NAICU Submits Teacher Preparation-Distance Education Comments to Department of Education

NAICU submitted comments to the Department of Education on the supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on “teacher preparation programs provided through distance education.”

NAICU’s comments, submitted on April 22, address several concerns, including:

• The unclear definition of “teacher preparation program provided through distance education”;
• The nonexistent data for the required exchange of information among states; and
• The veto authority given to one state over all others related to TEACH Grant eligibility for distance education programs.

NAICU also reiterated its concerns with the underlying regulation package, particularly the rating of teacher preparation programs based on a federally-mandated, four-tier rating system based on federal program quality standards, then tying that rating to Title IV eligibility. Those comments, from January 2015, can be read here.

Comments on the proposed regulations are due to the Department by May 2, 2016. Comments can be uploaded on the Regulations.gov website by clicking the “Comment Now!” button and filling out the form.

For more information, please contact:
Stephanie Giesecke