34 C.F.R. Subpart J—Approval of Independently Administered Tests; Specification of Passing Score; Approval of State Process
Title 34 - Education
Source: 60 FR 61838, Dec. 1, 1995, unless otherwise noted.
(a) This subpart sets forth the provisions under which a student who has neither a high school diploma nor its recognized equivalent may become eligible to receive Title IV, HEA program funds by— (1) Achieving a passing score, specified by the Secretary, on an independently administered test approved by the Secretary under this subpart; or (2) Being enrolled in an eligible institution that participates in a State process approved by the Secretary under this subpart. (b) Under this subpart, the Secretary sets forth— (1) The procedures and criteria the Secretary uses to approve tests; (2) The basis on which the Secretary specifies a passing score on each approved test; (3) The procedures and conditions under which the Secretary determines that an approved test is independently administered; and (4) The procedures and conditions under which the Secretary determines that a State process demonstrates that students in the process have the ability to benefit from the education and training being offered to them. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) The following definitions apply to this subpart: Assessment center: A center that— (1) Is located at an eligible institution that provides two-year or four-year degrees, or qualifies as an eligible public vocational institution, i.e. a “postsecondary vocational institution;” (2) Is responsible for gathering and evaluating information about individual students for multiple purposes, including appropriate course placement; (3) Is independent of the admissions and financial aid processes at the institution at which it is located; (4) Is staffed by professionally trained personnel; and (5) Does not have as its primary purpose the administration of ability-to-benefit tests. Computer-based test: A test taken by a student on a computer and scored by a computer. Disabled student: A student who has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such an impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment. General learned abilities: Cognitive operations, such as deductive reasoning, reading comprehension, or translation from graphic to numerical representation, that may be learned in both school and non-school environments. Non-native speaker of English: A person whose first language is not English and who is not fluent in English. Secondary school level: As applied to “content,” “curricula,” or “basic verbal and quantitative skills,” refers to basic knowledge or skills generally learned in the 9th through 12th grades in United States secondary schools. Test administrator: An individual who may give tests under this subpart. Test item: A question on a test. Test publisher: An individual, organization, or agency that owns a registered copyright of a test, or is licensed by the copyright holder to sell or distribute a test. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) (a) The Secretary approves tests or other assessments submitted by a State that the State uses to measure a student's skills and abilities for the purpose of determining whether the student has the skills and abilities the State expects of a high school graduate in that State. (b) The Secretary approves passing scores or other methods of evaluation established by the State for each test or assessment described in paragraph (a) of this section. (c) If the Secretary approves a State's tests and assessments and the passing scores on those tests and assessments under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, that test or assessment may be used, for purposes of section 484(d) of the HEA, only for students who attend eligible institutions located in that State. (d) If a State wishes to have the Secretary approve its tests or assessments under this section, the State shall— (1) Submit to the Secretary those tests and assessments, its passing scores on those tests and assessments, and the educational standards those tests and assessments measure at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may prescribe; (2) Provide the Secretary with an explanation of how the tests, assessments, and passing scores are appropriate in light of the State's educational standards; and (3) Provide the Secretary with an assurance that the tests and assessments will be administered in an independent, fair, and secure manner. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61839, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] Except as provided in §668.143— (a) The Secretary only reviews tests under this subpart that are submitted by the publisher of that test; (b) A test publisher that wishes to have its test approved by the Secretary under this subpart must submit an application to the Secretary at such time and in such manner as the Secretary may prescribe. The application shall contain all the information necessary for the Secretary to approve the test under this subpart, including but not limited to, the information contained in this section; and (c) A test publisher shall include with its application— (1) A summary of the precise editions, forms, levels, and (if applicable) sub-tests and abbreviated tests for which approval is being sought; (2) The name, address, and telephone number of a contact person to whom the Secretary may address inquiries; (3) Each edition and form of the test for which the publisher requests approval; (4) The distribution of test scores for each edition, form, level, sub-test, or partial battery, for which approval is sought, that allows the Secretary to prescribe the passing score for each test in