Responses Last Confirmed:

West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education

Agency Information

Guide Topics

Agency Contact

Carrie Watters
681-313-2290
carrie.watters@wvhepc.edu

Additional Contact

Randall Brumfield, EdD.
304-558-0261 ext. 26367
randall.brumfield@wvhepc.edu

Secretary of State Contact

Andrew "Mac" Warner
304-558-6000
wvsos@wvsos.com
Topic

1: Important Agency Information to Note

a.
Provide any important information about your agency.

The West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College Education works in coordination with the West Virginia Higher Education Policy Commission, sharing administrative services and staff to minimize the financial impact of both agencies.

Topic

2: Types of Educational Providers Authorized

a.
Indicate the types of institutions that your agency authorizes. Please provide a short explanation of any ambiguity in the comment section below.

_X___ Public, in-state degree granting institutions
_X___ Public, out-of-state degree granting institutions
_X___ Private, in-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
_X___ Private, out-of-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
_X___ Private, in-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
_X___ Private, out-of-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
_____ Public, in-state, non-degree granting institutions
_____ Public, out-of-state, non-degree granting institutions
_X___ Non-degree, not-for profit institutions
_X___ Non-degree, for-profit institutions
_____ Religious institutions
_____ Tribally-controlled institutions
_____ Federal Institutions
_____ Municipal institutions

b.
Does your agency authorize specific academic programs offered by institutions, only institutions themselves, or both?

__X__ Institution _____ Program _____ Both

c.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

3: Accreditation

a.
Is accreditation required for an institution to be authorized in your state?

Yes

b.
If yes, please check all that apply as appropriate.

__x_ Public, out-of-state degree granting institutions
__x_ Private, in-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
__x_ Private, out-of-state, not-for-profit degree granting institutions
__x_ Private, in-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
__x_ Private, out-of-state, for-profit degree granting institutions
____ Public, in-state, non-degree granting institutions
____ Public, out-of-state, non-degree granting institutions
____ Non-degree, not-for profit institutions
____ Non-degree, for-profit institutions
____ Religious institutions
____ Tribally-controlled institutions
____ Federal Institutions
____ Municipal institutions

c.
Clarifying comments:

Accreditation is a requirement for any degree-granting institution.

Topic

4: Exemptions

a.
Are certain institutions or programs exempt by law or policy from your state authorization requirements?

Yes.

b.
If yes, for what types of institutions? Which types of programs?

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Pages 2, 3, Section 3)

c.
Web link for exemptions.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Pages 2, 3, Section 3)

d.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

5: Authorization of Distance Education

a.
Does your agency require purely online programs offered by out-of-state institutions to be authorized without regard to physical presence?

No

b.
If not, does your agency determine whether an institution must be authorized based on a physical presence (“operating”) standard?

Yes

c.
Does your agency require correspondence study programs to be authorized without regard to physical presence?

Yes

d.
Clarifying comments:

Physical Presence

Soliciting students in WV

Topic

6: Physical Presence Policy

a.
If your agency uses a physical presence standard, how does your agency define physical presence?

 

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Page 3, 4.2)

b.
Web link for physical presence definition.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Page 3, 4.2)

c.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

7: Student Complaints - SARA Participating Institutions

a.
Please describe the process for handling complaints about SARA participating Institutions.

 If the school has a physical presence in WV, the complaint process would be the same for a SARA school and a non-SARA school

b.
Is the process handled all within your agency or do you divide consumer protection and student complaint duties dependent on the type of institution (Public, Private, Technical, etc.)?

The Compliance Officer, Carrie Watters, is responsible for taking the report and informing the Vice Chancellor, Dr. Randall Brumfield, throughout the initial investigation. A site visit may be performed by the Compliance Officer, along with other personnel from the WVHEPC office, such as, legal counsel, financial aid rep., and a veterans affairs personnel. After the investigation is performed, the Compliance Officer will create a report that will be send to legal for approval. Once approved, the visit report will be sent to the school as well as the person who filed the complaint.

c.
Web link for student complaints – SARA participating institutions.

