[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 34, Volume 3]

[Revised as of July 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 34CFR602.21]



[Page 203-204]

 

                           TITLE 34--EDUCATION

 

 CHAPTER VI--OFFICE OF POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION, DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

 

PART 602_THE SECRETARY'S RECOGNITION OF ACCREDITING AGENCIES--Table of 

Contents

 

                 Subpart B_The Criteria for Recognition

 

Sec. 602.21  Review of standards.



    (a) The agency must maintain a systematic program of review that 

demonstrates that its standards are adequate to evaluate the quality of 

the education or training provided by the institutions and programs it 

accredits and relevant to the educational or training needs of students.



[[Page 204]]



    (b) The agency determines the specific procedures it follows in 

evaluating its standards, but the agency must ensure that its program of 

review--

    (1) Is comprehensive;

    (2) Occurs at regular, yet reasonable, intervals or on an ongoing 

basis;

    (3) Examines each of the agency's standards and the standards as a 

whole; and

    (4) Involves all of the agency's relevant constituencies in the 

review and affords them a meaningful opportunity to provide input into 

the review.

    (c) If the agency determines, at any point during its systematic 

program of review, that it needs to make changes to its standards, the 

agency must initiate action within 12 months to make the changes and 

must complete that action within a reasonable period of time. Before 

finalizing any changes to its standards, the agency must--

    (1) Provide notice to all of the agency's relevant constituencies, 

and other parties who have made their interest known to the agency, of 

the changes the agency proposes to make;

    (2) Give the constituencies and other interested parties adequate 

opportunity to comment on the proposed changes; and

    (3) Take into account any comments on the proposed changes submitted 

timely by the relevant constituencies and by other interested parties.



(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1099b)



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