accordance with §668.147; (5) Documentation of test development, including a history of the test's use; (6) Norming data and other evidence used in determining the distribution of test scores; (7) Material that defines the content domains addressed by the test; (8) For tests first published five years or more before the date submitted to the Secretary for review and approval, documentation of periodic reviews of the content and specifications of the test to ensure that the test continues to reflect secondary school level verbal and quantitative skills; (9) If a test has been revised from the most recent edition approved by the Secretary, an analysis of the revisions, including the reasons for the revisions, the implications of the revisions for the comparability of scores on the current test to scores on the previous test, and data from validity studies of the test undertaken subsequent to the revisions; (10) A description of the manner in which test-taking time was determined in relation to the content representativeness requirements in §668.146(b)(2), and an analysis of the effects of time on performance; (11) A technical manual that includes— (i) An explanation of the methodology and procedures for measuring the reliability of the test; (ii) Evidence that different forms of the test, including, if applicable, short forms, are comparable in reliability; (iii) Other evidence demonstrating that the test permits consistent assessment of individual skill and ability; (iv) Evidence that the test was normed using— (A) Groups that were of sufficient size to produce defensible standard errors of the mean and were not disproportionately composed of any race or gender; and (B) A contemporary population representative of persons who are beyond the usual age of compulsory school attendance in the United States; (v) Documentation of the level of difficulty of the test; (vi) Unambiguous scales and scale values so that standard errors of measurement can be used to determine statistically significant differences in performance; and (vii) Additional guidance on the interpretation of scores resulting from any modifications of the tests for persons with documented disabilities. (12) The manual provided to test administrators containing procedures and instructions for test security and administration, and the forwarding of tests to the test publisher; (13) An analysis of the item-content of each edition, form, level, and (if applicable) sub-test to demonstrate compliance with the required secondary school level criterion specified in §668.146(b); (14) For performance-based tests or tests containing performance-based sections, a description of the training or certification required of test administrators and scorers by the test publisher; (15) A description of retesting procedures and the analysis upon which the criteria for retesting are based; and (16) Other evidence establishing the test's compliance with the criteria for approval of tests as provided in §668.146. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61839, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] Except as provided in §668.143— (a)(1) When the Secretary receives a complete application from a test publisher, the Secretary selects experts in the field of educational testing and assessment, who possess appropriate advanced degrees and experience in test development or psychometric research, to determine whether the test meets the requirements for test approval contained in §§668.146, 668.147, 668.148, or 668.149, as appropriate, and to advise the Secretary of their determinations; (2) If the test involves a language other than English, the Secretary selects at least one individual described in paragraph (a)(1) of this section who is fluent in the language in which the test is written to advise the Secretary on whether the test meets the additional criteria, provisions, and conditions for test approval contained in §§668.148 and 668.149; (b) The Secretary determines whether the test publisher's test meets the criteria and requirements for approval after taking the advice of the experts into account; (c)(1) If the Secretary determines that a test satisfies the criteria and requirements for test approval, the Secretary notifies the test publisher of the Secretary's decision, and publishes the name of the test and the passing scores in the (2) If the Secretary determines that a test does not satisfy the criteria and requirements for test approval, the Secretary notifies the test publisher of the Secretary's decision, and the reasons why the test did not meet those criteria and requirements. (3) The test publisher may request that the Secretary reevaluate the Secretary's decision. Such a request must be accompanied by— (i) Documentation and information that address the reasons for the non-approval of the test; and (ii) An analysis of why the information and documentation submitted meet the criteria and requirements for test approval notwithstanding the Secretary's earlier decision to the contrary. (d)(1) The Secretary approves a test for a period not to exceed five years from the date of the Secretary's written notice to the test publisher. (2) The Secretary extends the approval period of a test to include the period of review if the test publisher re-submits the test for review and approval under §668.144 at least six months before the date on which the test approval is scheduled to expire; (e) The approval of a test may be withdrawn if the Secretary determines that the publisher violated any terms of the agreement described in §668.150, or that the information the publisher submitted as a basis for approval of the test was inaccurate; (f) If the Secretary revokes approval of a previously approved test, the Secretary publishes a notice of that revocation in the (g) For test batteries that contain multiple sub-tests measuring content domains other than verbal and quantitative domains, the Secretary reviews only those subtests covering verbal and quantitative domains. