NY Educ L § 5002 (2021)
2021 New York Laws EDN - Education Title 6 - Special Schools and Instruction Article 101 - Licensed Private Career Schools and Certified English as a Second Language Schools 5002 - Standards for Licensed Private Career Schools.

§ 5002. Standards  for  licensed  private  career  schools. Any school licensed pursuant to section five thousand one of this article shall  be organized  and  conducted  only  as a school and shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the department exclusively, or in conjunction with  such other  state  agency  or  department  or  district  attorney  upon which jurisdiction has also been conferred  by  law.  Such  schools  shall  be subject to and comply with the provisions of this section.   1.  Standards.  a.  No program of such schools shall be conducted in a factory or commercial establishment, except where the use of  facilities or  equipment  of  such factory or commercial establishment is permitted for necessary or desirable educational purposes and objectives.   b. For  every  such  school,  the  commissioner  shall  set  forth  in regulation standards governing all of the following:  (1) criteria for admission, which shall provide that students at least possess  a  high  school  diploma  or  its equivalent or demonstrate the ability to benefit from the instruction, except  that  in  the  case  of students  who  do  not  possess a high school diploma or its equivalent, certification of the students' ability to benefit from instruction shall be provided to the commissioner as  provided  in  paragraph  c  of  this subdivision;  (2) the standards and the methods of instruction;  (3)   the   equipment  available  for  instruction  with  the  maximum enrollment that such equipment and physical plant will accommodate;  (4) the qualifications  and  experience  of  teaching  and  management personnel;  (5)  the  form  and  content  of  the  student enrollment agreement or contract, provided that such agreement or contract shall be  written  in the same language as that principally used in the sales presentation;  (6) the methods of collecting tuition;  (7) eligibility criteria for programs that will require licensure;  (8) the sufficiency and suitability of the resources available for the support of such school; and  (9) counseling provided to students.   b-1.  (1)  Student  loans  or  other financial aid funds received from federal, state, or local governments or administered under  the  federal student financial assistance programs governed by Title IV of the Higher Education  Act of nineteen hundred sixty-five, 20 U.S.C. section 1070 et seq., as amended, must  be  collected  and  applied  in  the  manner  as controlled by the applicable federal, state or local regulations.  (2)  Student  loans or other financial aid funds received from private entities, including, but not limited to, banks, financing companies, and other lending sources must be collected or disbursed  in  the  following manner:  (A) Loans or other financial aid payments for amounts of five thousand dollars or less may be disbursed as a single disbursement, regardless of course length.  (B)  Loans  or  other  financial aid payments for amounts greater than five thousand dollars that reflect a class term of less than six  months shall  have  two equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule for such loans or payments shall be as follows: one-half of  the  tuition  amount released  initially,  and  the  remainder  released  halfway through the course term.  (C) Loans or other financial aid payments  for  amounts  greater  than five  thousand  dollars  that  reflect  a class term of greater than six months, but less than twelve months must have three equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule  for  such  loans  or  payments  shall  be  as follows:  one-third of the tuition amount released initially, the second disbursement  shall  be released one-third of the way through the length  of the training, and  the  remainder  released  two-thirds  of  the  way through the course term.  (D)  Loans  of  other  financial aid payments for amounts greater than five thousand dollars that reflect a  class  term  greater  than  twelve months  shall  have  four equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule for such loans or payments shall  be  as  follows:  one-quarter  of  the tuition  amount  released  initially,  the  second disbursement shall be released one quarter of the way through the length of the training;  the third  disbursement  shall be released halfway through the length of the training, and the remainder shall be released three-quarters of the  way through the training.  (3) No school may enter into any contract or agreement with or receive any  students  loan  or  financial  aid  funds  from  private  entities, including, but not limited to, banks, financing companies, and any other private lending sources unless the private  entity  has  a  disbursement policy that, at a minimum, meets the requirements of subparagraph two of this paragraph.  (4)  The term private entity referenced in subparagraphs two and three of this paragraph shall not be construed to include a friend  or  family member  of  the  student who is not in the routine business of providing student loans or financial aid funds. The provision of such  a  loan  or fund  by  a  private  entity  shall  also not include the payment of the student's tuition or fees by use of a credit card.   c. Notwithstanding  any  other  provisions  of  this  article  to  the contrary,  the  commissioner  shall  define  alternative educational and curriculum standards for any program of less than forty  hours  designed exclusively for non-occupational, personal enrichment purposes.   