Distance Education Rules May Be Delayed

A federal requirement for online colleges to tell students whether their academic programs meet state licensing requirements may be postponed.

Russell Poulin, director of policy and analysis at the WICHE Cooperative for Educational Technologies, tweeted last week that the Department of Education had submitted a proposed rule to the Office of Management and Budget titled “State Authorization; Delayed Effective Date.”

“We don’t know what’s being proposed,” tweeted Poulin. “It is likely a delay and possible redo of the rule set to go into effect on July 1.”

The state authorization rules have been criticized as confusing, with many institutions reporting uncertainty about implementation.