Pennsylvania Code › Title 22 - EDUCATION › Part I - State Board of Education › Subpart C - Higher Education › Chapter 31 - GENERAL PROVISIONS › PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS › Section 31.2 - Definitions

Current through Register Vol. 54, No. 28, July 13, 2024
The following words and terms, when used in this subpart,
						have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates
						otherwise:
ASB
-Associate in Specialized
						Business.
AST
-Associate in Specialized
						Technology.
CEC-Community Education Council
-A
						nonprofit educational organization as defined in Article XIX-D of the School
						Code (24 P. S. §§
												19-1901-D-1905-D).
Chartered status
-Classification of a
						2-year college, college, seminary or university established under one of the
						following:
(i) 15 Pa.C.S. Part II,
					 Subpart B (relating to Business Corporation Law of 1988).
(ii) 15 Pa.C.S. Part II, Subpart C (relating
					 to Nonprofit Corporation Law of 1988).
(iii) Section 2601-H of the School Code
					 (24
					 P. S. §
												26-2601-H).
(iv) 24 Pa.C.S. Chapter 65 (relating to
					 private colleges, universities and seminaries).
College
-An institution which, in
						accordance with its charter or articles of incorporation, offers 2-year, 4-year
						or 5-year postsecondary educational programs or their equivalent and which
						grants associate, baccalaureate or first professional degrees. In some
						instances, a 4-year college may offer graduate programs culminating with
						graduate degrees when it has the appropriate approval under Chapter 42
						(relating to program approval).
Combination program
-An academic degree
						program that uses both distance learning and classroom instruction to deliver
						instructional content.
Community college
-A college or technical
						institute which offers 2-year, secondary and postsecondary, transfer, college
						parallel, terminal-general, terminal-technical, out-of-school youth or adult
						education programs or a combination of these; grants certificates and associate
						degrees; and is established and operated in accordance with Article XIX-A of
						the School Code (24 P. S. §§
												19-1901-A-19-1918-A). A community college
						also may offer upper-division programs not culminating in a baccalaureate
						degree when it has the appropriate approval under Chapter 42.
Corrective action status
-A period during
						which an institution is required by the Department to correct deficiencies
						identified during the Department's institutional review. Corrective action
						status begins upon receipt of written notification from the Department.
						Corrective action status ends upon receipt of written notification from the
						Department that the institution has resolved all deficiencies.
Distance education
-An alternate format
						to resident-based instruction for offering education courses or series of
						courses by an approved postsecondary educational institution, consortium of
						institutions or educational enterprise, for which credit is offered or awarded
						toward a certificate, diploma or degree, which has as its primary mode of
						delivery one or more of the following:
(i) Correspondence.
(ii) Television.
(iii) Videocassette or disk.
(iv) Film.
(v) Radio.
(vi) Computer.
(vii) Devices built upon an audio-video
					 format.
(viii) Other supportive
					 devices using current or future technology.
Education enterprise
-An educational
						activity in this Commonwealth that is sponsored by a foreign corporation and
						for which college credits or continuing education units are awarded, continuing
						professional education is offered (culminating in awards such as Continuing
						Education Unit (CEU), Continuing Medical Education (CME) or Continuing
						Professional Education (CPE)), or tuition or fees are charged or
						collected.
Employment area
-A geographic area
						wherein persons who complete vocational education programs are most likely to
						be employed.
Foreign corporation
-A corporation,
						entity or institution that is incorporated or authorized by other means in a
						state other than this Commonwealth and is approved and authorized to operate an
						education enterprise in this Commonwealth under 15 Pa.C.S. Part II, Subparts B
						or C, and 24 Pa.C.S. Chapter 65.
Graduate program
-A program which is
						beyond the baccalaureate level from the master's to the postdoctoral levels and
						which provides advanced study and exploration in a particular discipline or the
						application of knowledge to professional ends.
Independent status-
Classification of an
						institution which is legally authorized to grant degrees but which is not
						statutorily established as an instrumentality of the Commonwealth.
Licensed status-
Classification of a
						school or classes providing resident instruction in the skilled trades,
						industry or business, or systematic instruction by correspondence or
						telecommunication, which school, classes or systematic instruction are
						established and licensed or registered under the Private Licensed Schools Act
						(24
						P. S. §§
												6501-6518).
Long-range vocational education plan-
A
						plan for directing resources toward the improvement of vocational education
						programs and services to meet labor market needs, which plan is based upon data
						compiled on the supply of and demand for trained workers in business and
						industry.
Major corporate change-
A restructuring
						of the postsecondary institution's corporation, including, but not limited to,
						the following:
(i) Merger.
(ii) Federation.
(iii) Consolidation.
(iv) Sale of assets.
(v) Change of sponsorship.
(vi) Division.
(vii) Dissolution or closure.
(viii) Bankruptcy.
Physical presence-
The operation of an
						entity that offers courses, programs, or degrees or maintains a campus, or an
						administrative, corporate or other address, including a post office box,
						telephone number, recruiters, instructors, advertising in local media and
						publications at a location in this Commonwealth.
Professional program-
A program which
						culminates with a baccalaureate, first professional or graduate degree;
						provides preparation for practice in professions, including medicine, allied
						health, dentistry, law, engineering, architecture, ministry and teaching; and
						educates persons in the field of study.
Professional school-
An organized
						administrative unit of a school, college, university or seminary offering one
						or more professional programs.
Resident-based instruction-
A course or
						series of courses or programs offered by a postsecondary educational
						institution and taught by faculty at a specific physical location where
						students physically attend the courses or programs.
School Code-
The Public School Code of
						1949 (24 P. S. §§
												1-101-27-2702).
Seminary-
An institution which offers
						one or more professional programs to candidates for the priesthood, ministry or
						rabbinate.
Specialized associate degree program-
A
						program culminating in an occupational degree, either an ASB degree or AST
						degree, that is designed to prepare a student for employment in an area
						requiring specialized instruction beyond secondary education.
State-aided status-
Classification of a
						nonprofit institution which is legally authorized to grant degrees; offers
						needed, specified higher education services in the public interest of the
						Commonwealth; and receives a direct Commonwealth appropriation.
State-related status-
Classification of
						a nonprofit institution which is legally authorized to grant degrees; offers
						needed, specified higher education services in the public interest of the
						Commonwealth; is statutorily established as an instrumentality of the
						Commonwealth; and receives a direct annual Commonwealth appropriation.
State System-
Classification of
						universities established under Article XX-A of the School Code (24 P. S. §§
												20-2001-A-20-2019-A).
State System status-
Classification of a
						nonprofit institution which is legally authorized to grant degrees; offers
						needed, specified higher education services in the public interest of the
						Commonwealth; and receives a direct annual Commonwealth appropriation.
Two-year college-
An institution that
						offers full 2-year postsecondary educational programs culminating with
						associate degrees. A 2-year college also may offer upper-division programs not
						culminating in a baccalaureate degree when it has the appropriate approval
						under Chapter 42.
University-
A multiunit institution with
						a complex structure and diverse educational functions, including instruction,
						promotion of scholarship, preservation and discovery of knowledge, research and
						service. A university meets the following criteria:
(i) Consists of a minimum of three units.
(A) The first unit provides for study of the
					 arts and sciences at the undergraduate level.
(B) The second unit provides advanced degree
					 programs through the doctorate in the arts and sciences, with an adequate
					 number of majors in the various disciplines.
(C) The third unit provides a minimum of five
					 professional programs at the graduate level.