d. Admission of students under the ability to benefit provision.  (1)  Certification.  Each school admitting students who do not possess at least a high school diploma or its equivalent shall  certify  to  the satisfaction  of  the  commissioner  that such prospective students have been administered and passed an examination which has been  approved  by the  commissioner  to determine their ability to benefit from the chosen curriculum prior to admission to the curriculum or course of study. Such examination shall, whenever possible, be a  nationally  recognized  test appropriate for the course of instruction which has been approved by the commissioner.  The  examination  results  of  each  such  student who is admitted  shall  be  made  available  to  the  commissioner  at  a  time prescribed by the commissioner and, together with the student's original answer  sheet,  shall  be  maintained  by  the  school  in the student's permanent record. For any student failing to achieve the necessary score on such examination for enrollment, the  school  shall  be  required  to provide  such  student  with  a  listing  of  appropriate counseling and educational opportunities available  to  the  student  at  no  cost,  as determined  by the commissioner. Where appropriate, the commissioner may accept  such  other   entrance   requirement   documentation   such   as prerequisite coursework, professional or vendor certifications, personal interviews,  and/or  attestations of equivalent knowledge in lieu of the examination requirement.  (2) Counseling. Each school offering curricula  which  admit  students who do not possess a high school diploma or its equivalent shall develop a  plan  to  be  approved by the commissioner for the counseling of such students on an individual basis on matters including but not limited  to the  student's  ability  to  progress  in  the curriculum, the student's financial aid rights and responsibilities, the availability of  programs to  earn  a high school equivalency diploma, including programs provided at no cost to the student, and the potential of the training to  prepare the student for available employment opportunities within the region.  (3)  Compliance.  (A)  The  commissioner shall monitor compliance with this paragraph and verify the examination  and  counseling  process  and student  examination  scores.  Such  procedures  may  include but not be limited to an annual, statistically significant, random sampling of  the examinations  taken by prospective students of each school administering such examinations.  (B) In the event that the commissioner determines that the  school  is out  of  compliance  with  the  examination  process and counseling, the commissioner shall require that examinations and counseling for students admitted under the ability  to  benefit  provision  and  the  counseling required  by  subparagraph  two  of  this paragraph be conducted off the premises of the school by an entity approved  by  the  commissioner  for such  period  of time as the commissioner deems appropriate, the cost of which shall be incurred by the school.   2. Inspections. a. Every school  licensed  pursuant  to  this  article shall  maintain  adequate  and accurate records for a period of not less than seven years at its principal place of business within  this  state. Such  records shall be maintained in a manner and form prescribed by the commissioner and shall be made  available  to  the  department  and  the higher education services corporation upon request.   b.  In addition to other requirements in this article, the information to be made a part of the record shall include, but not be limited to:  (1) names and addresses of each enrolled student;  (2) the course of study offered by the institution;  (3) the name and address of its faculty, together with a record of the educational qualifications of each;  (4) the graduation date of each student; and  (5) for each student who fails to complete his  or  her  program,  the student's  last date of attendance and, if applicable, the amount of any refund paid to, or on behalf of, the student and the date the refund was made.   c. The commissioner shall conduct periodic unscheduled inspections  of licensed   private   career  schools  to  monitor  compliance  with  the provisions of this article  or  the  rules  or  regulations  promulgated thereunder  or  any  final  order  or  decision of the commissioner made pursuant to this article. The department shall conduct an inspection  of each  school  at  least  once  every licensure period. All schools shall provide upon request of the department, any and all records necessary to review compliance with the provisions of this article.   d. Student permanent records, as defined in  the  regulations  of  the commissioner, shall be maintained for a period of twenty years.   3.  Tuition liability. a. The tuition charge for programs approved for participation in student financial aid general award  programs  pursuant to  articles  thirteen and fourteen of this chapter shall be apportioned on the basis of terms, quarters or semesters. For the purposes  of  this section,  the terms "term", "quarter" and "semester" shall be defined in regulations by the commissioner.   