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the regulatory oversight system of Title IV programs provided little or no assurance that schools were educating students efficiently or effectively. Several recommendations emanating from these findings were included in the 1992 amendments to HEA.

TITLE IV REGULATORY FRAMEWORK

The Title IV regulatory structure includes three actors--the Department of Education, states, and accrediting agencies--known as the "triad. Because of concern about federal interference in school operations, curriculum, and instruction, the Department has relied on accrediting agencies and states to determine and enforce standards of program quality. HEA recognizes the roles of the Department, the states, and the accrediting agencies as providing a framework for a shared responsibility for ensuring that the "gate" to student financial aid programs opens only to those institutions that provide students with quality education or training worth the time, energy, and money they invest.

Department of Education

The Department plays two roles in gatekeeping. First, it verifies institutions' eligibility and certifies their financial and administrative capacity. In verifying institutional eligibility, the Department reviews documents provided by schools to ensure their compliance with state authorization and accreditation requirements; eligibility renewal is conducted every 4 years. In certifying that a school meets financial responsibility requirements, the Department determines whether the school can pay its bills, is financially sound, and that the owners and employees have not previously been convicted of defrauding the federal government. In certifying that institutions meet administrative requirements, the Department determines whether institutions have personnel resources adequate to administer Title IV programs and to maintain student records.

Second, the Department grants recognition to accrediting agencies, meaning that the Department certifies that such agencies are reliable authorities as to what constitutes quality education or training provided by postsecondary institutions. In deciding whether to recognize accrediting agencies, the Secretary considers the recommendations of the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity. The advisory committee consists of 15 members who are representatives of, or knowledgeable about, postsecondary education and training. Appointed by the Secretary of Education, committee members serve 3-year terms. advisory committee generally holds public meetings twice a year to review petitions for recognition from accrediting agencies. The Department's Accrediting Agency Evaluation Branch is responsible for reviewing information submitted by the accrediting agencies in support of their petitions. Branch officials analyze submitted materials, physically observe an accrediting agency's operations

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and decision-making activities, and report their findings to the advisory committee.

States

States use a variety of approaches to regulate postsecondary educational institutions. Some states establish standards concerning things like minimum qualifications of full-time faculty and the amount of library materials and instructional space. Other state agencies define certain consumer protection measures, such as refund policies. In the normal course of regulating commerce, all states require postsecondary institutions to have a license to operate within their borders.

Because of concerns about program integrity, the Congress, in amending HEA in 1992, decided to strengthen the role of states in the regulatory structure by authorizing the creation of State Postsecondary Review Entities (SPRE). Under the amendments, the Department would identify institutions for review by SPRES, using 11 criteria indicative of possible financial or administrative distress. To review institutions, SPRES would use state standards to assess such things as advertising and promotion, financial and administrative practices, student outcomes, and program success. On the basis of their findings, SPRES would recommend to the Department whether institutions should retain Title IV eligibility. The Congress terminated funding for SPREs in 1995.

Accrediting Agencies

The practice of accreditation arose as a means of having nongovernmental, peer evaluation of educational institutions and programs to ensure a consistent level of quality. Accrediting agencies adopt criteria they consider to reflect the qualities of a sound educational program and develop procedures for evaluating institutions to determine whether they operate at basic levels of quality.

As outlined by the Department of Education, the functions of accreditation include

-- certifying that an institution or program has met
established standards,

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assisting students in identifying acceptable institutions, assisting institutions in determining the acceptability of transfer credits,

creating goals for self-improvement of weaker programs and stimulating a general raising of standards among educational institutions,

establishing criteria for professional certification and licensure, and

identifying institutions and programs for the investment of public and private funds.

Generally, to obtain initial accreditation, institutions must prepare an in-depth self-evaluation that measures their performance against standards established by the accrediting agency. The accrediting agency, in turn, sends a team of its representatives to the institution to assess whether the applicant meets established standards. A report, containing a recommendation based on the institution's self-evaluation and the accrediting agency's team findings, is reviewed by the accrediting agency's executive panel. The panel either grants accreditation for a specified period of time, typically no longer than 5 years, or denies accreditation. Once accredited, institutions undergo periodic re-evaluation.

To retain accreditation, institutions pay sustaining fees and submit status reports to their accrediting agencies annually. The reports detail information on an institution's operations and finances and include information on such things as student enrollment, completion or retention rates, placement rates, and default rates. In addition, institutions are required to notify their accrediting agencies of any significant changes at their institutions involving such things as a change in mission or objectives, management, or ownership.

Accrediting agencies judge whether institutions continue to comply with their standards on the basis of the information submitted by institutions and other information such as complaints. Whenever an accrediting agency believes that an institution may not be in compliance, the agency can take a variety of actions. For example, agencies may require institutions simply to provide more information so that they can render a judgment, conduct site visits to gather information, require institutions to take specific actions that address areas of concern, or, in rare instances, ultimately revoke accreditation.

RECENT PROPRIETARY SCHOOL TRENDS

Recent information points to some favorable trends regarding the participation of proprietary schools in the Title IV program. Fewer proprietary schools participate in Title IV programs now than 5 years ago, a trend reflected in decreased numbers of schools accredited by the six primary accrediting agencies. Proprietary schools receive a much smaller share of Title IV aid dollars now than in the past. And, while the default rates for proprietary school students are still far above those associated with nonprofit institutions, the rates have declined over the past few years.

Accreditation

For the six agencies we contacted, we observed a trend toward accrediting fewer institutions since 1992 (see table 1). Agency officials pointed out a number of reasons for the decreases, including recent changes in Title IV regulations, more aggressive oversight by accrediting agencies, school closures, and the fact

that schools once accredited by two or more agencies are now accredited only by one. We observed no clear trends in other accreditation decisions such as an increasing or decreasing propensity to grant, deny, or revoke school accreditation over the past few years. Some accrediting agency officials told us that because they effectively prescreen institutions applying for accreditation, they would not expect to see much change in the number of cases in which accreditation is denied or applications are withdrawn.

Table 1: Number of Institutions Accredited by Six Agencies
Accrediting Most Proprietary Schools in Title IV. by Year

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Note: Totals not provided because of differences in accrediting agencies' methods of counting institutions and because some agencies accredit both proprietary and nonprofit institutions.

'Agency provided data on the number of institutions' main campuses excluding their branch campuses.

Agency provided data on the number of institutions without distinguishing between main and branch campuses.

Agency provided data on the number of accredited proprietary institutions only. Source: Information provided by accrediting agencies.

Share of Title IV Funds

Proprietary schools' share of Title IV aid has steadily declined since the late 1980s. For example, about 25 percent of all Pell grant dollars went to students attending proprietary schools in 1986-87, but by 1992-93 that figure declined to about 18 percent (see fig. 1). While total Pell grant expenditures rose from $3.4 billion to $6.2 billion over these years, the amount retained by proprietary schools only increased from $.9 billion to $1.1 billion. For the subsidized Stafford loan program, the proprietary school share declined from nearly 35 percent of all dollars in 1986-87 to about 10 percent in 1992-93. In the Federal Family Education Loan Program, total dollars increased from $9.1

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