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61840, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] Except as provided in §668.143— (a) Except as provided in §668.148, the Secretary approves a test under this subpart if the test meets the criteria set forth in paragraph (b) of this section and the test publisher satisfies the requirements set forth in paragraph (c) of this section; (b) To be approved under this subpart, a test shall— (1) Assess secondary school level basic verbal and quantitative skills and general learned abilities; (2) Sample the major content domains of secondary school level verbal and quantitative skills with sufficient numbers of questions to— (i) Adequately represent each domain; and (ii) Permit meaningful analyses of item-level performance by students who are representative of the contemporary population beyond the age of compulsory school attendance and have earned a high school diploma; (3) Require appropriate test-taking time to permit adequate sampling of the major content domains described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section; (4) Have all forms (including short forms) comparable in reliability; (5) If the test is revised, have new scales, scale values, and scores that are demonstrably comparable to the old scales, scale values, and scores; and (6) Meet all primary and applicable conditional and secondary standards for test construction provided in the 1985 edition of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, with amendments dated June 2, 1989, prepared by a joint committee of the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education incorporated by reference in this section. Incorporation by reference of this document has been approved by the Director of the Office of the Federal Register pursuant to the Director's authority under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. The incorporated document is on file at the Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, Room 4318, ROB–3, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20202 and at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202–741–6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.php. The standards may be obtained from the American Psychological Association, Inc., 750 First Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20026. (7) Have publisher's guidelines for retesting, including time between test-taking, be based on empirical analyses that are part of the studies of test reliability; and (c) In order for a test to be approved under this subpart, a test publisher shall— (1) Include in the test booklet or package— (i) Clear, specific, and complete instructions for test administration, including information for test takers on the purpose, timing, and scoring of the test; and (ii) Sample questions representative of the content and average difficulty of the test; (2) Have two or more secure, equated, alternate forms of the test; (3) Except as provided in §§668.148 and 668.149, provide tables of distributions of test scores which clearly indicate the mean score and standard deviation for high school graduates who have taken the test within three years prior to the date on that the test is submitted to the Secretary for approval under §668.144; (4) Norm the test with— (i) Groups that were of sufficient size to produce defensible standard errors of the mean and were not disproportionately composed of any race or gender; and (ii) A contemporary population representative of persons who are beyond the usual age of compulsory school attendance in the United States; and (5) If test batteries include sub-tests assessing different verbal and/or quantitative skills, a distribution of test scores as described in paragraph (c)(3) of this section that allows the Secretary to prescribe either— (i) A passing score for each sub-test; or (ii) One composite passing score for verbal skills and one composite passing score for quantitative skills. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61840, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996; 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004] Except as provided in §§668.143, 668.148 and 668.149, to demonstrate that a test taker has the ability to benefit from the education and training offered, the Secretary specifies that the passing score on each approved test is one standard deviation below the mean for students with high school diplomas who have taken the test within three years before the date on which the test is submitted to the Secretary for approval. (Authority; 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) Except as provided in §668.143— (a) In addition to satisfying the criteria in §668.146, to be approved by the Secretary, a test or a test publisher must meet the following criteria, if applicable: (1) In the case of a test that is performance-based, or includes performance-based sections, for measuring writing, speaking, listening, or quantitative problem-solving skills, the test publisher must provide— (i) A minimum of four parallel forms of the test; and (ii) A description of the training provided to test administrators, and the criteria under which trained individuals are certified to administer and score the test. (2) In the case of a test developed for a non-native speaker of English who is enrolled in a program that is taught in his or her native language, the test must be— (i) Linguistically accurate and culturally sensitive to the