b. The tuition refund policy for the first  term  or  quarter  of  any program  at  schools  licensed  pursuant to section five thousand one of this article shall be as follows:  (1) For programs which are divided into quarters  of  up  to  fourteen weeks,  the  school  shall evenly divide the total tuition charges among the number of quarters. After instruction is begun in  a  school,  if  a student  withdraws  or  is  discontinued,  the school may retain no more than:  (i) zero percent of the quarter's tuition if the termination is during the first week of instruction; or  (ii) twenty-five percent of the quarter's tuition if  the  termination is during the second week of instruction; or  (iii)  fifty  percent  of  the quarter's tuition if the termination is during the third week of instruction; or  (iv) seventy-five percent of the quarter's tuition if the  termination is during the fourth week of instruction; or  (v)  one  hundred  percent of the quarter's tuition if the termination occurs after the fourth week of instruction.  (2) For programs organized by terms of fifteen, sixteen, seventeen  or eighteen  weeks apiece, the school shall evenly divide the total tuition charges among the number of terms.  After  instruction  is  begun  in  a school, if a student withdraws or is discontinued, the school may retain no more than:  (i)  zero  percent  of the term's tuition if the termination is during the first week of instruction; or  (ii) twenty percent of the term's tuition if the termination is during the second week of instruction; or  (iii) thirty-five percent of the term's tuition if the termination  is during the third week of instruction; or  (iv)  fifty percent of the term's tuition if the termination is during the fourth week of instruction; or  (v) seventy percent of the term's tuition if the termination is during the fifth week of instruction; or  (vi) one hundred percent of the  term's  tuition  if  the  termination occurs after the completion of the fifth week of instruction.   c. (1) The tuition refund policy for the second term or quarter of any program  at  schools  licensed  pursuant to section five thousand one of this article shall be as follows:  (A) For programs which are divided into quarters  of  up  to  fourteen weeks,  the  school  shall evenly divide the total tuition charges among the number of quarters. After instruction is begun in  a  school,  if  a student  withdraws  or  is  discontinued,  the school may retain no more than:  (i) twenty-five percent of the quarter's tuition if the termination is during the first week of instruction; or  (ii) fifty percent of the quarter's  tuition  if  the  termination  is during the second week of instruction; or  (iii) seventy-five percent of the quarter's tuition if the termination is during the third week of instruction; or  (iv)  one  hundred percent of the quarter's tuition if the termination occurs after the third week of instruction.  (B) For programs organized by terms of fifteen, sixteen, seventeen  or eighteen  weeks apiece, the school shall evenly divide the total tuition charges among the number of terms.  After  instruction  is  begun  in  a school, if a student withdraws or is discontinued, the school may retain no more than:  (i)  twenty percent of the term's tuition if the termination is during the first week of instruction; or  (ii) thirty-five percent of the term's tuition if the  termination  is during the second week of instruction; or  (iii) fifty percent of the term's tuition if the termination is during the third week of instruction; or  (iv)  seventy  percent  of  the  term's  tuition if the termination is during the fourth week of instruction; or  (v) one hundred percent of  the  term's  tuition  if  the  termination occurs after the completion of the fourth week of instruction.  (2)  Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  subparagraph  one  of  this paragraph, the tuition refund policy set forth in paragraph  b  of  this  subdivision shall apply unless the school demonstrates that there are no significant  educational  changes  in  the  educational  program  of the student, such changes as defined in regulations of the commissioner.   d.  The tuition refund policy for the third and any subsequent term or quarter of any program licensed pursuant to section five thousand one of this article shall be the  policy  set  forth  in  subparagraph  one  of paragraph c of this subdivision.   e. No program shall have a term in excess of eighteen weeks.   f.  The amount of the refund shall be calculated based on the last day of student attendance.   g. (1) Any refund due to a student shall be paid by the school  within forty-five  days  of  the  date  on which the student withdraws from the program. For the purposes of  this  article,  such  date  shall  be  the earliest  of  (i)  the date on which the student gives written notice to the school or (ii) the date on which  the  student  is  deemed  to  have withdrawn pursuant to subparagraph two of this paragraph.  (2)  If  a student has failed to attend classes for a period of thirty calendar days, the school shall send by regular mail  a  notice  to  the student  that  the  student  shall  be deemed to have withdrawn from the program if the student does not notify the school to the contrary within twelve days from the date on which the letter is sent.  If  the  student fails  to  respond  within  such twelve-day period, the student shall be deemed to  have  withdrawn  and  the  school  shall  notify  the  higher education  services  corporation  that the student has withdrawn and the date of the withdrawal.   h. Schools shall submit, for approval by the commissioner, the  school catalog  with  a  weekly  tuition  liability chart for each program that indicates the  amount  of  refund  due  the  student  in  the  event  of withdrawal.   i.  