As the popularity of postsecondary online education increases, so have compliance risks. Courses must comply with a complex regulatory framework including federal, state, and accreditation regulations and standards. This session identifies core areas of compliance to consider when designing an online course, and examines the differences between compliance and quality.
Indiana University (IU) is committed to promoting a culture of compliance. The Office of Online Education is a university-wide office is responsible for ensuring that all online courses, programs, and practices comply with standards and regulations imposed by accreditors and with federal and state law. In addition, OOE is responsible for identifying and implementing best practices in online education established by academic and other organizations, as well as best practices demonstrated by other institutions.
The presentation will begin with a very brief overview of online education at IU. Through “IU Online,” the brand representing online programs at IU, OOE currently hosts 110 online program offerings, including associate degrees, bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees, and certificates. More than 28% of all IU students take at least one online course and 8% of our total enrollments are students with fully online schedules. IU has approximately 4,700 students currently enrolled in our online plans.
The presentation will then provide an overview of the regulatory triad of state, federal and accreditor regulations that affect online education, along with a list of the various laws, regulations or policies that affect the design and development of an online course. A review of various compliance terms and definitions will be addressed, including an examination of the differences between “distance” and “correspondence” education, and what it means to have “regular and substantive interaction.” Core compliance areas will be identified for online course design, including ADA, Title 34 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Sec. 600, Title IV of the Higher Education Act, the Council of Regional Accrediting Commissions (C-RAC), The Higher Learning Commission, and the State Authorization Reciprocity Program (SARA), and an overview of the risks to students and the institution in instances of noncompliance will be provided.
The presentation will wrap up with a proposed “Online Course Compliance Rubric” that will include an identification of the law or regulation, description for compliance, course components to consider when assessing compliance with a particular regulation, and evidence of compliance within a course. Finally, a comparison and discussion of this rubric against known standards for quality assurance and best practices in online course design will conclude the session.