population for which the test is designed, regardless of the language in which the test is written; (ii) Supported by documentation detailing the development of normative data; (iii) If translated from an English version, supported by documentation of procedures to determine its reliability and validity with reference to the population for which the translated test was designed; (iv) Developed in accordance with guidelines provided in the 1985 edition of the “Testing Linguistic Minorities” section of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, with amendments dated June 2, 1989, prepared by a joint committee of the American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education incorporated by reference in this section. Incorporation by reference of this document has been approved by the Director of the Office of the Federal Register pursuant to the Director's authority under 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. The incorporated document is on file at the Department of Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, Room 4318, ROB–3, 600 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20202 and at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this material at NARA, call 202–741–6030, or go to: http://www.archives.gov/federal_register/code_of_federal_regulations/ibr_locations.php. The standards may be obtained from the American Psychological Association, Inc., 750 First Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20026; and (v)(A) If the test is in Spanish, accompanied by a distribution of test scores that clearly indicates the mean score and standard deviation for Spanish-speaking students with high school diplomas who have taken the test within 5 years before the date on which the test is submitted to the Secretary for approval; and (B) If the test is in a language other than Spanish, accompanied by a recommendation for a provisional passing score based upon performance of a sample of test takers representative of the intended population and large enough to produce stable norms. (3) In the case of a test that is modified for use for persons with disabilities, the test publisher must— (i) Follow guidelines provided in the “Testing People Who Have Handicapping Conditions” section of the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing; (ii) Provide documentation of the appropriateness and feasibility of the modifications relevant to test performance; and (iii) Recommend passing score(s) based on the previous performance of test-takers. (4) In the case of a computer-based test, the test publisher must— (i) Provide documentation to the Secretary that the test complies with the basic principles of test construction and standards of reliability and validity as promulgated in the Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing, as well as specific guidelines set forth in the American Psychological Association's Guidelines for Computer-based Tests and Interpretations (1986); (ii) Provide test administrators with instructions for familiarizing test takers with computer hardware prior to test-taking; and (iii) Provide two or more parallel, equated forms of the test, or, if parallel forms are generated from an item pool, provide documentation of the methods of item selection for alternate forms; and (b) If a test is designed solely to measure the English language competence of non-native speakers of English— (1) The test must meet the criteria set forth in §668.146(b)(6), and §668.146 (c)(1), (c)(2), and (c)(4); and (2) The test publisher must recommend a passing score based on the mean score of test takers beyond the age of compulsory school attendance who entered U.S. high school equivalency programs, formal training programs, or bilingual vocational programs. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61841, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996; 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004] If no test is reasonably available for persons with disabilities or students whose native language is not English and who are not fluent in English, so that no test can be approved under §§668.146 or 668.148 for these students, the following procedures apply: (a) Persons with disabilities. (1) The Secretary considers a modified test or testing procedure, or instrument that has been scientifically developed specifically for the purpose of evaluating the ability to benefit from postsecondary training or education of disabled students to be an approved test for purposes of this subpart provided that the testing procedure or instrument measures both basic verbal and quantitative skills at the secondary school level. (2) The Secretary considers the passing scores for these testing procedures or instruments to be those recommended by the test developer, provided that the test administrator— (i) Uses those procedures or instruments; (ii) Maintains appropriate documentation, including a description of the procedures or instruments, their content domains, technical properties, and scoring procedures; and (iii) Observes recommended passing scores. (b) Students whose native language is not English. The Secretary considers a test in a student's native language for a student whose native language is not English to be an approved test under this subpart if— (1) The Secretary has not approved any test in that native language; (2) The test was not previously rejected for approval by the Secretary; (3) The test measures both basic verbal and quantitative skills at the secondary school level; and (4) The passing scores and the methods for determining the passing scores are fully documented. