 
Recognition: The accreditation of institutions with postsecondary, non-
degree granting career and technology programs in Delaware, Maryland, 
New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 
the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands, to include the 
accreditation of postsecondary, non-degree granting institutions that 
offer all or part of their educational programs via distance education 
modalities.
    9. Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on 
Colleges (SACSCOC), Scope of Recognition: The accreditation and 
preaccreditation (``Candidate for Accreditation'') of degree-granting 
institutions of higher education in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, 
Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, 
Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia, including the accreditation of programs 
offered via distance and correspondence education within these 
institutions. This recognition extends to the SACSCOC Board of Trustees 
and the Appeals Committee of the College Delegate Assembly on cases of 
initial candidacy or initial accreditation and for continued 
accreditation or candidacy.

Application for an Expansion of Scope

    Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education, Scope of Recognition: 
The accreditation of nursing education programs in the United States, 
at the baccalaureate, master's and doctoral degree levels, including 
programs offering distance education. Requested Scope: The 
accreditation of nursing education programs in the United States, at 
the baccalaureate, master's, doctoral, and certificate levels, 
including programs offering distance education.

Application for Granting of Academic (Master's and Doctoral) Degrees by 
Federal Agencies and Institutions

    1. Air University (Air Command and Staff College): Air University 
seeks to expand its educational offerings by offering a Master's degree 
in Airpower Strategy and Technology Integration.
    2. Army's Command and General Staff College: Notification of name 
change for two degree programs currently approved and offered by the 
College. The proposal would change the MMAS (Theater Operations) to 
Master of Arts in Military Operations and the MMAS (Strategic 
Operations) to Master of Arts in Strategic Studies.

Submission of Written Comments Regarding a Specific Accrediting Agency 
or State Approval Agency Under Review

    Written comments about the recognition of a specific accrediting or 
State agency must be received by March 12, 2017, in the 
[email protected] mailbox and include the subject line 
``Written Comments: (agency name).'' The 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 Microsoft Word document or in a 
medium compatible with Microsoft Word (not a PDF file) that is attached 
to an electronic mail message (email) or provided in the body of an 
email message. Comments about an agency's recognition after review of a 
compliance report must relate to issues identified in the compliance 
report and the criteria for recognition cited in the senior Department 
official's letter that requested the report, or in the Secretary's 
appeal decision, if any. Comments about the renewal of an agency's 
recognition based on a review of the agency's petition must relate to 
its compliance with the Criteria for the Recognition of Accrediting 
Agencies, or the Criteria and Procedures for Recognition of State 
Agencies for Approval of Nurse Education as appropriate, which are 
available at http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.
    Only material 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.thefederalregister.org/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: 
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.

Gail McLarnon,
Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Planning, Policy, and Innovation.
[FR Doc. 2017-02867 Filed 2-10-17; 8:45 am]
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