(a) Any unaccredited institution shall disclose in all catalogs, promotional materials, and contracts for instruction, the fact that the institution is not accredited by any nationally recognized accrediting agency listed by the United States Secretary of Education. The disclosure shall be made in a type size as large or larger than any other text in the catalog, promotional material, or contract for instruction, excluding the name of the unaccredited institution, and shall be presented in a manner reasonably calculated to draw the attention of the reader. If the unaccredited institution includes in its catalogs, promotional materials, or contracts for instruction any other information relating in any manner to accreditation, or to accreditation by an agency not nationally recognized by the United States Secretary of Education, the disclosure required by this subsection shall be repeated on every page on which the information appears. Where the information is presented electronically, the disclosure shall be made directly preceding or following the information. The disclosure shall read as follows:

(Name of Degree Granting Institution) IS NOT ACCREDITED

BY AN ACCREDITING AGENCY

RECOGNIZED BY THE UNITED STATES

SECRETARY OF EDUCATION.

Note: In the United States, many licensing authorities require accredited degrees as the basis for eligibility for licensing. In some cases, accredited colleges may not accept for transfer courses and degrees completed at unaccredited colleges, and some employers may require an accredited degree as a basis for eligibility for employment.

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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 446E-2

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Degree: means a post-secondary credential, earned or honorary, conferring on the recipient the title or designation of "associate" "bachelor" "baccalaureate" "master" "doctor" or "doctorate" or any designation, mark, appellation, series of letters or words, or other symbol which signifies, purports, or is generally taken to signify satisfactory completion of the requirements of an academic or professional program of study beyond the secondary school level. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 446E-1
  • Director: means the director of commerce and consumer affairs. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 446E-1
  • Student: means a person who enrolls in or seeks to enroll in a course of instruction offered or conducted by an unaccredited institution. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 446E-1
  • Unaccredited institution: means a degree granting institution that is not accredited or a candidate for accreditation by at least one nationally recognized accrediting agency that is listed by the United States Secretary of Education. See Hawaii Revised Statutes 446E-1
(b) Where promotional material for an unaccredited institution consists of an advertisement in a periodical published by a person or entity that is not affiliated with the unaccredited institution, the disclosure required in subsection (a) may be abbreviated to state as follows: NOT ACCREDITED BY AN AGENCY RECOGNIZED BY THE U.S. SECRETARY OF EDUCATION. The disclosure required under this subsection shall be made in a type size as large or larger than any other text in the advertisement.
(c) Every unaccredited institution subject to this chapter shall keep true and accurate records of student enrollment, courses, fees, and matriculation rates. These records shall be retained for five years. Upon demand, these records, and any other information requested or subpoenaed by the director, shall be made available to the director.

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