19 Tex. Admin. Code § 7.3 - Definitions
The following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.
(1) Academic
Record--Any information that is:
(A) directly
related to a student's educational efforts;
(B) intended to support the student's
progress toward completing a degree program;
(C) regardless of the format or manner in
which or the location where the information is held, maintained by an
institution for the purpose of sharing among academic officials; and
(D) for purposes of this chapter, an academic
record includes a student's educational history, but does not include medical
records, alumni records other than educational history, human resources
records, or criminal history record information or other law enforcement
records.
(2)
Accreditation--The status of public recognition that an accrediting agency
grants to an educational institution.
(3) Accrediting Agency--A legal entity
recognized by the Secretary of Education of the United States Department of
Education as an accrediting agency that conducts accreditation activities
through voluntary peer review and makes decisions concerning the accreditation
status of institutions, including ensuring academic, financial, and operational
quality. A Board-recognized Accrediting Agency is any accrediting agency
authorized by the Secretary of Education of the United States Department of
Education to accredit educational institutions that offer the associate degree
or higher, the standards of accreditation or membership for which have been
found by the Board to be sufficiently comprehensive and rigorous to qualify its
institutional members for an exemption from certain provisions of this
chapter.
(4) Agent--A person
employed by or representing a postsecondary educational institution that does
not have a Certificate of Authorization or Certificate of Authority, within or
without Texas who:
(A) solicits any Texas
student for enrollment in the institution (excluding the occasional
participation in a college/career fair involving multiple institutions or other
event similarly limited in scope in the state of Texas);
(B) solicits or accepts payment from any
Texas student for any service offered by the institution; or
(C) while having a physical presence in
Texas, solicits students or accepts payment from students who do not reside in
Texas.
(5) Associate
Degree Program--A grouping of courses designed to lead the individual directly
to employment in a specific career or to transfer to an upper-level
baccalaureate program. This specifically refers to the associate of arts (AA),
the associate of science (AS), the associate of applied arts (AAA), the
associate of applied science (AAS), and the associate of occupational studies
(AOS) degrees.
(A) Academic Associate Degree
Program--A grouping of courses designed to transfer to an upper-level
baccalaureate program and that includes sixty (60) semester credit hours and
not more than sixty-six (66) semester credit hours or ninety (90) quarter
credit hours and not more than ninety-nine (99) quarter credit hours. An
academic associate degree must include at least twenty (20) semester credit
hours or thirty (30) quarter credit hours of general education courses. This
specifically refers to the associate of arts (AA) and the associate of science
degrees (AS).
(B) Applied Associate
Degree Program--A grouping of courses designed to lead the individual directly
to employment in a specific career and that includes at least sixty (60)
semester credit hours and not more than seventy-two (72) semester credit hours
or ninety (90) quarter credit hours and not more than one hundred eight (108)
quarter hours. An applied associate degree must include at least fifteen (15)
semester credit hours or twenty-three (23) quarter credit hours of general
education courses. This specifically refers to the associate of applied arts
(AAA) and the associate of applied science (AAS) degrees. Associate of
Occupational Studies (AOS) degrees are only allowed under §
7.5 of this
chapter.
(6) Board--The
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.
(7) Board Staff--The staff of the Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board including the Commissioner of Higher
Education and all employees who report to the Commissioner.
(8) Career School or College--Any business
enterprise operated for a profit, or on a nonprofit basis, that maintains a
place of business in the state of Texas or solicits business within the state
of Texas, and that is not specifically exempted by Texas Education Code, §
132.002 or §
7.4 of this chapter (relating to
Standards for Operations of Institutions), and:
(A) that offers or maintains a course or
courses of instruction or study; or
(B) at which place of business such a course
or courses of instruction or study is available through classroom instruction,
by electronic media, by correspondence, or by some or all, to a person for the
purpose of training or preparing the person for a field of endeavor in a
business, trade, technical, or industrial occupation, or for career or personal
improvement.
(9)
Certificate of Approval--The Texas Workforce Commission's approval of career
schools or colleges with operations in Texas to maintain, advertise, solicit
for, or conduct any program of instruction in this state.
(10) Certificate of Authority--The Board's
approval of postsecondary institutions (other than exempt institutions), with
operations in the state of Texas, to confer degrees or courses applicable to
degrees, or to solicit students for enrollment in institutions that confer
degrees or courses applicable to degrees, while seeking Board-recognized
accreditation. Additional conditions, restrictions, or requirements may be
placed on a Certificate of Authority pursuant to §
7.8 of this chapter (relating to
Institutions Not Accredited by a Board-Recognized Accreditor).
(11) Certificate of Authorization--The
Board's acknowledgment that an institution is qualified for an exemption,
unless specifically provided otherwise, from certain identified regulations in
this subchapter.
(A) A Certificate of
Authorization for an institution offering degrees or courses leading to degrees
at a physical location in Texas will be issued for the period of time in the
institution's current grant of accreditation by its Board-recognized
accreditor.