Upon  payment  of a refund to a lender, the school shall forthwith send a notice to a person designated by  the  president  of  the  higher education  services  corporation  upon  a form approved by the president that such refund was made.   j. If the higher education services corporation fails to  receive  the notice  required  by paragraph i of this subdivision, it shall forthwith notify the student of his or her right to a refund and the  commissioner of  such  failure.  Upon  receipt of such notification, the commissioner shall take appropriate action against the school.   4. Curriculum approval. a. An application and fee shall  be  made  for the  initial  approval  of a curriculum or course and shall include such information as the commissioner  may  require  by  regulation.  Approval shall  be  valid  for a period not to exceed four years. The application fee for any curriculum of one hundred clock hours or more shall  be  two hundred  fifty  dollars. The application fee for any course of less than one hundred clock hours shall be one hundred dollars.  Such  application fees  shall  accrue  to  the credit of the proprietary vocational school supervision account.   b.  In  approving  curriculum,  the  commissioner  shall   take   into consideration the following:  (1)  that  the entrance requirements demonstrate that students possess the skills, competencies and prerequisite knowledge needed  to  progress in the curriculum;  (2)  that  the content will enable the student to develop those skills and competencies required for employment in the  occupational  area  for which the curriculum was developed;  (3) that the school will utilize appropriate instructional methods;  (4)  that  the  instructional  equipment used within the curriculum is comparable to the equipment currently used by business  or  industry  in the occupational area for which the curriculum was developed; and  (5)  that  a curriculum may include instruction in English as a second language at a beginning or basic level, provided such instruction  shall not constitute more than fifty percent of such program.   c.  (1)  If the evaluation of a particular course or facility requires the services of an expert not employed by the department, the department shall retain such expert at the school's  expense  in  addition  to  the application fees prescribed in paragraph a of this subdivision.  (2) If, in the interest of expediting the approvals, a school requests the department to employ an outside consultant, the school shall pay the cost  of such services in addition to the application fees prescribed in paragraph a of this subdivision.   d. The commissioner shall act on applications for approval of a course or curriculum within one hundred twenty days of receipt  of  a  complete application and, in the case of a denial, shall set forth in writing the reasons for such denial.   e.  Notwithstanding  paragraphs  b,  c  and  d  of  this  subdivision, curriculum certified by a nationally recognized  vendor  as  defined  in commissioner's regulations shall be recognized by the department in lieu of  an  expert evaluation when such curriculum is adopted by a school in the original format provided by the  vendor  as  long  as  the  proposed curriculum   is  a  stand  alone  program  and  not  part  of  a  larger comprehensive course.   f. Notwithstanding any other provision of the  law,  a  not-for-profit licensed  career  school,  that  is  eligible  for  participation in the tuition assistance program and which has  national  accreditation,  may, for  the  purpose  of calculation of federal financial aid amounts only, measure  students'  academic  progress  in  an  approved  curriculum  in non-degree  granting  credit  hours,  based  upon a national accrediting agency's conversion and approval of clock  hours  to  non-degree  credit hours.  For  the  purposes  of  this paragraph, "national accreditation" shall mean accreditation by a national accrediting agency as defined  in the commissioner's regulations.   5. Application for reapproval. a. An application and fee shall be made for  reapproval  of  a  curriculum  or course. Such application shall be considered timely if submitted at least one hundred twenty days prior to the expiration of the current approval.  The  application  fee  for  any curriculum of one hundred clock hours or more shall be two hundred fifty dollars.  The  application  fee  for any course of less than one hundred clock hours shall be one hundred dollars, provided that no fee shall  be assessed  for the submission of a reapproval application without change. Such application fee shall accrue  to  the  credit  of  the  proprietary vocational school supervision account.   b. Curriculum  reapproval  standards.  (1) The commissioner shall pre- scribe by regulation, standards for reapproval after the first  year  of licensure,  of any curriculum or course based upon factors including but not limited to the following, as appropriate:  (i) for each curriculum or course, the percentage of students who have dropped out;  (ii) the acquisition of a specified minimum level  of  skills  by  the students; and  (iii) for each curriculum or course, the percentage of students placed in occupations related to the instruction, where applicable.  (2)  Such  standards  shall  be  consistent  with those applied to all non-degree career education programs.    c. Reapproval contingency. Reapproval of a curriculum or course  shall be  contingent upon a demonstration by the applicant that the curriculum or course has met the curriculum reapproval standards set forth in  this subdivision.  