2023 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 › 5004 - Private School Agent's Certificate.

§ 5004. Private  school agent's certificate. 1. a. No party may, for a
consideration or remuneration procure, solicit or enroll any student for
instruction in or given by any school within or without the state of New
York, unless (i) the party is a salaried employee of the school and (ii)
the party shall have secured a private school agent's  certificate  from
the department pursuant to regulations of the commissioner.
b.  Upon  submission  of  a complete new application for licensure, an
applicant may procure, solicit or enroll any  student  for  instruction;
provided,  however,  that  such  applicant be in possession at all times
during the  procurement,  solicitation  or  enrollment  processes  of  a
temporary approval certificate which the commissioner shall issue within
five days of receipt by mail or on the same day at designated offices. A
school  shall  submit  such  application  for licensure on or before the
first day of employment of such individual.
c. No consideration or remuneration shall be paid in the form of a fee
per student enrolled by a private school agent except  pursuant  to  the
following limitations:
(1)  a  school  may  pay  twenty-five  percent of the consideration or
remuneration after the student has completed three weeks of the program;
(2)  a  school  may  pay  the  remainder  of  the   consideration   or
remuneration after the student has completed eight weeks of the program;
(3)  the  total  amount  of the consideration or remuneration paid per
student may not exceed one percent of the  annual  salary  paid  to  the
agent.
d.  In  promulgating  regulations  in relation to the issuance of such
certificates and the conduct of the holders of  such  certificates,  the
commissioner shall give consideration to:
(1) good moral character of the candidate for such certificate;
(2)  the  use of ethical and fair practices in the presentation of the
school's offerings; and
(3) whether the prospective agent has within five years of the date of
the  application  violated  any  provision  of  this  article   or   the
regulations of the commissioner adopted pursuant to this article.
2.  Instruction, as contemplated by this section, shall be any plan or
method for teaching any subject or  subjects  in  any  form  or  manner,
including correspondence or home study.
3.  a.  Exempted  from  the  requirements  of this section are persons
acting solely for schools which are not required to be licensed  or  are
specifically exempted from the licensing requirements of this article.
b.  (i)  Also  exempted  from  the  requirements of this section is an
online education marketplace as defined in paragraph  c  of  subdivision
one  of  section  five  thousand  one of this article, provided that the
online education marketplace complies with each of the following:
(1) An online education marketplace shall  not  solicit,  procure,  or
enroll  any  student for instruction in a licensed private career school
or certified ESL school, as defined by the commissioner in regulations.
(2) Upon receipt of  any  monies  collected  by  an  online  education
marketplace  from  a  prospective  student for payment of tuition and/or
fees, the prospective student and the licensed private career school  or
certified ESL school shall execute an enrollment agreement in accordance
with  regulations of the commissioner. If an enrollment agreement is not
executed, the monies shall  be  promptly  returned  to  the  prospective
student  in  a  timeframe  and  manner prescribed by the commissioner in
regulations.
(3) If an enrollment  agreement  is  executed,  the  online  education
marketplace  shall  forward  the  monies  received  from the prospective
student to the licensed private career school or certified ESL school in
a timeframe and manner prescribed by the commissioner in regulations.
(4) An online education marketplace shall not receive from  a  student
an amount greater than the tuition or fees to be charged by the licensed
private  career school or certified ESL school to the student, and shall
separately account for monies received from the prospective  student  to
be  thereafter  transferred  to  a  licensed  private  career  school or
certified ESL school in payment of tuition or fees, and any remuneration
and/or compensation received by the online education marketplace from  a
licensed  private  career  school or certified ESL school in payment for
services rendered to such school by the  online  education  marketplace.
The  licensed  private  career school or certified ESL school shall also
separately account for tuition or fees transferred to the school  by  an
online  education  marketplace  on  behalf  of  a  student in payment of
tuition or fees, and payments made by the school to an online  education
marketplace  for services rendered to the school by the online education
marketplace.
(5) The commissioner may take disciplinary action  against  an  online
education  marketplace  pursuant  to section five thousand three of this
article, to the extent such provisions  are  deemed  applicable  by  the
commissioner in regulations.
(6)  An  online  education  marketplace  is  prohibited  from offering
advertising/marketing services to an unlicensed private career school or
uncertified ESL school.
(ii) Any licensed private career school or certified ESL  school  that
contracts  with  an  online  education marketplace shall comply with the
provisions of this subdivision and the regulations of  the  commissioner
or  they  may be subject to disciplinary action pursuant to section five
thousand three of this article.
c. Persons who are paid to procure, solicit or enroll students on  the
premises of schools required to be licensed shall not be exempt from the
provisions of this section.
4.  Application  and  renewal application for a private school agent's
certificate shall be filed on forms to be prescribed and provided by the
commissioner. Said certificate shall be valid for three years  from  the
date  of  issuance.  Certificates which have been renewed shall be valid
for a period of three years from the expiration date of the  certificate
which  has been renewed. Every applicant and renewal applicant shall pay
to the department a fee of two hundred dollars.
4-a. Notwithstanding  the  provisions  of  subdivision  four  of  this
section,  the  school  director  may  apply for a private school agent's
certificate on forms to be prescribed and provided by  the  commissioner
without incurring the agent application fee.
5.  No  recovery shall be had against any student or enrollee and full
recovery shall be made on any contract for or  in  connection  with  any
instruction  if  the  student  or  enrollee  was  procured, solicited or
enrolled outside or on the school premises by a person paid to  procure,
solicit or enroll students but not having a valid private school agent's
certificate  pursuant to the provisions of this section at the time that
the contract was negotiated or executed or the sale of  the  instruction
was  made,  or  by  a  person  who holds such a certificate but has made
fraudulent or improper claims. Each enrollment agreement shall  include,
where  applicable  the  name  of  the  agent  responsible for procuring,
soliciting or enrolling the student or enrollee.
6. The issuance of such a private school agent's certificate shall not
be deemed to constitute approval of any  course  or  of  the  person  or
institution offering, conducting or administering the same.
7. The commissioner, after giving to the certificate holder due notice
and opportunity to be heard, may fine a private school agent, suspend or
revoke  a  private school agent's certificate at any time for failure to

comply with the  provisions  of  the  law  or  the  regulations  of  the
commissioner or for any other good cause.
8.  No  employer  of  a  private  school agent other than a school may
indemnify, save harmless or otherwise reimburse any agent for the amount
of any fines imposed  pursuant  to  this  section.  If  a  person  fined
pursuant  to  this  section  can  demonstrate to the satisfaction of the
commissioner that  the  action  for  which  the  fine  was  imposed  was
undertaken  pursuant  to  explicit  instructions  from the employer, the
employer shall idemnify, save harmless, and reimburse  that  person  for
the  fine  and  shall  pay  to the commissioner an additional fine of an
equal amount.