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61841, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] (a) If the Secretary approves a test under this subpart, the test publisher must enter into an agreement with the Secretary that contains the provisions set forth in paragraph (b) of this section before an institution may use the test to determine a student's eligibility for Title IV, HEA program funds. (b) The agreement between a test publisher and the Secretary provides that the test publisher shall— (1) Allow only test administrators that it certifies to give its test; (2) Certify test administrators who have— (i) The necessary training, knowledge, and skill to test students in accordance with the test publisher's testing requirements; and (ii) The ability and facilities to keep its test secure against disclosure or release; (3) Decertify a test administrator for a period that coincides with the period for which the publisher's test is approved if the test publisher finds that the test administrator— (i) Has repeatedly failed to give its test in accordance with the publisher's instructions; (ii) Has not kept the test secure; (iii) Has compromised the integrity of the testing process; or (iv) Has given the test in violation of the provisions contained in §668.151; (4) Score a test answer sheet that it receives from a test administrator; (5) If a computer-based test, provide the test administrator with software that will: (i) Immediately generate a score report for each test taker; (ii) Allow the test administrator to send to the test publisher a secure write-protected diskette copy of the test taker's performance on each test item and the test taker's test scores; and (iii) Prohibit any changes in test taker responses or test scores. (6) Promptly send to the student and the institution the student indicated he or she is attending or scheduled to attend a notice stating the student's score for the test and whether or not the student passed the test; (7) Keep for a period of three years each test answer sheet or electronic record forwarded for scoring and all other documents forwarded by the test administrator with regard to the test; (8) Three years after the date the Secretary approves the test and for each subsequent three-year period, analyze the test scores of students to determine whether the test scores produce any irregular pattern that raises an inference that the tests were not being properly administered, and provide the Secretary with a copy of this analysis; and (9) Upon request, give the Secretary, a guaranty agency, or an accrediting agency access to test records or other documents related to an audit, investigation, or program review of the institution, test publisher, or test administrator. (c)(1) The Secretary may terminate an agreement with a test publisher if the test publisher fails to carry out the terms of the agreement described in paragraph (b) of this section. (2) Before terminating the agreement, the Secretary gives the test publisher the opportunity to show that it has not failed to carry out the terms of its agreement. (3) If the Secretary terminates an agreement with a test publisher under this section, the Secretary notifies institutions through publication in the (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61842, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] (a)(1) To establish a student's eligibility for Title IV, HEA program funds under this subpart, if a student has not passed an approved state test, under §668.143, an institution must select a certified test administrator to give an approved test. (2) An institution may use the results of an approved test it received from an approved test publisher or assessment center to determine a student's eligibility to receive Title IV, HEA programs funds if the test was independently administered and properly administered. (b) The Secretary considers that a test is independently administered if the test is— (1) Given at an assessment center by a test administrator who is an employee of the center; or (2) Given by a test administrator who— (i) Has no current or prior financial or ownership interest in the institution, its affiliates, or its parent corporation, other than the interest obtained through its agreement to administer the test, and has no controlling interest in any other educational institution; (ii) Is not a current or former employee of or consultant to the institution, its affiliates, or its parent corporation, a person in control of another institution, or a member of the family of any of these individuals; (iii) Is not a current or former member of the board of directors, a current or former employee of or a consultant to a member of the board of directors, chief executive officer, chief financial officer of the institution or its parent corporation or at any other institution, or a member of the family of any of the above individuals; and (iv) Is not a current or former student of the institution. (c) The Secretary considers that a test is not independently administered if an institution— (1) Compromises test security or testing procedures; (2) Pays a test administrator a bonus, commission, or any other incentive based upon the test scores or pass rates of its students who take the test; (3) Otherwise interferes with the test administrator's independence or test administration. (d) The Secretary considers that a test is properly administered if the test administrator— (1) Is certified by the test publisher to give the publisher's test; (2) Administers the test in accordance with instructions provided by the test publisher, and in a manner that ensures the integrity and security of the test; (3) Makes the test available only to a test-taker, and then only during a regularly scheduled test; (4) Secures the test against disclosure or