Texas Administrative Code
Title 19 - EDUCATION
Part 1 - TEXAS HIGHER EDUCATION COORDINATING BOARD
Chapter 7 - DEGREE GRANTING COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES OTHER THAN TEXAS PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS
Subchapter A - GENERAL PROVISIONS
Section 7.6 - Recognition of Accrediting Agencies
Universal Citation: 19 TX Admin Code § 7.6
Current through Reg. 50, No. 13; March 28, 2025
(a) Eligibility Criteria--The Board may recognize accrediting agencies with a commitment to academic quality and student achievement that demonstrate, through an application process, compliance with the following criteria:
(1) Eligibility. The accrediting agency's
application for recognition must demonstrate that the entity:
(A) Is recognized by the Secretary of
Education of the United States Department of Education as an accrediting agency
authorized to accredit educational institutions that offer the associate degree
or higher. Demonstration of authorization shall include clear description of
the scope of recognized accreditation.
(B) Is applying for the same scope of
recognition as that for which it is recognized by the Secretary of Education of
the United States Department of Education:
(i) Using the U.S. Department of Education
classification of instructional programs (CIP) code at the two-digit level, the
applicant shall identify all fields of study in which institutions it accredits
may offer degree programs.
(ii)
Accrediting agencies shall, for each field of study in which an accredited
institution may offer degree programs, specify the levels of degrees that may
be awarded. Levels must be differentiated at least to the following, as defined
in §
7.3 of this chapter (relating to
Definitions): applied associate degree, academic associate degree,
baccalaureate degree, master's degree, first professional degree and doctoral
degree. Associate of occupational studies (AOS) degrees are only allowed under
§
7.5(c) of this
chapter (relating to Administrative Injunctions, Limitations, and
Penalties).
(iii) Only institutions
that qualify as eligible for United States Department of Education Title IV
programs as a result of accreditation by the applicant agency will be
considered exempt under §
7.7 of this chapter (relating to
Institutions Accredited by Board-Recognized Accreditors).
(C) Accredits institutions that have legal
authority to confer postsecondary degrees as its primary activity:
(i) Accrediting agencies must identify all
institutions accredited by the agency that either the majority of the
accredited institutions have the legal authority to award postsecondary degrees
or that it accredits at least fifty (50) institutions that have the legal
authority to award postsecondary degrees.
(ii) An accrediting agency that accredits
programs as well as institutions shall demonstrate that either it accredits
more institutions than programs or that it has policies, procedures and staff
sufficient to address institutional standards of quality in addition to program
standards of quality.
(iii)
Accrediting agencies must have standards that require all accredited
institutions to comply with all applicable laws in the state and local
jurisdiction in which they operate and that require accredited institutions to
clearly and accurately communicate their accreditation status to the
public.
(D) Requires an
on-site review by a visiting team as part of initial and continuing
accreditation of educational institutions:
(i)
Each accrediting agency shall demonstrate, through its documented practices
and/or its official policies, that it requires no fewer than three (3) members
on a team when conducting initial and continuing accreditation visits, that
none have a monetary or personal interest in the findings of the on-site
review, that all have professional experience and knowledge that qualifies them
to review the institution's compliance with the standards of the agency, and
that the combined team experience and knowledge are sufficient to review all
applicable standards of the agency.
(ii) Accrediting agencies may conduct site
visits for reasons other than initial and continuing accreditation with fewer
team members.
(iii) Accrediting
agencies shall provide a list of the visiting team members for the five (5)
most recently completed on-site reviews. The list shall show name, employer,
title of positions held with that employer and the standards for which the
individual was responsible in that on-site review.
(E) Has policies or procedures that ensure
the entity will promptly respond to requests for information from the Board:
(i) Each accrediting agency shall provide the
Board its official policy regarding disclosure of information about
institutions that are or have been candidates for accreditation and are or have
been accredited. Agencies shall provide to the Board, within ten (10) working
days, any new information and any requested information about a Texas
institution that would be available to the public under that official
policy.
(ii) Each accrediting
agency shall include in its standards for accreditation of Texas institutions
that the institutions disclose publicly and to the Board the number of degrees
awarded at each level each year and the number of students enrolled in the fall
of each year.
(F) Has
sufficient resources to carry out its functions:
(i) Accrediting agencies shall identify the
number of on-site reviews conducted during the most recent twelve (12) month
period, the number of staff members who participated in those on-site reviews
and the maximum number of on-site reviews conducted by any individual staff
member. If that maximum number exceeds thirty (30), the agency shall explain
how it expects to carry out its function of enforcing its standards on Texas
institutions.
(ii) Each accrediting
agency shall provide evidence that its ratio of current assets to current
liabilities equals or exceeds 1.2.
(iii) Each accrediting agency shall
demonstrate that its fees are reasonable for the accreditation services
provided.