WVCTCS - Complaints

d.
Who is the contact person at your agency for receiving complaints?
e.
Clarifying comments:

Complaints filed through the on-site complaint process are received by the Executive Vice Chancellor for Administration. Institutions permitted through Series 35 would be handled by Ms. Watters.

Topic

8: Student Complaints - Non-SARA Participating Institutions

a.
Please describe the process for handling complaints about out-of-state postsecondary institutions or programs?

n/a.  This office only handles complaints for schools with physical location in WV.

b.
Is the process handled all within your agency or do you divide consumer protection and student complaint duties dependent on the type of institution (Public, Private, Technical, etc.)?

No response provided

c.
Does this complaint process extend to institutions not authorized by the agency that may enroll residents of the state (such as explicitly distance education programs with no physical presence or exempt institutions)?

No response provided

d.
Who is the contact person at your agency for receiving complaints?
e.
Web link for the complaint form.

No response provided

f.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

9: Surety Bonds

a.
Does your state require a Surety Bond for authorized out-of-state institutions?

Yes

b.
Web link for surety bonds.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Pages 5 Section 7 Surety Bond Requirements)

c.
Clarifying comments:

All proprietary institutions that are authorized in WV must have a surety bond, regardless of the location of the institution.

Topic

10: Tuition Refund Policy

a.
Does your state have a Tuition Refund Policy Requirement?

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Pages 8, 9 Section 12 Cancellation and Refund Policies)

b.
If yes, for what types of institutions?

Proprietary

c.
Web link for tuition refund policy.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (Pages 8, 9 Section 12 Cancellation and Refund Policies)

d.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

11: Student Tuition Recovery Fund

a.
Does your state have a Student Tuition Recovery Fund (or similar fund for school closure)?

No

b.
If yes, for what types of institutions?

No response provided

c.
Web link for student tuition recovery fund.

No response provided

d.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

12: Reporting

a.
What kinds of information or data must an institution report to your agency as a condition for continued out-of-state authorization?

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org) (pages 3, 4 section 4)

b.
How frequently do institutions report data?

Annually and when there is any changes/additions/elimination to an Institution’s program and/or curriculum

c.
Is this information published or shared publicly?

No, not for proprietary schools

d.
Web link for reporting.

No response provided

e.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

13: Enforcement

a.
What are possible consequences of institutional non-compliance?

A letter to cease and desist would first be provided.  Possible legal action would follow with the Attorney General if that is necessary.

b.
Web link for enforcement information.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org) (Pages 11, 12 section 15 Warning, Suspension, Withdraw, or Revocation of Accreditation, License, and/or Approval to operate)

c.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

14: Application Process

a.
Please provide a short description of the application process to obtain state authorization.

Proprietary School: Submit an application for a permit following the guideline of Series 35 (section 4) TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)

b.
Web link for application.

Proprietary Schools – WV Community and Technical College System (wvctcs.org)

c.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

15: Fees Associated with Authorization

a.
Is there an application fee associated with the authorization process?

 Yes

b.
If yes, what is the fee or fee schedule?

The initial fee for a permit is $2,000. 

The annual renewal fee is $500.

c.
Web link for fee information.

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (pages 4-5, section 6)

d.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

16: Records Retention

a.
When a school closes, what is the process your state uses to ensure that transcripts/records are kept available?

TITLE 153 (wvctcs.org)  (page 7, section 10.1.f)

b.
From what agency do students request their transcripts/records from a closed school?

Varies. The transcripts/records from closed schools are kept in various places- according to each individual school. The WVHEPC office has a “Closed School List” with information on where transcripts can be retrieved for some, but not all, of these schools.

Agency Name:

Contact Person:

Contact Phone:

Contact Address:

Contact Email:

Contact website:

c.
Clarifying comments:

No response provided

Topic

17: Additional Information

a.
Is there anything else about the authorization process in your state that we and others ought to know about?

There is a 60 day grace period for renewal of a permit.  Once the school exceeds the 60 days, they must start the process over, filing for a NEW permit.  This also includes having to pay the initial permit fee of $2,000 instead of the renewal fee of $500.