release; (5) Submits the completed test to the test publisher within two business days after test administration in accordance with the test publisher's instructions; and (6) Upon request, gives the Secretary, guaranty agency, licensing agency, accrediting agency, and law enforcement agencies access to test records or other documents related to an audit, investigation, or program review of the institution, or test publisher. (e) Except as provided in §668.152, a certified test administrator may not score a test. (f) A student who fails to pass a test approved under this subpart may not retake the same form of the test for the period prescribed by the test's publisher. (g) An institution shall maintain a record for each student who took a test under this subpart of— (1) The test taken by the student; (2) The date of the test; and (3) The student's scores as reported by the test publisher, assessment center, or State. (Authority: U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61842, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996; 67 FR 67073, Nov. 1, 2002] (a)(1) If a test is given by an assessment center, the assessment center shall properly administer the test as described in §668.151(d). (2) [Reserved] (b)(1) Unless an agreement between a test publisher and an assessment center indicates otherwise, an assessment center scores the tests it gives and promptly notifies the institution and the student of the student's score on the test and whether the student passed the test. (2) If the assessment center scores the test, it must provide annually to the test publisher— (i) All copies of completed tests; or (ii) A report listing all test-takers' scores and institutions to which the scores were sent. (Authority: U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61843, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] Except as provided in §668.143— (a) Students whose native language is not English. For a student whose native language is not English and who is not fluent in English, the institution shall use the following tests, as applicable: (1) If the student is enrolled in a program conducted entirely in his or her native language, the student must take a test approved under §§668.146 and 668.148(a)(2), or 668.149(b). (2) If the student is enrolled in a program that is taught in English with an ESL component, and the student is enrolled in that program and the ESL component, the student must take either an ESL test approved under §668.148(b), or a test in the student's native language approved under §§668.146, 668.148 or 668.149. (3) If the student is enrolled in a program that is taught in English without an ESL component, or the student does not enroll in the ESL component if the institution offers such a component, the student must take a test in English approved under §668.146. (4) If the student enrolls in an ESL program, the student must take an ESL test approved under §668.148(b); and (b) Persons with disabilities. (1) An institution shall use a test described in §668.148(a)(3) or 668.149(a) for a student with a documented impairment who has neither a high school diploma nor its equivalent and who is applying for Title IV, HEA program funds. (2) The test must reflect the student's skills and general learned abilities rather than reflect the student's impairment. (3) The institution shall document that a student is disabled and unable to be evaluated by the use of a conventional test from the list of tests approved by the Secretary. (4) Documentation of a student's impairment may be satisfied by— (i) A written determination, including a diagnosis and recommended testing accommodations, by a licensed psychologist or medical physician; or (ii) A record of such a determination by an elementary or secondary school or a vocational rehabilitation agency, including a diagnosis and recommended testing accommodations. (Authority: U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61843, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996] An institution shall be liable for the Title IV, HEA program funds disbursed to a student whose eligibility is determined under this subpart only if the institution— (a) Used a test administrator who was not independent of the institution at the time the test was given; (b) Compromises the testing process in any way; or (c) Is unable to document that the student received a passing score on an approved test. (Authority: U.S.C. 1091(d)) (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, an institution may continue to base an eligibility determination under section 484(d) of the HEA for a student on a test that was an approved test as of June 30, 1996, and the passing score on that test, until 60 days after the Secretary publishes in the (b) If an institution properly based a student's eligibility determination for purposes of section 484(d) of the HEA on a test and passing score that was in effect on June 30, 1996, the institution does not have to redetermine the student's eligibility based upon a test and passing score that was approved under §§668.143 through 668.149. (Authority: U.S.C. 1091(d)) (a)(1) A State that wishes the Secretary to consider its State process as an alternative to achieving a passing score on an approved, independently administered test for the purpose of determining a student's eligibility for Title IV, HEA program funds must apply to the Secretary for approval of that process. (2) To be an approved State process, the State process does not have to include all the institutions located in that State, but must indicate which institutions are included. (b) The Secretary approves a State's process if— (1) The State administering the process can demonstrate that the students it admits under