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Diploma Mills: Don’t Strike Out

Diploma Mills: Don’t Strike Out . MASFAP Spring Conference March 24, 2011. Agenda. Program Integrity Regulations Postsecondary Responsibility FAFSA High School Question Accreditation The States Diploma Mills. Program Integrity Regs.

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Diploma Mills: Don’t Strike Out

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  1. Diploma Mills:Don’t Strike Out MASFAP Spring Conference March 24, 2011

  2. Agenda • Program Integrity Regulations • Postsecondary Responsibility • FAFSA High School Question • Accreditation • The States • Diploma Mills

  3. Program Integrity Regs • Develop and follow procedures to evaluate the validity of a high school diploma • When? • Reason to believe it is not valid • Reason to believe it was not obtained from an entity that provides secondary education • Believed by Whom? • The Secretary • The institution

  4. Program Integrity Regs • Why regulations? • Protect the integrity of the high school diploma requirement • Address the issue of high school diploma mills • Growth of online high schools • Fraud at some postsecondary institutions • Address issues raised in 2009 GAO report

  5. Institutional Responsibility • Validity questioned by Secretary or institution • Follow the required procedure • Suggested documentation • Copy of high school diploma • Final high school transcript • Evaluation report of foreign diplomas • Self-certification is not sufficient • No appeal to USDE • Not applicable to home schooled students

  6. FAFSA • 2011-12 FAFSA • Question 27 • First time entering students • Information requested • High school name • High school city • High school state

  7. FAFSA • “Drop-down” list • Based on NCES high school survey • Includes most public and private schools • Not “good” or “bad” schools • Data collected for analysis only (for 2011-12) • No ISIR comments • Not required to collect diploma • Not required to compare information

  8. Accreditation • No USDE recognition of secondary level accreditation • Not required/recommended as sole basis for review under institutional procedure • Without recognition, hard to determine legitimate from the questionable

  9. Regional Accreditation • Same basic structure as postsecondary • New England Assoc. of School and Colleges • Middle States Assoc. – Commission on Secondary Schools • Southern Assoc. – Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (SACS-CASI) • North Central Assoc. – CASI • Northwest Association of Accredited Schools • Western Assoc. – Accrediting Commission on Schools

  10. Other Accreditors • Distance Education and Training Council • Accredits both secondary and postsecondary levels • May have limited acceptance • States • Postsecondary • AdvancEd • 27,000 public and private schools accredited • NCA-CASI; SACS-CASI • Commission on International and Trans-Regional Accreditation

  11. States • No consistent requirements • Standards vary widely from state to state • PA • Licensure/approval is required • Primarily consumer protection focus • FL • No substantive regulation • MO • No substantive regulation of private high schools

  12. Diploma Mill • Offer a credential • Typically a fee is charged • Requires little or no academic work on the part of the recipient • Same definition as for a postsecondary diploma mill • Sounds simple but often is more complicated

  13. Diploma Mill • Not all online; not all are obvious • Many offer all the same documents are legitimate school • Authentic looking diploma • Complete transcript • Contact information for verification • May claim accreditation • May claim/possess some type of state status

  14. Tips and Suggestions • How do you spot a diploma mill? • Documentation and investigation • No simple formula • Look for signs • Claims of unknown or unclear accreditation • Often operated from same address as school • Review list of accredited schools • State Registration • Often references corporate registration

  15. Examples • Texas Star Point Academy (www.texasstarpointacademy.com) • Registered with the State of Texas • Accredited by North Central Texas Regional Certification Agency • Accredited by Texas Unified Certification Program • Finishhighschool.com (Wyoming) • Operates its own accrediting agency • 25 question open book test • Diploma and transcript for $495

  16. Tips and Suggestions • Unbelievable offers • “Earn a recognized high school diploma from Belford High School within 7 days, for just $249.” • “Get your high school diploma on the basis of prior knowledge and experience.” • “Pass our simple online equivalency test to get your high school diploma.”

  17. Tips and Suggestions • Grammatical and Spelling Errors • Website, documents, even tests • Testing • Diploma for little or no study • Simple, sometimes single test for diploma • Low cost • Substantially below legitimate schools • Special deals, sale prices, combo purchases

  18. Wrap Up • Watch for federal guidance (DCL, etc.) • Establish a policy and procedure • Look for accreditation, when claimed • Watch for the signs

  19. Questions? Missouri Department of Higher Education P.O. Box 1469 Jefferson City, MO 65102 Phone: (573) 751-2361 Fax: (573) 751-6635 Info. Center: (800) 473-6757 info@dhe.mo.gov www.dhe.mo.gov

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