(B) A Certificate of
Authorization may be issued as provisional for a 15-month temporary exemption
from certain identified regulations in this subchapter based on its main
campus' accreditation while seeking final approval for the new Texas-based
campus from its Board-recognized accreditor and the Texas Workforce
Commission.
(C) An out-of-state
institution may be issued a renewable one-year Certificate of Authorization in
order to allow students to complete experiential learning experiences in
Texas.
(12) Certificate
of Registration--The Board's approval of an agent to solicit students on behalf
of a private postsecondary educational institution in the state of
Texas.
(13) Certification Advisory
Council--The Council as established by Board rules Chapter 1, Subchapter H,
§§
1.135-
1.141 of this title (relating to
Certification Advisory Council).
(14) Change of Ownership or Control--Any
change in ownership or control of a career school or college, or a
postsecondary educational institution, or an agreement to transfer control of
such institution.
(A) The ownership or
control of a career school or college or postsecondary educational institution
is considered to have changed:
(i) in the case
of ownership by an individual, when more than fifty (50) percent of the
institution has been sold or transferred;
(ii) in the case of ownership by a
partnership or a corporation, when more than fifty (50) percent of the
institution or of the owning partnership or corporation has been sold or
transferred; or
(iii) when the
board of directors, officers, shareholders, or similar governing body has been
changed to such an extent as to significantly alter the management and control
of the institution.
(B) A
change of ownership or control does not include a transfer that occurs as a
result of the retirement or death of the owner if transfer is to a member of
the owner's family who has been directly and constantly involved in the
management of the institution for a minimum of two years preceding the
transfer. For the purposes of this section, a member of the owner's family is a
parent, sibling, spouse, or child; spouse's parent or sibling; or sibling's or
child's spouse.
(15)
Cited--Any reference to an institution in a negative finding or action by an
accrediting agency.
(16)
Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) Code--The four (4) or six
(6)-digit code assigned to an approved degree program in accordance with the
CIP manual published by the U.S. Department of Education, National Center for
Education Statistics. CIP codes define the authorized teaching field of the
specified degree program, based upon the occupation(s) for which the program is
designed to prepare its graduates.
(17) Commissioner--The Commissioner of Higher
Education.
(18) Degree--Any title
or designation, mark, abbreviation, appellation, or series of letters or words,
including "associate," "bachelor's," "master's," "doctor's" and their
equivalents and foreign cognates, which signify, purport to signify, or are
generally taken to signify satisfactory completion of the requirements of all
or part of a program of study which is generally regarded and accepted as an
academic degree-level program by accrediting agencies recognized by the
Board.
(19) Educational or Training
Establishment--An enterprise offering a course of instruction, education, or
training that is not represented as being applicable to a degree.
(20) Exempt Institution--A postsecondary
educational institution that is fully accredited by and not operating under
sanctions imposed by an agency recognized by the Board under §
7.6 of this chapter (relating to
Recognition of Accrediting Agencies), is defined as a "private or independent
institution of higher education" under Texas Education Code, §
61.003(15),
a career school or college that applies for and is declared exempt under this
chapter, an institution that has received approval by a state agency
authorizing the institution's graduates to take a professional or vocational
state licensing examination administered by that agency as described in Texas
Education Code, §
61.303(a),
or an institution exempted by the Texas Workforce Commission under Texas
Education Code, §
132.002. Exempt
institutions must comply with certain Board rules.
(21) Experiential Learning--Process through
which students develop knowledge, skills, and values from direct experiences
outside an institution's classrooms. Experiential learning encompasses a
variety of activities including, but not limited to, internships, externships,
practicums, clinicals, field experience, or other professional work
experiences. References to clinicals within this chapter encompasses all
site-specific health professions experiential learning. Clinicals include site
experiences for medical, nursing, allied health, and other health professions
degree programs.
(22) Fictitious
Degree--A counterfeit or forged degree or a degree that has been
revoked.
(23) Fraudulent or
Substandard Degree--A degree conferred by a person who, at the time the degree
was conferred, was:
(A) operating in this
state in violation of this subchapter;
(B) not eligible to receive a Certificate of
Authority under this subchapter and was operating in another state in violation
of a law regulating the conferral of degrees in that state or in the state in
which the degree recipient was residing or without accreditation by a
recognized accrediting agency, if the degree is not approved through the review
process described by §
7.12 of this chapter (relating to
Review and Use of Degrees from Institutions Not Eligible for Certificates of
Authority); or
(C) not eligible to
receive a Certificate of Authority under this subchapter and was operating
outside the United States, and whose degree the Board, through the review
process described by §
7.12 of this chapter, determines
is not the equivalent of an accredited or authorized
degree.
(24) Out-of-State
Public Postsecondary Institution--Any senior college, university, technical
institute, junior or community college, or the equivalent which is controlled
by a public body organized outside the boundaries of the state of Texas. For
purposes of this chapter, out-of-state public institutions of higher education
are considered postsecondary educational institutions.
(25) Person--Any individual, firm,
partnership, association, corporation, enterprise, postsecondary educational
institution, other private entity, or any combination thereof.