that process without a high school diploma or its equivalent, who enroll in participating institutions have a success rate as determined under paragraph (h) of this section that is within 95 percent of the success rate of students with high school diplomas; and (2) The State's process satisfies the requirements contained in paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section. (c) A State process must require institutions participating in the process to provide each student they admit without a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent with the following services— (1) Orientation regarding the institution's academic standards and requirements, and student rights; (2) Assessment of each student's existing capabilities through means other than a single standardized test; (3) Tutoring in basic verbal and quantitative skills, if appropriate; (4) Assistance in developing educational goals; (5) Counseling, including counseling regarding the appropriate class level for that student given the student's individual's capabilities; and (6) Follow-up by teachers and counselors regarding the student's classroom performance and satisfactory progress toward program completion. (d) A State process must— (1) Monitor on an annual basis each participating institution's compliance with the requirements and standards contained in the State's process; (2) Require corrective action if an institution is found to be in noncompliance with the State process requirements; and (3) Terminate an institution from the State process if the institution refuses or fails to comply with the State process requirements. (e)(1) The Secretary responds to a State's request for approval of its State's process within six months after the Secretary's receipt of that request. If the Secretary does not respond by the end of six months, the State's process becomes effective. (2) An approved State process becomes effective for purposes of determining student eligibility for Title IV, HEA program funds under this subpart six months after the date on which the State submits the process to the Secretary for approval, if the Secretary approves, or does not disapprove, the process during that six month period. (f) The Secretary approves a State process for a period not to exceed five years. (g)(1) The Secretary withdraws approval of a State process if the Secretary determines that the State process violated any terms of this section or that the information that the State submitted as a basis for approval of the State process was inaccurate. (2) The Secretary provides a State with the opportunity to contest a finding that the State process violated any terms of this section or that the information that the State submitted as a basis for approval of the State process was inaccurate. (h) The State shall calculate the success rates as referenced in paragraph (b) of this section by— (1) Determining the number of students with high school diplomas who, during the applicable award year described in paragraph (i) of this section, enrolled in participating institutions and— (i) Successfully completed education or training programs; (ii) Remained enrolled in education or training programs at the end of that award year; or (iii) Successfully transferred to and remained enrolled in another institution at the end of that award year; (2) Determining the number of students with high school diplomas who enrolled in education or training programs in participating institutions during that award year; (3) Determining the number of students calculated in paragraph (h)(2) of this section who remained enrolled after subtracting the number of students who subsequently withdrew or were expelled from participating institutions and received a 100 percent refund of their tuition under the institutions' refund policies; (4) Dividing the number of students determined in paragraph (h)(1) of this section by the number of students determined in paragraph (h)(3) of this section; (5) Making the calculations described in paragraphs (h)(1) through (h)(4) of this section for students without a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent who enrolled in participating institutions. (i) For purposes of paragraph (h) of this section, the applicable award year is the latest complete award year for which information is available that immediately precedes the date on which the State requests the Secretary to approve its State process, except that the award year selected must be one of the latest two completed award years preceding that application date. (Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1091(d)) [60 FR 61843, Dec. 1, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 31035, June 19, 1996]
Title 34: Education
PART 668—STUDENT ASSISTANCE GENERAL PROVISIONS
Subpart J—Approval of Independently Administered Tests; Specification of Passing Score; Approval of State Process
§ 668.141 Scope.
§ 668.142 Special definitions.
§ 668.143 Approval of State tests or assessments.
§ 668.144 Application for test approval.
§ 668.145 Test approval procedures.
§ 668.146 Criteria for approving tests.
§ 668.147 Passing scores.
§ 668.148 Additional criteria for the approval of certain tests.
§ 668.149 Special provisions for the approval of assessment procedures for special populations for whom no tests are reasonably available.
§ 668.150 Agreement between the Secretary and a test publisher.
§ 668.151 Administration of tests.
§ 668.152 Administration of tests by assessment centers.
§ 668.153 Administration of tests for students whose native language is not English or for persons with disabilities.
§ 668.154 Institutional accountability.
§ 668.155 Transitional rule for the 1996–97 award year.
§ 668.156 Approved State process.
