Kentucky is a SARA State

Eastern Kentucky University is a bricks and mortar Public University located in Richmond, Kentucky and recognized by Kentucky Revised Statute 164.290. Effective January 30, 2017 Eastern Kentucky University is a State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA) member. For more information on NC-SARA you may visit https://nc-sara.org. Under the terms of SARA, EKU is operating in all other member states, also known as host states under the terms of SARA.

What is SARA?

The State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA), provides a voluntary, regional approach to state oversight of postsecondary distance education. SARA establishes uniform processes and national standards for interstate offering of postsecondary distance learning. When states join SARA, they agree to follow those processes when approving eligible institutions’ participation in distance learning. They also agree to operate under SARA standards when interacting with other member institutions.

SARA’s policies help protect students and provide benefits to both states and institutions carrying out distance education in multiple states. As of April 2020, 49 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are members of SARA. Over 2,100 colleges and universities participate in SARA.

For a list of accreditations and memberships please review the University’s online catalog, https://catalogs.eku.edu/.

Eastern Kentucky University’s regional compact is the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB).

Southern Regional Education Board (SREB)
Wanda Barker Director, Education Technology and Multistate Cooperative Programs
592 10th Street N.E.
Atlanta, GA 30318-5776
Phone: (404) 875.9211 ext. 258
wanda.barker@sreb.org
Website: www.sreb.org/sara

Eastern Kentucky University’s state regulating agency is the Kentucky Council on Post-Secondary Education. The Kentucky Council on Post-Secondary Education also serves as the state’s portal agency for state authorization purposes.

1024 Capital Center Dr #320
Frankfort, KY 40601
Phone: (502) 573-1555
Website: http://cpe.ky.gov/

Definitions

Student(s): Anyone who is planning to apply to EKU or anyone currently enrolled with EKU.

Regulated/Regulations/Regulating: Rules, guidelines, standards, approval requirements set by an overseeing body in a state.

Residential address: The address where you reside and receive mail.

Location: Where you are located while the learning activities take place.

Accredited or Accreditation: Holding institutional accreditation by name as a U.S.-based Institution from an Accrediting Agency.

Accrediting Agency: An accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and whose scope of recognition, as specified by the U.S. Department of Education, includes Distance Education.

Affiliate Member: A State, territory, or district that affiliates with a Regional Compact under the terms of SARA in order to join SARA but is not a full member of that compact. The term “Member State” when used in this document includes affiliate members.

Authorized: Holding a current valid institutional Charter, license, approval, or other written document issued by a state, the federal government or a recognized Indian tribe, granting the named entity the authority to issue Degrees and operate within a State or jurisdiction as a postsecondary education Institution.

Complaint: A formal assertion in writing that a person, Institution, State, agency or other organization or entity operating under the provisions of the SARA Manual has violated the policies set forth in the SARA Manual or of laws, standards or regulations incorporated in the SARA Manual. See. SARA Manual • Version 20.1. January 1, 2020 Distributed February 6, 2020

Council: The National Council for State Authorization Reciprocity Agreements, or in short form National Council for SARA, or NC-SARA.

Exempt: The regulations established do not apply to EKU therefore we are allowed to proceed and/or operate

Collaborating Organization: An organization that allows students enrolled in a program that requires students complete a field placement, internship, externships and/or practicum as part of the educational curriculum for which a student receives educational credit hours to come into their organization to obtain said educational credit hours

Portal: Liaison entity that works with both the educational institutions and the regulating bodies to ensure compliance

Disclosures

Notice for Programs Leading to Licensure

SARA (State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement) has no bearing on state licensure boards.

Licensure requirements are regulated by each state’s respective board(s) and must be met in order to obtain a license in that state. EKU reserves the right to offer program(s) that lead to licensure in the states where EKU has made every reasonable effort to determine its program(s) comply with each state’s regulations. Regulations are ever evolving and can change without any notification to the higher education institutions. Students are encouraged to contact their applicable state licensing board(s) to determine whether the program continues to meet requirements for licensure in that state both before enrolling and during the learning experience.

A full list of all applicable state board contact information can be found at: https://www.nc-sara.org/professional-licensure-directory.

Out-of-State Relocation

It is imperative for students enrolled in a program leading to licensure to notify their advisor in advance of any plans to relocate out of state. Advisors will help students determine authorization and licensure eligibility requirements if the student relocates during the course of the program. Licensure regulations vary by state and relocating could affect whether a student will meet eligibility requirements for licensure and/or remain eligible for federal financial aid. Students must check with the state/territory licensing board where they desire licensure before relocating to ensure that they will be eligible for licensure or reciprocity.

Students must report their current residential address on their application for admission.

Students must also report where they will be located while enrolled at EKU to their advisor and/or program coordinator. Any out-of-state relocation that takes place must be reported to your advisor and the Registrar’s Office.