(2)
Recognition--To receive and maintain recognition from the Board, the
accrediting agency must, in addition to the items listed in paragraph (1) of
this subsection:
(A) Provide the Board with
current standards used by the entity in initial and ongoing accreditation
reviews of educational institutions and invite the Board to participate in such
reviews:
(i) Accrediting agencies must have
publicly disclosed standards that address at a minimum the following issues:
student achievement in relation to the institution's mission; curricula;
faculty; facilities, equipment and supplies; fiscal and administrative
capacity; student support services; recruiting and admissions practices;
academic calendars; catalogs; grading; measures of program length; objectives
of the degrees or credentials offered; record of student complaints received by
or available to the agency; management and financial control.
(ii) In the application process, the
accrediting agency must indicate how its standards address each of the quality
assessment categories outlined in clause (i) of this subparagraph which
represent the underlying principles described in the institutional standards of
§
7.4 of this chapter (relating to
Standards for Operations of Institutions). Comparison of its standards with the
standards in §
7.4 of this chapter is required as
a means of indicating how its standards meet those principles.
(iii) Each accrediting agency shall provide
its policy for periodic reviews of institutions under its accreditation. At a
minimum, the accrediting agency must conduct on-site reviews at least every ten
(10) years.
(iv) At least ten (10)
working days before each scheduled periodic on-site review of a Texas
institution, accrediting agencies shall invite the Board staff to participate
in the review. Such participation shall be at no expense to the institution or
the accrediting agency.
(v) Within
ten (10) working days of an official change in standards, the agency shall
notify the Board of those changes.
(vi) By providing a copy of its publicly
disclosed policies and procedures, each accrediting agency shall demonstrate
that its initial and ongoing reviews and the resultant accreditation decisions
are fair and consistent with the available evidence.
(vii) Accrediting agencies that use an
advisory body, similar to the Certification Advisory Council described in
§
7.8 of this chapter (relating to
Institutions Not Accredited by a Board-Recognized Accreditor), shall describe
the advisory body's composition and authority. Accrediting agencies that do not
use such a body shall describe the process used to ensure that the evidence
obtained from reviews results in appropriate accreditation decisions.
(viii) The initial and ongoing reviews shall
include an institutional self-evaluation process or a documented alternative
process to promote continuous quality improvement.
(ix) Each accrediting agency shall have and
publicly disclose its processes for appealing accreditation
decisions.
(B) Provide
the Board with written evidence of continuing recognition by the Secretary of
Education of the United States Department of Education. Loss of recognition
from the Secretary automatically results in loss of Board recognition at the
same time. Written evidence may consist of a letter from the chief executive
officer of the accrediting agency. Accrediting agencies shall submit the
evidence upon notice of continued recognition or upon a change in recognition
status, scope or level;
(C) Provide
a list of Texas educational institutions accredited by it; notify the Board in
writing of any change to its list of Texas accredited institutions within ten
(10) days of the change;
(D) Notify
the Board of any investigated complaints concerning a Texas institution where
the accrediting agency took official action on issues of non-compliance and the
disposition of those complaints;
(E) Seek Board approval for any expansion of
its recognized scope of accreditation authority; and
(F) Demonstrate that the ownership and
control of the accrediting agency is sufficiently independent to ensure that
the accreditation process is conducted in the public interest.
(G) Each time the accrediting agency applies
for continued recognition by the Secretary of Education of the United States
Department of Education, the accrediting agency must apply for continued
recognition by the Coordinating Board. Applications forms will be provided by
Board staff. Application for continued recognition must, at a minimum, contain
all information required for initial eligibility and recognition by the
Coordinating Board under this rule.
(b) Other Information, Denial or Withdrawal of Recognition and Appeals.
(1) Once
recognized, an accrediting agency retains that recognition unless and until the
Board withdraws the recognition. Failure to comply with any of the requirements
in this chapter, including failure to comply with information requests during
periodic reviews, will be grounds for the Board to consider withdrawing
recognition.
(2) Each accrediting
agency shall provide its policy for periodic reviews. Periodic review shall be
conducted at the time an accrediting agency applies for continued recognition
by the Secretary of the United States Department of Education. The Coordinating
Board reserves the right to request and review current policies at other times
for good cause, including, but not limited to, student complaints, accredited
institution complaints, or concerns raised by the United States Department of
Education or other state or federal agencies.
(3) The Board may use information provided by
parties other than the accrediting agency to assess the accrediting agency's
commitment to academic quality and student achievement. The Board will consider
any such information in an open, public meeting during which the accrediting
agency may challenge the information.
(4) The Board will make any decision to deny
recognition of an accrediting agency or to withdraw recognition from an
accrediting agency in a public meeting.
(5) An institution operating in Texas as an
exempt institution pursuant to §
7.7 of this chapter when its
recognized accrediting agency loses or voluntarily relinquishes its recognition
will have a provisional time period set by the Board, or Board staff as
delegated, within which the institution may continue to operate pursuant to the
requirements in §
7.7(2) and (3) of
this chapter.
(6) An accrediting
agency or institution affected by any final decision under this subchapter may
appeal that decision as provided in Chapter 1, Subchapter B of this title
(relating to Dispute Resolution).
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