(26) Personally Identifiable
Information--Information of a potential, current or former student, including
name, address, telephone number, social security number, email address, date of
birth, education records, or any other identifying number or information that
can be used to distinguish or trace an individual's identity, either alone or
when combined with other personal or identifying information that is linked or
linkable to a specific individual.
(27) Physical Presence--
(A) While in Texas, a representative of the
school or a person being paid by the school, who conducts an activity related
to postsecondary education, including for the purposes of recruiting students
(excluding the occasional participation in a college/career fair involving
multiple institutions or other event similarly limited in scope in the state of
Texas), teaching or proctoring courses including internships, clinicals,
externships, practicums, and other similarly constructed educational activities
(excluding those individuals that are involved in teaching courses in which
there is no physical contact with Texas students or in which visiting students
are enrolled), or grants certificates or degrees; and/or
(B) The institution has any location within
the state of Texas which would include any address, physical site, telephone
number, or facsimile number within or originating from within the boundaries of
the state of Texas. Advertising to Texas students, whether through print,
billboard, internet, radio, television, or other medium alone does not
constitute a physical presence.
(28) Postsecondary Educational
Institution--An educational institution which:
(A) is not a public community college, public
technical college, public senior college or university, medical or dental unit
or other agency as defined in Texas Education Code, §
61.003;
(B) is incorporated under the laws of this
state, or maintains a place of business in this state, or has an agent or
representative present in this state, or solicits business in this state;
and
(C) furnishes or offers to
furnish courses of instruction in person, by electronic media, by
correspondence, or by some means or all leading to a degree; provides or offers
to provide credits alleged to be applicable to a degree; or represents that
credits earned or granted are collegiate in nature, including describing them
as "college-level," or at the level of any protected academic term.
(29) Private Postsecondary
Educational Institution--An institution which:
(A) is not an institution of higher education
as defined by Texas Education Code, §
61.003;
(B) is incorporated under the laws of this
state, maintains a place of business in this state, has an agent or
representative presence in this state, or solicits business in this state;
and
(C) furnishes or offers to
furnish courses of instruction in person, by electronic media, or by
correspondence leading to a degree or providing credits alleged to be applied
to a degree.
(30)
Professional Degree--A degree that is awarded for a Doctor of Medicine (M.D.),
Doctor of Osteopathy (D.O.), Doctor of Dental Surgery (D.D.S.), Doctor of
Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.), Juris Doctor (J.D.), and Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.)
and their equivalents and foreign cognates.
(31) Program or Program of Study--Any course
or grouping of courses which are represented as entitling a student to a degree
or to credits applicable to a degree.
(32) Protected Term--The terms "college,"
"university," "school of medicine," "medical school," "health science center,"
"school of law," "law school," or "law center," its abbreviation, foreign
cognate or equivalents.
(33)
Reciprocal State Exemption Agreement--An agreement entered into by the Board
with an out-of-state state higher education agency or higher education system
for the purpose of creating a reciprocal arrangement whereby that entity's
institutions are exempted from the Board oversight for the purposes of distance
education. In exchange, participating Texas public and private or independent
institutions of higher education as defined in Texas Education Code, §
61.003 and private
postsecondary educational institutions as defined in Texas Education Code,
§
61.302(2)
would be exempted from that state's oversight for the purposes of distance
education.
(34) Representative--A
person who acts on behalf of an institution regulated under this subchapter.
The term includes, without limitation, recruiters, agents, tutors, counselors,
business agents, instructors, and any other instructional or support
personnel.
(35) Required State or
National Licensure--The requirement for graduates of certain professional
programs to obtain a license from state or national entities for entry-level
practice.
(36) Sanction--An action
taken by an accrediting agency indicating that an institution is out of
compliance with its accrediting agency's standards or criteria and may lose
such accreditation if the institution does not take action to comply within a
certain period of time. Sanctions include, but are not limited to, warnings,
notations, probation, or loss of accreditation and equate to a violation of
this chapter.
(37) Single Point of
Contact--An individual who is designated by an institution as the person
responsible for receiving and conveying information between an institution and
the Board or Board staff. The Board will direct all communications regarding an
institution to the Single Point of Contact. Institutions must inform the Board
of changes in the designated Single Point of Contact within 30 days of
change.
(38) Substantive
Change--Any change in principal location, ownership, or governance of an
institution, change in accrediting agency or final action by an accrediting
agency changing such institution's status with such accrediting agency,
including negative actions taken by the accrediting agency against an
institution, change in degree- or credential-level for an approved program,
addition of new programs, degrees or credentials offered, change of institution
name, or change in United States Department of Education requirements for
receipt of federal financial aid based on financial or accreditation
status.
(39) Visiting Student--A
student pursuing a degree at an out-of-state institution (i.e., home
institution) with no physical presence in Texas who has permission from the
home institution and a Texas institution, which is either exempt from Board
rules or currently in compliance with Board rules, to take specific courses at
the Texas institution. The two institutions have an agreement that courses
taken at the Texas institution will transfer back to the home
institution.
Notes
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