Complaints

1. Complaints against an Institution operating under SARA policies go first through the Institution’s own procedures for resolution of grievances. Allegations of criminal offenses or alleged violations of a State’s general-purpose laws may be made directly to the relevant State agencies.
2. Complaints regarding student grades or student conduct violations are governed entirely by institutional policy and the laws of the SARA Institution’s Home State.
3. If a person bringing a Complaint is not satisfied with the outcome of the institutional process for handling Complaints, the Complaint (except for Complaints about grades or student conduct violations) may be appealed, within two years of the incident about which the Complaint is made, to the SARA Portal Entity in the Home State of the Institution against which the Complaint has been lodged. That Portal Entity shall notify the SARA Portal Entity for the State in which the student is located of receipt of that appealed Complaint. The resolution of the Complaint by the Institution’s Home State SARA Portal Entity, through its SARA complaint resolution process, will be final, except for Complaints that fall under the provision “7” below.
4. While the final resolution of the Complaint rests with the SARA Portal Entity in the Home State of the Institution against which the Complaint has been lodged, the Portal Entity in the complainant’s location State may assist as needed. The final disposition of a Complaint resolved by the Home State shall be communicated to the Portal Entity in the State where the student lived at the time of the incident leading to the Complaint, if known.
5. While final resolution of Complaints (for purposes of adjudication of the Complaint and enforcement of any resultant remedies or redress) resides in certain cases with institutions (Complaints about grades or student conduct violations), or more generally with the relevant Institution’s Home State SARA Portal Entity (all other Complaints), the Regional Compact(s) administering SARA may consider a disputed Complaint as a “case file” if concerns are raised against a SARA member State with regard to whether that State is abiding by SARA policies, as promulgated in the SARA Manual. The Regional Compact may review such institutional concerns in determining whether a State under its SARA purview is abiding by SARA policies. Similarly, a Complaint “case file” may also be reviewed by NC-SARA in considering whether a Regional Compact is ensuring that its SARA member States are abiding by the SARA policies required for their membership in SARA.
6. SARA State Portal Entities shall report quarterly to NC-SARA the number and disposition of appealed Complaints that are not resolved at the institutional level. NC-SARA shall make that information publicly available on its website. Such data will create transparency and can be used in determining whether a Regional Compact is ensuring that its SARA member States and those States’ Institutions are abiding by the policies required for State membership and institutional participation in SARA.
7. Nothing in the SARA Manual precludes a State from using its laws of general application to pursue action against an Institution that violates those laws. SARA Manual • Version 20.1. January 1, 2020 Distributed February 6, 2020

Oversight of Complaint Investigation

Investigation of a SARA-related Complaint against an Institution requires that a state board, agency or entity outside the institution’s immediate management be available to handle Complaints that are not resolved within the institution. A system board responsible for more than one separately Accredited institution may serve this role under SARA provisions. A board responsible for only one Accredited institution, or which lacks enforcement authority over an Institution, cannot serve as the SARA external oversight agency for such an institution. In such circumstances, the institution’s home-state SARA Portal Entity may serve that function.

Disclaimer

Please be advised that there may be other factors that could prohibit your success in a program, such as a criminal record. If you are a convicted felon under federal law U.S.C. Title 18 you are not allowed to lawfully own a firearm which would inhibit your ability to find gainful employment in many of the Criminal Justice majors.

Having a criminal record could also affect your ability to successfully obtain professional licensure in many states and your ability to secure field placements, internships, externships and/or practicums.

Many collaborating organizations require students to submit to a drug screen, criminal background check, sex offender registry search, OIG (Office of Inspector General) search, federal finger printing and/or to submit copies of all your immunization records, including OSHA training certificates, HIPPA training certificates and CPR certification. These tests are at the expense of the student. Collaborating organizations reserve the right to deny student field placements, internships, externships and/or practicums for many reasons including but not limited to if a student has a criminal record or fails the drug screen standards as established by the collaborating organization.

For more information on a specific program please visit www.ekuonline.eku.edu and/or reach out to the program advisor.

Alabama

Teacher Education Programs: Applicants for an Alabama certificate based on reciprocity must meet Alabama’s test requirements and submit a valid, renewable professional educator certificate/license issued by another state at the degree level, grade level, and in the teaching field or area of instructional support for which an Alabama certificate is sought and for which an Alabama certificate is sought and for which Alabama issues a certificate. Applicants for Alabama certification in an area of administration must also document at least three years of full-time employment as an administrator in a P – 12 school system(s). See www.alsde.edu

Nursing: State approval of a program to offer Alabama licensed nurses opportunities for advanced degrees does not indicate eligibility for approval to practice as an advanced practice nurse in Alabama. Applicants for approval in Alabama are required to meet the Alabama requirements for national certification, graduation from a specific-type program for the advanced practice approval, and completion of the appropriate application. Any program offering a pre-licensure track to Alabama students shall meet the requirements of the Alabama regulations for pre-licensure programs or the graduates may not be eligible to take the licensure examination required by the Alabama Board of Nursing to enter the practice. See www.abn.alabama.gov

Oregon

Online students residing in Oregon are eligible for refunds pursuant OAR 583-030-0035(18) (c): After classes begin for a term, a student who withdraws from a course is eligible for a partial refund through the middle week of the term. Refunds shall be based on unused instructional time and shall be prorated on a weekly basis for schools using a semester, quarter or nontraditional calendar.

• Terms that are 17 weeks in length require a refund through week 9.
• Terms that are 10 weeks in length require a refund through week 5.
• Terms that are 8 weeks in length require a refund through week 4.
• Terns that are 5 weeks in length require a refund through week 3.
• Terms that are 2 weeks in length require a refund through week 1.

Partial refunds will occur through the middle week of any given term, and prorated on a weekly basis as stipulated above.