12 2 STA T .3 32 5PUBLIC LA W 11 0– 315 — AU G .1 4, 200 8orc orr esp o nd ence ed u c ati onint h e areas identi f ied in para -g raph (5), e x cept that —‘ ‘( I ) the agenc y or association sha l l not b ere q uired to ha v e separate standards, procedures, or policies for the evaluation of distance education or correspondence education institutions or progra m s in order to meet the requirements of this subparagraph
and ‘‘(II) in the case that the agency or association is recogni z ed by the S ecretary, the agency or associa- tion shall not be required to obtain the approval of the Secretary to expand its scope of accreditation to include distance education or correspondence edu- cation, provided that the agency or association notifies the Secretary in w riting of the change in scope; and ‘‘(ii) the agency or association requires an institution that offers distance education or correspondence education to have processes through which the institution establishes that the student who registers in a distance education or correspondence education course or program is the same student who participates in and completes the program and receives the academic credit; ’ ’; ( B ) in paragraph (5), by amending subparagraph ( A ) to read as follows
‘‘(A) success with respect to student achievement in relation to the institution’s mission, which may include different standards for different institutions or programs, as established by the institution, including, as appropriate, consideration of State licensing examinations, consideration of course completion, and j ob placement rates;’’; ( C ) by stri k ing paragraph ( 6 ) and inserting the fol- lowing: ‘‘(6) such an agency or association shall establish and apply review procedures throughout the accrediting process, including evaluation and withdrawal proceedings, which comply with due process procedures that provide— ‘‘(A) for adequate written specification of— ‘‘(i) requirements, including clear standards for an institution of higher education or program to be accred- ited; and ‘‘(ii) identified deficiencies at the institution or pro- gram examined; ‘‘(B) for sufficient opportunity for a written response, by an institution or program, regarding any deficiencies identified by the agency or association to be considered by the agency or association— ‘‘(i) within a timeframe determined by the agency or association; and ‘‘(ii) prior to final action in the evaluation and withdrawal proceedings; ‘‘(C) upon the written request of an institution or pro- gram, for an opportunity for the institution or program to appeal any adverse action under this section, including denial, withdrawal, suspension, or termination of accredita- tion, taken against the institution or program, prior to such action becoming final at a hearing before an appeals panel that— Procedu re s.N o tif ic a tio n .
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