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Questions From The Workshops

Q. May schools advertise that they are "approved by the Bureau"?

A. No, that would not be accurate. Currently Chapter 635, section 9 of the Statutes of 2007 define circumstances that allow a school to be approved "…for purposes of interpreting other provisions of applicable law that refer or relate to the issuance of a license or registration and meeting qualifications for licensing examinations." until January 1, 2009; and Chapter 635, section 3(b) of the Statutes of 2007 states "wherever in law there is a reference to an institution "approved by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education," this shall mean any school that has entered into, and is complying with, a voluntary agreement under paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 1 of Chapter 67 of the Statutes of 2007." (The Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education Reform Act sunsetted on June 30, 2007, and the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education (Bureau) closed. Institutions cannot be approved by an entity that does not exist.

Q. What can we advertise if we cannot advertise, "we are approved by the Bureau?"

A. You may advertise anything that is factually correct, such as: "we were approved by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education on June 30, 2007 when the Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education Reform Act became inoperative," "we have entered into a voluntary agreement with the Director of the Department of Consumer Affairs." If you are accredited you may advertise that you are accredited or if you have approval of your program from a regulatory body other than the Bureau you may advertise that approval.

Q. If we want to make changes such as adding a program, changing location or adding a branch what do we do?

A. If the institution is accredited you should seek approval from your accrediting agency and send the Department of Consumer Affairs a copy of your notice approving those changes. If the institution is not accredited you may simply make the changes. If you change location you may send a courtesy notice to the Department of Consumer Affairs but it is not required.

Q. What is the difference between approval and accreditation?

A. Approval is what the Bureau did as authorized by the Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education Reform Act, it was required by California state law for private postsecondary institutions who were not otherwise exempt. Accreditation is voluntary and is done by accrediting commissions or bureaus, not the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education.

One of the requirements for eligibility to offer student financial assistance authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 is to be accredited by an accreditation agency recognized by the United States Department of Education.

Q. Can we still sign a Voluntary Agreement?

A. Yes, they are available on the web site www.bppve.ca.gov, click on the "schools" tab at the top of the page, there you will find a link to the voluntary agreement. You may complete that and fax or mail it to the address on the form.

Q. What will happen on July 1, 2008 to all of the applications that were pending as of June 30, 2007?

A. It depends on the language provided in any new statute that may go into effect on or before July 1, 2008. If there is new law, we anticipate there will be some type of transitional language that will give us instruction on how to handle all applications that were left pending on June 30, 2007.

Q. If we open a school now, will we have to shut it down when a new law is created?

A. Again, it depends on the law that is enacted. We anticipate there will be some type of transitional provisions to address schools that started during the sunset period.