Except  as  otherwise  provided  in  paragraph  d  of this subdivision,  no  such  curriculum  or  course  or substantially similar curriculum  or  course  may  be  given   without   reapproval   by   the commissioner.   d.  When timely and complete application is made for the reapproval of a curriculum or course, and no written denial is made thirty days  prior to  the  date  of expiration of the existing approval, the curriculum or course shall be deemed to be approved for the period of the  curriculum. If  the  application  is  denied,  the  commissioner  shall set forth in writing the reasons for such denial.   e.  The  commissioner  may  provide  in  regulations  for   reapproval procedures, consistent with this subdivision, for applications submitted less than one hundred twenty days from the expiration date.   f.  The commissioner shall act upon enrollment agreements and catalogs within ninety days of receipt, and, in the case  of  denial,  shall  set forth  in writing the reasons for such denial. If the commissioner fails to act within ninety days, a catalog shall be deemed  approved  for  one year  and  an  enrollment  agreement  shall be deemed approved until the commissioner acts upon it.   6. a. Teachers and directors. No person shall be employed by a private career school as a director or teacher  who  is  not  licensed  in  such capacity  by the department pursuant to regulations of the commissioner, which shall take into consideration such  factors  as  moral  character, educational  qualifications  and  practical  experience. The application shall include a statement, signed by the president  or  chief  executive officer  of  the  school,  certifying  that  to  the  best of his or her knowledge, the applicant is able to meet the educational  qualifications and  practical  experience  set forth in the commissioner's regulations. Such  application  shall  be  considered  timely  if   mailed   to   the commissioner  and postmarked four days prior to employment at the school and must be completed within twenty days thereafter; provided,  however, that  the commissioner may, for good cause shown, extend the time within which to complete the application. When a complete application is  made, the  commissioner shall act upon such application within thirty days. If no written denial is made within the thirty days, the application  shall be  deemed  to  be approved until the commissioner acts upon it or until the end of the term or semester, whichever occurs first.  If  a  written denial  is  made after the thirty day period, the commissioner may allow the applicant to teach at the school for the remainder of  the  term  or semester  if the commissioner determines that the removal of the teacher would not be in the best educational  interest  of  the  students.  This subdivision  shall  not  apply  to  directors or teachers employed on or before July first,  nineteen  hundred  seventy-two.  Teachers'  licenses issued  on or after the effective date of the chapter of the laws of two thousand twelve which amended this  paragraph  shall  be  valid  at  all licensed   private   career  schools  for  the  courses,  curricula,  or occupations indicated on the license.  Teachers  holding  valid  private school  teacher  licenses  valid  at only one school location shall have them replaced, at no cost, with licenses valid at any licensed school in the same subject or subjects and with the same expiration  date  as  was listed on the previous teaching license.   b.  A  school  director  shall  have  access to all student and school records which shall be maintained in accordance with  this  article  and the  regulations  of  the  commissioner  and  shall  make  such  records  available to  the  commissioner  or  the  commissioner's  designee  upon request during an on-site school inspection.   c.  Notwithstanding paragraph a of this subdivision, a teacher who has been certified as an instructor by a  nationally  recognized  vendor  as defined  in  commissioner's  regulations  may  be deemed qualified as an instructor by the department, provided such teacher shall  only  provide instruction  in the course or courses for which he or she holds vendor's certification. A teacher authorized by this paragraph will be subject to all licensing fees required by the department for licensed teachers.   7. Advertising. a.  The  commissioner  is  authorized  to  commence  a disciplinary  proceeding pursuant to this article for false, misleading, deceptive or fraudulent advertising pursuant to regulations  promulgated by  the commissioner which shall be consistent with article twenty-two-A of the general business law. The department shall issue guidelines as to appropriate advertising content.  In  developing  such  guidelines,  the department  shall  consider  advertising for similar programs offered by various educational institutions. In  a  disciplinary  action  or  other proceeding,  such  guidelines  shall  not  be  presumptive evidence that particular advertising is appropriate.   b. Beginning on January first, two thousand, all schools shall include in their advertising, promotional material, or letterhead the  statement "Licensed  by  the  State  of  New  York", and an accompanying symbol to indicate such status, issued by the  commissioner  pursuant  to  section five thousand nine of this article.   8.  The  higher  education  services corporation shall adopt rules and regulations to effectuate the  cessation  of  collection  activities  by lenders  or  by  the  corporation  in  cases in which a licensed private career school at which the student enrolled has  closed  or  ceased  its teaching  activities  during  the academic period for which the loan was made or guaranteed.