Texas Administrative Code › Title 22 - EXAMINING BOARDS › Part 11 - TEXAS BOARD OF NURSING › Chapter 214 - VOCATIONAL NURSING EDUCATION › Section 214.3 - Program Development, Expansion and Closure

Current through Reg. 49, No. 28; July 12, 2024
(a) New Programs.
(1) New vocational nursing education programs
				must be approved by the Board in order to operate in the State of Texas. The
				Board has established guidelines for the initial approval of vocational nursing
				education programs.
(2) Proposal to
				establish a new vocational nursing education program.
(A) An educational unit in nursing within the
				structure of a school, including a college, university, or career school or
				college, or a hospital or military setting is eligible to submit a proposal to
				establish a new vocational nursing education program.
(B) The new vocational nursing education
				program must be approved/licensed or deemed exempt by the appropriate Texas
				agency, the THECB or the TWC, as applicable, before approval can be granted by
				the Board for the program to be implemented. The proposal to establish a new
				vocational nursing education program may be submitted to the Board at the same
				time that an application is submitted to the THECB or the TWC, but the proposal
				cannot be approved by the Board until such time as the proposed program is
				approved by the THECB or the TWC. If the governing entity has nursing programs
				in other jurisdictions, the submitted program proposal must include evidence
				that the nursing program's NCLEX-PN® pass rates
				are at least 80% for the current examination year, as that term is defined in
				§
											214.2(19) of this
				chapter (relating to Definitions), and that the nursing programs hold full
				approval from the state boards of nursing in the other states and are in good
				standing. Evidence of poor performance by a governing entity's nursing program
				in another jurisdiction is sufficient grounds for denial of a proposal.
				Additionally, a proposal will be denied by the Board in accordance with
				governing statutory requirements.
(C) The process to establish a new vocational
				nursing education program shall be initiated by a letter of intent from the
				governing entity to the Board office. A program proposal must be ready for the
				Board's consideration of approval within one (1) year from the date of receipt
				of the initial proposal draft in the Board's office. If the proposal is not
				ready for the Board's consideration within this time period, the proposal will
				be considered withdrawn or will be presented to the Board at its next regularly
				scheduled meeting, with a Staff recommendation of denial/disapproval.
(D) The individual writing the proposal for a
				new vocational nursing education program shall be the proposed director and
				shall meet the qualifications for the program director as specified in §
											214.6(f)
				of this chapter (relating to Administration and Organization).
(E) At least one (1) potential faculty member
				shall be identified before the curriculum development to assist in planning the
				program of study.
(F) The proposal
				shall include information outlined in Board Education Guideline 3.1.1.
				available at
https://www.bon.texas.gov
.
(G) After the proposal is submitted and
				determined to be complete, a preliminary survey visit may be conducted by Board
				Staff.
(H) The proposal shall be
				considered by the Board following a public hearing at a regularly scheduled
				meeting of the Board. The Board may approve the proposal and grant initial
				approval to the new program, may defer action on the proposal, or may deny
				further consideration of the proposal. In order to ensure success of newly
				approved programs, the Board may, in its discretion, impose any restrictions or
				conditions it deems appropriate and necessary.
(i) In addition to imposing restrictions and
				conditions, the Board may also require specific monitoring of newly approved
				programs that may be high-risk.
(ii) A program may be considered high-risk if
				it meets one or more of the following criteria, including, but not limited to:
				unfamiliarity of the governing entity with nursing education; inexperience of
				the potential director or coordinator in directing a nursing program; potential
				for director or faculty turnover; multiple admission cycles per year; lack of
				rigor in admission criteria; use of a national curriculum; or potential for a
				high attrition rate among students. If the director has no experience in the
				director role, an appropriate mentor will be required to assist the director
				during the first year of operation.
(iii) Board monitoring of a high-risk program
				may include the review and analysis of program reports; extended communication
				with program directors; and additional survey visits. A monitoring plan may
				require the submission of quarterly reports of students' performance in courses
				and clinical learning experiences; remediation strategies and attrition rates;
				and reports from an assigned mentor to the program director. Additional survey
				visits by a Board representative may be conducted at appropriate intervals to
				evaluate the status of the program. The Board may alter a monitoring plan as
				necessary to address the specific needs of a particular program.
(I) The program shall not enroll
				students until the Board approves the proposal and grants initial
				approval.
(J) Prior to presentation
				of the proposal to the Board, evidence of approval from the appropriate
				regulatory agencies shall be provided.
(K) When the proposal is submitted, an
				initial approval fee shall be assessed per §
											223.1 of this
				title (relating to Fees).
(L) A
				proposal without action for one (1) calendar year shall be considered
				withdrawn, and a new proposal application and fee, as set forth in §
											223.1 of this
				title (relating to Fees) will be required to begin the new proposal process
				again.
(M) If the Board denies a
				proposal, the educational unit in nursing within the structure of a school,
				including a college, university, or career school or college, or a hospital or
				military setting must wait a minimum of twelve (12) calendar months from the
				date of the denial before submitting a new proposal to establish a vocational
				nursing education program.
(3) Survey visits shall be conducted, as
				necessary, by staff until full approval status is granted.