College Website, Publications and Event Requirements: Accreditation and Reporting

Citation

 NWCCU

Frequency

 Continuous

Location

 Website or catalog

Description

The institution publishes in a catalog and/or on a website current and accurate information regarding:

• mission and core themes
• admission requirements and procedures
• grading policy
• information on academic programs and courses
• names, titles and academic credentials of administrators and faculty
• rules and regulations for student conduct
• rights and responsibilities of students
• tuition, fees, and other program costs
• refund policies and procedures
• opportunities and requirements for financial aid
• academic calendar

Note: Gainful Employment rescinded

The US Department of Education announced June 28, 2019 that it would rescind Gainful Employment July 1, 2020. The department also gave notice that colleges can “early implement," meaning that colleges do not need to publish Gainful Employment information. If your college decides to early implement, you may take one of two steps:

• If your college decides not to publish its decision, the decision must still be available upon request by the Department of Education.
• If your college decides to publish its decision, we suggest creating a single webpage tagged "Gainful Employment" with the suggested language:
  • [Name of college] is participating in early implementation of the rescission allowable by the Secretary’s authority under section 482(c) of the HEA to designate the regulatory changes to subpart Q and subpart R of the Student Assistance General Provisions at title 34, part 668, of the Code of Federal Regulations, included in this document, for early implementation beginning on July 1, 2019.

Citation

US Department of Education rule

Frequency

 Continuous

Location

 Website

Description

Federal regulations require academic institutions to disclose to prospective students certain information about the institution’s Gainful Employment (GE) Programs, and about students who enrolled in those programs eligible for Title IV funding that lead to gainful employment in a recognized occupation.

Note: A Gainful Employment program is any non-degree program offered by a non-profit or public institution.

Example

Lower Columbia College Gainful Employment Disclosure

Note: Gainful Employment rescinded

The US Department of Education announced June 28, 2019 that it would rescind Gainful Employment July 1, 2020. The department also gave notice that colleges can “early implement," meaning that colleges do not need to include Gainful Employment disclosure information on promotional materials or the separate disclosure. If your college decides to early implement, you may take one of two steps:

• If your college decides not to publish its decision, the decision must still be available upon request by the Department of Education.
• If your college decides to publish its decision, we suggest creating a single webpage tagged "Gainful Employment" with the suggested language:
  • [Name of college] is participating in early implementation of the rescission allowable by the Secretary’s authority under section 482(c) of the HEA to designate the regulatory changes to subpart Q and subpart R of the Student Assistance General Provisions at title 34, part 668, of the Code of Federal Regulations, included in this document, for early implementation beginning on July 1, 2019.

Citation

US Department of Education rule

Frequency

• All promotional materials to prospective students that identify or otherwise promote a program subject to Gainful Employment disclosure rules.
• A separate disclosure must be provided to a prospective student or the person acting on their behalf before they sign an enrollment agreement, complete registration or make a financial commitment to the college.

Location

• The completed disclosure template (see the US Department of Education rule for specifics or work with your college's institutional research office) or a link to the completed disclosure template must be on all promotional materials, including catalogs, invitations, flyers, billboards, and advertising on or through radio, television, print media, the internet and social media.
• A copy of the completed disclosure template must — with confirmation of receipt — be hand-delivered or emailed to the student or person acting on the student's behalf.

Description

Note: A Gainful Employment program is any non-degree program offered by a non-profit or public institution.

Promotional materials

Materials promoting a Gainful Employment program must either:

• Use the disclosure template in a prominent manner
• Or, if space or airtime constraints would preclude the inclusion of the disclosure template, the URL direct link to the disclosure template may be used, so long as:
  • The URL or link is prominent, readily accessible, clear, conspicuous, and direct
  • The college identifies the URL or link as “Important Information about the educational debt, earnings, and completion rates of students who attended this program” or as otherwise specified by the US Secretary of Education.

The college must ensure that all promotional materials, including printed materials, about a GE program are accurate and current at the time they are published or broadcast.

Direct distribution to prospective students

Before a prospective student makes a commitment to the college — signs an enrollment agreement, completes registration or makes a financial commitment — the college must provide the student a copy of the disclosure template as a separate document by either hand-delivery, as part of a group presentation, or using the email address provided by the college.

Hand-delivery

The college must obtain written confirmation from the prospective student or third party that that person received a copy of the disclosure template.

Email

If using email, college-provided email or email address used by the college to communicate with the prospective student or third party, the college must: 

• Ensure that the disclosure template is the only substantive content in the email
• Receive electronic or other written acknowledgment from the prospective student or third party that the prospective student or third party received the email
• Send the disclosure template using a different address or method of delivery if the institution receives a response that the email could not be delivered
• Maintain records of its efforts to provide the disclosure template required under this section

Citation

NWCCU

Frequency

Continuous

Location

Website, catalogs, brochures, advertisements, etc.

Description

The commission asks that the following statement be used by the institution for disclosing its accredited status on its website and in catalogues, brochures, advertisements, etc. The following statement (page 3), in its entirety, must be used when an institution includes within its website, catalogue or other material a statement which will give the public a better idea of the meaning of regional accreditation.

Example

Bellingham Technical College Institutional Effectiveness Accreditation

Citation

Federal Student Right-to-Know and Campus Security Act (P.L. 101-542)

Frequency

Continuous

Location

Website

Description

The Department of Education defines what colleges must include in Student Right to Know.

Example

Clark College Consumer Information Student Right to Know

Citation

Limitation on certain advertising, sales, and enrollment practices (38 U.S. Code § 3696)

Frequency

Annually

Location

Submit required materials to WSAC and keep advertising on file for one year.

Description

Each college’s School Certifying Officer (SCO) — usually someone the college’s Veterans program office — submits two certified copies of official college catalogs to the Washington Student Achievement Council (WSAC). WSAC asks colleges to:

• Include sample advertisements (not all), when they submit their catalog annually to the WSAC/SAA.
• Keep advertising materials on file for one year.

Citation

RCW 43.17.390: Quality management, accountability, and performance system—Independent assessment

Frequency

Annually by November 15

Location

Website

Description

• Each college will post its most recent full accreditation report on its website. Information will be updated per accreditation review cycle.
• Each college will post a brief list of NWCCU accreditation commendations and recommendations related to its most recent accreditation visit on its college website.
• Colleges will complete an annual status report on accreditation progress and submit the status report to SBCTC by Nov. 15 of each year.
• SBCTC will post Student Achievement Initiative outcomes for each college by Nov. 15 of each year.

Example

• Peninsula College accreditation, commendations and recommendations website
• Washington State Quality Awards Standards annual status reports